(Nashville, Tennessee) January 15, 2020 – Chef and restaurateur Sean Brock has been tapped to conceptualize and operate a signature restaurant for Grand Hyatt Nashville, which is slated to open in Fall 2020 within the 17-acre Nashville Yards project. Brock will bring to life a reimagined take on continental cuisine and classic American fare. Located on the entry-level of Grand Hyatt Nashville, the restaurant will offer a lively and comfortable atmosphere with an ageless and elegant feel, making it a destination dining experience for locals and visitors alike.
Brock, a James Beard Award-winning chef and cookbook author, has specifically developed this concept to anchor the luxury hotel property. With this new venture, the Nashville-based chef embraces a new vision for what a modern hotel restaurant can be, complete with elegant design, throwback service style, and timeless cuisine. Guests can expect contemporary renditions of luxury favorites from the 19th and 20th centuries, such as Crab Louie, Lobster Thermidor, and Oysters Rockefeller, as well as traditional Gueridon service offering tableside cart presentation of dishes like Trout Amandine, Caesar Salad, Crepes Suzette, and more. Whole Roasted Chicken will be a menu staple, carved tableside, as well as Beef Wellington from the Gueridon. The forthcoming restaurant will meld Brock’s passion for culinary history with the traditional elegance of fine dining to create an unparalleled experience.
“The idea is to truly embrace and be inspired by the original great American hotel restaurants, to invigorate the spirit of those historic dishes” said Brock. “This will be a place for diners to share a satisfying and leisurely meal together, host a power lunch, or partake in celebration. The restaurant will embody the idea of a celebratory attitude towards eating out, no matter the occasion.”
Designed by Nick Dryden of DAAD, the space will feature plush banquettes, two bars—one open and lively while the other will be warm and intimate—and large booths to create a cozy and comfortable atmosphere, encouraging guests to sit and stay a while. The luxurious feel of the restaurant will fit right in with the other spaces slated for the 25-floor Grand Hyatt Nashville, which will feature a bold and vibrant design, 591 contemporary guestrooms, 77,000 square feet of event space, multiple bars, a rooftop lounge, a 5th floor pool deck overlooking Music City, a Grand Club Lounge, and a world-class spa and fitness center.
“We are thrilled for Grand Hyatt Nashville’s restaurant collaboration with Sean Brock – one of the most celebrated, iconic chefs in the country – who will offer guests and visitors an exceptional, captivating restaurant experience,” said George Vizer, senior vice president, franchise operations, Hyatt. “The Grand Hyatt brand is all about celebrating the iconic and magnificent moments – and this signature dining experience will help Grand Hyatt Nashville deliver on this brand mission by celebrating classic, elevated American cuisine through Chef Brock’s culinary artistry.”
Nashville Yards will be a walkable, urban community featuring high-end hospitality offerings in addition to the Grand Hyatt Nashville and signature restaurant by Chef Brock, including exceptional retail and restaurant options, a four-acre entertainment district and concert venue spearheaded by AEG Worldwide and MGM, and creative and Class-A+ office space anchoring Amazon’s future Operations Center of Excellence.
“Chef Brock has earned a reputation as one of the most innovative chefs in the nation, but his talents extend far beyond the kitchen,” said Cary Mack, co-managing partner of Southwest Value Partners, the owner and developer of Nashville Yards. “After working with Sean for months to develop this restaurant concept, I’ve seen firsthand that he brings unparalleled passion and raw talent to all facets of the process – from the design and aesthetics of the dining environment to the culture and values he instills upon his team – and it’s clear Chef Brock’s attitude, integrity, and passion is perfectly aligned with our overarching vision for Nashville Yards. The restaurant will be a crown jewel for the Grand Hyatt Nashville, positioning Nashville Yards as a leading destination for refreshing and inventive culinary experiences, and we’re very excited to bring it to life.”
The term “Hyatt” is used in this release for convenience to refer to Hyatt Hotels Corporation and/or one or more of its affiliates.
About Sean Brock
For the past 12 years, Chef Sean Brock was the chef of McCrady’s in Charleston, South Carolina. Sean was also the Founding Chef of the Husk restaurant concepts throughout the American South. Raised in rural Virginia, he has been involved in the repatriation of the Southern pantry and cuisine for the past 20 years. In 2010, Brock won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southeast, and is a four-time finalist for Outstanding Chef, as well as a three-time finalist for Rising Star Chef. His cookbook, Heritage, is a New York Times Bestseller and the winner of the 2015 James Beard Award for American Cooking. Brock hosted season 2 of the Emmy Award-winning television show Mind of a Chef, produced by Anthony Bourdain. Sean was recently featured on the popular Netflix show Chef’s Table and released the highly anticipated follow up to his first cookbook in 2019. Chef Brock most recently started a lifelong project entitled “Before it’s Too Late” dedicated to recording and sharing the cultural and culinary wisdom of the American South. The project includes a podcast, his personal photography and eventually a large format book to showcase his discoveries.
About Nashville Yards
Nashville Yards is a 17-acre development located in the heart of downtown Nashville. When complete, the project will be a walkable, urban community featuring high-end hospitality offerings, including a luxury Grand Hyatt, exceptional retail and restaurant options, a four-acre entertainment district and concert venue spearheaded by AEG Worldwide and MGM, and creative and Class-A+ office space anchoring Amazon’s future Operations Center of Excellence. The development will benefit from open plazas and green spaces, including a 1.3-acre urban park that will span the west side of the project from Broadway to Church Street. To learn more about Nashville Yards, visit www.nashvilleyards.com or follow @NashvilleYards on Twitter and Instagram.
About Grand Hyatt
Around the world, Grand Hyatt hotels bring travel dreams to life by celebrating the iconic in small details and magnificent moments. Located at the crossroads of local culture and global business within major gateway cities and resort destinations, each Grand Hyatt hotel is uniquely designed to be a captivating destination within a destination. Grand Hyatt hotels deliver welcoming and elevated service, first-class accommodations and an abundance of options within a multicultural backdrop of dramatic architecture and bold and vibrant design. Grand Hyatt properties boast inventive restaurants, luxury spas, fitness centers, and business and meeting facilities. For additional information or to make a reservation, please visit grandhyatt.com. Follow @GrandHyatt on Facebook and Instagram, and tag photos with #GrandHyatt.
###
Forward-Looking Statement
Forward-Looking Statements in this press release, which are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include statements about our plans, strategies, outlook, occupancy, ADR and growth trends, market share, the number of properties we expect to open in the future, our expected adjusted SG&A expense, our estimated comparable system-wide RevPAR growth, our estimated Adjusted EBITDA growth, our expected net rooms growth, maintenance and enhancement to existing properties capital expenditures, investments in new properties capital expenditures, depreciation and amortization expense and interest expense estimates, financial performance, prospects or future events and involve known and unknown risks that are difficult to predict. As a result, our actual results, performance or achievements may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as "may," "could," "expect," "intend," "plan," "seek," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential," "continue," "likely," "will," "would" and variations of these terms and similar expressions, or the negative of these terms or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us and our management, are inherently uncertain. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to, general economic uncertainty in key global markets and a worsening of global economic conditions or low levels of economic growth; the rate and the pace of economic recovery following economic downturns; levels of spending in business and leisure segments as well as consumer confidence; declines in occupancy and average daily rate; limited visibility with respect to future bookings; loss of key personnel; hostilities, or fear of hostilities, including future terrorist attacks, that affect travel; travel-related accidents; natural or man-made disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, oil spills, nuclear incidents, and global outbreaks of pandemics or contagious diseases or fear of such outbreaks; our ability to successfully achieve certain levels of operating profits at hotels that have performance tests or guarantees in favor of our third-party owners; the impact of hotel renovations and redevelopments; risks associated with our capital allocation plans and common stock repurchase program and other forms of shareholder capital return, including the risk that our common stock repurchase program could increase volatility and fail to enhance shareholder value; our intention to pay a quarterly cash dividend and the amounts thereof, if any; the seasonal and cyclical nature of the real estate and hospitality businesses; changes in distribution arrangements, such as through internet travel intermediaries; changes in the tastes and preferences of our customers; relationships with colleagues and labor unions and changes in labor laws; the financial condition of, and our relationships with, third-party property owners, franchisees, and hospitality venture partners; the possible inability of third-party owners, franchisees, or development partners to access capital necessary to fund current operations or implement our plans for growth; risks associated with potential acquisitions and dispositions and the introduction of new brand concepts; the timing of acquisitions and dispositions, and our ability to successfully integrate completed acquisitions with existing operations; failure to successfully complete proposed transactions (including the failure to satisfy closing conditions or obtain required approvals); our ability to successfully execute on our strategy to expand our management and franchising business while at the same time reducing our real estate asset base within targeted timeframes and at expected values; declines in the value of our real estate assets; unforeseen terminations of our management or franchise agreements; changes in federal, state, local, or foreign tax law; the impact of changes in the tax code as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and uncertainty as to how some of those changes may be applied; increases in interest rates and operating costs; foreign exchange rate fluctuations or currency restructurings; lack of acceptance of new brands or innovation; general volatility of the capital markets and our ability to access such markets; changes in the competitive environment in our industry, including as a result of industry consolidation, and the markets where we operate; our ability to successfully grow the World of Hyatt loyalty program; cyber incidents and information technology failures; outcomes of legal or administrative proceedings; violations of regulations or laws related to our franchising business; and other risks discussed in the Company's filings with the SEC, including our annual report on Form 10-K, which filings are available from the SEC. All forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements set forth above. We caution you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which are made only as of the date of this press release. We do not undertake or assume any obligation to update publicly any of these forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, new information or future events, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking statements, except to the extent required by applicable law. If we update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that we will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.
Media Contacts:
Sean Brock:
Sprouthouse Agency:
Melany Robinson
melany@sprouthouseagency.com
Sarah Daniel
sarah@sprouthouseagency.com
Diana Barton
diana@sprouthouseagency.com
Nashville Yards & Grand Hyatt Nashville:
Alexandra Sollberger
Alexandra.sollberger@stonesrivergroup.com
Hyatt:
Jorian Weiner
jorian.weiner@hyatt.com