Darden Restaurants owns and operates a portfolio of full-service restaurants in the U.S. and Canada. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, the Capital Grille, and Eddie V’s Prime Seafood, among others. Darden is also the former owner of Red Lobster, which the company sold to Golden Gate Capital in 2014 for $2.1 billion. The company was founded in 1968 when William Darden opened the first Red Lobster restaurant in Lakeland, Fla.
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