Hall of Fame Awards

FRLA Announces the 2008 Florida Hospitality Hall of Fame Inductees

For Immediate Release: June 24, 2008

The Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association Announces the 2008 Hospitality Hall of Fame Inductees
The Coca-Cola Systems, Robert Johnston of Melting Pot Restaurants and Frank Flautt of Sandcastles Resorts & Hotels Chosen as this Year’s Award Winners

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association announced the 2008 Hospitality Hall of Fame inductees at this month’s Summer 2008 Board of Directors Meeting in Destin, Fla.: The Coca-Cola Systems, Supplier of the Year; Robert Johnston, Restaurateur of the Year; and Frank Flautt, Hotelier of the Year. This is the highest honor in Florida’s hospitality industry and is awarded by the FRLA Board of Directors, comprised of the nation’s leading restaurateurs and hoteliers. Winners are chosen based on their personal record of industry achievement over a period of at least 20 years, and only those nominees who have attained career distinctions of the highest level and are held in high esteem for their distinguished service to their industry, community, charitable organizations and family are considered.

The Coca-Cola Systems, the 2008 Supplier of the Year, will be honored at an awards presentation at the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show Gala on September 5, 2008. The Gala will take place at Hard Rock Live at Universal City Walk in Orlando.

The Hotelier and Restaurateur of the Year Awards will be presented at the FRLA formal gala in Orlando on January 25, 2009. The 2008 Restaurateur of the Year Robert Johnston is President and COO of The Melting Pot Restaurants, Inc. The 2008 Hotelier of the Year Frank Flautt is Co-founder of Sandcastles Resorts & Hotels, which owns and operates the Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort & Spa and the Bay Point Marriott Resort & Spa in Panama City.

“As the first inductees into the newly renamed “Hospitality Hall of Fame,” these esteemed members join FRLA’s past “Lifetime Achievement Award” and “Supplier of the Year” honorees, a list of some of the most influential leaders in the history of the Florida hospitality industry,” said Carol Dover, President-CEO of FRLA. “We are honored to present this top industry honor to three of the most respected and deserving members of our industry.”

Past honorees include Joe Lee, Darden Restaurants; Cesar Gonzmart, Columbia Restaurants; Fred DeLuca, Subway; Dave Thomas, Wendy’s; James McLamore, Burger King; Bob Basham, Tim Gannon and Chris Sullivan, Outback Steakhouse; Michael Hurst, Fifteenth Street Fisheries; Bob Leonard, IHOP/FMS Management Systems, Inc.; Jack and Claire Miller, Ale House Restaurants, Inc.; Bern Laxter, Bern’s Steakhouse; Charley Woodsby, Talk of the Town Restaurants; Gene Knippers, Beef ‘O’Brady’s; True Foodservice; Entertainment Publications; National Distributing Company; Wachovia Davis Baldwin; Heartland Payment Systems; SYSCO; Infinite Energy; AmeriGas.

In existence since 1946, the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association is Florida’s premier non-profit, hospitality industry trade association. FRLA safeguards the needs of the hospitality industry, improves the business climate, promotes the highest levels of quality and safety for our patrons, provides legislative advocacy, and eases navigation of government regulation. The Association represents and serves more than 10,000 independent and household name members, including theme parks and the largest casual theme restaurant company in the world.

To learn more about the FRLA, visit www.frla.org or call 888-372-9119 to find out how you can get involved.

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