For the last five years the editors of Nation's Restaurant News have been recognizing innovative restaurants that keep customers coming back again and again. Those exciting Hot Concepts! are clearly in a class all their own.

CHICAGO (March 6) ÷ If you think there's nothing new under the sun, meet the Nation's Restaurant News 2000 Hot Concepts! honorees. From naked fish and firecracker fusilli pasta to blazing flat noodles and Japanese-Peruvian fare, these award-winning concepts are bringing new energy and imagination to the dining scene.

Selected by NRN's editorial staff, the winning Hot Concepts! organizations will be honored May 21st during an invitation-only ceremony at the John G. Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.

Award recipients in the sixth annual Hot Concepts! Celebration, sponsored by Lipton Foodservice, were chosen for developing innovative, cutting-edge operations with strong consumer appeal. This year's recipients are as follows:

• Fuzio's Universal Pasta, San Francisco. Owned by Chevys, this casual, contemporary concept features all-noodle-based international pasta and full bars promoting specialty martinis. Created in 1996, the chain has seven locations, including three in San Francisco, one in Chicago and another in Washington, D.C. A transition to steak, fish and chicken entrées is under way in Chicago, but reasonably priced pasta, with a $13.50 average per-person check, for items like firecracker fusilli and Shanghai noodles will remain the centerpiece for this full-serve concept. It is ringing up more than $2 million in average unit sales.

"It's fascinating to see the new ideas that the restaurant industry continues to generate," said NRN publisher Alan Gould. "I congratulate these organizations and their visionary leaders for turning their ideas into reality and making them work."

Russell Sherwood, vice president and general manager of Lipton Foodservice, the Hot Concepts! sponsor since 1997, added: "This program celebrates the power of creative thinking and the willingness to pursue dreams. Our winners typify these characteristics, and Lipton Foodservice is proud to play a part in recognizing these companies."

David Tuttleman, chairman of Kahunaville, a 1999 Hot Concepts! honoree, will deliver the keynote address during this year's Hot Concepts! Celebration in Chicago. Video clips will highlight the winning operations.