Ever crave Applebee’s and IHOP at the same time? Joint restaurants could be coming to US

Ever crave Applebee’s and IHOP at the same time?

US consumers could potentially get their fix of both at dual-branded restaurants in the future.

Dine Brands Global, the corporate parent of the two chains, is “contemplat[ing] introducing this concept” of joint IHOP-Applebee’s restaurants in America, CEO John Peyton told analysts and investors last week.

The concept for the dual-branded IHOP-Applebee’s locations features “a shared back of house and a combined and blended front of house for the two brands,” he said. 

Dine Brands most recently launched one in Leon, Mexico, in January, which Peyton said “represents a compelling opportunity for further growth since Mexico is one of our largest international markets.”

It also has seven others in international markets.

The Dine Brands CEO said in a statement to FOX Business that the company “will continue to monitor the success of this test concept and will consider options for further expansion in the US in select locations if and when it makes sense to do so.”

The eight existing joint IHOP-Applebee’s locations have performed well in their international markets, according to Dine Brands.

On last week’s earnings call, Peyton said the company had observed “on average… that the revenues for the same size box as one brand or the other is two times or more what it was before, what you would expect, because with the two brands, we can address all four day parts.”

The IHOP brand consisted of nearly 1,800 restaurants worldwide at the end of 2023, according to Dine Brands. Meanwhile, Applebee’s had over 1,600. 

The former chain saw its comparable same-restaurant sales rise 1.6% year over year in the fourth quarter, while the latter posted a 0.5% drop, Dine Brands said last week.

The company, which Peyton has helmed for about three years, also operates Fuzzy’s Taco Shop.