Black-eyed Pea (restaurant)

Black-eyed Pea is an American restaurant chain, with outlets primarily in Colorado.

Black-eyed Pea Restaurant
TypeRestaurant
IndustryFood
Founded1975
HeadquartersHouston, Texas, and Denver, Colorado
ProductsAmerican Food & Spirits
WebsiteBlack-eyed Pea
A now-defunct Black-eyed Pea outlet in Hillsboro, Texas, is located near Hill College.

Two corporate entities operate the restaurants.[1] The lone Texas restaurant is operated by Restaurants Acquisition I, L.L.C.,[2][3] whose company is based in Upper Kirby, Houston.[4][5]

The Colorado restaurants are operated by RMR Colorado, LLC, headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado in Greater Denver.[6][7]

History

Black-eyed Pea was founded in 1975 by Dallas restaurateur Gene Street and Phil Cobb.[8] The chain eventually expanded across the American South with 130 locations by the time it was sold to Unigate plc for about $65 million.[9] In early 1997, DenAmerica purchased the Black-eyed Pea restaurant chain from Unigate plc.[10]

On November 12, 2001, DenAmerica, now operating as Phoenix Restaurant Group, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[11] This resulted in the closing of 48 Black-eyed Pea locations, reducing the chain to 44 locations (not including the Colorado locations, whose owners were in better financial shape).[12] In 2002, under new management, Black-eyed Pea was reformatted as a "country casual" chain by adding more appetizers and seafood offerings, along with more grilled items, as well as an increased emphasis on its bar. In December 2008, former corporate employees Stephen Shaw and Alan Laughlin, along with Steve's brother Jim Shaw, purchased all rights to the Colorado locations of Black-eyed Pea. The three began changing menu items and pushing more advertising.[13]

The first Black-eyed Pea opened, located on Cedar Springs Road in Oak Lawn, was closed after 40 years of operation on January 2, 2016.[14]

On September 28, 2016, 12 of the 13 Black-eyed Pea restaurants in Texas shuttered their doors with little notice after filing bankruptcy in 2015.[15][16][17][18]

In June 2019, the Black-eyed Pea in Hendersonville, TN closed its doors after 18 years of operation.[19]

To date, Black-eyed Pea has a total of 10 locations, including just one in Texas and nine in Colorado. The only Texas location is in Arlington, while the vast majority of the Colorado restaurants are in the Denver area.

Black-eyed Pea's menu features home-style Southern U.S. cuisine such as fried catfish, chicken fried steak (including a "Texas Sized" version that takes up an entire plate), pot roast, mashed potatoes, fried okra, broccoli and rice casserole, corn bread, and rolls. Main entrees are usually ordered with a choice of two vegetables. The signature dish is the namesake of the chain, "black-eyed peas."

The restaurants also have full liquor service, provided the customer is at least 21.

Dixie House

The Dixie House (now closed) was located in the Lakewood area of east Dallas, Texas. It served a variety of Southern, home-cooked style foods, such as a signature chicken-fried steak.[20] The Dixie House was acquired by Black-Eye and the two restaurants shared many menu items. It retained a distinct, neighborhood-restaurant style. It received a mention in the 2008 Best Neighborhood Restaurant notices of D Magazine.[21]

References
  1. "EmpApp_Book.pdf Archived 2013-01-27 at the Wayback Machine" (Archive). Black-eyed Pea. August 2007. Retrieved on April 16, 2014. "© BEP Colorado Restaurants, LLC August 2007 © Restaurants Acquisition I, LLC"
  2. "" (Archive). Black-eyed Pea Texas. Retrieved on 2014-04-16. "© 2008 Restaurant Acquisition I, LLC."
  3. "Via Certified Mail Return Receipt No.: 7009 0080 0002 2564 9981." (Archive). Liberty Mutual / Wausau Insurance. Retrieved on April 16, 2014. "Restaurants Acquisition I, L.L.C. (d/b/a Black-Eyed Pea)."
  4. "NOTICE OF CITY COUNCIL BRIEFING SESSION MARCH 22, 2011 T.W. “TURK” CANNADY-CEDAR HILL ROOM 285 UPTOWN BLVD. – BLDG. 100 CEDAR HILL, TEXAS." City of Cedar Hill (Texas). Retrieved on April 16, 2014. p. 33. "Trade Name of Location Black-eyed Pea[...]Mailing Address 3601 S Sandman, Ste. 211 City Houston State TX Zip Code 77098-" (a scan of a Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission On-Premises Prequalification Packet L-ON (11/2010) - The restaurant discussed is in Cedar Hill, Texas so the mailing address must indicate a corporate office
  5. "District Map " (Archive). Upper Kirby District. Retrieved on April 7, 2014.
  6. Home page. Black-eyed Pea Colorado. Retrieved on April 16, 2014. "RMR Colorado, LLC Greenwood Village, CO 80111"
  7. "RMR Colorado, LLC." Black-eyed Pea Colorado. Retrieved on April 16, 2014. "5347 South Valentia Way Suite 305 Greenwood Village, CO 80111-3107 United States"
  8. "Five-plus-decade career spans marketing, restaurants and rails | Fisher College of Business". Fisher College of Business | Fisher College of Business. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  9. Magazine, D. "BUSINESS Chicken-Fried Success". D Magazine. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  10. "DenAmerica agrees to acquire Black-eyed Pea". connection.ebscohost.com. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  11. Brus, Brian. "Chain shuts 6 restaurants in Oklahoma Black-Eyed Pea closes without warning workers." NewsOK. October 24, 2001. Retrieved on April 16, 2014.
  12. "Phoenix Restaurant files Chapter 11". Nashville Post. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  13. RADFORD, BILL. "New owners of local Black-eyed Pea restaurants focusing on value". Colorado Springs Gazette. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  14. McCarthy, Amy (2016-01-04). "The Original Black Eyed Pea On Cedar Springs Has Closed Its Doors". Eater Dallas. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  15. Thompson, Dana (2016-09-28). "Black-eyed Pea restaurants in Texas reportedly close". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  16. Kezar, Korri (3 Dec 2015). "Restaurants Acquisition I LLC, operator of Black-eyed Pea's 14 Texas restaurants, files for bankruptcy". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  17. "Black-Eyed Pea restaurants abruptly close". WFAA. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  18. "Black-eyed Pea owner files Chapter 11". Nation's Restaurant News. 2015-12-03. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  19. tlee@mainstreetmediatn.com, TENA LEE. "Black-eyed Pea closure 'bittersweet'". Hendersonville Standard. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  20. "The Best Chicken-Fried Steak in Dallas" Archived 2012-06-17 at the Wayback Machine, D Magazine. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  21. Best Neighborhood Restaurant 2008 Archived 2012-02-21 at the Wayback Machine, D Magazine.
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