2016 RH 25: Glacier Restaurant Group

Brad Ridgeway

Whitefish, MT

Annual Sales: $143 million

Units: 70

Key Personnel: 
• Brad Ridgeway, president
• Will Hagin, executive v.p./general counsel
• Ryan Fuller, c.o.o.
• James Blystone, v.p. marketing & communications
• Brad Townsend, v.p. supply chain

SINGLE CONCEPTS:
• Latitude 48 (contemporary upscale American cuisine)
• Red Room (a stylish lounge beneath Latitude 48)
• Craggy Range Bar & Grill (a multi-concept venue that features a casual dining room, a sports bar, an outdoor patio and a live music venue)

MULTIPLE CONCEPTS:
• Ciao Mambo (modern Italian restaurant; 3 units)
• MacKenzie River Pizza Grill & Pub (creative American cuisine; 
23 units)
• Max & Erma’s (a casual family concept, 42 units)

WHY IT’S COOL: GRG was created nearly 10 years ago and it has emerged as the largest Montana-based restaurant company. Certainly its Max & Erma’s holdings contribute to its size, but the group has done a stellar job of creating a flagship (MacKenzi) that has proven to be a tremendous growth vehicle. But the group has also demonstrated that it can open small restaurant concepts that extend its reach into several other areas. Montana is not a culinary hotbed, but folks there must be thrilled that GRG has staked its claim with several diverse offerings.  

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