Beginning and consolidation
Bob Evans Restaurants was founded in 1948 by Bob Evans, when he began processing and packaging sausage for his small diner located in Gallipolis, Ohio. Early operations were based at his farm in Rio Grande. As the reputation of his sausage grew, so did the number of guests who visited his farm to buy it in bulk. Friends and family partnered together to establish Bob Evans Farms, Inc., in 1953. The increased traffic led him to build the first company restaurant at the farm in 1962 that was named "The Sausage Shop".[5]
The construction of additional Bob Evans restaurants began some years later. By the mid-1970s, there were 20 locations—all of them still in Ohio—including sites in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, and smaller markets.[6] By 1980, there were 59 restaurants in seven states.[7] and by 1992 Bob Evans owned and operated 261 restaurants in 16 states: Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Michigan, West Virginia, South Carolina, Missouri, Maryland, New York, Virginia and Texas, with food products retailed in 26 states and the District of Columbia.[8]
After encountering a capacity problem fulfilling large orders, Bob Evans contracted with his cousin Tim Evans of the Evans Packing Company to package Bob Evans Sausage products. Another relative, Dan Evans, served as CEO until his retirement in 2000.[9]
The company acquired Texas-based Owens Country Sausage in 1987. Owing to trademark issues, the company branded its otherwise identical restaurants in Texas as Owens Restaurants. By January 2006, all Owens restaurants had been closed.[10]
The company operated a Mexican-themed restaurant called Cantina del Rio in the mid-1990s, a move that founder Bob Evans called "a disaster" in 2003.[11]
The Evans family controlled daily operations of the company until 2000, when Dan Evans retired as CEO. After this, Stewart K. Owens (a former officer of the Owens Country Sausage company and later president of BOBE) assumed control of Bob Evans Farms Inc. as CEO. In 2001, he became chairman of the board. Company profits faltered under Owens' tenure. In August 2005, after corporate profits had dropped in eight of the previous nine quarters, Owens announced his resignation. After operating for several months under interim CEO Larry Corbin, the company hired Steven Davis, former president of Long John Silver's, as CEO in May 2006.
In July 2004, Bob Evans Farms purchased the California-based Mimi's Cafe restaurant chain (operating under SWH Corporation) for $182 million.[12][13] Mimi's Cafe had 144 locations throughout the U.S. at the time. They featured casual dining and American food with a French emphasis and decorative elements. Bob Evans Farms sold Mimi's Cafe to the U.S. branch of Groupe Le Duff in 2013.
In an effort to update the company's image, Bob Evans debuted a new prototype design at their restaurant location in Xenia, Ohio, on August 17, 2009.[14] The new look included flat-screen televisions, free Wi-Fi, curbside carryout services, and redesigned uniforms for staff.[14] Its architecture and interior design drew inspiration from the Bob Evans family farm in southern Ohio in a way that the company called a "contemporary and relevant twist".[14][15]
CEO Steven Davis resigned in December 2014.[16]
In December 2015, the chain announced its intention to sell 145 properties to Mesirow Financial Holdings Inc. for $165–175 million.[17]
In January 2016, after "working closely with [its] suppliers and independent animal welfare experts",[18] Bob Evans Restaurants CEO Saed Mohseni announced intentions to transition to 100 percent cage-free eggs by 2025, but later removed this commitment from its policy according to animal welfare charity The Humane League.[19]
Separation from and dissolution of Bob Evans Farms
On January 24, 2017, Bob Evans Farms announced the sale of its restaurants business unit to the private equity company Golden Gate Capital (owners of Red Lobster and California Pizza Kitchen) for US$565 million plus the assumption of up to US$50 million in liabilities. In addition to the restaurants, Golden Gate Capital also took ownership of the Bob Evans Farm in Bidwell, Ohio, near Rio Grande. Once the sale was finalized, Bob Evans Farms CEO Saed Mohseni moved to Golden Gate Capital to serve as president of the Bob Evans restaurant division. BEF Foods President Mike Townsley became president and CEO of the new Bob Evans Farms, which remains a public company focusing on grocery products such as breakfast sausage and refrigerated side dishes. Net proceeds from the sale to Bob Evans Farms was expected to be between $475 million and $485 million.[20][21]
On the same day, Bob Evans Farms entered into an agreement to acquire the Pineland Farms Potato Co. of Mars Hill, Maine, for US$115 million. Pineland Farms is a value-added potato processor, including a 900 acre potato farm, serving the retail and food service markets. They also operate a cheese-processing business.
