Bill Allen, former CEO of Bloomin’ Brands, is the new chairman of the board of directors of Founders Table Restaurant Group—the parent company of Chopt Creative Salad Company and Dos Toros Taqueria, the company announced Monday.
Allen has more than 30 years of restaurant industry experience. He was the co-founder of Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse, which he sold to Bloomin’, and he served as president and CEO of French bakery-cafe chain La Madeleine.
Founders Table formed in January 2020, with a mission to “create, acquire and cultivate” founder-led restaurant concepts, the company said. It was created after 74-unit Chopt acquired 21-location Dos Toros.
"Bill is a long-time mentor and friend," Nick Marsh, CEO of Founders Table, said in a statement. "We have worked together for the past 10 years. He will be instrumental to me in crafting our growth strategy and shaping the organization to continue our profitable growth."
Allen has long been an investor and advisor for growth brands including Barteca, Hopdoddy, Mendocino Farms, P.F. Chang’s, Piada Italian Street Food, Velvet Taco and Uncle Julio’s.
He has worked with those concepts as part of his long-term partnership with private-equity firm L Catterton—the largest shareholder in Founders Table.
Late last year, Founders Table partnered with investment advisory group Pendulum Holdings to fund restaurants with high growth potential. The pairing’s first investment went to Fieldtrip, a three-unit fast-casual concept that focuses on the versatility of rice as an ingredient.
Robbie Robinson, Pendulum Holdings’ co-founder, was appointed to the Founders Table board last month.
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