Irish Firm Acquires Smith & Wollensky

Danu Investment Partners, an Irish company, has acquired Boston-based Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group, which include the upscale steakhouse chain and the 2-year-old Wollensky’s Grill concept. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

New owners Dublin-based Danu first licensed the Smith & Wollensky name for a London restaurant in June 2015. Now, with the acquisition, Danu owns seven of the chain’s eight U.S. locations, including those in Boston, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Miami Beach, and Columbus, Ohio. Danu also obtained worldwide licensing rights to the Smith & Wollensky brand. The New York location, which opened in 1977, remains in founder Alan Stillman’s control via Quality Branded Restaurants, formerly known as Fourth Wall Restaurants.

The Wollensky’s Grill concept, created in 2014 in the lower level of the Chicago unit, is a lighter, more casual version of the main dining room of the steakhouse.

Danu’s Smith & Wollensky unit in London features elements that the company plans to borrow in future development, including two full bars, two main dining areas, a full butcher shop and an onsite dry-aging room.

Tommy Hart, who served as managing partner and general manager of Smith & Wollensky New York for nearly 30 years, is joining the SWRG board to advise the company on its development plans.