Mimi's Bistro + Bakery (formerly Mimi's Café) is an American

restaurant chain A chain store or retail chain is a retail outlet in which several locations share a brand, central management and standardized business practices. They have come to dominate many retail markets, dining markets, and service categories in many pa ...

. As of April 2024, the company operates 44 locations in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, and Utah. Originally headquartered in

Tustin, California Tustin is a city located in Orange County, California, United States, within the Los Angeles metropolitan area. In 2020, Tustin had a population of 80,276. The city does not include the unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated communit ...

, its headquarters moved to

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

in 2014 after 36 years in California. It serves French and American food, with French rustic decor and themes. Arthur J. Simms (who headed the

commissary A commissary is a government official charged with oversight or an ecclesiastical official who exercises in special circumstances the jurisdiction of a bishop. In many countries, the term is used as an administrative or police title. It often c ...

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

Studios in the 1950s), his son Thomas Simms, Brian Taylor, and Paul Kurz opened the first Mimi's Cafe in December 1978 in

Anaheim Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the tenth-most ...

, California. Bob Evans Farms, Inc. purchased the Mimi's Cafe restaurant chain (operating under SWH Corporation) in July 2004 for USD$182 million. Mimi's Cafe was sold to the U.S. branch of

Groupe Le Duff Groupe Le Duff is a French restaurant conglomerate, with holdings in Europe and the Americas, consisting of over 1,310 restaurants and bakeries. It includes Bridor, La Madeleine, Kamps, Mimi's Cafe, Pizza Del Arte, and Brioche Dorée. The comp ...

, which also owns the La Madeleine restaurants, in February 2013.

History

Mimi's Bistro + Bakery is a wholly owned subsidiary of LeDuff America and was founded as Mimi's Cafe by American airman Arthur Simms, who was stationed in France during World War II. He named the restaurant after a French woman he met in a party after the liberation of the country. In July 2019, the company re-branded as Mimi's Bistro + Bakery in order to "reflect the company’s desire to make Mimi’s a destination restaurant, where diners can sit down for a leisurely experience over food and affordable wine."

References

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External links

Mimi's Cafe website
Restaurant chains in the United States French restaurants in the United States Companies based in Irvine, California Food and drink companies based in California 1978 establishments in California