News Briefs

Dine Brands Global, Inc., the parent company of Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar®, Fuzzy’s Taco Shop®, and IHOP®, announced that Tony Moralejo will step down as Applebee’s President, effective March 4, 2025, and will serve as an advisor to the company through June 4, 2025. John Peyton, CEO, Dine Brands, will assume the role of Interim Applebee’s President while continuing in his current capacity.

"Tony and I share a deep respect for the DNA of Applebee’s and we are all grateful for his contributions since he took on this role two years ago. He has navigated a challenging economic environment, led an outstanding team, and strengthened our relationships with franchisees. I’m incredibly thankful for his leadership—he embodies what great leadership looks like. I look forward to building on his work and accelerating our plans to grow the brand and achieve superior results," says John Peyton, Dine Brands CEO.

"It has been an absolute honor and privilege to serve as President of this exceptional brand. Leading this remarkable team and working alongside our dedicated franchise partners over the past two years has been an incredible experience," added Tony Moralejo, departing Applebee’s President.

The company has initiated a nationwide search for a new leader for Applebee’s with proven expertise in brand stewardship, restaurant operations and marketing. In the meantime, Peyton will oversee the brand, collaborating with the executive team and franchisees to capitalize on growth opportunities across key areas, including digital experience, menu innovation, in-restaurant dining, off-premise, and domestic expansion.

Peyton, a seasoned brand executive, joined Dine Brands in January 2021 as CEO and brings a proven track record in operations, development, and franchisee relations. Before joining Dine Brands, he served as President and CEO of Realogy Franchise Group, following a 17-year tenure as a senior executive at Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. A recognized leader in global branding, he has extensive experience in managing large, complex organizations, driving growth at scale, and fostering innovation while maintaining operational flexibility.

Sonny's BBQ has added George McAllan, new Chief Growth Officer, to the Sonny’s leadership team. McAllan brings decades of experience working in both the franchisor and franchisee roles.

“George’s extensive experience leading operations for some of America’s most-loved restaurant brands is an incredible asset to our team as we continue to expand our footprint and serve our famous BBQ to fans across the South and beyond,” said Jamie Yarmuth, Sonny’s BBQ CEO. “George will serve an important role overseeing the systemwide operations to support the growth and profitability of our brand in the coming years. I look forward to working hand-in-hand with him as we continue to strengthen and develop all facets of operations at Sonny’s BBQ.”

Experienced Industry Executive 

Before joining Sonny’s, George spent the past five years serving as chief operations officer with two different franchisee groups, leading up to 350 restaurants during his tenure. He’s also worked on the franchise side of the business and served a variety of roles with Dunkin’ Brands, including as international vice president responsible for 4,000 Dunkin’ and Baskin Robbins restaurants in South Korea, Japan, China and Latin America. In these previous roles he’s been responsible for operations, development, marketing, and increasing sales and profitability.

“Sonny’s BBQ is a brand I have long admired and loved for its commitment to kindness, Southern culture, and of course its incredible menu of slow-smoked BBQ with all the fixins’,” said George McAllan. “ I look forward to supporting the entire Sonny’s team and share our commitment to providing a great customer experience. It’s an exciting time to join Sonny’s BBQ and I am proud to be a part of this great and storied restaurant brand.”

Growth will be a core pillar for Sonny’s BBQ in 2025, with McAllan playing a leading role. Amid economic challenges, Sonny’s aims to strengthen its market presence and continue its legacy of serving quality BBQ by attracting qualified franchise candidates to expand its franchise network. It will also focus on meeting guest expectations for personalization, convenience and the unmatched hospitality Sonny’s BBQ is known for.

HungerRush, a  provider of integrated restaurant technology solutions, is proud to announce a strategic partnership with Backofhouse.io, a venture owned by Gordon Food Service. This partnership empowers restaurants across the U.S. with access to HungerRush's industry-leading point-of-sale (POS) and online ordering platforms.

This collaboration provides restaurants with the ability to streamline operations, enhance online ordering and delivery capabilities, and boost revenue through loyalty programs and automated marketing. By leveraging HungerRush’s technology, restaurants can take orders faster, reduce friction in day-to-day operations, and deliver an exceptional experience to their guests.

Choosing Technology for Restaurant Growth

HungerRush and Back of House share a mutual commitment to helping restaurants succeed in an increasingly competitive landscape. The addition of HungerRush’s robust offerings provide restaurants with scalable solutions across all areas of their business. From off-premise ordering capabilities to in-house operational optimizations to delivering food to their guests, restaurants can build a resilient and successful business. Restaurants also benefit from HungerRush’s customer-first approach to building and delivering their technology solutions.

“Partnering with Backofhouse.io and Gordon Food Service is a pivotal step in expanding the reach of our innovative restaurant management solutions,” said Nick Butrym, CRO at HungerRush. “Our purpose is to help restaurateurs prosper by delivering great experiences for their customers and employees, and this collaboration allows us to extend that impact to a broader network of businesses.”

Finding the Right Technology

Back of House offers a unique and innovative way for restaurant operators to learn about restaurant technology, compare vendors, and access expert consultants for guidance on business technology decisions.

“Thanks to our partnership with HungerRush, we can provide restaurant operators with high-quality options when it comes to finding the right technology solutions,” said Nick Florek, Head of Back of House. “It’s a partnership that will give them peace of mind that their technology decision is the right one for their specific needs.”

Back of House is available to all restaurant operators across the U.S. Additionally, Gordon Food Service customers get unique benefits, including preferred pricing from leading restaurant technology software providers and free access to consulting services.

To learn more about Back of House please visit the website. For more information on HungerRush, click here.

Guestline, part of Access Group, has further enhanced its payment platform - GuestPay - with complete contactless payment options with full mobile wallet capabilities giving access to the $80 billion consumer payment market. 

Hotels can now offer greater choice to guests with the option to make payments by Google Pay, an addition to its payment methods alongside Apple Pay. Google Pay and Apple Pay digital wallets and payment platforms allow users to pay for purchases across all point of sale terminals, online or settle hotel bills directly from their mobile. 

With the ability to offer seamless contactless payments across the business, hotels can improve the guest experience while also safeguarding guest security. Google Pay and Apple Pay use smart authentication to detect when a device is secure with built-in security features including transaction encryption and fraud protection offering more peace of mind to consumers.  

Mobile wallet payments are expected to exceed $80 billion by 2026 with 60% of the global population predicted to use digital wallets. Half (50%) of all global online transactions were made with a mobile wallet in 2023, with over 300 million users on Google Pay or Apple Pay this represents a huge retail opportunity for hotels. 

Both Google Pay and Apple Pay have no limit on the number or value of in-store transactions, offering a great payment solution for hotels. Google Pay works on any android device and Apple Pay is available across their devices iPhone, Apple Watch, Mac and iPad with neither imposing a fee to users for payments. 

Manish Madnawat, Senior Product Manager - Payments at Guestline, said: “Mobile wallet contactless payment options are being adopted at an incredible rate facilitating both ease and confidence in consumers when making payments. Offering choice to guests, not only improves the guest experience by meeting their payment preferences, it also provides greater efficiencies across the business at all payment terminals and in the check-out process. From a security standpoint, bookings made through mobile wallets are less likely to attract fraud related chargebacks, saving a lot of additional administration for hotels. ”