applebees is telling managers to spend less time in offices or kitchens and more time in the dining room with customers. John Peyton, chief executive of parent Dine Brands, said the chain wants visits to feel more worthwhile for guests who are spending an hour and their money there.
John Peyton's dining-room push
"When our guests are going to take an hour and their hard-earned money to spend that with us, we have to make it a really special moment," Peyton said in an interview. He said putting managers up front lets them correct problems immediately and coach employees in real time, "which is way more effective than during pre-shifts or once a week, once a month when they take a course."
The change is part of a wider operational push that includes more than a dozen initiatives. Applebees is also giving managers more data on their phones so they are not tied to the computer, while simplifying kitchen operations so they can run more smoothly on their own.
Customer scores at Applebees
Applebees said surveys showed that customers who saw or spoke to a manager during their visit tended to have a better experience overall. The company also said customer satisfaction scores have improved chainwide since it began putting managers in the dining room more often.
That focus comes as the chain tries to appeal to consumers who are watching dining dollars more closely. Applebees had same-store sales growth of 1.3% last year and a 1.9% same-store sales increase in the first quarter of 2026, before the company said sales slowed in April because rising gas prices affected lower-income consumers.
Toast POS and kitchen changes
The manager shift is running alongside a revamp of kitchen display systems to make them more user-friendly and changes to prep and cooking processes. Applebees has also begun rolling out a new point-of-sale system from Toast, which the company expects will further free up managers.
Rich Shank, senior principal and vice president of innovation with Technomic, said service touches can matter when chains are trying to win repeat business. "Right now, in this moment, that moment of delight is the thing that's gonna keep them coming back," he said during the Restaurant Leadership Conference last month.
For guests, the practical change is simple: more of the manager's attention is now supposed to be on the room, not the back office. For the chain, the test is whether those faster fixes and extra coaching keep translating into higher satisfaction as the rollout continues.
