Rainforest Cafe
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Restaurant logo (2000-present) Shown at all locations except Disney Village
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Subsidiary | |
Industry | Restaurants |
Founded | Minneapolis, Minnesota (1994) |
Founder | Steven Schussler |
Headquarters | Houston, Texas, U.S. |
Number of locations
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29 restaurants |
Key people
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Steven Schussler,Founder Tilman J. FertittaChairman, President, and CEO |
Products | Pasta, Seafood, Salad, Sandwiches, Dessert; Merchandise[1] |
Revenue | US $108 million (1997)[2] |
$12 million (1997)[3] | |
Parent | Landry's Restaurants |
Website | RainforestCafe.com |
Rainforest Cafe is a themed restaurant chain owned by Landry's, Inc. of Houston, Texas. It was founded by entrepreneur Steven Schussler. The first location opened in the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota on February 3, 1994. By 1997, the chain consisted of six restaurants, all in the United States. In 1998, it was planned to build 12 additional restaurants in the United States, seven in Mexico, and five in the UK, for a total of 22 restaurants by 2008.[4]
In 2000, the Rainforest Cafe was bought by Landry's Restaurants Inc., a company specializing in dining, hospitality, entertainment, and gaming, based in Houston, Texas.[5] To date the company owns restaurants in the United States, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, the U.A.E., and Japan. Rainforest Cafe focuses on local tourism for a majority of their income.[6]
Contents
Themed ambiance
Each Rainforest Cafe restaurant is designed to depict some features of a tropical rainforest, including plant growth; mist; waterfalls; and figures of rainforest animals, including African forest elephants, frogs, gorillas, leopards, Bengal tigers, and tropical birds. To enhance this theme, some of the figures are animatronic, manufactured by Russells Creative, LLC of Apopka, Florida.[7] The star ceilings are designed and manufactured by Fiber Optic Systems Inc, located in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey.[8]
Most locations also have themed exteriors as well as interiors. The Rainforest Cafe in Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney), Orlando, is located under a large artificial volcano which erupts during the simulated thunderstorms. Others, such as the locations in Atlantic City; Anaheim; and Niagara Falls, New York; have the appearance of ancient jungle ruins, namely Palenque. Mall locations usually have waterfalls and simulated plant growth outside of them, visible to those who pass in the mall. Nearly all locations have a 'wishing pond', usually with an animatronic crocodile, where guests are invited to toss coins, aiming for the crocodile's mouth.
The restaurants are partitioned into several rooms by means of rain curtains that fall into basins running along the tops of partition walls and booths and aquatic tanks. One portion of most locations includes a bar located underneath an enormous mushroom. The chain is known for its characteristic barstools, made to resemble the legs of animals, designed and sculpted by the artist Glenn Carter.[9]
The staff of Rainforest Cafe are named in accordance with the rainforest theme. Waiters are called Safari Guides, hosts and hostesses are Tour Guides, sales clerks are Pathfinders, bartenders are Navigators, bussers are Safari Assistants, and kitchen staff are Trailblazers.
In all restaurants, located in the Retail Village, Rainforest Cafe has an animatronic tree named "Tracy Tree." The tree entertains guests every 5 minutes educating them about the rainforest.[10] Rainforest themed merchandise is sold in the gift shop, mostly printed by the Atlanta-based fashion apparel company, Boxercraft Inc.[11] Toys including stuffed toys and action figures of the restaurant mascots are sold as well.
Rainforest cafe also has a set of mascots, called "The Wild Bunch". These characters include Cha! Cha!, the red eye tree frog; Iggy, the iguana; Nile, the crocodile; Rio, a macaw; Maya, the leopard; Tuki, the elephant; Bamba, the Gorilla; and Ozzie, the orangutan. These eight characters can be found on children's menus, merchandise, as well as the company logo (which lacks Tuki and Ozzie, though older logos may include Ozzie).
Menu
Rainforest Cafe serves food ranging from seafood, beef, and chicken to pastas and pizzas.[12] Dishes are named in accordance to the Rainforest Theme including the "Rainforest Burger", "Tribal Salmon", and "Amazon Fajitas". They may also be named based on Wild Bunch characters, such as the "Chimi-cha-cha" or "Bamba's Barbecue Wrap".
Rainforest Café generally serves Coca-Cola products, as well as ICEE. On the Kids menu there is an option to use a collector's cup for the ICEE.[13] Formerly called the "Pacific Rainbow", the cup now has a character head on top. A cup featuring Cha! Cha! is available indefinitely however other characters are made for the cups for about a year. All characters have been made so far. The bottom of these cups includes a screw-off compartment which houses a free action figure of the Wild Bunch character which the cup features on top.
Rainforest Café has a variety of desserts as well. Offered are a "Safari Sundae" and on the kids menu "Lava Mud" which is a pudding with chocolate cookies in it with gummy worms to emulate dirt. The largest and most popular dessert, however, is the Sparkling Volcano. A volcano is made of three wedge-shaped brownies with vanilla ice cream between them and whipped topping on top, drizzled with both chocolate and caramel sauce. Volcanoes were once served with a sparkler on top which the diner would blow out however it was replaced by a wooden rod with shiny ornamentation on it. Many locations, however, do insert and light a candle if it is in celebration of a party member's birthday. There is also the tradition of yelling "volcano!" by the wait staff every time a volcano is ordered.[14]
Locations
American locations
(*U.S. restaurants officially generate $80 million in annual revenue for Disney.)
- Anaheim, California – Downtown Disney at Disneyland Resort opened January 12, 2001*
- Atlantic City, New Jersey – In the closed Trump Plaza
- Lake Buena Vista, Florida – Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort opened April 22, 1998*
- Lake Buena Vista, Florida – Disney Springs opened on August 6, 1996, with about 450 seats *
- Las Vegas, Nevada - Harmon Corner- opened 2 September 2015
- Sunrise, Florida – Sawgrass Mills
- Bloomington, Minnesota – Mall of America opened on October 3, 1994 with 295 seats, also the first location.
- San Francisco – Fisherman's Wharf
- Ontario, California – Ontario Mills opened November 14, 1996
- Tempe, Arizona – Arizona Mills opened November 20, 1997
- Grapevine, Texas – Grapevine Mills opened October 30, 1997
- Katy, Texas – Katy Mills opened October 28, 1999
- Galveston, Texas
- San Antonio, Texas – River Walk
- Houston, Texas – Houston Galleria opened Spring 2009
- Niagara Falls, New York – Sheraton at the Falls opened June 3, 2015
- Chicago, Illinois – Downtown Chicago
- Gurnee, Illinois – Gurnee Mills
- Schaumburg, Illinois – Woodfield Mall opened October 1995
- Auburn Hills, Michigan – Detroit area – Great Lakes Crossing opened November 12, 1998
- Nashville, Tennessee – Opry Mills opened May 12, 2000 (March 29, 2012 after the 2010 flood)
- Edison, New Jersey – Menlo Park Mall
- Burlington, Massachusetts – Burlington Mall [15]
International locations
- Niagara Falls, Canada – Clifton Hill opened May 2001
- Tokyo, Japan – Ikspiari Shopping Mall near Tokyo Disney Resort opened July 7, 2000
- London, United Kingdom – Piccadilly Circus opened 1997 not owned nu Landry
- Paris, France – Disneyland Resort Paris opened 1999
- Dubai, U.A.E. – The Dubai Mall
Future locations
- Jakarta, Indonesia - Plaza Senayan 5th floor - to open in March 2016
Former locations
- Las Vegas – MGM Grand Las Vegas (Closed in August 2015; Moved to a new location) [16]
- Toronto, Canada – Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Opened in 1999; Closed in 2014)
- Costa Mesa, California – South Coast Plaza (Opened June 9, 1997; closed in 2013)
- Aventura, Florida - Aventura Mall (Closed in 2000)
- Overland Park, Kansas - Oak Park Mall (OpenedClosed in 2009)
- Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong - Festival Walk (Opened November 24, 1998; closed sometime in the 2000s)
- Norfolk, Virginia - MacArthur Center (Closed in 2001)
- Tysons Corner, Virginia - Tysons Corner Center (Closed in 2007)
- Westbury, New York - The Source Mall (Closed in 2000)
- West Nyack, New York - Palisades Center (Opened in 1998; Closed in 2002, replaced by The Cheesecake Factory)
- New York, New York - Times Square (Never Opened)
- Denver, Colorado - Cherry Creek Shopping Center (Closed in 2001)
- Towson, Maryland - Towson Town Center (1999-2009)
- Scarborough, Ontario - Scarborough Town Centre (Opened February 1999; closed in January 7, 2001)
- Trafford Centre - Manchester (Closed 2003)
- Burnaby, British Columbia - Metropolis at Metrotown (Opened June 1998 closed sometime in the 2000s)
- Mexico City, Mexico – Metropol Entertainment Central
- Cancun, Mexico – Plaza Forum By The Sea Opened 1997; closed 2010, replaced by Buca di Beppo (2010-2012), now the Terraza Bar (2015)
- Tlalnepantla, Mexico – Mundo E
- Mexico City, Mexico – Centro Santa Fe
- Istanbul, Turkey - İstinye Park (Closed in 2010)
- Farmington, Connecticut – Westfarms Mall (Closed in 2013)
- Cairo, Egypt - City Stars Mal (Opened February 2008; Closed possibly 2012, replaced by Planet Africa)l[17]
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Franklin Mills Mall (Closed in 2001)
- Paramus, New Jersey- Westfield Garden State Plaza (Never Opened)
- Montreal, Canada - Montreal Forum (Never Opened due to closure)
- Tukwila, Washington – Westfield Southcenter (Closed in January 2016)
References
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- ↑ http://www.pennycollector.com/Details.aspx?location=2810
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External links
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