• People across the country can help kids fighting cancer by visiting Chili’s Grill & Bar throughout September and participating in the Create-A-Pepper promotion in any of the following ways:
  • Make a donation to St. Jude, for which guests will receive a Create-A-Pepper coloring sheet. Completed coloring sheets will be displayed in restaurants for the duration of the promotion.
  • Purchase Create-A-Pepper T-shirts that can be customized with a permanent marker.
  • Purchase a Create-A-Pepper key that can be cut for use at home.
  • Eat at Chili’s on Monday, Sept. 29, when Chili’s will donate 100 percent of its profits from restaurant sales to St. Jude.
  • People also can participate in the campaign by visiting www.createapepper.com, where they can make a donation and create an electronic pepper. Site visitors can also purchase Create-A-Pepper T-shirts and keys.
• This annual promotion lasts throughout September, which is National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
• To date, Chili’s has raised more than $18.7 million for St. Jude.
• Chili’s goal for the 2008 campaign is raise enough funds to be halfway to their 10-year goal of $50 million.

• Founded by the late entertainer Danny Thomas in 1962, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is the first institution established for the sole purpose of conducting basic and clinical research and treatment into catastrophic childhood diseases, mainly cancer.
• St. Jude is the first and only pediatric cancer center to be designated as a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute.
• No child is ever turned away because of the family’s inability to pay. St. Jude is the only pediatric cancer research center where families never pay for treatment not covered by insurance.
• The daily operating cost for St. Jude is approximately $1.3 million, which is primarily covered by public contributions as well as by campaigns like the Create-A-Pepper to Fight Childhood Cancer campaign.
• Eighty-five cents of every dollar received supports the research and treatment at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
• On average, 5,400 active patients visit the hospital each year, most of whom are treated on an outpatient basis. St. Jude treats upwards of 250 patients each day and maintains 78 inpatient beds.
• St. Jude has treated children from all 50 states and from around the world.
• St. Jude’s groundbreaking development of combination therapy for children with ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia), the most common form of childhood cancer, revolutionized leukemia therapy worldwide and increased the survival rate from 4 percent, when St. Jude opened in 1962, to 94 percent today. St. Jude’s innovative research has also led to a dramatic increase in survival rates for children with many other major forms of cancer.
• Research findings at St. Jude are shared with doctors and scientists all over the world. St. Jude also enjoys a worldwide reputation as a teaching facility. The medical and scientific staff published more than 600 articles, or one article every 17 hours, in academic journals in 2007, more than any other private pediatric cancer research center in the United States.
• St. Jude was the first institution to cure sickle cell disease with a bone marrow transplant and has one of the largest pediatric sickle cell programs in the country. St. Jude is also the first center to receive government approval for a unique transplant procedure that makes it possible for parents who are not exact matches to be bone marrow donors for their children.
• St. Jude is a World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza Viruses in Animals and Birds.
• St. Jude is the national coordinating center for the National Cancer Institute–funded Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium. St. Jude is the coordinating center for the nationwide Children’s Cancer Survivor Study, funded by the National Cancer Institute. St. Jude is the national coordinating center for the National Cancer Institute–sponsored Pediatric Drug Discovery Consortium. St. Jude is the coordinating center for a national study of sickle cell disease treatment funded by National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Cancer Institute.

Overview:

Chili’s Grill & Bar is a leading casual restaurant chain with a fun and energetic atmosphere where family and friends can gather over a delicious meal. Chili’s serves guests in more than 1,400 restaurants in 50 states and 24 countries worldwide.

Heritage:

Chili’s Grill & Bar opened its first restaurant in 1975 in Dallas, Texas. Created as a hamburger restaurant/chili house with a uniquely Southwestern flair, Chili’s Grill & Bar served homemade-quality food, draft beer and frozen drinks in a casual atmosphere. The menu was as simple as the food was outstanding, with items like the Oldtimer® (a ½ lb. hamburger topped with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions and mustard) and a “bowl of red” – Texas-style chili.

On The Menu:

The Chili’s menu has grown to offer a variety of Southwestern-inspired, classic American and international tastes. Some highlights include:

• Starters, such as the Southwestern Eggrolls, Texas Cheese Fries, Triple Dipper and Skillet Queso;
• Big Mouth Burgers^®, including classics like the Oldtimer® and Mushroom-Swiss Burger and newer favorites such as the Southern Smokehouse Bacon Burger and Big Mouth^® Bites;
• Grilled Baby Back Ribs, serving up famous triple-basted ribs with mouth-watering favorites like Honey-Chipotle, Blazin’ Habanero, and Brown Margarita Grilled Chicken, and Monterey Chicken^®;
• Sizzling Fajitas, featuring Classic, Mushroom Jack, Steak & Portobello, and Citrus Fire Chicken & Shrimp;
• Kickin’ Chicken Entrees like Chicken Crispers^®, Crispy Honey-Chipotle Chicken Crispers, Monterey Chicken,^® and Chicken Club Tacos;
• Guiltless Grill, featuring several tasty, lower-fat alternatives, such as the Guiltless Chicken Sandwich, Guiltless Chicken Platter, and Guiltless Grill Salmon;
• Pepper Pals Kids Menu, featuring a choice of 10 entrees, 7 side items and soda, milk and juice beverage options;
• Great items for Lunch, like the Bottomless Soup, Salad and Chips and Salsa served until 4 p.m. daily, and other favorites like the Quesadilla Explosion Salad and the Smoked Turkey Sandwich.
• Desserts, featuring the popular Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie^®, Molten Chocolate Cake, and new favorites such as the Sweet Shots and the White Chocolate Molten Cake.

Restaurants:

A typical Chili’s Grill & Bar restaurant is roughly 6,000 square feet, includes seating for 200 guests, and is staffed by approximately 120 "ChiliHeads." Most Chili’s are stand-alone operations located convenient to major retail, residential and commercial/office centers. However, "Chili’s Too" can now be found in shopping malls, airports and similar "non-traditional" locations both domestically and internationally.

Hours:

Vary by location, but generally 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, and 11 a.m. to Midnight, Friday and Saturday.

Ownership:

Chili's is the flagship brand of Brinker International (NYSE: EAT), one of the world’s largest casual dining companies, with more than 1,800 restaurants in the U.S. and 24 other countries. Other Brinker restaurant concepts include Romano’s Macaroni Grill, Maggiano’s Little Italy and On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina.

Contacts:

Chili's Grill & Bar
Stacey Sullivan, Media Relations 800.775.7290