Romano’s Macaroni Grill® Introduces New Italian Mediterranean Menu in California

Fresh, Simple, Authentic Recipes Provide Vibrant Flavors and Nutritional Responsibility

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Romano’s Macaroni Grill^® debuted their new Italian Mediterranean menu in 32 restaurants across California on July 1^st.

“Remarkably, our guests significantly prefer the taste of each new Italian Mediterranean recipe. It’s all about pleasure and joy.”

The new menu is inspired by the vibrant way of life and cooking along the Italian Mediterranean coast, featuring the finest ingredients such as extra virgin olive oil, vine-ripened tomatoes, fresh lemons, select seafood, lean meats, colorful vegetables and imported artisan pasta.

This Mediterranean style of cooking is featured in seven new recipes and thirteen improved recipes that deliver on consumers’ taste expectations while simultaneously providing nutritional responsibility.

The thirteen improved menu items have reduced calories from 25% to 65%, while five popular menu items have seen saturated fat grams reduced by more than 70%.

“Our vision is for people to savor the great taste of fresh, delicious food and feel good afterwards,” said Brad Blum, chief executive officer of Romano’s Macaroni Grill. “Remarkably, our guests significantly prefer the taste of each new Italian Mediterranean recipe. It’s all about pleasure and joy.”

Improved recipes include Scallops & Spinach Salad and Seafood Linguine with new recipes Grilled Chicken Spiedini, Pollo Caprese and Lobster Spaghetti. Ten of these twenty items are offered for under $10.

“We expect this new menu will build upon the +8% improvement in our guest traffic we’ve seen over the past six months as we continue to focus on delivering great value and a pleasurable dining experience,” said Blum.

Many of the improvements launched in California will be implemented in restaurants across the country in August 2009.

For more information, please see the attachment or visit www.macaronigrill.com.

About Romano’s Macaroni Grill

Romano’s Macaroni Grill is a leading restaurant brand that provides a dining experience inspired by the Italian Mediterranean. Its commitment is to be Fresh, Simple and Authentic. The menu features Fresh Antipasti, Handcrafted Pasta and Mediterranean Grill specialties. Romano’s Macaroni Grill has over 200 locations worldwide. For more information, please visit www.macaronigrill.com.

Italian Mediterranean Recipes – New
Item	Calories	Saturated Fat (g)	Sodium (mg)
Roasted Vegetables (Antipasti)	330	3	440
Grilled Chicken Spiedini	360	2	1150
Jumbo Shrimp Spiedini	230	1	670
Sausage Salentino	900	14	1970
Pollo Caprese	550	5	1660
Lobster Spaghetti	650	5	1480
Simple Lemon Pound Cake	250	6	170

Italian Mediterranean Recipes – Improved
	Old Recipe*			New Recipe			Improvement
Item	Calories	Saturated Fat (g)	Sodium (mg)	Calories	Saturated Fat (g)	Sodium (mg)	Calories	Saturated Fat (g)	Sodium (mg)
Tomato Bruschetta	990	10	2050	630	5	1750	36%	50%	14%
Mozzarella alla Caprese	440	12	770	330	9	550	25%	25%	28%
Warm Spinach Salad	510	12	1870	330	7	1810	35%	41%	3%
Scallops & Spinach Salad	1270	27	2740	390	4	1800	69%	85%	34%
Capellini Pomodoro	640	3	990	390	2	980	39%	33%	1%
Shrimp Portofino**	1170	35	1720	560	14	1190	52%	60%	30%
Seafood Linguine	1230	20	1780	615	3	1280	50%	85%	28%
Eggplant Parmigiana	1270	33	2610	800	14	1450	37%	57%	44%
Chicken Cannelloni	880	25	2540	600	15	1410	31%	40%	44%
Spaghetti Bolognese**	1120	33	2290	570	6	1480	49%	81%	35%
Spaghetti & Meatballs (tomato sauce)**	1500	41	4710	720	9	1900	52%	78%	59%
Spaghetti & Meatballs (Bolognese)**	1810	54	4900	880	14	2400	51%	74%	51%
Chicken Parmigiana**	1650	30	2500	850	11	1780	48%	63%	28%

* January 2009

** Dinner Portion