Hilton with new restaurants

Hilton Worldwide has unveiled a strategy to open 500 new restaurants across the globe over the next three years, with more than 100 of those planned for Europe. The company, which currently operates more than 225 hotels across the European region, has launched a new website - hiltonrestaurantconcepts.com - to help partner restaurateurs with its hotels. The website is available to users in Europe and will feature specific partners within the region, with a global expectation of 50 restaurant partnerships available to hotel owners by the end of 2012. Restaurateurs interested in working with Hilton Worldwide are asked to input details of their restaurant concepts into the website, including menus, design elements and price points. If accepted, their concept will then be uploaded for potential hotel match opportunities. "Our goal is to provide our hotels with great concepts that are unique to their regions and offer menu options that will appeal to their repeat customer base," said Beth Scott, vice-president, food and beverage concepts, Hilton Worldwide. "It's also a great opportunity for restaurateurs interested in growing their brands." Since its launch internally, the website has secured nearly 900 registered hotel owners interested in identifying new restaurant concepts. It has generated the pairing of the Washington Hilton with one of the first East Coast introductions of Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and the development of Hilton McLean's food and beverage concept, Harth.