Applebee’s gets its freak thang on: A franchisee of the
family oriented chain has hit on a promotion that’s spreading through the
system as a way of broadening the restaurants’ customer base. In essence, the
places are adding a second Happy Hour through a late-night program called Club
Applebee’s. A younger, more
drink-oriented crowd is invited to take advantage of half-price appetizers and
discounted cocktails while they enjoy the karaoke or dance music.
It’s a grass-roots program that franchisees are building
into a chain signature, complete with its own website.
Red Lobster’s job description re-write: The Orlando Sentinel revealed that the granddaddy of casual-dining chains switched to a new service
structure last month. Other observers are speculating that the net reduction in
dining room staff could be a preparation for Obamacare, since head counts
determine an employers’ costs under the reform measure.
The revamp eliminated busboy-runners and broadened servers’
scope to four tables instead of three. Tables will be cleared and meals
delivered by what the chain is calling a service assistant, or sort of a server
in training. Anyone who wants to become a full-fledged waiter or waitress will
have to start in that post. The assistants get a tip-out from the servers they
help.
J. Alexander’s handles the spike in beef costs: The regional
dinnerhouse chain, which is in the process of being acquired by onetime Carl’s
Jr. kingpin Bill Foley, said it had no trouble offsetting an 11% year-over-year
jump in beef prices during the second quarter. The company’s food costs
actually fell by more than a percentage point, to 31.6% of sales because of
price increases and counterbalancing trends in the costs of other menu
ingredients, which the chain didn’t disclose.
The price increase apparently didn’t dampen sales. J.
Alexander’s comp sales rose year-over-year by 4.2%, for a weekly per-unit average
that topped the year-ago figure by nearly $4,000.
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