HOMETOWN: Long Branch, N.J.
EDUCATION: bachelor's degree from the College of New Jersey, master's in education from Springfield College in Massachusetts
PERSONAL: wife, Gwen; three children, P.J., Megan and Mia
BIRTH DATE: Sept. 15, 1952
HOBBIES: running, biking, weight training, "but my best and most enjoyable hobby is playing chess with my son."
Paul M. Mangiamele, who recently took over as president and chief executive of Dallas-based Bennigan’s Franchising Co., said he is working to re-engineer the legacy casual-dining chain. Mangiamele, 58, succeeds David Goronkin, who left to head Real Mex Restaurants Inc. Bennigan’s Franchising Co. acquired the Bennigan’s brand in 2008 after parent S&A Restaurant Corp., a division of Metromedia Restaurant Group, and affiliated companies filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation and closed about 240 company units. Bennigan’s last November debuted a new 4,200-square-foot store in Appleton, Wis., intended to freshen the brand with updated menus, bar offerings, uniforms, logos and signage.
What was attractive about joining Bennigan’s?
I loved the idea of weaving the nostalgia of the brand as it was created 35 years ago with the new technology and the new customer focus — from the food-trending standpoint and the service standpoint — and then reintroducing the Bennigan’s brand.
What is your first priority?
We need to re-engineer it so we not only bring the look and feel of the legendary brand, but also the vibe and the energy. We never quite got credit for the food quality.
What do you see as part of that re-engineering?
We’re going to bring back the merchandising methodology of blackboard specials, where we get corporate and kitchen chefs involved so that we can bring in some regional requests and also use the blackboard specials to see what changes we want to make to the menu, permanently. So instead of doing limited-time offers, we’ll do blackboard specials to see what catches on.
Legacy brands in casual dining face a lot of challenges. What gives Bennigan’s a leg up?
I think there’s a lot of pent-up demand for nostalgia brands. I think it breaks into two segments: people who are finding a reason to never go again and … those that want to find a reason to go again. The amazing goodwill that the Bennigan’s name engenders has been phenomenal.
Why did you take on this challenge?
My entire 30 years of working in this business, from front of house to back of house and from small organizations to large, has prepared me. … I know where Bennigan’s was and where we are today.
You’ve hired a brand coordinator to help with social media. How important is social media?
I have Millennial children, and I can reach them faster texting them than I can by calling them. I want to talk to the Millennials, those in their 20s and 30s, and expose them to what I was exposed to at that age: the happening, high-energy, high-touch Bennigan’s. … [The new brand coordinator’s] mission is to tap into the social media that’s available to us. Social media for me is word of mouth. I want to get the word on Bennigan’s to be: It’s hip; it’s happening; it’s now. It’s got great food, great service.
What other ideas do you have to increase traffic?
You’ve got to go out and find customers. That’s why I think food trucks are a brilliant idea. How cool is it to go into a new market, expose all these people … to the new brand [by using a Bennigan’s truck]?
It’s all about trial and sampling. So many people have heard about these offerings — the Monte Cristo or the Turkey O’Toole — but they haven’t tried [them].
Contact Ron Ruggless at ronald.ruggless@penton.com.
