Restaurant Associates history

Baum was born in 1920 in Saratoga Springs, New York, where his parents operated a seasonal hotel.

Brody was born in Manhattan in 1922, the son of a well-to-do family.

Two years later he became director of restaurants in Florida for the Schine hotel chain, a position he held until Brody came calling in 1953, asking him to take on the dubious task of introducing luxury dining to an airport terminal.

In 1955 Baum was named to head RA's specialty restaurant division.

In 1957 RA opened what was regarded as the first theme restaurant on the ground floor of the United States Rubber Company Building in Rockefeller Center.

In 1963 Brody was divorced and Wechsler subsequently forced out his former son-in-law.

He was made a RA vice-president in 1967 and two years later put in charge of food operations at LaGuardia and Kennedy air terminals, as well as other airports in the Northeast. “Our places are genuine restaurants,” he insisted, “not just places to grab a quick meal and dash to your plane.”

1970: The company merges with Waldorf Systems; Baum quits.

In 1974 RA acquired the New Jersey steakhouse chain, Charlie Brown's.

However, by 1978 competition was up and profits were down.

After going public in 1988, Compass Group expanded rapidly.

In 1990 Tokyo-based foodservice conglomerate, Kyotaru Co., became the first of many Japanese firms to take over an American company involved in retailing, entertainment, real estate, and technology.

In 1995 RA suffered another blow when it lost the United States Open contract.

In 1997 it sold the Charlie Brown's chain and The Office Beer Bar & Grill chain to pay down debt.

Also in 1999 RA gained a strong West Coast presence with the acquisition of Los Angeles-based Patina Group, which operated a number of upscale restaurants and also served institutional contracts.

2003: Nick Valenti announces plans to step down as president, to be replaced by Richard Stockinger.