Denny's Honors Outstanding Operators At National Franchise Convention <b></b>

Spartanburg, SC-Huntington Restaurant Groups Inc. hasbeen named "2000 Developer of the Year" by Denny'srestaurants. The Arizona-based Denny's franchise opened 14 newrestaurants during the past year, more than any other Denny'sfranchise owner.

Huntington president Richard P. Beattie was presented with thecompany's Doc Mitchell Award during Denny's FranchiseeAssociation 4th Annual Convention held in Las Vegas. The award isnamed for the late Bruce "Doc" Mitchell, a formerDenny's franchisee and chairperson of Denny's FranchiseAdvisory Council.

"Denny's has continued our record franchise growthmomentum this year with milestones, including expansion ofDenny's to all 50 states with franchise development of ourfirst restaurant in Rhode Island, and the return of the Denny'sbrand to Mexico," said James W. Lyons, Denny's executivevice president, franchise and development. "The strength ofthe Denny's brand is evidenced by the strong franchisecommitment of successful business owners like RichBeattie."

Beattie's franchise, Huntington Restaurant Group, owns andoperates 64 Denny's restaurants in Arizona, Florida, Georgia,Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. A restaurant franchiseowner/operator for many years, Beattie made a strategic decision inthe late 1980s to focus on Denny's. Based in Scottsdale,Arizona, Huntington Restaurants has 5,000 employees and annualsales of approximately $57 million.

"We are proud of our achievement of opening 64 restaurantsin just over 10 years and will continue to develop as manyDenny's as we can," Beattie said. -BusinessWire