n e w s

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 2, 2006
For More Information:
Suzanne Brownlow, SchroderPR (For Perkins+Will), 404.872.7289x12
suzanne@schroderpr.com
Nathan DeVault, Costa DeVault Public Relations (For Darden Restaurants, Inc.), 407.657.4818
nathandevault@costadevault.com

Perkins+Will to Design Darden Restaurants, Inc., Headquarters

ATLANTA , (November 2, 2006) -- Darden Restaurants, Inc., has selected Perkins+Will, a global leader in integrated architectural services, to design Darden's new corporate headquarters in Orlando, Fla.

Darden (NYSE: DRI), which is the world's largest casual dining restaurant company, owns and operates a host of popular restaurant concepts, including Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill, and Seasons 52. The new headquarters project will help unify these Darden brands by bringing them together within one Restaurant Support Center campus that fosters connectivity and collaboration among and within the business units.

The Darden project will be led by Perkins+Will Design Principal Manuel Cadrecha. Eileen Jones, Branded Environments Principal, will lead the Branded Environments team, and Joyce Fownes, Interior Design Principal, will lead the Interiors team. Perkins+Will has appointed Associate Principal Don Reynolds as project manager.

"The project will be guided by design principles that preserve each restaurant brand's individual character within a cohesive image for the larger Darden enterprise brand," said Cadrecha. "We will assist Darden to combine strategy with creativity to develop an outstanding design for its new headquarters that tells a meaningful story about the company's mission and its strong values and culture."

Established in 1935, Perkins+Will (www.perkinswill.com) is an integrated architecture, interiors, and planning practice recognized worldwide for its innovative and environmentally-friendly sustainable designs.  

"Darden selected Perkins+Will for its strategic approach to design and innovation including great strengths in programming and branding," said Darden Senior Vice President Jim Lawrence, who is the lead project manager developing the new Restaurant Support Center campus. "Our restaurants have built solid brand equity for us over the years. Creating a branded environment will help us share our vision, culture and values with Darden people and ultimately with all of Darden's stakeholders."

Darden Restaurants is a multi-brand restaurant growth company that owns and operates over 1,400 casual dining restaurants throughout North America. The company currently serves more than 300 million meals annually with fiscal 2006 sales of $5.7 billion. Since becoming a public company in 1995 the Fortune 500 company has consistently performed in the top quartile of the S&P 500 in terms of financial performance.

Known in the restaurant industry for its integrity and commitment to excellence, Darden helped establish the casual dining industry when it launched Red Lobster 38 years ago. Darden offers its people great opportunity as casual dining's leader in sales and market share operating the most successful restaurant companies in casual dining Seafood (Red Lobster), Italian (Olive Garden), Fire Grilled and Slow Smoked American Favorites (Smokey Bones) and Caribbean cuisine (Bahama Breeze). Darden is also currently testing Seasons 52, a casually sophisticated Fresh Grille and Wine Bar known for its lighter approach to dining.

Perkins+Will serves clients out of offices in Atlanta, Beijing, Boston, Calgary, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Hartford, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Research Triangle Park, San Francisco, Seattle, Shanghai, Vancouver, Victoria and Washington, DC. The firm practices architecture, interiors, branded environments and planning + strategies with clients in corporate + commercial + civic, healthcare, higher education, K-12 education, and science + technology. Perkins+Will routinely ranks among the world's top design firms and has received hundreds of awards, including the prestigious American Institute of Architects Firm of the Year Award.

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