King's Seafood Company

As part of the transition, Sam King went to work for Tiny Naylor’s while Jeff King sat on the 1984 Olympic Committee, to be hosted in Los AngelesLos Angeles. Acquisition of The Carriage Club, a restaurant in Long Beach was offered to Tiny Naylor, but they declined. Sam King saw potential though, so he quit, and called Jeff King to propose a joint venture. Jeff agreed, and they signed their first lease together the day before Thanksgiving in 1983, and six weeks before the 1984 Olympics. 555 East was their first restaurant concept, and they still own and operate the business today. At that time, the company was called University Restaurant Group, a name inspired by the ‘friendly’ rivalry of USC and UCLA, Sam and Jeff's respective alma maters. They held that name until 1998, when they ultimately decided to change the name of the company to best embody their goals and ambition of "Delivering Great Seafood to America."