For Immediate Release
Media Inquiries: Sarah Malpeli
SMITH
(941) 315-1226
smalpeli@smithadv.com

BIG STEAKS MANAGEMENT SIGNS SMITH AGENCY
TO OPEN NC RUTH'S CHRIS STEAK HOUSES

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (April 3, 2008) — SMITH, a fully-integrated advertising and marketing agency with offices in Raleigh and Fayetteville, North Carolina, and Sarasota, Florida, has been tapped by Big Steaks Management, LLC, a local franchisee of Ruth's Chris Steak House, to provide public relations and marketing support for the opening of three new locations.

The three Ruth's Chris Steak Houses will open in North Carolina in 2008 with locations in Wilmington, Raleigh and Durham. SMITH will coordinate all publicity, media and community outreach and event planning for the grand opening in each city. As part of the opening strategy, SMITH will work to involve each restaurant in the community through a variety of strategic partnerships.

"We are looking forward to bringing the Ruth's Chris 'sizzle' to North Carolina, our own home-base, with the openings of such a widely respected and premium steak house," said Gary Smith, President and CEO of SMITH. "With its reputation for excellence in quality and service, we know Ruth's Chris will be a wonderful addition to these already thriving North Carolina communities."

Opening in June, the Wilmington Ruth's Chris will be located at the Hilton Wilmington Riverside hotel. The Raleigh Ruth's Chris is scheduled open in the affluent North Hills live-work-play development in July, and the new Durham restaurant will open in Renaissance Center at Southpoint area in October.

Each restaurant will have spacious private dining and banquet facilities in addition to the decorative bar, lounge and dining rooms. Guests will select from menus that specialize in generous cuts of corn-fed USDA Prime Midwestern beef, custom-aged to the peak of flavor, broiled to order at 1800 degrees to lock in the natural juices and served sizzling on a 500 degree plate as well as live lobster and daily fresh seafood selections.

The original Ruth's Chris Steak House restaurant was established in 1965 when founder, Ruth Fertel, purchased Chris Steak House in New Orleans. Against the advice of her lawyer and her banker, she mortgaged her house and bought the restaurant, eventually renaming it Ruth's Chris Steak House, and the rest they say is history! Today, Ruth's Chris Steak House company is the largest fine dining steak house group in the world, and boasts more than 116 restaurants worldwide, still serving many of Ruth's original recipes.


ABOUT Big Steaks Management, LLC
Headquartered in Pikesville, MD, Big Steaks Management, LLC operates Ruth's Chris Steak House restaurants in Annapolis, Baltimore (Water Street and Pier 5) and Pikesville, MD, as well as in Cary, NC, and Atlantic City, NJ. The company also owns and operates Babalu Grill, Blue Sea Grill and the Havana Club in Baltimore, MD and The Crystal Room in Pikesville, MD. The company currently employs more than 600 people in Maryland, New Jersey and North Carolina. www.SeriousSteaks.com.

ABOUT SMITH
SMITH is an advertising and marketing agency driven by discovering what makes people who they are and what motivates their decisions, and then planning strategic communications accordingly. Headquartered in Fayetteville, N.C., the 33-year-old firm has offices in Raleigh, N.C. and Sarasota, Fla., offering fully-integrated services that include brand development, account planning, marketing research, interactive services and public relations. SMITH's clients include regional, national and global companies in travel and tourism, healthcare, consumer products, real estate and financial services. The SMITH team has honed its planning and creative skills on blue-chip and Fortune 500 brands including Hershey, BMW, Coca-Cola, ESPN, WebMD, Bank of America, Deutsche Bank and American Express, as well as leading travel destinations such as Hilton Head Island, Pinehurst, Augusta, Sarasota, and Asheville. SMITH is also a corporate partner and the agency of record for the Southeast Tourism Society. For more information on SMITH, call (800) 421-1973 or visit www.smithadv.com.