Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar on Monday announced the appointment of Scott Rodriguez to the role of senior vice president and chief culinary officer. Rodriguez most recently held a similar position at Papa Johns, and before that spent 11 years at fellow casual-dining chain BJ’s Restaurants.
“Scott possesses a unique blend of culinary creativity, operational pragmatism, and big-brand leadership,” said Applebee’s president John Cywinski. “Most importantly, Scott loves food and the role it plays within Applebee’s Eatin’ Good in the Neighborhood positioning.”
Rodriguez, left, will also be part of Applebee’s operations and marketing teams, according to a company release. In those capacities he will help “drive alignment on future innovation alongside brand leaders and franchise partners.”
“I have a lifelong admiration for Applebee’s and am thrilled to be part of this incredible leadership team,” Rodriguez said. “A successful culinary strategy begins with our guests and restaurant-level excellence. I’m spending my first few months in-restaurant learning from our teams and franchise partners and listening to our guests in terms of what they love and expect from Applebee’s.”
At Papa Johns, Rodriguez developed the Papa Bowls, “crustless pizzas” made with traditional pizza toppings but no crust, which launched systemwide in August. Just last week that company launched a trio of new menu items centered on bacon.
Applebee’s, part of Dine Brands Global, has more than 1,600 restaurants in the U.S., two territories and 11 countries.
Contact Leigh Anne Zinsmeister at [email protected]