Can’t decide between a sweet stack of pancakes at IHOP or a savory Riblets platter from Applebee’s? If you live in Texas, you no longer have to. This week Dine Brands celebrated the grand opening of their first fusion restaurant in the United States, opening doors to the IHOP/Applebee’s restaurant in Seguin, Texas. Here is what you need to know about the icon double-chain restaurant — including if and when one will open near you.
Inspired by dual restaurant success internationally, the brand partnered with franchisee Ramzi Hakim Group to open the first of its kind in the suburb just outside of San Antonio. They plan on following it up with 12 more restaurants later this year.
On the menu are signature dishes from IHOP and Applebee’s and unique items mixed and matched from both brands, like Buffalo Chicken Omelette and the Ultimate Breakfast Burger, as well as specialty cocktails like espresso martinis and Irish coffee.
“This dual-branded model is more than just two great restaurants under one roof. It’s a vision for the future – a future of growth, of opportunity, and bringing even more communities a place where people can gather, connect, and enjoy the best of both worlds – Applebee’s and IHOP. Seguin is just the beginning, and we are so excited of what’s to come,” Ramzi Hakim Group vice president Danny Hakim during the grand opening event Monday. “Being in a business is a risk. Those risks are what make a business successful. If you don’t try new things, you’re going to stay stagnant.”
Dine Brands chief executive officer John Peyton added that they opted to partner with Hakim for a reason. “They are tremendous operators, they’re great developers, but most importantly, they understand innovation, they understand test and learn, and they understand that this is restaurant number one of what we plan for hundreds,” Peyton said. “We all got into this together knowing this was a science experiment, a prototype, and that’s why they were the right choice for this.”
Where will the other restaurants open? “We’re not going to talk about locations yet, but we’ve got a bunch in the works, and we are geographically dispersed. What I can tell you is we’ve got geographic variety across the country, we’ve got a mix of Applebee’s adding an IHOP, IHOPs adding an Applebee’s, and new construction,” Peyton said. “All of those are chosen by design so we get experience with all the different variables as we perfect the model.”
Leah Groth
Leah Groth has decades of experience covering all things health, wellness and fitness related. Read more about Leah
