John D. Harkey, Jr. has long been regarded as one of the most successful restaurateurs in North Texas. A fifth generation Texas rancher and entrepreneur, Harkey pursued his MBA from Stanford in 1987. Following his degree, Harkey formed CRO in the late 1990’s, beginning with the acquisition of El Chico. Harkey eventually grew his company to an international scale, introducing El Chico and Cantina Laredo to the Middle East in 2007, along with opening restaurants in the US. Harkey continues to look for markets to expand CRO brands locally and overseas.