BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) held its annual meeting of shareholders on Wednesday, June 3, 2009. Shareholders re-elected Gerald W. Deitchle, Peter A. Bassi, Larry D. Bouts, Shann M. Brassfield, James A. Dal Pozzo, J. Roger King and John F. Grundhofer to the Board of Directors to serve for one-year terms until the next annual meeting. Additionally, shareholders also ratified the selection of Ernst & Young LLP to serve as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm for fiscal 2009. Management also provided shareholders with an overview of the Company’s fiscal 2008 financial results and an update on the Company’s current expansion plan and key initiatives in progress.

“In spite of the current economic recession, BJ’s continues to steadily gain market share in the estimated $80-$85 billion casual dining segment of the restaurant industry,” commented Jerry Deitchle, Chairman and CEO. “Currently, our estimated share of the segment’s annual sales is only about one-half of one percent. Accordingly, the bulk of our national growth opportunity remains well ahead of us. Our previously announced 2009 new restaurant expansion plan remains solidly on track, and work is well underway in developing a reasonable expansion plan for next year. Our team has worked very hard during the last four to five years to more clearly position the BJ’s concept as a ‘casual-plus’ competitor that delivers a higher quality, more differentiated dining experience at a price point that remains the same or lower than most of our ‘mass market’ casual dining competitors. We will continue to make prudent investments in our concept and our growth infrastructure to further reinforce our competitive positioning as we navigate our way through the current recession and become an even stronger competitive force when the recession eventually abates.”

BJ's Restaurants, Inc. currently owns and operates 84 casual dining restaurants under the BJ's Restaurant & Brewery, BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse or BJ's Pizza & Grill brand names. BJ's restaurants offer an innovative and broad menu featuring award-winning, signature deep-dish pizza complemented with generously portioned salads, appetizers, sandwiches, soups, pastas, entrées and desserts. Quality, flavor, value, moderate prices and sincere service remain distinct attributes of the BJ's experience. The Company operates several microbreweries which produce and distribute BJ's critically acclaimed handcrafted beers throughout the chain.