Romano’s Macaroni Grill

What Romano’s Macaroni Grill does

Romano's Macaroni Grill is a privately held Italian restaurant chain founded in 1988 by Phil Romano and operated as a franchise under RMG Acquisition Company LLC, a Colorado-registered entity headquartered in Lakewood, Colorado. The company operates two distinct brands: the flagship Romano's Macaroni Grill, a full-service polished-casual Italian dining concept featuring scratch-made pasta, brick oven pizza, chicken, seafood, and steaks; and Twisted Mac, a fast-casual QSR sub-brand offering gourmet mac & cheese in compact 800-1,600 sq. ft. kiosk-driven formats aimed at airports, food courts, and university campuses.

The company's technology stack is composed of standard third-party restaurant platforms rather than proprietary infrastructure. Point-of-sale, online ordering (via Order Online), catering management (via ezCater integration), reservations (via Toast Tab at some locations), and the loyalty program (Macaroni Grill Rewards, powered by SpendGo) are all delivered through external partners. The company also operates a private events program with dedicated Special Events Managers and sells physical and digital gift cards through its website. Distribution spans company-owned and franchised dine-in locations, direct website ordering, third-party delivery (DoorDash at select locations), the ezCater marketplace, and a franchise network.

The business model is a hybrid of corporate restaurant operations and franchising. Revenue is generated through dine-in restaurant sales, to-go and delivery orders, catering services (pickup, delivery, and full-service events), gift card sales, and franchise fees/royalties from the RMG and Twisted Mac brands. Menu pricing is unit-based and varies by location (e.g., Chicken Parmesan ~$22, steaks ~$30 in North Olmsted, OH). Catering delivery follows a tiered fee schedule: $25 for orders up to $250, 10% for $250-$750, $75 for orders over $750, with special events carrying a 20% service fee for groups of 12 or more. Customer segments span individual diners, families with children, happy hour patrons, private event hosts, and corporate catering buyers, with no single customer material to revenue.

Name

Romano’s Macaroni Grill

Legal name

RMG ACQUISITION COMPANY LLC

Website

https://macaronigrill.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Romano's Macaroni Grill is a privately held franchise operating full-service polished-casual Italian restaurants founded in 1988, alongside its Twisted Mac QSR sub-brand. The company serves individual diners, families, event hosts, and corporate catering customers through dine-in, to-go, delivery, and franchise channels across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Casual Italian Dining Restaurants

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Limited-Service Restaurants (722513)

SIC

Retail-Eating Places (5812), Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Chef’s Table & Tasting Menu Restaurants (THAFACAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Mexican/Latin QSR (Tacos, Burritos, Bowls) (THAFAAAE)

Keywords

• Italian restaurant dining
• Casual dining services
• Catering and events
• Franchise restaurant operations
• Food and beverage service

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Dine-in Restaurant Sales: Full-service restaurant dining with table service, featuring Italian cuisine including pasta, pizza, chicken, seafood, and steaks. Revenue generated from food and beverage purchases during dine-in service.
2. Catering Services: Corporate and private event catering including pickup, delivery, and full-service options. Menu items available in small (5 portions) and large (10 portions) sizes. Delivery available on orders over $50 with tiered delivery fees.
3. To-Go and Delivery: Takeout and delivery orders placed through website, third-party platforms, and phone. Includes non-catering to-go orders and catering delivery within approximately 10-20 mile radius of locations.
4. Gift Cards: Physical and digital gift cards sold online in $25 increments. Cards redeemable for food and beverages at U.S. restaurant locations.
5. Franchise Fees and Royalties: Revenue from franchise operators including initial franchise fees and ongoing royalty payments. Brands include Romano's Macaroni Grill (full-service) and Twisted Mac (QSR format).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Romano's Macaroni Grill operates a chain of full-service, polished-casual Italian restaurants serving scratch-made pasta, brick-oven pizza, chicken, seafood, and steaks via dine-in, to-go, delivery, catering, and private events. The company also runs a fast-casual QSR sub-brand, Twisted Mac, focused on gourmet mac and cheese in small-footprint locations such as airports, food courts, and university campuses.

Product overview

Romano's Macaroni Grill operates as a portfolio of Italian dining brands offering two distinct service models: the full-service polished-casual Romano's Macaroni Grill restaurant (since 1988) featuring scratch-made Italian cuisine across 38 states and 9 countries, and the fast-casual Twisted Mac QSR brand focused on gourmet mac & cheese in compact formats. The portfolio includes ancillary services: catering (pickup, delivery, and full-service events), private dining for special occasions, gift cards, and a rewards program powered by SpendGo. Both brands share operational infrastructure including national supply chains, POS systems, and the 'Guest First' hospitality philosophy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Twisted Mac: Italian Style Gourmet Subs - A fast, fun & fresh twist on everyone's favorite classic comfort food. High-efficiency QSR vehicle with small footprints (800-1,600 sq. ft.) and kiosk-driven ordering.

Products and services

• Romano's Macaroni Grill Restaurant Full-service polished-casual Italian restaurant offering scratch-made pasta, brick-oven pizza, chicken, seafood, and steaks for dine-in, to-go, and delivery customers in the United States.
• Twisted Mac QSR Fast-casual QSR concept offering Italian-style gourmet mac and cheese in small-footprint locations (800–1,600 sq. ft.) with kiosk-driven ordering, designed for airports, food courts, and university campuses.
• Catering Services Full-service catering program with pickup, delivery, and special event options for groups, offering menu items in small (5 portions) and large (10 portions) sizes integrated with ezCater.
• Private Events and Group Dining Private dining spaces at restaurant locations for birthday parties, anniversaries, team events, meetings, and celebrations, coordinated by Special Events Managers.
• Gift Cards Physical and digital gift cards sold in $25 increments and redeemable at participating Romano's Macaroni Grill U.S. locations.
• Macaroni Grill Rewards Program Loyalty/rewards program powered by SpendGo that lets customers earn rewards on purchases at Romano's Macaroni Grill.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ezCatercoreTechnology or IntegrationCatering platform integration enabling online catering orders. Provides professional catering services for corporate events, parties, and group gatherings with delivery and pickup options.
• SpendGocoreTechnology or IntegrationRewards program platform powering Macaroni Grill's loyalty program. Enables customers to earn rewards on purchases through registration and spending activity.
• DoorDashminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery partner for South Jordan, UT location enabling delivery of non-catering to-go orders.
• Order OnlinecoreTechnology or IntegrationOnline ordering platform provider enabling direct website ordering for pickup and delivery.
• CignaminorOthersHealth insurance provider referenced in Transparency in Coverage documentation for employee benefits.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Buca di Beppo: Family-style Italian dining chain with strong group/event catering orientation. Closely mirrors Macaroni Grill's combination of dine-in, private events, and family-style portions.
• Olive Garden: Italian casual dining flagship of Darden Restaurants and the dominant scaled competitor. Directly comparable full-service Italian menu, dine-in model, and customer demographic to Romano's Macaroni Grill.
• Carrabba's Italian Grill: Owned by Bloomin' Brands, Carrabba's operates full-service Italian casual dining restaurants. Closest direct competitor in segment, scale, and menu positioning to Macaroni Grill.
• Maggiano's Little Italy: Brinker International's upscale-casual Italian dining concept. Directly comparable polished-casual positioning, family-style menu, and group/event business mix to Macaroni Grill.
• California Pizza Kitchen: Polished-casual chain offering brick-oven pizza and pasta in a similar menu category to Macaroni Grill. Comparable price point, dine-in experience, and customer demographic.
• Bertucci's: Italian casual dining chain specializing in brick-oven pizza and pasta. Similar scale and segment positioning to Macaroni Grill, with comparable dine-in and catering offerings.
• Fazoli's: Italian-focused limited-service/QSR chain offering pasta, pizza, and subs. Closely comparable to the Twisted Mac sub-brand's fast-casual Italian positioning and small footprint strategy.
• Sbarro: Italian QSR/pizza concept with strong presence in food courts, malls, and travel venues. Comparable small-footprint, non-traditional venue strategy to the Twisted Mac sub-brand.

Broad incumbents

• The Cheesecake Factory: Iconic polished-casual chain with broad menu including Italian items. Comparable upscale-casual positioning, scratch-made kitchen, and high-traffic suburban locations to Macaroni Grill.
• Bonefish Grill: Darden-owned polished-casual chain. Operates in adjacent casual-dining category with comparable price point, full-service model, and suburban footprint to Macaroni Grill.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MacaroniGrill
• Facebookfacebook.com/RomanosMacaroniGrill
• Instagraminstagram.com/macaronigrill

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Romano’s Macaroni Grill