Cook Up A Virtual Jamie Oliver Feast

Like Jamie Oliver? Like Facebook games? Guess what two things have just collided. Read on to learn how the TV Chef has invaded Restaurant City.

Press release:

EA’s Playfish and Chef Jamie Oliver Cook Up an Online Feast in Restaurant City Social Game

Popular ABC TV “Food Revolution” Chef’s Dishes Now Being Served to Millions Worldwide in Popular Restaurant Social Game on Facebook

LONDON & SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Playfishâ„¢, an Electronic Arts Inc. studio (NASDAQ:ERTS), and leading creator of award winning social games, today announced a partnership with world-renowned chef Jamie Oliver in the popular Restaurant City social game on Facebook®. The relationship will enable Restaurant City’s nearly six million monthly players fun ways to engage with Jamie Oliver’s brand and share in his excitement and passion for inspiring people to cook using fresh ingredients. Restaurant City enables players to design and manage their own eateries, create appetizing menus and employ their Facebook friends as waiters and chefs. Jamie Oliver branded virtual items are now available in Restaurant City, which can be played on Facebook at: http://apps.facebook.com/restaurantcity.

For four consecutive weeks Restaurant City will feature a tasty recipe of the week from Jamie Oliver’s extensive repertoire, including Farfalle Carbonara; Asparagus Fettuccine; Basil Pesto Pasta; and Meatball Pasta. In the first week, players are challenged to collect Jamie’s Pasta and other ingredients required to perfect the first dish, Farfalle Carbonara, in return for an exclusive collectable in-game item, the Jamie Oliver Pasta Maker. Once players have successfully created each dish in Restaurant City, they’ll receive a link to the real recipe from Jamie Oliver’s web site instructing them on how to recreate the dish to share with friends and family.

“I’m really excited that some of my recipes are becoming part of Restaurant City as it’s such a phenomenon,” said Jamie Oliver. “I’m always interested in new social media and I hope that by creating my recipes in the virtual world, the Restaurant City community will be inspired to try making them for real.”

“Restaurant City and Jamie Oliver both celebrate the love of cuisine, inspire creative self expression and bring people together through a common bond – a fun and playful approach to enjoying food,” said Kristian Segerstrale, GM and co-founder of Playfish. “Millions of Restaurant City players now have a fun and unique opportunity to engage with one of the world’s best loved celebrity chefs and bring their culinary creations to life from their online restaurant kitchens to their real world home kitchens.”

Jamie Oliver, star of the Emmy-award winning ABC television show “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution,” has built one of the world’s most respected and well known culinary brands, inspiring people to cook from fresh ingredients. Jamie’s relationship with Restaurant City marks the first time a celebrity chef has partnered with a social game. Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, currently airing on Channel 4 in the U.K. and the U.S.’s ABC-TV starting May 27, is the inspiring television series that addresses the problems of obesity, heart disease and diabetes in America. The series has been named as a recipient of the Television Academy Honors, exemplifying “television with a conscience.”

About Playfish

Playfish leads the social gaming industry in innovation and creativity with award-winning, category-defining games designed for friends to play together. The company has changed the way people play games by creating more social and connected experiences. Played by tens of millions of people worldwide, Playfish games are amongst the most acclaimed and popular online, including Pet Societyâ„¢, Restaurant City, FIFA Superstars and Madden NFL Superstars. Playfish has development studios in London, San Francisco, Beijing, Tokyo, Montreal, and Tromso, Norway, and is owned by Electronic Arts.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) is a global leader in digital interactive entertainment. The Company’s game franchises are offered as both packaged goods products and online services delivered through Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and tablets. EA has more than 100 million registered players and operates in 75 countries.

In fiscal 2011, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.6 billion. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for critically acclaimed, high-quality blockbuster franchises such as The Simsâ„¢, Madden NFL, FIFA Soccer, Need for Speedâ„¢, Battlefield, and Mass Effectâ„¢. More information about EA is available at http://info.ea.com.

About Jamie Oliver

Jamie Oliver is a phenomenon in the world of food. He is one of the world’s best-loved television personalities and one of Britain’s most famous exports. Jamie has had huge success with television series The Naked Chef (BBC), Oliver’s Twist (Food Network), Jamie at Home (Cooking Channel), Jamie’s Great Escapes (Cooking Channel) and more recently, the Emmy Award-winning Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution (ABC). Jamie also makes frequent guest appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman, TODAY, and Good Morning America.

Playfish and Pet Society are trademarks of Electronic Arts Ltd. The Sims and Need for Speed are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. Mass Effect is a trademark of EA International (Studio and Publishing) Ltd. John Madden, NFL and FIFA are the property of their respective owners and used with permission. Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.