Darden Restaurants, Inc. today announced the grand openings of three restaurants—Red Lobster, Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse—all with sustainable design elements, in Hanover, Maryland.
Red Lobster and Olive Garden open today, and LongHorn Steakhouse opened on May 16. The three restaurants combined bring more than 350 jobs to the area.
The new restaurants, which are all in the Arundel Mills shopping center, are part of Darden's Sustainable Restaurant Design initiative, which incorporates sustainable design elements for all new restaurants and, when possible, restaurant remodels.
The initiative's goal is to limit business impact on the environment while also enhancing operational efficiency. Sustainable design elements featured in all three new restaurants include recycled building materials, increased use of natural light and energy-efficient equipment and fixtures. Darden plans to seek Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for all three restaurants.
"We're proud to bring Red Lobster, Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse to Arundel Mills and to create a significant number of new local jobs for the Hanover community," says Drew Madsen, president and chief operating officer for Darden Restaurants, Inc.
"The sustainable design elements featured in all three restaurants continue Darden's commitment to conserving natural resources and learning more about how sustainable design practices and materials can increase operational efficiency in our restaurants."
