Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD) 8-K Results of Operations and Financial Condition

Exhibit 99.1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Investor Relations Contact:
Mary Twinem
952.253.0731 Mary Twinem — CFO

Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc. Announces
First Quarter Earnings per Share of $0.81 and
Quarterly Net Earnings Growth of Over 40%

Minneapolis, Minnesota, April 26, 2011 — Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD), announced today financial results for the first quarter ended March 27, 2011. Highlights for the first quarter versus the same period a year ago were:

·Total revenue increased 19.6% to $182.2 million

·Company-owned restaurant sales grew 20.0% to $165.5 million

·Same-store sales increased 3.9% at company-owned restaurants and 1.6% at franchised restaurants

·Net earnings increased 40.7% to $14.9 million from $10.6 million, and earnings per diluted share increased 39.7% to $0.81 from $0.58

Sally Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are very pleased with another successful quarter for Buffalo Wild Wings. Our fast-paced unit growth continued across the country and our same-store sales were strong throughout the first quarter, with increases of 3.9% at company-owned restaurants and 1.6% at franchised locations. Revenue growth of 19.6% and impressive restaurant-level performance, which benefited from lower costs for traditional wings and expense leveraging, fueled our net earnings growth of over 40% for the first quarter, providing our shareholders with earnings per diluted share of $0.81.”

Total revenue increased 19.6% to $182.2 million in the first quarter compared to $152.3 million in the first quarter of 2010. Company-owned restaurant sales for the quarter increased 20.0% over the same period in 2010, to $165.5 million, driven by a company-owned same-store sales increase of 3.9% and 28 additional company-owned restaurants at the end of first quarter 2011 relative to the same period in 2010. Franchise royalties and fees increased 16.2% to $16.6

million versus $14.3 million in the first quarter of 2010. This increase is attributed to a franchise same-store sales increase of 1.6% and 58 additional franchised restaurants at the end of the period versus a year ago.

Average weekly sales for company-owned restaurants were $48,845 for the first quarter of 2011 compared to $45,327 for the same quarter last year, a 7.8% increase. Franchised restaurants averaged $52,744 for the period versus $51,532 in the first quarter a year ago, a 2.4% increase.

For the first quarter, net earnings increased 40.7% to $14.9 million versus $10.6 million in the first quarter of 2010. Earnings per diluted share were $0.81, as compared to first quarter 2010 earnings per diluted share of $0.58.

2011 Outlook

Ms. Smith remarked, “2011 is off to a strong start. Our dedication to a great guest experience and operational excellence during all dayparts is providing sales momentum as we roll into the summer months. In April, our same-store sales increased 5.3% at company-owned restaurants and 1.6% at franchised locations. We are confident we’ll achieve our annual unit goal of 13% growth, with 16 new company-owned and 9 new franchised locations planned to open in the second quarter, and over 100 total new restaurants expected to open in the year.”

Ms. Smith concluded, “As we look to the remainder of the year, we are moving forward with exciting marketing plans and promotions for the upcoming football season. A disruption to the regular NFL season has the potential to present a temporary challenge for our business and many others. Assuming continued strong same-store sales and low wing costs, we believe we can achieve our annual net earnings goal of more than 18% growth even if there is an abbreviated NFL season.”

Buffalo Wild Wings will be hosting a conference call today, April 26, 2011 at 4:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time to discuss these results. There will be a simultaneous webcast conducted at our website www.buffalowildwings.com.

A replay of the call will be available until May 3, 2011. To access this replay, please dial 1.858.384.5517 password 4432157.

About the Company

Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc., founded in 1982 and headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a growing owner, operator and franchisor of Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar™ restaurants featuring a variety of boldly-flavored, made-to-order menu items including its namesake Buffalo, New York-style chicken wings. The Buffalo Wild Wings’ menu specializes in eighteen mouth-watering signature sauces and seasonings with flavor sensations ranging from Sweet BBQ™ to Blazin’®. Guests enjoy a welcoming neighborhood atmosphere that includes an extensive multi-media system for watching their favorite sporting events. Buffalo Wild Wings is the recipient of hundreds of “Best Wings” and “Best Sports Bar” awards from across the country. There are currently 753 Buffalo Wild Wings locations across 45 states.

Forward-looking Statements

Various remarks we make about future expectations, plans, and prospects for the company constitute forward-looking statements for purposes of the Safe Harbor provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to our future financial and store performance measures and growth goals for 2011 and beyond, including but not limited to those relating to our second quarter sales trends and projected unit, revenue and net earnings growth rates for 2011 and beyond. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements and are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of our management. We have attempted to identify forward-looking statements by terminology, including “anticipates,” “believes,” “can,” “continue,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “should” or “will” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Actual results may vary materially from those contained in forward-looking statements based on a number of factors, including, but not limited to, our ability to achieve and manage our planned expansion, the ability of our franchisees to open and manage new restaurants, market acceptance in the new geographic regions we enter (particularly non-U.S. locations), unforeseen obstacles in developing nontraditional sites or non-U.S. locations, our ability to obtain and maintain licenses and permits necessary to operate our existing and new restaurants, our franchisees’ adherence to our practices, policies and procedures, the cost of commodities such as traditional chicken wings, the success of our key initiatives and our advertising and marketing campaigns, our ability to control restaurant labor and other restaurant operating costs, the continued service of key management personnel, our ability to protect our name and logo and other proprietary information, economic conditions (including changes in consumer preferences or consumer discretionary spending), the impact of federal, state or local government regulations relating to our employees, the sale of food and alcoholic beverages, disruption to the NFL season, the effect of competition in the restaurant industry, and other factors disclosed from time to time in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the factors described under “Risk Factors” in Part I, Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 26, 2010, as updated in subsequent reports filed with the SEC. Investors should take such risks into account when making investment decisions. Shareholders and other readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

# # #

BUFFALO WILD WINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS

(Dollar and share amounts in thousands except per share data)

(unaudited)

	Three months ended
	March 27, 2011		March 28, 2010
Revenue:
Restaurant sales	$	165,527	137,962
Franchise royalties and fees	16,623		14,309
Total revenue	182,150		152,271
Costs and expenses:
Restaurant operating costs:
Cost of sales	46,264		42,224
Labor	48,878		40,685
Operating	24,549		21,455
Occupancy	10,227		8,910
Depreciation and amortization	11,022		9,550
General and administrative (1)	16,292		12,026
Preopening	2,387		1,115
Loss on asset disposals and store closures	411		411
Total costs and expenses	160,030		136,376
Income from operations	22,120		15,895
Investment income	356		185
Earnings before income taxes	22,476		16,080
Income tax expense	7,615		5,519
Net earnings	$	14,861	10,561
Earnings per common share — basic	$	0.81	0.58
Earnings per common share — diluted	0.81		0.58
Weighted average shares outstanding — basic	18,306		18,147
Weighted average shares outstanding — diluted	18,375		18,229

(1) Includes stock-based compensation of $2,553 and $1,225, respectively

The following table expresses results of operations as a percentage of total revenue for the periods presented, except for restaurant operating costs which are expressed as a percentage of restaurant sales:

	Three months ended
	March 27, 2011		March 28, 2010
Revenue:
Restaurant sales	90.9	%	90.6	%
Franchising royalties and fees	9.1		9.4
Total revenue	100.0		100.0
Costs and expenses:
Restaurant operating costs:
Cost of sales	27.9		30.6
Labor	29.5		29.5
Operating	14.8		15.6
Occupancy	6.2		6.5
Depreciation and amortization	6.1		6.3
General and administrative	8.9		7.9
Preopening	1.3		0.7
Loss on asset disposals and store closures	0.2		0.3
Total costs and expenses	87.9		89.6
Income from operations	12.1		10.4
Investment income	0.2		0.1
Earnings before income taxes	12.3		10.6
Income tax expense	4.2		3.6
Net earnings	8.2	%	6.9	%

BUFFALO WILD WINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(Dollar amounts in thousands)

(unaudited)

	March 27, 2011			December 26, 2010
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	30,411		15,309
Marketable securities	60,901			56,827
Accounts receivable — franchisees, net of allowance of $25	1,288			1,086
Accounts receivable — other	10,294			7,947
Inventory	4,119			4,158
Prepaid expenses	3,081			3,505
Refundable income taxes	2,729			6,366
Deferred income taxes	6,686			6,069
Restricted assets	33,785			32,937
Total current assets	153,294			134,204
Property and equipment, net	237,522			224,970
Other assets	10,253			9,937
Goodwill	11,246			11,246
Total assets	$	412,315		380,357
Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity
Current liabilities:
Unearned franchise fees	$	2,114		2,109
Accounts payable	24,909			17,632
Accrued compensation and benefits	22,198			19,324
Accrued expenses	6,498			5,696
Current portion of deferred lease credits	81			293
System-wide payables	33,985			34,062
Total current liabilities	89,785			79,116
Long-term liabilities:
Other liabilities	1,752			1,574
Deferred income taxes	27,980			24,557
Deferred lease credits, net of current portion	18,964			18,289
Total liabilities	138,481			123,536
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ equity:
Undesignated stock, 1,000,000 shares authorized	—			—
Common stock, no par value. Authorized 44,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding 18,321,353 and 18,214,065 respectively	104,644			102,484
Retained earnings	169,207			154,346
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(17		)	(9	)
Total stockholders’ equity	273,834			256,821
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	412,315		380,357

BUFFALO WILD WINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(Dollar amounts in thousands)

(unaudited)

	Three months ended
	March 27, 2011			March 28, 2010
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net earnings	$	14,861		10,561
Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to cash provided by operations:
Depreciation	10,871			9,396
Amortization	151			154
Loss on asset disposals and store closures	411			410
Deferred lease credits	802			537
Deferred income taxes	2,806			(1,136	)
Stock-based compensation	2,553			1,225
Excess tax benefit from the exercise of stock options	(140		)	(74	)
Change in operating assets and liabilities:
Trading securities	(289		)	(205	)
Accounts receivable	(2,796		)	(953	)
Inventory	39			42
Prepaid expenses	425			71
Other assets	(468		)	(46	)
Unearned franchise fees	5			(115	)
Accounts payable	2,236			866
Income taxes	3,777			6,101
Accrued expenses	4,565			(2,099	)
Net cash provided by operating activities	39,809			24,735
Cash flows from investing activities:
Acquisition of property and equipment	(18,746		)	(9,908	)
Purchase of marketable securities	(27,185		)	(17,960	)
Proceeds of marketable securities	23,401			9,854
Net cash used in investing activities	(22,530		)	(18,014	)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Issuance of common stock	168			123
Excess tax benefit from the exercise of stock options	140			74
Tax payments for restricted stock	(2,481		)	(1,625	)
Net cash used in financing activities	(2,173		)	(1,428	)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents	(4		)	—
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents	15,102			5,293
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period	15,309			9,580
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	30,411		14,873

BUFFALO WILD WINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

Supplemental Information

Restaurant Count

Company-owned Restaurants:

	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4
2011	263
2010	235	234	244	259
2009	206	215	220	232
2008	165	169	187	197
2007	140	145	148	161

Franchised Restaurants:

	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4
2011	488
2010	430	447	457	473
2009	373	383	400	420
2008	340	346	348	363
2007	299	301	313	332

Same-Store Sales

Company-owned Restaurants:

	Q1		Q2		Q3		Q4		Year
2011	3.9	%
2010	0.1	%	(0.1	)%	2.6	%	(0.3	)%	0.6	%
2009	6.4	%	2.8	%	0.8	%	2.6	%	3.1	%
2008	4.1	%	8.3	%	6.8	%	4.5	%	5.9	%
2007	8.7	%	8.1	%	8.3	%	3.4	%	6.9	%

Franchised Restaurants:

	Q1		Q2		Q3		Q4		Year
2011	1.6	%
2010	0.7	%	(0.7	)%	0.3	%	(1.1	)%	(0.2	)%
2009	6.0	%	3.7	%	1.9	%	2.0	%	3.4	%
2008	2.1	%	4.5	%	2.1	%	2.5	%	2.8	%
2007	3.3	%	4.0	%	5.9	%	2.3	%	3.9	%

Average Weekly Sales Volumes

Company-owned Restaurants:

	Q1		Q2	Q3	Q4	Year
2011	$	48,845
2010	45,327		43,021	44,394	45,595	44,601
2009	45,593		42,938	42,602	44,583	43,912
2008	41,438		40,572	42,400	43,864	42,141
2007	39,254		36,655	38,498	40,485	38,757

Franchised Restaurants:

	Q1		Q2	Q3	Q4	Year
2011	$	52,744
2010	51,532		49,051	49,005	49,837	49,835
2009	50,729		48,619	48,458	50,115	49,479
2008	47,812		46,390	46,889	48,424	47,382
2007	46,439		43,998	45,879	47,293	45,901