9 Things Applebee's Employees Know That Diners Don't

All restaurants have their secrets. Applebee's is no exception. On the surface, the casual dining chain may not seem mysterious: Every now and again, it might drop a slightly out-there menu item, but for the most part, Applebee's sides, entrées, and desserts are as straightforward as they come. Applebee's tries to be appealing to as many people as possible, and this gives its menu and overall offer a real openness.

However, Applebee's employees understand appearances can be deceiving — and there are a fair few things they know about its operations and preparation methods they don't readily tell customers. Many of these relate to how those straightforward meals were prepared in the first place. You may not have suspected everything from your soups to your drinks may be prepared in advance, for example, but Applebee's workers are all too aware of that fact — and they also know which menu items you should avoid ordering in the first place. 

These folks have the inside scoop on what's lurking behind those kitchen doors, and diners might be surprised to hear what the state of some of its kitchens actually is. Ready to discover the truth about Applebee's? You heard it here first.

Perhaps one of the more open secrets about Applebee's (to the point where it's become a joke in hospitality circles) is its kitchens are generously equipped with microwaves, and those microwaves are used to cook way more menu items than you might think. Multiple Applebee's employees have revealed the restaurant microwaves many of its dishes, as well as components of other menu items. These dishes are delivered to the restaurant precooked, and the chefs then simply zap them to warm them up before plating and serving.

Among the Applebee's menu items that are microwaved are some of its side dishes, most of its non-deep-fried appetizers, warm dips, pasta sauces, vegetables, and desserts like its chocolate lava cake, which has an interesting history. For the latter, chefs will warm up the cake in the microwave before adding ice cream. Importantly, though, plenty of items at Applebee's are cooked then and there, and it isn't unusual for restaurants to speed things up by having items prepared in advance. It also doesn't necessarily diminish the quality of your meal — but if you're a stickler for everything being made fresh, you might want to dine elsewhere.

Turns out, there might be a reason why Applebee's cocktails are so affordable. Generally speaking, restaurant cocktails are pricier not only because they use more expensive ingredients, but because you're relying on the time and expertise of a bartender to create and serve the drink properly. At Applebee's, though, it dispenses with a lot of the latter: Many of its cocktails may be premixed or batch-mixed, or have components that were mixed well in advance. Employees have revealed they work with tropical drink mixes and margarita mixes, with the latter used to make its famous Dollarita.

Doing this makes sense from a volume point of view. Applebee's locations sell a lot of cocktails each day, and it's easier to put some of them together ahead of time, so bartenders can simply pour and serve during busy periods. Some cocktails also take more work than combining a liquor and a mix, too. However, every bartender knows you'll struggle to make the perfect margarita with a premix, and if you want the zip and acidic hit of fresh lime in yours, you might not get it at Applebee's.

If you thought there was a vat of French onion soup bubbling away for hours in your local Applebee's kitchen, you'd be mistaken. Instead, Applebee's employees have long been keen to tell anyone who listens that this soup is shipped to its stores in a bag, which is thawed, warmed up, and served, topped with a crouton and cheese. That doesn't mean its workers don't think it's good, and from a cookery standpoint, we can understand why Applebee's does this — making an incredible French onion soup takes a very long time — but you're not exactly getting the bistro treatment here.

In fact, all soups at Applebee's come in a bag, according to its employees. This has its perks if you want to take them home. Some Applebee's workers have stated stores will sell bags of its French onion soup to customers if they ask, although this doesn't seem to be company policy, and you may find your local restaurant won't oblige. Still, it's worth a shot, right?

Like any restaurant, Applebee's can get busy, and its servers and chefs can struggle to keep up with demand. Certain times can add more pressure than others, though, particularly when Applebee's is offering specific menu items or deals in conjunction with holidays or sports events. Football season can be especially hectic for its chefs, with its Ultimate Trio Appetizer Sampler causing a lot of traffic at its fry stations, as customers grab their fries, mozzarella sticks, and boneless wings for the big game. While people should be able to order what they want, it may be worth knowing you might have a slightly longer wait if you're grabbing these items at peak times.

Interestingly, another especially busy time can be before the restaurant even opens. Customers can place orders for delivery and takeout ahead of time, but this can mean cooks and servers are left juggling huge preorders, while also trying to host any in-person customers. It's helpful to give restaurants as much notice as possible for party orders, whether you're dining at Applebee's or anywhere else.

Ever wanted to peek behind the curtain at Applebee's? You might regret it. One particularly unnerving secret employees have let slip is concerning the cleanliness of some of its kitchens, which can be lacking, to say the least. According to multiple former Applebee's workers, its cooking areas can be incredibly messy and unhygienic, with piles of dirty plates and cutlery left out, overflowing trash cans, and old food everywhere. Hygiene protocols and standards may also not be upheld by its employees, and cross-contamination can be an ever-present risk.

In some cases, its employees state upholding correct hygiene standards can be difficult, due to the quality or age of its restaurants. Pest control can be harder in older buildings, for example, and workers' hands can be tied by the conditions they're presented with. Regardless of their reasons, though, these claims of unclean kitchens aren't exactly appetizing — and when you consider that plenty of customers over the years have said they got food poisoning from eating at Applebee's, it all makes for a worrying picture.

Applebee's has some very popular meat-based entrées, including its famous Quesadilla Burger and Fiesta Lime Chicken. Its employees, however, have suggested not all of them should be treated — or valued — equally. Instead, they've actively warned against ordering some of its meat dishes, variously stating they're lower-quality, cooked poorly, or stored incorrectly.

Unfortunately for meat lovers, the list of proteins you might want to avoid is longer than you might think, and some of its most popular items are said to be questionable. One Applebee's employee stated on Reddit that the grilled chicken "smells like death," and its steaks arrive to its stores with a gray, dark pallor, suggesting a lack of quality other workers have also highlighted. Its burgers, meanwhile, are apparently shipped to its stores frozen, which doesn't necessarily mean they're lower-quality or any less tasty, but it indicates they're not made in-store. 

Some Applebee's workers have even said they observed ribs being left out overnight on the counter, instead of in the refrigerator. Of course, these are all isolated stories and examples, and don't necessarily reflect how Applebee's treats its meat across the board — but maybe don't expect gourmet cuts next time you go in.

For people with certain food allergies, fried food can be a big concern. Many fried food items, like French fries, are gluten-free in theory — but when they're cooked in the same fryer oil as items that contain gluten, they can become contaminated and potentially trigger an allergic response. This can be a real worry for Applebee's diners. The restaurant states on its website that "Because we have multiple sources of allergens and gluten-containing ingredients in our shared cooking and prep areas, including common fryer oil, we are unable to guarantee that any menu item can be completely free of allergens or gluten-containing ingredients." Despite signposting this, though, customers have stated they've missed it, and have ordered items they then suspect to be contaminated and potentially allergenic.

None of this is helped by the reports from some employees about an apparent lack of proper oil rotation and cleaning standards. One ex-manager said on Reddit that they were responsible for teaching employees how to filter the fryers, but "... upper management was so worried about labor cost they would just tell me to not worry about cleaning them." As such, they were left to either clean them themselves or end up ruining food with blackened, charred oil. Make no mistake, this doesn't exactly make us want to eat there.

Hospitality can be a hard gig, but for the most part, you should be able to rely on your team to help you get through tough shifts. Sadly, at Applebee's, that may not be the case. One of the sadder secrets your servers might be keeping from you is that they're not getting the support they require. Applebee's employees have repeatedly highlighted a lack of communication between team members and departments, low morale, and little understanding or compassion from higher-ups, leading them to feel demoralized and demotivated.

It doesn't necessarily matter if you're a server or a manager, either: Both levels have stated they've suffered from not having enough assistance and compassion in their roles. One issue seems to stem from Applebee's restaurants being larger than others, which means employees can have less of a personal relationship with each other and can also struggle to know if other workers are new or trainees – which can then make getting anything done harder. Generally, though, it seems like a tough place to work for some people.

While Applebee's may microwave some (okay, quite a few) of its menu items, it doesn't mean all of them arrive at its stores premade. Applebee's employees have lifted the lid on what foods are made in-store, and one category stands out as being slightly surprising: Its sauces. Multiple Applebee's workers have provided recipes online for condiments like its Buffalo sauce, its burger sauce, and its in-house ranch dressing, which seem to be prepared (or at one point were prepared) on-site as opposed to in a central kitchen. That said, they do use some premade ingredients (its ranch is made with dressing mix, for example), but it's better than it arriving at its stores already put together, right? 

Applebee's also makes items like its coleslaw and apple relish each day, as well as its pico de gallo. As dishes that fare much better when they're fresh, it'd be a surprise if Applebee's shipped these in ready-made — but it's still nice to know the restaurant isn't wholly relying on central kitchens for its sides. Other dishes, on the other hand, may be a mixture of pre-prepared and fresh ingredients. If you value freshness especially highly, it might be worth asking your server if they know how something's prepared. They may want to keep those secrets to themselves, but there's no harm in checking.