Applebee's Takeout and Carside To Go

How to Order Applebee's Takeout

Carside To Go

Order ahead, park in a marked Carside space, and check in through the app with your spot number and vehicle description. Someone brings the order to your window. No going inside, no queueing.

Carside To Go had been part of Applebee's for years before curbside pickup went mainstream in 2020, so most restaurants have marked bays and a process for it, not an improvised one.

Standard pickup

Order ahead and collect at the host stand or the to-go counter. Functionally the same; just walk in instead of waiting in the car.

Ordering at the restaurant

Placing a to-go order at the host stand without ordering ahead means your ticket joins the queue behind everyone already seated and everyone who ordered online. At 7 PM on a Friday that's a long wait in the lobby. Order ahead even ten minutes out and it changes the experience.

Phone orders

Still works, and useful for complicated modifications or allergy questions where speaking to someone is easier than using dropdowns. For a straightforward order, the app is faster and removes the risk of something being misheard.

Is Takeout Cheaper Than Delivery at Applebee's?

If the restaurant is a short drive away, takeout wins on cost every time. Full breakdown of the delivery routes: see our complete guide to Applebee's delivery.

Fees worth checking

Carside To Go itself isn't a paid service. Bringing the food out is included. Some individual locations do apply a separate to-go service or packaging fee to off-premise orders, since a takeout order doesn't generate the drink sales a dine-in table does.

This is a franchise-level decision rather than a company-wide policy, so it varies. Build the order in the app and check the total breakdown before submitting. If a service fee appears on a takeout order, that's a local charge.

Tipping

Takeout tipping is a judgment call rather than a rule. The person handling your order is checking the kitchen's output against the ticket, packing it, verifying modifications, and carrying it out to the car.

Most people land somewhere below the dine-in standard. Larger orders, complicated modifications, and bad weather are the situations where people tend to go higher.

Which Applebee's Dishes Hold Up for Takeout

This is the question nobody answers, and it makes more difference to the meal than anything else on this page.

The core problem is steam. Hot food in a closed container produces steam, steam condenses, and condensation lands back on the food. Fried items lose their texture within about ten minutes of that.

Travels well

• Pasta: The most reliable category. Sauce protects it, it holds heat, and it reheats better than anything else on the menu.
• Grilled proteins: Steaks, grilled chicken and salmon keep their texture. Sides are the weak point, not the protein.
• Handcrafted burgers: If you eat them within twenty minutes. Longer than that and the bun starts absorbing moisture.
• Irresist-A-Bowls: Built as layered dishes, so they travel in the condition they were assembled.

Needs a modification

• Anything fried and sauced: Boneless wings tossed in sauce sit in warm liquid for the whole journey and the coating softens. Ordering them plain with sauce in a separate container, then tossing at home, gives you the texture you paid for. This one change makes more difference than any other. See our appetizers.
• Salads: Dressing wilts greens and softens crispy toppings. Ask for dressing and crunchy elements on the side. It isn't always the default.
• Fries: The single worst traveling item on the menu. Substituting steamed vegetables or mashed potatoes means the side arrives in usable condition.

Not offered for takeout

Some items are absent from the to-go menu entirely, typically skillet dishes served sizzling and ice-cream desserts. Both depend on temperature contrast that doesn't survive a container. If something on the full menu is missing from the takeout menu, this is usually why.

How to Reheat Applebee's Leftovers

Portions are large enough that leftovers are common. The microwave is the wrong tool for most of them.

Golden rule: Nothing fried should go in the microwave. If an air fryer isn't available, a conventional oven at around 375°F does the same job more slowly.

Which Applebee's Deals Apply to Takeout

Transfers: 2 for $25 and standard menu deals apply to takeout at most locations. App-based rewards and offers apply directly to a to-go cart.

Doesn't transfer: Half price appetizers and happy hour drink pricing are dine-in promotions.

Gift cards: Gift cards work normally on app and website orders. There's a field for the card number and PIN at checkout.

Large orders: For large parties, check catering first. Past six or seven meals, catering is priced for volume and works out cheaper than assembling individual entrées. See all current offers on our specials and deals page.

Applebee's and IHOP Under One Roof

A small but growing number of locations operate as combined Applebee's and IHOP restaurants under one roof, with a single kitchen and one menu organized by daypart.

For takeout this means one order can include items from both brands, an Applebee's burger alongside IHOP pancakes, bagged together and collected in one trip. Some locations also carry items exclusive to the dual-brand format.

Scale check: The first US dual-branded location opened in Seguin, Texas in February 2025. By the end of June 2026 there were 45 in the US, with 12 more under construction and a target of 80 by the end of 2026. That's against 1,439 US Applebee's, so the odds that your local restaurant is one are still low. The location finder shows which format a restaurant runs.

Applebee's Takeout: Frequently Asked Questions