• Home:
• News:
• Denny's:

Denny's Names 2006 Top Franchise Operators

(Wednesday, November 22, 2006) - Denny's (NASDAQ:DENN), the leading family dining chain, today announced the winners of the company's 2006 Operator of the Year awards. The awards were presented during ceremonies at the tenth Denny's Franchisee Association convention held Nov. 6-9 in Maui, Hawaii.

Franchisees receiving the prestigious Operator of the Year award for their achievements in guest satisfaction and operations excellence are: Roland and Margaret Marti, owners of Lamarti's, Inc. of Lamar, Mo.; Shashi and Veena Kamboj, owners of AmVEE Corporation of Bakersfield, Calif.; and Syed Ahmad of Portland, Oregon, owner of Dallas-based Continental Foods, Inc. Restaurants owned and operated by these three franchises scored highest among the chain's 1,034 franchised family-style restaurants based on their commitment to food safety, guest satisfaction and building the Denny's brand.

"We know strong operators run successful businesses and congratulate everyone associated with the Lamarti's, AmVEE and Continental Foods organizations who have worked so hard to meet and satisfy Denny's guests and exceed our high standards for quality," said Nelson Marchioli, Denny's chief executive officer and president.

The Lamar, Mo., Denny's is a family-owned and operated franchise by Roland and Margaret Marti. Ten years ago, the Martis were looking to franchise a family restaurant adjacent to their 24-hour truck stop/convenience store. They opened the Denny's in Lamar on February 2, 1997 and have been successfully operating ever since. In the town of Lamar, where the population is a little over 4,000 people, the Martis are familiar faces among the residents of their community. The Lamarti's Denny's is a consistent winner of the prestigious Four Diamond Award for dining, an honor that helps them maintain strong sales growth year to year.

The AmVEE franchise is led by the husband and wife team of Shashi and Veena Kamboj, who own and operate five Denny's restaurants, located about every 30 miles along Highway 58 through Bakersfield. A strong sense of family and a collaborative team environment in their business has contributed successfully to low employee turnover, strong sales growth and consistently high evaluations for hospitality, quality execution and food safety.

With 13 Denny's restaurants already in the Dallas and Fort Worth areas, Continental Foods owner Syed Ahmad is looking forward to continued growth, with the addition of one new Denny's restaurant in 2007 and preliminary plans for two more in the works. A consistently high achiever in customer satisfaction and quality, Ahmad's restaurants routinely win the Four Diamond Award for exceeding operating standards. Ahmad has built his successful Denny's franchise based on a commitment to customer satisfaction through vigorous employee training. Three of the franchise's restaurants are recognized as certified training units, allowing Continental's employees continued opportunities for recognition, growth and advancement within the company.

Denny's is America's largest full-service family restaurant chain, consisting of 535 company-owned units and 1,022 franchised and licensed units, with operations in the United States, Canada, Costa Rica, Guam, Mexico, New Zealand and Puerto Rico. For more than 50 years, Denny's has been committed to providing guests with quality food, abundant value and a great dining atmosphere. From the award-winning D-Zone® menu to its famous Grand Slam® breakfasts, Denny's provides a variety of flavorful food and beverage choices for guests of all ages. For further information on Denny's, please visit our web site at www.dennys.com.

###