Pancakes, mozz sticks and boneless wings are about to share their 50th U.S. address.

Applebee’s and IHOP will open a dual-branded restaurant at 2607 W. Loop 1604 S. in San Antonio on September 15. The opening will be the eighth in the greater San Antonio area and the 50th domestic location in Dine Brands’ fast-growing combination format, according to MySA.

The first 100 guests in line for the 9 a.m. ribbon cutting are expected to receive free pancakes for a year. Beginning September 16, the restaurant plans to operate from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

The larger story is what happens after the giveaway. Guests can order Applebee’s and IHOP items during the same visit, including dual-brand exclusives such as a Buffalo Chicken Omelette and an Ultimate Breakfast Burger. The format places two distinct dining areas around shared common space and a single kitchen.

Dine Brands opened its first standalone U.S. dual-brand restaurant in Seguin, Texas, in February 2025. By June 28, 2026, the company reported 44 domestic locations, up from 27 at the end of 2025. Reaching 50 less than three months later moves the idea well beyond a one-store experiment.

The appeal is not difficult to see. Adding a second brand to an existing restaurant can broaden the day without requiring an entirely separate building. IHOP brings breakfast and early-day demand; Applebee’s brings lunch, dinner, bar occasions and late-night traffic. One property can pursue more occasions across more hours.

That efficiency also creates the central operating test. A shared kitchen must execute breakfast, burgers, wings, appetizers and cocktails across a 19-hour day. The concept works only if the extra sales outweigh the added menu, training, staffing and service complexity.

The 50-location milestone demonstrates franchisee and corporate willingness to keep converting restaurants. It does not, by itself, establish the long-term sales or profit performance of the format. The next evidence will come from repeat visits, kitchen execution and whether the converted locations continue to outperform the single brands they replaced.

What happens next is no longer a test of whether Dine Brands can open the concept. It is a test of whether Applebee’s and IHOP can operate as one restaurant at growing scale without weakening what customers recognize in either name.

VERIFIED U.S. DUAL-BRAND LOCATIONS

The list below contains 49 restaurants displaying active operating hours plus the San Antonio restaurant scheduled to open September 15, producing the reported total of 50.

Arkansas — Russellville.

California — Big Bear Lake; Chico; Inglewood; Oroville; Red Bluff; Redding; Ukiah.

Illinois — Mount Vernon; Quincy.

Kansas — Great Bend.

Kentucky — LaGrange; Louisville; Murray.

Michigan — Port Huron.

Missouri — Poplar Bluff; Sikeston.

New York — Hawthorne.

Oregon — Grants Pass; Klamath Falls; Redmond.

Tennessee — Covington.

Texas — Anahuac; Dallas (two locations); Euless; Hillsboro; San Antonio (six locations, including the September 15 opening); Seguin; Selma; Uvalde.

Washington — Grandview.

Wisconsin — Beaver Dam; Brookfield; Delafield; Eau Claire; Green Bay (two locations); Manitowoc; Marshfield; Menomonee Falls; Onalaska; Watertown; Wausau; Wisconsin Rapids.

Three additional conversions have official dual-brand directory pages but are not currently operating and are not included in the 50 above: Cincinnati, Ohio, is marked ‘Grand Opening Soon’; Applebee’s locations on Outer Loop in Louisville, Kentucky, and East Towne Boulevard in Madison, Wisconsin, are marked closed for remodeling.

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