Whalen takes Johnny's concept into new markets

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| Wednesday, July 21, 2004 11:51 PM CDT | () comments

Jennifer DeWitt

Johnny's Italian Steakhouse, the latest brand of Heart of America Restaurants & Inns, is expanding into two new markets in Omaha, Neb., and Middleton, Wis.

The two restaurants will be located in open-air shopping and entertainment facilities, or lifestyle centers, being developed by RED Development LLC, co-headquartered in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Kansas City, Mo.

The new restaurant concept made its debut about 18 months ago in Des Moines, where it borrowed the name from two 1940s supper clubs: Johnnies Vets Club and Johnny & Kay's.

Heart of America then introduced it at Moline's John Deere Commons a few months later in the site of its former Planted Earth restaurant. The third Johnny's recently opened in Peoria, Ill.

"After our success with Johnny's Italian Steakhouse in Peoria at The Shoppes at Grand Prairie, we wanted to team up with the nation's premier lifestyle developer in these two outstanding projects," said Mike Whalen, Heart of America's owner and chief executive officer. "The upscale, fun nature of Johnny's fits very well into RED's upscale retail environment."

In Omaha, Johnny's will join the Village Pointe lineup, which includes Scheels All Sports, Coldwater Creek, Z Gallerie and Jos. A. Bank. The total development is a 600,000-square-foot project. The Middleton project, known as Greenway Station, will feature tenants such as DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse), Galyan's, The Sharper Image and J.Jill.

"The main street in the Omaha project is called Davenport Street, which we saw as a good omen," said Whalen, who opened his first restaurant, the Machine Shed, 26 years ago in Davenport.

Construction is slated to begin immediately in Omaha, with a year-end opening scheduled. The restaurant in Middleton, a suburb of Madison, should be open next spring. Both cities represent new markets for Heart of America.

The new restaurants will feature a 7,888-square-foot prototype that will combine design elements from the three existing Johnny's. It will seat more than 300 and another 40 on its outdoor patio.

"We're very excited about expanding Johnny's into such vibrant markets only a year and a half after the opening of the first Johnny's Italian Steakhouse," Whalen said. He said the "exciting, hot concept" is attracting attention from retail developers and breaking company sales records.

The Iowa-based company � with headquarters in Moline � expects to continue expanding the brand across the Midwest, where it operates 16 restaurants and nine hotels. Its other brands include The Machine Sheds, Thunder Bay Grilles and Gramma's Kitchen.

Jennifer DeWitt can be contacted at (563) 383-2318 or jdewitt@qctimes.com.