Top kids' recipes to be featured in second annual kids cookbook benefiting the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
GREENWOOD VILLAGE, CO, August 13, 2007 /PRNewswire-/-- Red Robin Gourmet Burgers (Red Robin) is launching the second annual "The Next Gourmet Burger Kids' Recipe Contest." With a growing interest from kids in food-focused TV shows, cooking classes and celebrity chef cookbooks, Red Robin is following the success of the inaugural contest and is again asking kids ages six through 12 to share their culinary skills by inventing winning recipes for America's next gourmet burger. From Aug. 13 to Sept. 16, 2007, kids are invited to express their culinary creativity through "The Next Gourmet Burger Kids' Recipe Contest" by visiting their local Red Robin® restaurant to submit an original gourmet burger recipe and a 100-word statement on why their burger deserves to be America's next gourmet burger.
The contest encourages kids to play with their food and get creative in the kitchen with their family and friends to concoct their own gourmet burger recipe. The winning gourmet burger will be featured in every Red Robin® restaurant next summer.
Nacho cheese, gummy worms, fried pickles, pizza and chocolate were just a few of the inventive ingredients kids suggested to Red Robin for consideration as America's next gourmet burger in 2006. The Spicy Asian Burger, created by 10-year-old food connoisseur Adrianna Montgomery, from Raleigh, N.C., was selected as the winner of the inaugural contest. Adrianna's Asian-inspired burger featured a variety of 'foodie' ingredients like Napa cabbage, a ginger wasabi sauce and crispy wontons.
"Red Robin is all about kids and families. Our youngest guests continually amaze us with their sophisticated palates, so we are excited to encourage them to once again use their culinary creativity to invent America's next gourmet burger," said Kim McBee, Red Robin vice president of marketing. "We hope the 2007 contest continues to encourage our young guests and their families to enjoy quality, fun time together through cooking."
The winning gourmet burger and approximately 50 additional recipes from kids across the country will be selected for inclusion in a cookbook sold online at www.redrobin.com to benefit the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children® (NCMEC) next summer. Each gourmet burger included in the cookbook will be selected based on its inventive ingredients and fun flavors. Recipes from various celebrities will also be included in the cookbook as well as Internet safety tips and conversation starters for families provided by NCMEC and the NetSmartz Workshop, NCMEC's Internet safety resource. NetSmartz provides age-appropriate resources focused on basic Internet safety, social networking, and real-life stories which are available free of charge at www.NetSmartz.org. Nationwide purchases of the inaugural Red Robin contest cookbook this summer resulted in a more than $41,000 donation to NCMEC.
To select the grand prize winner, 10 semi-finalists will be invited to Denver, Colo. in November to compete in the "Next Gourmet Burger Kids' Recipe Contest" Championship where they will make their burger for a panel of Red Robin judges and local celebrities. During the competition, three runners-up and a grand prize winner will be selected.
All 10 semi-finalists will receive a trip to Colorado for the event and a Red Robin iPod as a prize.* In addition to the grand prize winner's gourmet burger being featured in every U.S. Red Robin® restaurant in 2008, the grand prize winner's family will receive a family vacation to Universal Studios HollywoodSM The Entertainment Capital of L.A.SM, and will be invited to act as a special guest judge at Red Robin's Smiling Burger Championship event held in January, 2008 in the Bahamas.
All U.S. Red Robin® restaurants will have entry forms and will accept gourmet burger recipe ideas from Aug. 13 to Sept. 16, 2007.
About Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. (NASDAQ: RRGB)
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc., founded in 1969, is a casual dining restaurant chain that serves up wholesome, fun, feel-good experiences in a family-friendly environment. Red Robin® restaurants are famous for serving more than 22 high-quality gourmet burgers in a variety of recipes with Bottomless Steak Fries®, as well as salads, soups, appetizers, entrees, desserts, and signature Mad Mixology® Beverages. There are more than 370 Red Robin® restaurants located across the United States and Canada, which include both corporate-owned locations and those operating under franchise or license agreements.
About the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children® (NCMEC)
NCMEC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. NCMEC's congressionally mandated CyberTipline, a reporting mechanism for child sexual exploitation, has handled more than 475,000 leads. Since its establishment in 1984, NCMEC has assisted law enforcement with more than 130,300 missing child cases, resulting in the recovery of more than 112,900 children. For more information about NCMEC, call its toll-free, 24-hour hotline at 1-800-THE-LOST or visit its web site at www.missingkids.com.
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc., a casual dining restaurant chain founded in 1969 that operates through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Red Robin International, Inc.