T.G.I. Friday's® Celebrates Grand Re-Opening of Flagship Location

NEW YORK, Dec. 13, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- To honor its long-standing history in the Long Island community, T.G.I. Friday's restaurant hosted a night to remember at its newly renovated, flagship location in Westbury, NY. For nearly 30 years, Long Islanders have frequented the Westbury bar and restaurant for special celebrations or simply to blow off steam after a long workday. Since the early 1980s – when T.G.I. Friday's first popularized the Long Island Iced Tea cocktail – T.G.I. Friday's has expanded its Long Island presence to 15 locations.

To celebrate the grand re-opening, T.G.I. Friday's invited Long Island guests and local dignitaries for a night of entertainment. On December 9th, attendees were treated to food, drinks, a flair show from the company's famous World Bartending Champions and a special performance from Atlantic Records recording artist and Long Island-native Ryan Star.

"T.G.I. Friday's prides itself on knowing how to throw a party," said Ricky Richardson, Chief Concept Officer for T.G.I. Friday's. "Westbury is one of our oldest and most successful locations on Long Island and our guests fully embody T.G.I. Friday's infectious energy. In that spirit, Ryan Star's performance for our guests was the perfect ending to the celebration."

The 10,200-square-foot location features a renovated interior and exterior. The large, multi-level design incorporates the best elements from some of the top T.G.I. Friday's locations around the world. This includes exposed brick walls, red dining furniture, dark wood tables, a tin ceiling, and pop culture memorabilia accents. The new four-sided bar area, located at the center of the restaurant, serves as a symbol of T.G.I. Friday's heritage in and knowledge of mixing the greatest drinks and hosting the best happy hours.

The flagship bar and restaurant is located at 829 Merrick Ave, Westbury, NY 11590-6693. Hours of operation are from 11:00 a.m. ET daily to 1 a.m. ET on weeknights and 3 a.m. ET on Fridays and Saturdays.

About T.G.I. Friday's

T.G.I. Friday's restaurant offers authentic American food and exciting drinks in an atmosphere that provides an energizing Friday feeling - any day of the week. Friday's guest recognition program, Give Me More Stripes®, rewards our loyal users with great deals and fun events year-round, creating an engaging consumer experience. As the original casual dining restaurant, T.G.I. Friday's differentiates itself with a unique point of view which promises to exhilarate its guests with the feeling of Friday. T.G.I. Friday's, which operates more than 900 restaurants in more than 60 countries, is also famous for its knowledgeable and charismatic bartenders, approximately 8,000 of whom compete annually for the title of the "Greatest T.G.I. Friday's Bartender in the World."

T.G.I. Friday's is part of Carlson, a privately held, global hospitality company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Carlson encompasses more than 1,075 hotels including, Radisson®, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson(SM), Park Inn® and Park Plaza®; more than 900 restaurants including T.G.I. Friday's; and a majority stake in Carlson Wagonlit Travel; the global leader in business travel management.  Carlson operates in more than 150 countries and its brands employ about 150,000 people. For more information, visit www.fridays.com or www.carlson.com.

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SOURCE T.G.I. Friday's