[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 183 (Wednesday, December 16, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1801]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              RECOGNIZING THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF PHIL ROMANO

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 16, 2015

  Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, tonight I want to 
recognize the life and achievements of a brilliant and fascinating 
man--Phil Romano. Now, although Mr. Romano is not originally from 
Texas, he falls into the category of people who moved there as quickly 
as he could. A man that cannot easily be entertained, Mr. Romano 
bounced around the country before making Dallas his home, and bounced 
through multiple successful business projects before settling with a 
self-proclaimed and modest title: entrepreneur. However, Mr. Romano is 
much more than an entrepreneur. He is rich in character, and Dallas is 
proud to be his home.
  Mr. Romano is best known for his successful career in the restaurant 
industry. His business ventures brought Texas as well as the nation 
beloved institutions such as Fuddruckers, Romano's Macaroni Grill, and 
Eatzi's. These business ventures solidified his status as a successful 
businessman, but Mr. Romano helped satisfy much more than people's 
appetites.
  When Mr. Romano was working with a small venture capital firm SHD 
Management LLC, he had the keen eye to spot a good product. After 
talking to a cardiologist named Julio Palmaz, Mr. Romano agreed to 
invest capital and run the business operations for the balloon-
expandable heart stent. It ended up becoming over a 10 million dollar 
invention, but more impressively than that, it saved countless lives, 
including Mr. Romano's, who now uses a heart stent after he helped 
invent it. When he worked in the restaurant industry he touched 
people's stomachs, and when he was a venture capitalist he touched 
people's hearts.
  However, his success is most tangible in the impact he has on Dallas. 
His most recent project, Trinity Groves, will provide a community space 
for entrepreneurs to grow, businesses to invest, and people to enjoy. 
In addition to that, his affinity for art, embodied not only in his 
home but in his studio on Dragon Street in Dallas, will solidify his 
legacy as a brilliant and deep man.
  Mr. Speaker, whether it was with a burger, a heart stent, a 
community, or a painting, throughout his life, Phil Romano has left a 
Texas-sized impression on Dallas, the city he loves that loves him 
back.

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