Hungry Tiger Names Kikugawa as Chief

Hungry Tiger Inc., a Van Nuys-based restaurant chain that last year underwent a major restructuring of operations, on Thursday named Vincent E. Kikugawa chief executive.

Kikugawa, 41, is a former Marriott Corp. executive who was brought in last October as president and chief operating officer. He succeeds Alan Redhead, 42, who was promoted to chairman when Kikugawa joined the company. Redhead will continue as a director.

Wayne M. Hoffman, 61, who preceded Redhead as chairman, will be returning to that job. He is also chairman of Tiger International Inc., a major freight-carrier holding company.

Despite increasing sales, Hungry Tiger has seen the number of diners at its 41 restaurants decline in the last three years. Moreover, the company’s 1984 annual report notes that fourth-quarter earnings were “severly impacted” by the Olympic Games, during what is usually its busiest time of year. For the most recent quarter, the company reported a pretax loss of $136,000 on revenue of $14.44 million.

Beginning early last year, restaurant operations were split into three divisions, including the 27 Hungry Tiger restaurants, six moderate-price Breakers Seafood Co. eateries and California Restaurant Concepts, which is a collection of eight separate restaurants and dining facilities, including the Los Angeles Music Center.

Another change in 1984 was the opening in June of H.T.’s, a “contemporary” restaurant in Santa Ana that departed from Hungry Tiger’s traditional layout. While still offering Hungry Tiger’s mainstay fresh fish and seafood, H.T.’s featured a jazzier menu, splashier decor and disco music in the evening.

For the moment, however, “our whole emphasis is on quality and consistency in everything we do,” he said. “Right now we’re just going to button down the (company’s) operational aspects.”

Since he arrived, Kikugawa said he has further consolidated operations by folding the Breakers chain into the California Restaurant Concepts division. The chain will be unveiling a new menu in about a month, he added.

After several years of expansion, including the $5-million purchase of the Castagnola’s Lobster House chain in 1983, the company has no immediate plans for new restaurants, nor does it plan any more H.T.’s-style shops. Longer range, Kikugawa added, “there’s no question that we’ll be growing.”