The history of McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants began when Bill McCormick purchased Jake's Famous Crawfish Restaurant located in Portland, Oregon, and brought the more than 100-year-old landmark back to life. When asked the secret of how he revitalized a restaurant on the brink of closing, McCormick says, "I like nothing better than being a good host." Part of the managerial talent McCormick tapped was Doug Schmick, a management trainee. The two formed a partnership in 1974, creating Traditional Concepts, a precursor to today's McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants. In 1979, they opened the original McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant in Portland, Oregon.