Carrollton, Texas-Oct. 20, 2004 - Carlson Restaurants Worldwide President and CEO, Richard Snead, was honored as one of six Golden Chain Award winners and selected as the Operator of the Year at the 2004 Annual Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators conference in Los Angeles, Calif. on October 5, 2004. Snead was recognized for his leadership of the revitalization of the T.G.I. Friday's brand and his contributions to the industry.

Now in its 45th year, MUFSO Golden Chain Award recipients are selected by Nation's Restaurant News' Editorial Board, who honor outstanding multi-unit foodservice executives. Of the six Golden Chain Award recipients, who are selected based on recent accomplishments and career achievements, one is chosen as the industry's Operator of the Year.

"I am honored to receive this prestigious award from MUFSO," said Snead. "I accept it on behalf of the entire CRW family for their dedication and support of the T.G.I. Friday's and Pick Up Stix restaurant brands. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our parent company, Carlson Companies, for the incredible support they provide to me and the entire restaurant organization."

Snead has spearheaded the nationwide revitalization of T.G.I. Friday's, which began two years ago and is expected to be completed by the end of 2006. The legendary brand is redesigning restaurant exteriors, their famous interiors, music format, uniforms, and have introduced a new menu layout and menu selections. They have embarked on a training program dubbed "culture of hospitality" which will strengthen and enhance the high energy service style expected at T.G.I. Friday's restaurants. While updating the concept, Snead charged the T.G.I. Friday's development team with respecting the brand, its heritage and value while developing a greater appeal to younger guests and recapturing the attention of lapsed users.

As the Company's president and CEO, Snead has been instrumental in building strong, solid relationships with T.G.I. Friday's franchise partners, which has been crucial to the company's continued success on its road to successful revitalization of the brand.

Under Snead's leadership, Friday's continues its focus on developing an industry-leading marketing and advertising team. T.G.I. Friday's advertising team recently introduced a new brand campaign focusing on the restaurants' fun and energetic heritage, emphasizing the tagline, "Everyone Could Use More Friday's™". Created by Deutsch LA, the campaign is a departure from Friday's traditional advertisements and is already showing early signs of success.

Snead has been actively involved in the development and execution of the diversity strategy at CRW. "Operating in 54 countries, CRW values the varied experiences and perspectives of people because we believe they make our Company stronger and more successful by brining new and different thoughts and ideas to us," said Snead. He continued, "CRW celebrates the differences and strives to create a culturally rich environment." Under his direction the company has played a significant role in supporting and creating diversity associations, including the CRW Diversity Council. Carlson Restaurants Worldwide is also a founding board member of MultiCultural Foodservice and Hospitality Alliance (MFHA), a national think tank which promotes the economic benefits of multicultural diversity in the foodservice and hospitality industry.

Snead has been effective in growing the Pick Up Stix restaurant brand to more than 90 restaurants since completing the acquisition two years ago. Pick Up Stix restaurants recently launched a new prototype and is implementing an aggressive growth strategy.

Snead joined Carlson Restaurants Worldwide in 1997 as executive vice president of international business. He was promoted to president of the international division of Carlson Restaurants Worldwide prior to appointment to his current position as company president and CEO. Snead is active in business and academic communities and serves on the NRA Board of Directors, is Chairman of the International Sub-Committee and is Co-Chairman of Save American Free Enterprise (SAFE). Snead is on the Board of Directors of the International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA) and is a featured panel moderator at their upcoming conference in Istanbul, Turkey. Snead has been involved with the Society of International Business Fellows (SIBF) for several years and was recently named their 2005 Chairman. He is a former member of the Executive Committee, Board of Directors and is the former Treasurer and Chairman of the Finance Committee for SIBF. Snead is also proud to continue his relationship with the University of Tennessee, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in engineering. He serves on their Board of Directors for the School of Engineering and is a former advisor for the School of Hotel & Restaurants as well as a former Executive Committee member for the College of Human Ecology.

There are over 740 T.G.I. Friday's® restaurants in 54 countries. To find a Friday's® location, visit www.fridays.com.