"applebees" news and stories

In what can only be described as a bizarre and unintentional trend in the chain restaurant industry, yet another child was accidentally served alcohol, this time at Chili's, reports ABC news. There have been similar incidents recently at both The Olive Garden, in which a two-year-old was served sangria, and Applebee's, in which a 15-month-old was served a margarita.

The 4-year-old child, Brooklynn Morris, was allegedly served a mudslide instead of a chocolate shake and had three to four sips before she announced that she didn't like it. Her mother tasted the drink and immediately recognized the alcohol. Brooklynn was brought to the hospital and diagnosed with alcohol-ingestion overdose.

The mother, Tyree Davis, remarked to CBS, "I don't want it to ever happen again ... to any child, because I know this just happened last week to someone, and I heard about it, and it's crazy that it just happened to us yesterday."

ABC reports that ERJ Dining, the owner of Chili's, claims that the girl was served fruit punch and it was the mother that was served the alcohol drink.

Is serving toddlers booze becoming a national trend? Close on the heels of an incident where an Applebee's employee accidentally served a 15-month-old boy a margarita instead of apple juice comes another reported case. Instead of orange juice, a two-year-old was given sangria at an Olive Garden in Lakeland, Florida. And just like Applebee's management, Olive Garden officials say they'll be changing the way they serve drinks from now on: Sangria will be made to order.

Of course, mistakes happen, but no sangria we've ever seen is the shade of orange juice.

Read the whole story.

Applebee's Grill & Bar said it would change its serving methods after a Michigan toddler was mistakenly given alcohol instead of apple juice at one of its restaurants.

Police ruled the incident an accident, but Applebee's management says it will no longer serve juice from bottles behind the bar. (The 15-month-old's cup was filled from a mislabeled bottle at the bar.) Now they'll serve juice in single-serve portions -- and pour it at the table.

With all the menu items at family-friendly restaurants, wouldn't it be great if someone you trusted would give you the low-down on the best choices? Our Slashfood and KitchenDaily team is doing just that in our new Best of the Menu column. We're tasting our way through appetizers, drinks, entrées, and desserts from the most popular chain restaurants, and putting our heads (and taste buds) together to recommend the tastiest offerings. First up? Applebee's.

Menu Overview: Thirteen appetizers graced our local Applebee's menu, ranging from straight-on tortilla chips with a chipotle-lime salsa (chips were too thin and tasteless; salsa tasted like it came from a jar) to Dynamite Shrimp (flavorful but greasy and heavily breaded). Potato Twisters turned out to be thin, crisp, nicely salted chips, but the accompanying Queso Blanco dip tasted, one editor said, "like cheese soup from a can." Cheeseburger Sliders got the "way too much bread" thumb's down, but the fries that came with them were just right.

Find out our Appetizer Winner, Runner-up, and Loser after the jump.

Applebee's is getting real-- real about expanding their "Realburgers from Across America" line, with three new regional creations that tap into the Philadelphia Cheesesteak, the chile heat of the southwest and the big BBQ tastes of Texas. And they're promising that the flavors are "unique as the neighborhoods that inspired them." Aside from Philadelphia, the "neighborhoods" they're referring to feel more like large regions. But enough with the technicalities, on with what's new.

The "Philly Burger" features grilled onions, sautéed peppers and mushrooms, combined with a creamy cheese sauce and aged white cheddar. Yes, that's a double cheese whammy. All of this joins a burger on a toasted hoagie roll.

The "Southwest Jalapeño Burger" piles the heat on in three different ways: pepper-jack cheese, chipotle mayo and candied jalapeños top off this burger.