Hooters says kids, families are part of its comeback as waitresses insist they've always been welcome

When the original founders of Hooters took back control of the iconic restaurant chain last year after its corporate bankruptcy, they promised to return it to its roots.

That meant dialing back what founding member and Hooters Inc. CEO Neil Kiefer described as an oversexualized image, reemphasizing the food and hospitality, and broadening the brand's appeal to families and younger customers after years in which some corporate locations had become, in his words, "little boys' club stores."

But...