Eat'n Park Offers American Idol Runner-Up $100,000 Recording Contract To Sing New Jingle

Eat'n Park Offers American Idol Runner-Up $100,000 Recording Contract To Sing New Jingle

Family Dining Chain Seeks Partnership with Recording Artist; Increases 2005 Deal and Sweetens Pot with Lifetime Supply of Smiley Cookies

PITTSBURGH, May 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Whoever comes in second place in this year's hotly contested American Idol competition can still walk away with a smile on his or her face.

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That's because Eat'n Park Restaurants, one of America's favorite family restaurants, is offering a $100,000 recording contract to the show's first runner-up to sing a new jingle the dining chain is developing for the summer. Eat'n Park also is sweetening the deal by agreeing to give the second-place finisher a lifetime supply of Smiley cookies, the restaurant chain's popular signature treat.

"We're big fans of American Idol at Eat'n Park. Taylor (Hicks) and Katharine (McPhee) are both winners in our book so we thought the runner-up deserved a recording contract as much as the winner," said Kevin O'Connell, senior vice president, Marketing, Eat'n Park.

Last year, Eat'n Park, which operates 77 restaurants in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia, offered American Idol runner-up Bo Bice a $10,000 contract to record their current "It's All Here," jingle. "Our guests and team members were so excited about our offer last year that we're upping the ante to $100,000 and throwing in the Smiley cookies for good measure," said O'Connell.

The new jingle will be unveiled later this summer. Eat'n Park is working on their new sound with singer/songwriter Bob Corbin. Corbin is famous for a number of #1 pop and country hits, including "Can't Keep a Good Man Down" and "Fire in the Night," for super group Alabama. His work also includes commercial jingles for Pepsi(R) and Doritos(R), among other products.

According to O'Connell, the company also plans to bring the Idol runner-up to Pittsburgh to record the jingle and to make various appearances at Eat'n Park restaurants in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.

Eat'n Park will make a formal offer to the runner-up after American Idol airs live on FOX, Wednesday, May 24, 8 p.m. (EDT).

Eat'n Park Restaurants, founded in 1949 as a family carhop, is an award- winning family restaurant chain with 77 locations in three states and is a member of the Eat'n Park Hospitality Group, a leading, regional multi-concept foodservice company.

Other brands operated by the Group include, Park Classic Diner, a retro- eatery reminiscent of the company's roots, Six Penn Kitchen, an upscale American Bistro, Parkhurst Dining Services, a provider of contract-dining services to businesses, universities, and cultural centers; and CURA Hospitality, which offers contract dining and management services for senior living communities. Across its dining brands, the Eat'n Park Hospitality Group employs more than 8,000 team members in seven northeastern and Mid- Atlantic states. www.eatnpark.com.

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Source: Eat'n Park Restaurants

CONTACT: Kevin O'Connell of Eat'n Park Restaurants, +1-412-461-2000, or
Brian Tedeschi, cell, +1-412-638-5981, or Kirstian Druschel, both of Think
Inc., +1-412-281-9228, or brian@thinkcreativity.com

Web site: http://www.thinkinc1.com/

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