Urban Plates Closes $38 Million Facility With Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group

CARDIFF, Calif., Sept. 25, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Urban Plates, a California-based, upscale fast casual restaurant brand, announced today that it has closed a $38 million growth and working capital facility with Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group. The company will use the proceeds to expand the brand by building new restaurants in various geographic areas around the country.

Urban Plates combines the freshness, variety and convenience of a modern food marketplace with a fine-dining culinary experience. Founders and industry veterans Saad Nadhir and John Zagara opened the first Urban Plates in San Diego in 2011 with a passion for serving nourishing food that makes you feel good. Urban Plates empowers guests to make equally wholesome and delicious food choices by providing fresh, made-from-scratch meals, entrée salads, hand-carved sandwiches, hot and chilled sides, seasonal soups and braises, as well as natural juice Replenishers and desserts. The company's thoughtful sourcing strategy, which includes grass-fed steak, cage-free chicken and line-caught seafood, is part of the company's fundamental philosophy to invest in food quality across its entire menu. Every menu item is prepared from scratch daily at each of the company's 15 locations, including 13 California restaurants and two East Coast restaurants in the Washington D.C. area.

"Urban Plates is changing the way America eats," said Saad Nadhir, Co-Founder and CEO. "Guests desire affordable high-quality, customizable meals served in a convenient yet inviting atmosphere with fine- dining hospitality. Urban Plates is absolutely dedicated to fulfilling that need for every guest, every time. We are very pleased to work with Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group as we continue our expansion of the brand in existing markets as well as new markets across the U.S."

"We're thrilled to have advised Urban Plates," said John Goldasich, Partner at Arlington Capital Advisors. "Few growth concepts are led by such experienced restaurant operators. Saad Nadhir and his team have developed a category-defining concept that meets the needs of the modern consumer. We look forward to following Urban Plates as the company continues to expand across the U.S."

"The Arlington team did an outstanding job advising us on this transaction," said Saad Nadhir. "Their deep knowledge and experience in both capital raising and the restaurant industry were invaluable throughout the process, and we look forward to working with them again in the future."

For more information on Urban Plates visit www.urbanplates.com. 

Principals of Arlington Capital Advisors served as exclusive financial advisors to Urban Plates, acting as registered securities agents of M&A Securities Group, Inc.

About Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group

Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group is a financing and investment platform within The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. that is dedicated to providing financing solutions to middle market companies based in the US, Canada, UK and Europe. For more information on Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group, visit www.goldmansachs.com.

About Arlington Capital Advisors

Arlington Capital Advisors is a boutique investment bank that specializes in providing middle-market businesses with advisory services. Arlington focuses on providing strategic advice to its clients, including sell-side and buy-side mergers and acquisitions, sourcing growth capital and other capital-centric strategic alternatives for businesses across a wide array of industries including a specific focus and expertise in consumer businesses. Securities offered through M&A Securities Group, Inc. M&A Securities Group, Inc. and Arlington Capital Advisors are not affiliated companies.

For more information on Arlington Capital Advisors, visit www.arlingtoncapitaladvisors.com.

Urban Plates

Urban Plates is a fine fast-casual restaurant concept combining the freshness and variety of a food marketplace with fine-dining culinary integrity. Founders and industry veterans Saad Nadhir and John Zagara opened the first Urban Plates in San Diego in 2011 with a passion for serving nourishing food that makes you feel good. Urban Plates provides fresh, made-from-scratch meals, entrée salads, hand-carved sandwiches, hot and chilled sides, seasonal soups and braises, as well as natural juice Replenishers and desserts. The company's fundamental philosophy to invest in food quality is behind thoughtful sourcing, which includes grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, line-caught seafood and more. Every menu item is prepared on-premise daily at each of the company's 15 locations, including 13 California restaurants and two East Coast locations in the Washington D.C. market in Tysons Galleria and The Mall at Columbia.

For more information on Urban Plates visit www.urbanplates.com. 

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SOURCE Urban Plates