Kaiser, Lee, Eric & Sue Morcus invite you to learn more...

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Patriarch Kaiser Morcus has lived the classic American Dream since arriving as a young  immigrant from Lebanon in 1956. He evolved into a successful and respected hotelier and  restaurateur in Denver and Vail, Colorado, before retiring to the sleepy Coachella Valley in  1990.

 

Quickly bored with golf and longing for a decent restaurant meal, he opened the first  Kaiser Grille in Palm Desert in 1992.  Kaiser Morcus is the founder and spirit of Kaiser Restaurant Group,a privately held family  restaurant company that has built, owned, and operated multiple restaurant concepts -- from  casual through fine dining -- in the Palm Springs desert resorts and Carmel communities.

The  Group's leaders continue to pursue slow growth with a one meal at a time, "one deal at a time  philosophy."  

Kaiser's son, Lee Morcus is a co-founding (1992) principal in Kaiser Restaurant Group as well  as a co-founding principal and managing member in Morcus Management, LLC. This  restaurant services company provides full service strategic planning, restaurant development,  operations, management, administration, marketing, financial planning, staff development  services to the restaurants within Kaiser  Restaurant Group with the potential to provide the  services to select outside clients as well.

 

Lees' life calling in the Hospitality industry led him to a Bachelors  of Science, Business  Administration Degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management from the University of Denver.  Growing up in the resort business has prepared Mr. Morcus for his success and  understanding of the seasonality of the destination resort business.

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Another son, Eric, earned a degree in Architectural Engineering from the University of  Colorado at a time when new construction was at an all-time low and took a marketing  position with a San Diego company, then later as a District Sales Manager with a Fortune 500  Company. He moved his family to the desert in 2005 to help operate the growing number of  Kaiser restaurants. He is Director of Group Services, Event Planning, Sales and Marketing for the company and owner of Kaiser Grille Palm Desert.

Appointments include:

President of the Palm Springs Restaurant Week Association

Past President of the Palm Springs Restaurant Association

Board Member of the Palm Springs Hospitality Association

Member of Marketing Committee-Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism

Member of Executive Committee-Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism

Volunteer Coach For Palm Desert YMCA

Board Member-Palm Desert Area Chamber of Commerce

Chairman of the Board-Palm Desert Area Chamber of Commerce 2019

 

Daughter Sue Morcus Fee was also recruited to the fold in 2005 as Human Resources  director, and did a masterful job of handling three thousand job applications when their  newest project, Jackalope Ranch, was preparing to open. When Jackalope Ranch opened in  2009, the number of people employed by the Kaiser Restaurant group jumped to 390.

1992 - Founding of the Kaiser Restaurant Group, Palm Desert, California

1992 - Kaiser Grille, Palm Desert, California

1998 - Kaiser Grille, Palm Springs, California

2000 - The Hog's Breath Inn, Carmel, California

2001 - The Chop House, Palm Springs, California

2001 - The Deck Restaurant & Sky Bar, Palm Springs, California

2003 - The Chop House, Palm Desert, California

2004 - The Hog's Breath Inn, La Quinta, California

2004 - The Big Fish Grille & Oyster Bar, Palm Desert, California

2008 - Jackalope Ranch, Indio, California  

2011 - Grind Brgr Bar, Palm Springs, California

2014 - Reopening of Kaiser Grille, Palm Desert, California  

2017-Opening of Chop House at Jackalope Ranch, Indio