imported>Ookap: /* History */

2025-11-04T19:01:22Z

History

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{{Short description|Chain of restaurants}}
{{Other uses|Hard Rock Cafe (disambiguation)|Hard Rock Hotel and Casino (disambiguation)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=October 2025}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Hard Rock Cafe, Inc.
| logo = [[File:Hard Rock Cafe Logo.svg|180px|Hard Rock Cafe logo]]
| type = [[Private company|Private]]
| industry = [[Casual dining]] [[restaurant]]s
| key_people =
| num_employees =
| owner = [[Hard Rock International]] ([[Seminole Tribe of Florida]])
| founders = [[Isaac Tigrett]]<br />[[Peter Morton]]
| foundation = {{start date and age|1971|06|14}}<br />[[London]], England
| location = [[Davie, Florida]], U.S.
| locations = 165 restaurants
| homepage = {{URL|hardrock.com}}
}}

'''Hard Rock Cafe, Inc.''' is a chain of [[theme restaurant|theme bar-restaurant]]s, memorabilia shops, casinos, hotels and museums founded in 1971 by [[Isaac Tigrett]] and [[Peter Morton]] in [[London]]. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with [[rock and roll]] [[memorabilia]], a tradition which expanded to others in the chain. In 2007, Hard Rock Cafe International (USA), Inc. was sold to the [[Seminole Tribe of Florida]] and was headquartered in [[Orlando, Florida]], until April 2018, when the corporate offices were relocated to [[Davie, Florida]].<ref name="owner"/><ref name="contactus">{{cite web |url=http://www.hardrock.com/corporate/contactus/ |title=Contact Us |publisher=Hard Rock Cafe|access-date=July 25, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111102064757/http://www.hardrock.com/corporate/contactus/ |archive-date=November 2, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The Hard Rock Cafe chain continues to be owned by [[Hard Rock International]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Hard Rock Cafe Locations |url=https://www.hardrockcafe.com/locations.aspx |website=www.hardrockcafe.com |access-date=June 30, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Hotel, Resort, and Casino Locations |url=https://www.hardrockhotels.com/destinations.aspx |website=www.hardrockhotels.com |access-date=June 30, 2022}}</ref>

== History ==

=== First cafe-restaurants (1971–1990)===
[[File:Hardrockcafe new map.png|thumb|Areas where Hard Rock Cafes are located as of 2024]]
The first Hard Rock Cafe opened on June 14, 1971, at 150 Old Park Lane, [[Hyde Park, London|Hyde Park]], London,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Live Music and Dining in London |publisher= Hard Rock Cafe London |url= https://www.hardrockcafe.com/location/London/|access-date=October 11, 2021 }}</ref> under the ownership of two Americans, [[Isaac Tigrett]] and [[Peter Morton]]. Hard Rock initially had an eclectic decor, but it later started to display memorabilia. In 1978, a second location was opened in [[Toronto]], Canada.<ref>{{Cite news |url= https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2017/03/13/hard-rock-caf-closing-its-doors-at-yonge-dundas-square-location.html |title= Hard Rock Café closing its doors at Yonge-Dundas Square location |newspaper=The Toronto Star |date = March 13, 2017 |last1= Brait |first1= Ellen}}</ref>

The chain began to expand worldwide in 1982 when Morton opened Hard Rock Cafes in [[Los Angeles]], [[San Francisco]], [[Chicago]], [[Houston]], and Tigrett opened locations in [[Jackson, Tennessee]],<ref name="jacksoncarnegie_hard-rock-cafe-jackson">{{cite web |title=Hard Rock Cafe Jackson - First in U.S.A|work=Legends of Tennessee Music Museum |url=https://www.jacksoncarnegie.com/stories/hard-rock-cafe-jackson |access-date=August 15, 2024 }}</ref> New York, Dallas, Boston, Washington, D.C., Orlando as well as [[Paris]] (opened in 1991, closed in 2024) and [[Berlin]].<ref name="history">{{cite web |title=Hard Rock History |url=http://www.hardrock.com/corporate/history/ |access-date=March 16, 2012 |publisher=Hard Rock Cafe}}</ref> Hard Rock Cafe locations in the US vary from smaller, more tourist-driven markets ([[Biloxi, Mississippi|Biloxi]], [[Pigeon Forge, Tennessee|Pigeon Forge]], [[Key West]]) to large metropolises ([[Philadelphia]], [[Baltimore]], [[New York City]], Chicago, [[Boston]], [[Washington, D.C.]]).

Hard Rock Cafe typically does not franchise cafe locations in the United States. All U.S. cafes are corporate owned and operated, except for cafes in [[Tampa]] and in the (now closed) [[Four Winds New Buffalo]] casino.<ref>[http://www.hardrock.com/locations.aspx/ Hard Rock Cafe Locations]. Retrieved May 10, 2012</ref> However, in the transition of the [[Hard Rock Hotel and Casino (Las Vegas)|Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas]] property, originally owned and then later sold to [[the Rank Group]] by founder Peter Morton,<ref name="morgans">{{cite news| title=Morgans Hotel Group to buy Vegas Hard Rock for $770 million| url=http://articles.marketwatch.com/2006-05-11/news/30918252_1_morgans-hotel-group-hard-rock-hotel-peter-morton| date=May 6, 2006| author=Spain, William| work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]| publisher=marketwatch.com| access-date=March 17, 2012| archive-url=https://archive.today/20130128141808/http://articles.marketwatch.com/2006-05-11/news/30918252_1_morgans-hotel-group-hard-rock-hotel-peter-morton| archive-date=January 28, 2013| url-status=dead}}</ref> Morton retained hotel naming rights west of the Mississippi. When Morton sold his Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel to the [[Morgans Hotel Group]], he also sold those naming rights, which then gave rise to two US franchised hotels (without cafes) in [[Albuquerque]] and [[Tulsa]]. (The Albuquerque hotel no longer pays for the Hard Rock rights and reverted to its former name in June 2013.) Additional casino hotels franchised from Morgan's were subsequently opened in [[Sioux City, Iowa]], and [[Vancouver]], Canada.

===Buyouts and expansion (1990–2025)===
In 1990, the Rank Group acquired [[Mecca Leisure Group]] and continued expansion of the concept in its geographic territory. Rank went on to purchase ''Hard Rock America'' from Peter Morton as well as ''Hard Rock Canada'' from Nick Bitove. After the completion of these acquisitions, Rank gained worldwide control of the brand. In March 2007, the [[Seminole Tribe of Florida]] acquired ''Hard Rock Cafe International, Inc.'' and other related entities from Rank for [[United States dollar|US$]]965 million,<ref name="owner">{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6216292.stm |publisher=BBC News |title=Seminole tribe in Hard Rock deal |date=December 7, 2006 |access-date=March 16, 2012}}</ref> forming the corporate entity'' [[Hard Rock International]]'', with Hard Rock Cafe owned as a subsidiary. Hard Rock International expanded into hotels and casinos with ''[[Hard Rock Hotel and Casino]]'', which operates separately from Hard Rock Cafe.

In 2008, anonymous members of the wait staff in London criticized the Hard Rock Cafe business because of its practice of paying them less than half the official minimum wage in the UK, with the business allocating the [[Mandatory tipping|tips]] to staff wages, thus bringing their salaries within the minimum wage requirements. Most customers, it was argued, do not realize that they are subsidizing a low wage when they give the tip.<ref name="tips">{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7513273.stm |publisher=BBC News |title=Hard Rock wages 'below minimum' |date=July 18, 2008 |access-date=March 17, 2012 |first=Martin |last=Shankleman}}</ref>

In Argentina, the first Hard Rock Cafe opened in 1995 in [[Recoleta, Buenos Aires]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hard Rock Cafe Buenos Aires - Música en vivo y Restaurantes en Buenos Aires - Recoleta Restaurantes |url=https://cafe.hardrock.com/buenos-aires/es/ |access-date=August 3, 2024 |website=cafe.hardrock.com |language=es}}</ref> In 2016, a location opened in [[Ushuaia]], Argentina in the province of Tierra del Fuego, with another being opened in the city of [[Puerto Iguazú|Puerto Iguazu]] in 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lopez |first=Mariana |date=October 20, 2023 |title=Hard Rock: su tercer local en Iguazú será el más grande de la región |url=https://lavozdecataratas.com/2023/10/20/hard-rock-su-tercer-local-en-iguazu-sera-el-mas-grande-de-la-region/ |access-date=August 3, 2024 |website=La Voz de Cataratas |language=es}}</ref>

Canada had numerous restaurants but many of them closed, notably the one at Yonge-Dundas Square (now [[Sankofa Square]]) in Toronto in May 2017, which had been the chain's second location, leaving just two in that country, Niagara Falls, Ontario, and the Hard Rock Casino in Coquitlam, B.C.<ref>{{cite news|work=CBC|location=Toronto|title=Hard Rock Cafe Legacy|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/hard-rock-cafe-legacy-toronto-1.4024286}}</ref> At the [[Canadian Tire Centre]], the stadium formerly housed Ottawa's first Hard Rock Café when it opened as The Palladium on January 15, 1996, and for many years when it was known as the [[Corel]] Centre. The café closed on August 8, 2002.<ref>{{cite web |author1=Corel Centre |title=Restaurants - Home of the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club (National Hockey League) |url=http://corelcentre.com:80/guestservices/restaurants.aro |access-date=April 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021207154702/http://corelcentre.com/guestservices/restaurants.aro |archive-date=December 7, 2002 |date=December 7, 2002 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== Music memorabilia ==

[[File:Hard Rock Cafe London Clapton's guitar Fender.JPG|thumb|right|[[Eric Clapton]]'s Lead II Fender, the first piece of memorabilia donated to the first Hard Rock Cafe in London in 1979]]
[[File:Michael Jackson white fedora (Smooth Criminal), Hard Rock Cafe, Nice.jpg|thumb|One of the [[fedoras]] worn by [[Michael Jackson]] when performing the song "[[Smooth Criminal]]" on stage. Displayed at Hard Rock Cafe, Nice.]]
HRC is known for its collection of rock-and-roll memorabilia. The cafes solicit donations of music memorabilia but also purchase a number of items at auctions around the world, including autographed guitars, costumes from world tours and rare photographs; these are often to be found mounted on cafe walls. The collection began in 1979 with an un-signed Red [[Fender Musical Instruments Corporation|Fender]] Lead II guitar from [[Eric Clapton]], who was a regular at the first restaurant in London. Clapton wanted management to hang the guitar over his regular seat in order to lay claim to that spot, and they obliged. This prompted [[Pete Townshend]] of [[The Who]] to give one of his guitars, also un-signed with the note "Mine's as good as his! Love, Pete."<ref name="memorabilia">{{cite web| url=http://memorabilia.hardrock.com/?item=047894| title=Townshend's Gibson Les Paul| publisher=Hard Rock Cafe| access-date=March 17, 2012}}</ref> Hard Rock's archive includes over 80,000 items,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hardrock.com/corporate/history.aspx|title=Hard Rock Corporate - Hard Rock History|access-date=February 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117035427/http://www.hardrock.com/corporate/history.aspx|archive-date=January 17, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> and is the largest private collection of Rock and Roll memorabilia in the world. Marquee pieces from the collection were briefly displayed in a Hard Rock museum named "The Vault" in Orlando, Florida from January 2003 until September 2004. After the closure, items were distributed to various restaurant locations.<ref>{{Cite news |url= https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2004-09-30-0409300059-story.html |title=HARD ROCK VAULT SLAMS DOORS FOR GOOD |author=Jerry W. Jackson |website=Orlando Sentinel |date=September 30, 2004 |access-date=April 3, 2020}}</ref> The London Vault remains open and free to visitors, located in the retail Rock Shop of the original cafe.<ref name="museum">{{cite web| title=The Vault| url=http://golondon.about.com/od/thingstodoinlondon/fr/TheVault.htm| publisher=About.com| author=Laura Porter| access-date=March 17, 2012| archive-date=September 7, 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160907195003/http://golondon.about.com/od/thingstodoinlondon/fr/TheVault.htm| url-status=dead}}</ref>

The Hard Rock Café is also in possession of a [[Bedford VAL]] three axle coach. The vehicle was completely refurbished. It is currently displayed in the US, but makes regular appearances in events in the UK, especially at the original Hard Rock Cafe in London. In 2001, a competition was run to win the bus, but it was never given away and remained with the cafe. On June 10, 2021, Hard Rock announced [[Lionel Messi]] as its Hard Rock brand ambassador as the company celebrated its 50th anniversary.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wsvn.com/sports/lionel-messi-announced-as-hard-rock-brand-ambassador-as-company-celebrates-50th-anniversary/|title=Lionel Messi announced as Hard Rock brand ambassador as company celebrates 50th anniversary|website=Wsvn.com|date=June 10, 2021 |access-date=June 10, 2022}}</ref>

==Lobbying and political influence==
In 2025, Hard Rock Cafe was one of the donors who funded the White House's [[East Wing#2025 demolition|East Wing demolition]], and planned building of a ballroom.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Maher |first1=Kit |last2=Tapper |first2=Jake |last3=Jaramillo |first3=Alejandra |title=White House releases list of donors for Trump’s multi-million-dollar ballroom |url=https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/23/politics/ballroom-donors-white-house-trump |access-date=23 October 2025 |work=CNN |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251023104311/https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/23/politics/ballroom-donors-white-house-trump |archive-date=October 23, 2025}}</ref>

== Matters of interest ==
A Hard Rock Cafe exists in Empire, Colorado, which was established in 1934 that is not part of the chain.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g33411-d382118-r228356801-Hard_Rock_Cafe-Empire_Colorado.html | title=The Original Hard Rock Cafe Established in 1934 - Review of Hard Rock Cafe, Empire, CO |website= Tripadvisor }}</ref>

Side 1 of [[The Doors]]' 1970 album ''[[Morrison Hotel]]'' is titled ''Hard Rock Cafe''. A café of that name in [[Los Angeles]] (now closed) is pictured on the back of the album.<ref>{{cite news |title=Album Cover of the Week: Morrison Hotel |url=https://www.grayflannelsuit.net/blog/album-cover-of-the-week-morrison-hotel |work=The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit |date=11 April 2011}}</ref> In 1977 album ''[[Simple Things (Carole King album)|Simple Things]]'', [[Carole King]] wrote the song "Hard Rock Café". In her autobiography ''A Natural Woman'', she reports that she was inspired by a bar in downtown Los Angeles and a small restaurant in [[Idaho]] with the same name. At the time, she was not aware of the similarity in name to the restaurant chain. HRC founders Morton and Tigrett were allegedly inspired to give the name by the same bar in Los Angeles. [[Olivia Molina (singer)|Olivia Molina]] sang the [[German language|German]] version of the song. Until February 2017, there was a café in [[Heidelberg]] called Hard Rock Café, but it did not belong to the group; after a series of court cases, the restaurant had to change its name.<ref>{{cite news |title=Hard Rock Cafe darf keine Hard-Rock-Cafe-Artikel verkaufen |url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/handel-konsumgueter/bgh-urteil-hard-rock-cafe-darf-keine-hard-rock-cafe-artikel-verkaufen/8644534.html |work=Handelsblatt.com |date=15 August 2013}}</ref>

During the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]], Hard Rock Cafe refused to withdraw from the [[Russia]]n market. An April 28, 2022, study by [[Yale University]], intended to identify how companies were reacting to the invasion, placed Hard Rock Cafe in the "Buying Time" category, meaning "Holding Off New Investments/Development: companies postponing future planned investment/development/marketing while continuing substantive business".<ref>{{cite web |author= |title=Over 1000 Companies Have Curtailed Operations in Russia—But Some Remain |url=https://som.yale.edu/story/2022/over-1000-companies-have-curtailed-operations-russia-some-remain |access-date=September 16, 2022 |website=[[Yale School of Management]]}}</ref> The only Hard Rock Cafe in [[Moscow]] was closed in October 2022.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hard Rock Cafe News and Updates - Timeline |url=https://thisishardrock.com/hard-rock-news-timeline.html |website=Thisishardrock.com |access-date=18 November 2024}}</ref>

== Gallery ==

<gallery mode="packed">
File:Hard Rock Cafe London.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe in [[London]], the first restaurant founded in 1971
File:Hard Rock Orlando.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe in [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]]
File:Hollywood Hard Rock Cafe P4050205.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe in [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]]
File:HRC NY.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe located on [[Broadway (Manhattan)|Broadway]] in the heart of [[Times Square]]
File:Hard Rock Cafe Prague.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe in [[Prague]]
File:Hard Rock Cafe, New Delhi.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe in [[New Delhi]]
File:Hard Rock Cafe Manchester 03.JPG|Hard Rock Cafe in [[Manchester]]
File:HRC in dublin.JPG|Hard Rock Cafe in [[Temple Bar, Dublin]]
File:Hard Rock Santa Cruz de la Sierra.jpg|Hard Rock Café in [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra]]
File:Hard_rock_japan.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe in [[Roppongi]], Tokyo
File:MBHardRockCafe.jpg|Hard Rock Cafe in [[Myrtle Beach, South Carolina]]

</gallery>

== See also ==

* [[Bubba Gump Shrimp Company]]
* [[Fashion Cafe]]
* [[Planet Hollywood]]
* [[Rainforest Cafe]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Hard Rock Cafe}}

* {{Official website|http://www.hardrock.com }}
* [https://www.facebook.com/HRCWORLDWIDE71 HRC WORLDWIDE]
* [http://www.arrakeen.ch/hardrockcafenews.htm Hard Rock Cafe News], ''arrakeen.ch''
* [https://archive.today/20130122175434/http://www.expotv.com/videos/reviews/21/188/Hard-Rock-Cafe/175237 Video review of the Hard Rock Cafe with on-site footage]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jf7Ha2lem0Q Video tour of the Hard Rock Hotel Singapore]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091020022012/http://memorabilia.hardrock.com/ Hard Rock Memorabilia Gallery]
* [http://mynorthwest.com/?nid=129&sid=281939 "Seattle welcomes Hard Rock Cafe"]

{{Hard Rock Hotel and Casino locations}}
{{Food chains in Australia}}
{{Restaurant chains in Ireland}}
{{Food chains in Japan}}
{{Food chains in Taiwan}}
{{Food chains in the United Kingdom}}
{{Fast-food chains of the United States}}
{{Morton family}}
{{Restaurants in London}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Hard Rock Cafe| ]]
[[Category:Companies based in Davie, Florida]]
[[Category:Companies owned by American Indian tribes]]
[[Category:Restaurant chains in the United States]]
[[Category:Fast-food franchises]]
[[Category:Restaurants established in 1971]]
[[Category:Seminole Tribe of Florida]]
[[Category:Theme restaurants]]
[[Category:Restaurant chains in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:1971 establishments in England]]
[[Category:Restaurant chains in Singapore]]
[[Category:Fast-food chains of Singapore]]
[[Category:Restaurants in Singapore]]

Hard Rock Cafe - Revision history

imported>Ookap: /* History */