COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Though not quite as enigmatic as Mona Lisa's smile, there is another Italian painting that has been turning heads recently in Ohio. First, a barn on the Bob Evans Farm in scenic Rio Grande, Ohio, painted like an Italian flag, and now another in rural West Jefferson just like it.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20061002/CLM154)
But the latex paint on barn siding isn't meant to be a reminder of da Vinci's 16th century oil painting on poplar wood, it's part of a new advertising campaign created for Bob Evans Restaurants. In fact, it is a message to consumers that Bob Evans is introducing a line of new pasta dishes.
The nearly 600-unit restaurant chain is adding Italian-inspired dishes including Chicken Parmesan Homestyle Pasta and Italian Sausage & Pepper Homestyle Pasta.
"Bob Evans Restaurants are synonymous with homestyle goodness and traditional meals - so it may be a surprise to our customers that we are rolling out a selection of Italian dishes," said Bob Evans Restaurants Sr. Vice President of Marketing Mary Cusick. "We wanted to make an impact with our advertising around these new menu items, and what better way to say 'homestyle pasta dishes done Bob's way,' than by communicating it through one of the barns on our own Bob Evans Farm in Rio Grande."
After painting that barn as a message to employees and others "down on the farm" where the Bob Evans Restaurant concept originated, advertising agency Chicago Creative Partnership sought another barn to paint to use in a new television commercial. A barn in West Jefferson, Ohio, filled the bill.
On Oct. 3 painters will use red, green and white paint to duplicate the Italian flag on the sides and roof of the barn located at 1890 Wilson Road.
The ad will be filmed on Oct. 10 and will feature Bob Evans' spokesperson Kevin McCorkle and two workers who have just finished painting the barn. In the commercial, McCorkle is confused by the colorful painting and wonders if the painters' unique design was a result of their preoccupation with the new pasta dishes at Bob Evans.
Directed by Theresa Wingert of New York City-based MacGuffin Films, the commercial will be shown across the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the country.
Bob Evans Farms, Inc. owns and operates 588 full-service, family restaurants in 18 states primarily located in the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the United States. In addition, the company operates 104 Mimi's Cafe casual restaurants located in 17 states, primarily in California and other western states. Bob Evans Farms, Inc. is also a leading producer and distributor of pork sausage and a variety of complementary homestyle convenience food items under the Bob Evans and Owens brand names. For more information about Bob Evans Farms, Inc., visit the company's Web site at http://www.bobevans.com/.
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