Well, well, well... Whaddya know. Seems like Mark Rice is an attorney, a restauranteur, an investment banker, the founder of a four team football league, an entrepreneur... How in the world does he finance all of those ventures? I guess another question might be, has he ever been truly successful at anything? Former attorney, one restaurant closed, football league cancels remainder of season, and now he has to contend with the fact that his uh... investment banking activities have been uh... publicized all over the Internet. I'd pretty well imagine that by now the authorities are all over that free website.
bizjournals.com
Week of August 11, 1997
From the Houston Business Journal
Retail Beat
Under wraps: Latest food fad has restaurants rolling in business
Laura Elder
Who would have thought that a burrito would become hip?
Well, former local attorney Mark Rice did, and he plans to take the once-basic meal to new epicurean heights.
Rice, who heads locally-based Wraps International Gourmet Burritos has seen all that a burrito can be.
In his travels last year, Rice got his hands on wraps in Denver, California and Washington and admired the portability and versatility of the hand-held meals that resembled burritos, pitas or even egg rolls. But voguish wraps go beyond meat, beans and cheese.
What was different about the jelly-roll like meals he encountered was their filling, which can include anything from teriyaki chicken to Peking duck.
Seeing the formerly pedestrian burrito with a new twist, Rice, an entrepreneur and former attorney with Fulbright & Jaworski, opened his first wraps restaurant in April in Meyerland Plaza after selling his company, Copy-Right Document Services Inc.
Now he's searching the city's inner loop for four more sites. In 36 months, he plans to roll out 20 stores in Texas, including the Dallas area.
Rice says he plans to create a regional quick-service restaurant chain with enough critical mass to take it public.
And he's recruited executive chef Javier Mondragon, a former chef for Jalapeno's and former owner of Marisco's. Caterer Ruth Meric worked as a consultant in planning and developing the menu.
Rice says he likes to distinguish his wraps from burritos this way: "Burritos are basically done Mexican food-style. I draw the line by saying wraps are multi-cultural."
Rice's wraps are filled with Thai chicken, chicken pesto, grilled mango snapper, flame-roasted vegetables, among other fancy fixings.
Rice isn't the only one hawking the souped-up burritos.
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Rice says wraps are popular because they're easy to eat, are an alternative to a burger and can be prepared with lean cooking methods.
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bizjournals.com
Week of April 6, 1998
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News from the food and drink front
Wraps International Gourmet Burritos has rolled up another location. After operating in Meyerland for a year, Wraps International plans to open a second site next week at 2320 S. Shepherd in a space formerly occupied by Dallas-based ZuZu Handmade Mexican Food.
ZuZu, which at one time planned to open 600 locations, has closed a number of sites around town. Last year, ZuZu Inc. co-founder Horatio Lonsdale-Hands relinquished his position as chief executive officer to Thomas Colacini, a former vice president of Burger King Corp. and said it was time to bring new perspective to the company.
Who would have guessed it meant closing the Shepherd site. Meanwhile, Mark Rice, owner of Wraps International, is searching for more sites around town to barter his chic burritos.
"We want to expand as rapidly as possible," says Rice. "We would like to have 20 or 30 stores."
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bizjournals.com
Week of September 13, 1999
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News from the food and drink front
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It looks like that's a wrap for Wraps International Gourmet Burritos on Shepherd Drive. The purveyor of souped-up burritos has rolled up its wares and has left the building.
In business less than two years, the shop was part of a grand expansion plan by Houston attorney Mark Rice, head of Wraps International.
In 1997, the former Fulbright & Jaworski lawyer had plans to roll out 20 stores in Texas and Dallas. But now, the Meyerland location is the only remaining local restaurant in the aspiring chain.
Rice was unavailable for comment.
Laura Elder
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bizjournals.com
Week of June 5, 2000
Spring break: Alternative pigskin league pulls plug on `00 to focus on next year
John Lombardo Street & Smith's Sports-Business Journal
The Spring Football League pulled the plug on its inaugural season halfway through the four-game schedule, citing the need to concentrate on next year's efforts.
The four-team league, which offered musical acts before, during and after games, had completed just the first two weeks of games when officials decided to cancel the rest of the season. The four markets that fielded teams were Los Angeles, Houston, San Antonio and Miami. The SFL will refund advance ticket sales and will honor facility lease arrangements in each market. Average attendance was 2,000 fans a game.
Despite the low turnout, league officials say they plan to play next season with eight teams.
"There will definitely be a season next year," says spokeswoman Laura Paquelet. "It is a business move that was taken so we could see what worked and what didn't. We got what we needed to know to move forward and tweak the product."
The league's concept was to offer a festival of sorts for football fans by offering musical acts, children's activities and autograph sessions with retired NFL players. Tickets ranged in price from $5 to $25. The league was created this year by an investment group led by Houston businessman Mark Rice.
The festival plan proved to be a logistical challenge for SFL organizers, who say they will decide whether to continue the entertainment component.
"The festivals have not been ruled out, but it will most definitely be tweaked," Paquelet says.
KJC |
