Steakhouse [Forced] To Close, Ending Tradition For Wounded War Vets

D.C. Channel 9 WUSA ^ | 4/14/06 | Doug Buchanan

[Coop]

A two-year tradition for wounded war vets is about to go by the wayside. A downtown DC steak house that’s catered to injured troops every Friday night is about to close.

Fran O’Brien’s landlord [Hilton] is forcing out the steakhouse of the same name.

“We're not feeling very good about leaving and especially the Friday night dinner,” O’Brien said.

With the restaurant soon to close, so too will go a hang-out spot that troops have been able to call home while healing, if only for a few hours every week.

In a statement from Hilton hotels, a spokesperson writes: "this is a business decision whereby Hilton Hotels is exploring several options to utilize this space."

But the decision impacts more than just the business that's getting the boot.

A Hilton hotel spokesperson say they are -- on some level -- hoping to keep the Friday night alive without Fran O’Brien’s.

[nuconvert]

Well, if they could get a vocal lawyer, he could make for really bad publicity for Hilton. That might have an affect on Hilton. No business wants their name and reputation dragged thru the mud.

[Coop]

Maybe. But we're trying to give 'em a publicity headache without the attorney.

[Coop]

Ya know, for a big-spending Fran O'Brien's fan, you've been noticeably absent from this bad-news thread. I mean, considering you have been actively posting elsewhere on FR today.

Or maybe you're mumbling about it elsewhere??

[bmwcyle]

He can eat but too lazy to go against Code Pink.

[Mo1]

BTTT

[Coop]

And a bump

[Coop]

Hi ya, Willie!! [waving frantically] Look, another business down the drain due to outsourcing! :-D

[nuconvert]

I just thought having an attorney might be a way to get on TV. It might just be something a lawyer might take on pro-bono for publicity for himself. Getting on TV and talking about the ongoing internet campaign and the calls and emails, would really put a lot of pressure on Hilton and it seems there's a very short time to get Hilton to change its mind.

[feefee]

thanks for the ping, Coop.

[OKIEDOC]

I received several replies that showed most of the people emailed either out of office, on vacation or unavailable.

I am disappointed with Hilton Hotels but it's not like I didn't expect this from them.

I guess they need the wheelchair ramp money so Paris can show her immoral butt in some foreign country.

If I was Hilton and I'm not, this problem would have been quietly fixed and quickly.

I believe there is an ulterior motive at work and it has nothing to do with the cost of a wheelchair ramp but more to do with the free meals for wounded veterans.

[feefee]

and i see the headline, i'll get back to you

[onyx]

Thanks for the pings, bd!
BTTT!

[tgslTakoma]

From MilBlogger Andi, of Andi's World

April 14, 2006
Hilton Responds to the Fran O'Brien's Matter

Someone I know and trust has been talking with representatives of the Capital Hilton over the past couple of days regarding the Fran O'Brien's eviction. As a result of those conversations, Brian Kelleher, General Manager of the Capital Hilton, called me this afternoon. He and I had a good conversation and he answered all of my questions. In fact, he's going to answer your questions too. More on that later.

I began by asking Kelleher to confirm that negotiations were over and that there is no way the two parties, Hilton and Fran O'Brien's, could come to an agreement, and he confirmed this to be true. Fran O'Brien's will indeed be moving out at the end of this month. Kelleher says that negotiations between the two "didn't gel". I hesitate to explore this area because corporate lease negotiations are difficult and none of us are privy to what happened behind the scenes. As painful as it is for us, because of our deep respect for Hal and Marty, sometimes good people are the victims of business decisions. Unfortunate, but a reality.

Kelleher claims that the eviction has nothing to do with the Friday night dinners, something that has been widely speculated. According to Kelleher, the Hilton would like to continue to host the dinners. He says that his staff have all of the logistics down, from getting the patients on/off the bus and into the restaurant to providing the security detail for them. He also says that his staff greets the bus each week, including himself when he's there, and that they are incredibly fond of the patients, which I'm sure is true. Because they have the routine down, and the soldiers are familiar with the staff, Kelleher says that the hotel is intent on continuing these dinners.

The Capital Hilton has agreed to host and pay for the May 5th dinner, so there will be no interruption for our troops. Beyond then, the Hilton has been in touch with some of the organizations which currently help sponsor the dinners at Fran O'Brien's, and he's hoping these groups will continue to do so. Kelleher also tells me that he has reached out to WRAMC and Deputy Secretary of Defense, Gordon England, and is awaiting direction from both of them with respect to next steps.

There is no question that the Capital Hilton has the space to accommodate our troops, and for some of them, given their injuries, privacy is a concern. Kelleher assures me that those concerns will be handled according to the wishes of our troops.

I told Kelleher that all of us in the military community feel an enormous amount of loyalty to Marty and Hal, the owners of Fran O'Brien's, and that we are protective of them. The perception is that Marty and Hal are not getting a fair shake. Now, I understand that it's difficult to separate the dinners from Marty and Hal, and I also understand the desire to crucify Hilton over this unwanted divorce, but the reality is, barring a miracle, the lease is not going to be renewed. So it seems to me, we have two missions. We need to be sure that these Friday night dinners continue -- permanently -- for the sake of our troops. Secondly, we want to do whatever we can to help and support Marty and Hal. With respect to the latter, Buzz Patterson, Matt and myself are working to get the ball rolling, beginning next week when MilBloggers will converge on our Nation's Capital.

I also asked Kelleher if there was anything that he's read or heard over the past few days that he wanted to clarify. He did say that some of the things that have been said about the Hilton Corporation are untrue, but didn't give specifics. He again reiterated that the decision not to renew O'Brien's lease had nothing to do with the Friday night dinners, therefore the speculation that this was a liability issue is untrue. What I failed to ask, and will follow up on, is if the Hilton Corporation planned to continue the dinners even before the controversy erupted. That's something I would like to know. I wasn't aware that Kelleher was going to call me, so I wasn't prepared to interview him. Which is fine, because he's giving you the opportunity to do just that.

I explained, as if Kelleher didn't already know, that there is a lot of anxiety and anger in the military community over this incident. I suggested that it might be a good idea to have Hilton agree to field questions. I asked him if I were to solicit questions from the MilBlog community and submit them to him, would he agree to answer them. To my surprise, he said yes. So now it's your turn, and I'm sure you'll do better than me. Leave your questions for Hilton in the comment section. (My note: Click on the link to Andi's blog at the top of this post, to submit a question to Mr. Kelleher) On Monday, I'll submit them to Brian Kelleher, and once he's answered them (hopefully without a PR filter being applied), I will post the answers. I will not submit questions that are obnoxious or have profanity in them, so keep the questions polite and on point. Direct and hard-hitting are fine, obnoxious won't fly.

I realize there are two sides to every story. We know that Marty and Hal wanted to stay, but other than that, we haven't heard much from them. I did call Hal, and have left my name and number. I will try to pursue this, get Fran O'Brien's version of events and see how we can help them.

This situation has highlighted the power of MilBlogs. When I asked Kelleher if he was familiar with MilBlogs, he responded, "oh yeah." It wasn't so much his answer that convinced me we were having an impact, it was the tone of his voice. My guess is that he didn't know what a MilBlog was this time last week. Kelleher also admitted that he is being inundated with email, so thanks to everyone for applying the pressure.

Play the reporter, and we'll see what happens.

Bloggers following developments:

Mudville Gazette
Blackfive
Fuzzilicious Thinking
Argghhh
Neptus Lex
Cassandra
Proud Army Mom
ThirdWaveDave
The Real Ugly American
Wizbang
Presto Agitato
(My note: And a whole bunch of other bloggers)

Posted by Andi C on April 14, 2006 at 07:30 PM | Permalink

[llevrok]

ping

[kingu]

Ok, I contacted Hilton, sent off e-mails, and whatnot. I've canceled $14k worth of reservations for the next quarter (and actually might come out ahead because alternative reservations seem to be lower all of a sudden.)

I hope you ping again with an update if there is a resolution, because if they do, well, what honestly looks like a 'cave' to public pressure, then I'd like to reward them with my business again. If another hotel or company picks them up, let me know also.

I'm rather confused by something.. I've had issues with Hilton over the years - every company can't help but step on someone's toes at some point or another. But one of the absolute hallmarks and why I usually return to them is that they're extremely flexible in finding solutions to problems. I've had customer service managers do incredible things to make a conference come off without a hitch, or to handle a problem at one of their hotels.

Never have I ever had the CSR basically say, "I really don't know what's going on, nor can I really help you here. We've heard of the issue, but no response from above.." Mind you, once I got stuck on the same floor as the Massachusetts delegation to the DNC - they got me a suite in another chain for the same rate as my room as compensation. These people react quick, but I think someone above is rather perplexed by the response to this.

So others, I encourage you, keep up the pressure. At some point, someone will make a decision, and the CSRs will respond with some confidence when you talk to them, one way or another. The decision does not, to me, appear to be final.

[mjaneangels@aolcom]

"I bet the Hilton management have been getting feedback from 'guests' that the presence of seriously wounded people has made them "feel uncomfortable."

I would think that being seriously wounded would "feel" more "uncomfortable" than seeing seriously wounded. Liberals wouldn't bother thinking about that though.

[mjaneangels@aolcom]

"I don't see the decision to use the space for something else as anti-military."

Did you see what they are going to use the space for? If so, clue the rest of us in.

[The Foolkiller]

bump

[bd476]

Kingu wrote: "Ok, I contacted Hilton, sent off e-mails, and whatnot. I've canceled $14k worth of reservations for the next quarter..."

Kingu, thank you! That is fantastic news! This is a very unselfish act you have done. It might seem simple enough but people tend to prefer familiar surroundings, even if it's just one overnight stay in a hotel, most prefer same over change.

Once a customer has switched over to a new hotel, and it's at least comparable, it can be very difficult to return to their former choice. Hotel chains are well aware of this human tendency.

Voting with our feet is the very essence of grass-roots activism!

[onyx]

Thank you, kingu!