You could soon be getting your half-price appetizers and short stack of pancakes in the same building as Applebee’s and IHOP, both owned by Dine Brands Inc., could soon have dual-branded locations.
The news was shared by Dine Brands CEO John Peyton during an earnings call from the company last week. The merged restaurants would share a back-of-house and a blended front-of-house for customers looking to get a chicken fajita roll-up and a western omelet.
While speaking with Nation’s Restaurant News, Peyton noted that the restaurants will be set up so that customers can choose between Applebee’s and IHOP via “discrete entrances.”
“At breakfast, when there are more IHOP customers, customers can be seated in the Applebee’s area and vice versa at dinner,” he said.
Peyton shared that the company is already testing out eight “prototypes” internationally before launching the restaurants domestically.
“We will continue to monitor the success of this test concept and will consider options for further expansion in the U.S. in select locations if and when it makes sense to do so,” Peyton said in a statement to CBS News.
While speaking on the earnings call, Peyton noted that the international dual-branded restaurants were making twice as much money as those that are standalone locations for IHOP and Applebee’s.
“Which you would expect,” Peyton told NRN. “They continue to perform well in their markets because they address all four dayparts.”
He continued saying that the two brands fused as one is a “fantastic opportunity” because they are “complementary” to each other.
No announcement has been about when the locations will open in the United States.