NEW ORLEANS, LA (April 2, 2003) — World-renowned chef and media personality Emeril Lagasse announced today that he will open a restaurant in Miami Beach, Florida. The new restaurant, the ninth by Lagasse, will be called Emeril’s Restaurant Miami Beach. It is scheduled to open at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel in November 2003. Lagasse has two other restaurants in Florida, including Emeril’s Restaurant Orlando, which opened in February 1999; and Emeril’s Tchoup Chop (pronounced chop-chop) which opened in January 2003 at the Royal Pacific Resort at Universal Orlando, a Loews Hotel.
“We are very excited about our continued relationship with the folks at Loews Hotels,” says Emeril Lagasse. “The property in Miami Beach is extremely impressive and we are looking forward to having an Emeril’s restaurant in the Miami community. The palette of Miami Beach represents a lot of what we believe in — the people, the spirit and the weather conditions. We have been very selective in where we go but all of us are so excited about being a part of Miami.”

“We are thrilled that Loews Miami Beach Hotel will be Emeril’s homebase in Miami Beach,” said Loews Hotels Chairman and CEO, Jonathan Tisch. “Extending our partnership with Emeril from Orlando to South Beach is wonderful. He is tremendously inventive and is a master at creating dining destinations. There is no doubt that the Emeril’s Miami Beach will be a big attraction for our guests and South Floridians alike.” Like at Lagasse’s flagship restaurant, Emeril’s in New Orleans, the menu will feature what Lagasse calls “new” New Orleans cuisine, Creole cuisine combined with a variety of ethnic influences. The menu will also include the unique products and creative cuisines of South Florida and the Miami Beach area.

The restaurant is being designed by Rockwell Group of New York City, and is sure to include many of the signature touches that the Rockwell Group and Lagasse have developed, while paying homage to the architectural grandeur and significance of the unique, historical art deco property. Emeril’s Restaurant Miami Beach will occupy a ground floor space of approximately 8,000 square feet and will seat 180 patrons in the dining room, 40 in the exterior café, 10 at the food bar and 10 at the bar.

“Emeril’s cuisine in a Rockwell designed space will be a great addition to the vibrant Miami Beach food scene,” said Charlie Hines, Managing Director of the Loews Miami Beach Hotel “We’re excited that Miami Beach’s newest dining hotspot will be right here at the Loews!”

Chef Emeril Lagasse is currently the chef/proprietor of seven restaurants including three in New Orleans (Emeril’s Restaurant, NOLA and Emeril’s Delmonico); two in Las Vegas (Emeril’s New Orleans Fish House and Delmonico Steakhouse); and two in Orlando (Emeril’s Restaurant Orlando) and (Emeril’s Tchoup Chop), at Universal Orlando’s Royal Pacific Resort, a Loews Hotel. His eighth, Emeril’s Restaurant Atlanta is scheduled to open in summer 2003.

Lagasse became a national TV personality with the Food Network’s production of “The Essence of Emeril”and “Emeril Live” which reaches over 70 million homes daily. In addition, Lagasse is a food correspondent for ABC’s “Good Morning America.” Also an established cookbook author, Chef Emeril Lagasse has authored seven books including Emeril’s New New Orleans Cooking, Louisiana Real and Rustic, Emeril’s Creole Christmas, Emeril’s TV Dinners, Every Day’s A Party, Prime Time Emeril and the kids cookbook, Emeril’s There ’s A Chef in My Soup! In September 2000, his book sales exceeded two million. Lagasse’s corporate office, Emeril’s Homebase, is located in New Orleans. Emeril’s Homebase houses Lagasse’s restaurant operations, as well as cookbook and recipe development and testing, product shipping, the emerils.com website, and a store front for Lagasse’s signature products.

Loews Hotels currently owns and/or operates 18 hotels and resorts in the U.S. and Canada. The company has recently opened six new properties, with two more in various stages of development. These include the first ever House of Blues Hotel, a Loews Hotel, a 367-room property located in Chicago’s Marina City that opened in October 1998, and the opening of the 800-room Loews Miami Beach Hotel in December 1998. In April of 2000, Loews opened the 585-room Loews Philadelphia Hotel, a conversion of the landmark PSFS building. And, as part of a joint venture with Universal, Inc. and the Rank Organisation, Loews Hotels has opened three hotels located at Universal Orlando. The 750-room Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando, a Loews Hotel, opened in September 1999 and the 650-room Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Orlando opened in January of 2001. The 1,000-room Royal Pacific Resort at Universal Orlando, a Loews Hotel opened in June 2002. Scheduled to open in 2003 is the 285-room Loews New Orleans Hotel, a conversion of an office building located across the street from the city’s only casino and a short walk from the French Quarter and the New Orleans Convention Center. In addition to developing new hotels, Loews added another property to the chain in December 2000 by assuming management of the historic Jefferson Hotel in Washington, DC. For reservations or more information on Loews Hotels, call 1-800-23-LOEWS or check www.loewshotels.com.
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