Applebee's and IHOP Combine on Regent

The first Applebee's in Canada was built in 1994 on Pembina Highway. The restaurant was first started in Illinois in 1980 and continues to operate in around the world. It is part of the same company that owns International House of Pancakes IHOP which has been in Manitoba this last few years at Seasons Tuxedo. There have been quite a few restaurant chains in North America that have struggled.

That is not to say that they have struggled in Canada or for that matter in Winnipeg. Red Lobster and Olive Garden do very well in Winnipeg based on location and the fact that there are not dozens of them in Winnipeg. In fact, there is only one Red Lobster left in the city and two Olive Gardens. And so it is with Applebee's. There are two left in areas where their location has lent to their success.

The two Applebee's are at the Grant Park Mall and near the Kildonan Place. The one at Grant Park benefits from a dearth of restaurants in the River Heights area and the the move theatre and book store in the mall. The one in Transcona benefits from the huge amount of traffic along Regent. Could the city support more Applebee's? Possibly. But location is very important. Pembina Highway has had some of the biggest restaurant groups in Canada on it. The Keg, Earls, Swiss Chalet. All of them have closed because traffic, parking and customer base did not match what these popular places needed to continue.

International House of Pancake IHOP came to Seasons Tuxedo in 2017. Until that time, Winnipeg has been home to its own Pancake House for decades and still is. The Tuxedo development has continued for 13 years building up and has seen many new shops and restaurants. However, not to be outdone Kildonan Place and Regent have had their fair share of new and different places compared to other parts of the city.

To that end, the Applebee's location on Reenders Drive by the mall will be converted to Canada's first Applebee's/IHOP location. The new concept is to ensure longer hours for the restaurant with the ever popular breakfast menu. Whereas an IHOP alone might not have the later day crowd of an Applebee's.

The concept started in Texas in March and Winnipeg will be its first Canadian unveiling. It isn't the first time we have seen combos in Canada. When Wendy's owned Tim Horton's, there were some shared sites like on Kenaston. That one still exists even though it is Burger King and Tim Horton's that are part of the same company now. Taco Bell and KFC are frequent partners as they are owed together.

There will be many eyes on this combo to see if it works. But it certainly should see an expansion of hours for this Transcona location and a menu that appeals to those who may want ribs and pancakes.