King's Seafood Company
![]() 555 East steakhouse in Long Beach, California | |
Industry | Restaurant |
---|---|
Founded | 1945 |
Founder | Jeff and Sam King |
Headquarters | Costa Mesa, California , United States |
Area served | California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado (2022) |
Services | Restaurants and seafood distribution |
Website | www |
King's Seafood Company is a restaurant chain and seafood distribution company based in Costa Mesa, California [1] with operations in California, Nevada, Arizona, and Colorado. The company's restaurants include Water Grill, King's Fish House, and 555 East steakhouse in Long Beach.[1]
History[]
Cousins Jeff and Sam King launched the company as University Restaurant Group in 1983 as a successor to their family's long-running restaurant operations.[2] The cousins' parents, brothers Mickey and Lou King, opened their King's Coffee Shop in Huntington Park, California in 1945. The brothers sold to Tiny Naylor's in 1982. Two years later, their sons opened 555 East steakhouse in Long Beach. Their original organization was called University Restaurant Group because the cousins had graduated from rival schools, USC and UCLA. Jeff King served as chairman of the board and Sam King was chief executive of the company. In 1998 the company name was changed to King's Seafood Company.
Today, the company operates 12 King's Fish House restaurants, six Water Grill locations, Meat on Ocean and PierBurger in Santa Monica, California, 555 East steakhouse in Long Beach, California, Fish Camp in Sunset Beach, California, and Lou & Mickey's, a steakhouse in San Diego, California named for their parents. The company also operates pop-up fish markets at several locations.[3]
In the 2000s Jeff King served on the board of the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau and was chairman of the California Restaurant Association. He died at age 77 on May 17, 2017. Sam King was one of the founders of the Sustainable Seafood Forum. He is currently chief executive and resides in Coto de Caza, California.[1]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c "'Caught up in sustaining our seafood; Sam King is reeling in diners at his restaurants. He also is spreading the word about depletion of the ocean's stocks". Los Angeles Times. 6 May 2007.
- ^ "California restaurant veteran Jeff King dies". Nations Restaurant News. 31 May 2017.
- ^ "King's Seafood Co. temporarily lays off more than 1,400 workers because of COVID order". Orange County Register. 8 December 2020.
External links[]
- Restaurant groups
- Companies based in Costa Mesa, California
- Food and drink companies established in 1945
- American companies established in 1945
- Food and drink companies based in California
- Seafood restaurants in the United States