A dual-branded Applebee’s | IHOP restaurant is scheduled to open in November at 1500 MacArthur Drive in Alexandria, La., bringing breakfast, lunch and dinner service to one nearly 5,000-square-foot location.
The new restaurant will be built around two distinct dining areas, one for Applebee’s and one for IHOP, but guests will still be able to order from both brands in the same visit. That means a breakfast run can turn into lunch or dinner without changing restaurants, and the menu will include exclusive items such as the Loaded Buffalo Chicken Omelette and the Ultimate Breakfast Burger, along with specialty cocktails like a Bloody Mary and a Good Morning Mimosa.
Michael Pettus said the opening is expected to create about 50 new jobs in the Alexandria area. He said the concept is meant to let customers enjoy the Applebee’s dishes they know while trying new IHOP favorites, with the flexibility to satisfy different cravings at any time of day, from breakfast through late night.
The timing matters because hiring is already about to start. Open hiring events are scheduled for Nov. 2-6, giving job seekers a first look at a restaurant that is designed to operate as one site while still keeping the brands visually and operationally separate. Shared common areas will tie the space together, but the menu and dining areas will keep both identities intact under one roof.
Once the doors open in November, the schedule will be long enough to cover nearly every part of the day: Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 7 a.m. to midnight, and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. For Alexandria, the next step is not just the opening itself, but the hiring push that comes first.
