Lawry's The Prime Rib

Lawry's The Prime Rib is an American restaurant brand centered on prime rib and traditional steakhouse dining. Its first restaurant opened in Beverly Hills in 1938, founded by Lawrence Frank and Walter Van de Kamp. The restaurant's original concept featured a distinctive single-entree menu built around standing rib roast, recalling the Sunday dinners of Frank's boyhood. The company presents the Beverly Hills restaurant as an iconic American dining experience and a steakhouse established in 1938. The brand is part of Lawry's Restaurants, Inc., whose website also presents a wider family of restaurant concepts, including Tam O'Shanter, Five Crowns, and SideDoor. Lawry's The Prime Rib operates in Beverly Hills and Las Vegas in the United States. The company also lists international locations in Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, China, Indonesia, and Thailand. The website provides reservations through OpenTable and describes a VIP Rewards loyalty program and gift cards accepted at its restaurant locations. Lawry's is closely associated with the history of Lawry's Seasoned Salt. According to the company's account, Lawrence Frank developed the seasoning blend in 1938 after experimenting in his home kitchen. The restaurant brand and the seasoning product are related parts of the broader Lawry's story, but this entry concerns the restaurant brand. The supplied material does not identify a current individual owner, corporate headquarters, or named executives.

The Lawry's story begins with the Frank and Van de Kamp families' earlier food businesses. The company's account traces the Frank family food trade to the early 1880s, when Louis Frank established a meat-packing business in Milwaukee specializing in fine sausages. His son Nathan later operated a general store in Deadwood, South Dakota, selling fresh meats. In 1915, Nathan's son Lawrence Frank and his brother-in-law Theodore Van de Kamp opened a potato-chip shop in downtown Los Angeles. Their venture developed into Van de Kamp's Saratoga Chips, followed in 1918 by the addition of Dutch Girl cookies and the creation of Van de Kamp's Holland Dutch Bakers. In 1922, Lawrence Frank and Walter Van de Kamp co-founded a roadhouse that became Tam O'Shanter. The company describes it as the oldest Los Angeles restaurant still owned and operated by the same family in the same location. Frank and Van de Kamp partnered again in 1938 to open Lawry's The Prime Rib in Beverly Hills. Their new restaurant set out to create a distinctive dining experience with a single-entree menu based on standing rib roast, inspired by the Sunday dinners of Frank's childhood. The restaurant's founding year was also significant for a related food product. After experimenting in his home kitchen for three months, Lawrence Frank developed a blend of 17 herbs and spices to complement prime rib; the company says Lawry's Seasoned Salt was born from this work. The restaurant and seasoning share the Lawry's name and origin story, though they are separate offerings. The company website identifies the Beverly Hills restaurant as operating since 1938 and lists Lawry's The Prime Rib in Las Vegas as having opened in 1997. It also identifies international locations in several markets across Asia. The wider Lawry's Restaurants, Inc. portfolio includes other restaurant concepts, and its site describes shared services such as reservations, gift cards, and VIP Rewards. The material supplied for this dossier does not establish the current owner, headquarters, or leadership team.

• 1997

  Lawry's The Prime Rib opens in Las Vegas

• 1938

  Lawry's The Prime Rib opens in Beverly Hills

• 1938

  Lawrence Frank develops the blend that becomes Lawry's Seasoned Salt

• 1922

  Lawrence Frank and Walter Van de Kamp co-found the restaurant that becomes Tam O'Shanter

• 1918

  The business adds Dutch Girl cookies and develops into Van de Kamp's Holland Dutch Bakers

• 1915

  Lawrence Frank and Theodore Van de Kamp open a potato-chip shop in Los Angeles

An iconic American steakhouse experience focused on prime rib, hospitality, and longstanding restaurant traditions.

• Prime rib

  The restaurant's signature offering and the centerpiece of its original single-entree menu.

• Traditional steakhouse dining

  The dining experience presented by the restaurant brand.

1. 1Lawry's Restaurants, Inc. | World Famous Prime Riblawrysonline.com
2. 2About | Lawry's Restaurants, Inc.lawrysonline.com