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Document and Entity Information - shares	9 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information - shares	Sep. 30, 2018	Oct. 26, 2018
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Entity Registrant Name	Dine Brands Global, Inc.
Entity Central Index Key	0000049754
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2018
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2018
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		17,712,434
Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Small Business	false

Consolidated Balance Sheets - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 102,667	$ 117,010
Receivables, net	94,296	140,188
Restricted cash	41,866	31,436
Prepaid gift card costs	30,186	40,725
Prepaid income taxes	42,398	45,981
Other current assets	3,361	12,615
Total current assets	314,774	387,955
Long-term receivables, net	120,541	126,570
Other intangible assets, net	576,789	582,787
Goodwill	339,236	339,236
Property and equipment, net	195,693	199,585
Deferred rent receivable	78,937	82,971
Non-current restricted cash	14,700	14,700
Other non-current assets, net	9,012	4,135
Total assets	1,649,682	1,737,939
Current liabilities:
Current maturities of long-term debt	23,241	12,965
Accounts payable	34,877	55,028
Gift card liability	99,769	164,441
Dividends payable	11,398	17,748
Current maturities of capital lease and financing obligations	13,477	14,193
Accrued employee compensation and benefits	19,308	13,547
Deferred franchise revenue (short-term)	10,641	11,001
Other accrued expenses	19,540	16,001
Total current liabilities	232,251	304,924
Long-term debt, less current maturities	1,273,287	1,269,849
Capital lease obligations, less current maturities	54,605	61,895
Financing obligations, less current maturities	38,653	39,200
Deferred income taxes, net	113,320	119,996
Deferred franchise revenue, long-term	65,920	70,432
Deferred rent payable	64,579	69,112
Other non-current liabilities	20,461	18,071
Total liabilities	1,863,076	1,953,479
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ deficit:
Common stock, $0.01 par value; shares: 40,000,000 authorized; September 30, 2018 - 24,990,268 issued, 17,742,654 outstanding; December 31, 2017 - 25,022,312 issued, 17,993,124 outstanding	250	250
Additional paid-in-capital	246,625	276,408
Accumulated deficit	(16,567)	(69,940)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(61)	(105)
Treasury stock, at cost; shares: September 30, 2018 - 7,247,614; December 31, 2017 - 7,029,188	(443,641)	(422,153)
Total stockholders’ deficit	(213,394)	(215,540)
Total liabilities and stockholders’ deficit	$ 1,649,682	$ 1,737,939

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Parentheticals) - $ / shares	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of Financial Position [Abstract]
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized (in shares)	40,000,000	40,000,000
Common stock, shares issued (in shares)	24,990,268	25,022,312
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	17,742,654	17,993,124
Treasury stock, shares (in shares)	7,247,614	7,029,188

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Revenues:
Rental revenues	$ 30,127	$ 30,263	$ 91,292	$ 90,852
Total revenues	194,099	174,903	566,733	555,017
Cost of revenues:
Franchise expenses	78,341	70,033	243,157	209,721
Rental expenses	22,982	22,318	68,411	67,665
Financing expenses	150	449	449	449
Company restaurant expenses	0	17	0	7,807
Total cost of revenues	101,473	92,817	312,017	285,642
Gross profit	92,626	82,086	254,716	269,375
General and administrative expenses	40,753	38,030	121,423	125,701
Interest expense	15,430	15,353	46,110	46,496
Amortization of intangible assets	2,505	2,507	7,513	7,507
Debt refinancing costs	2,532	0	2,532	0
Closure and other impairment charges	217	888	119	3,806
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets	0	531,634	0	531,634
Gain on disposition of assets	(58)	(35)	(1,535)	(6,387)
Income (loss) before income tax (provision) benefit	31,247	(506,291)	78,554	(439,382)
Income tax (provision) benefit	(7,660)	55,939	(25,181)	26,732
Net income (loss)	23,587	(450,352)	53,373	(412,650)
Other comprehensive income (loss) net of tax:
Adjustment to unrealized loss on available-for-sale investments	0	0	50	0
Foreign currency translation adjustment	0	(2)	(6)	(2)
Total comprehensive income (loss)	23,587	(450,354)	53,417	(412,652)
Net income (loss) available to common stockholders:
Net income (loss)	23,587	(450,352)	53,373	(412,650)
Less: Net income allocated to unvested participating restricted stock	(799)	8,469	(1,793)	6,863
Net income available to common stockholders - basic	$ 22,788	$ (441,883)	$ 51,580	$ (405,787)
Net income (loss) available to common stockholders per share:
Basic (USD per share)	$ 1.31	$ (24.91)	$ 2.94	$ (22.90)
Diluted (USD per share)	$ 1.29	$ (24.91)	$ 2.90	$ (22.90)
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic (in shares)	17,439	17,742	17,562	17,718
Diluted (in shares)	17,738	17,742	17,797	17,718
Dividends declared per common share (USD per share)	$ 0.63	$ 0.97	$ 1.89	$ 2.91
Dividends paid per common share (USD per share)	$ 0.63	$ 0.97	$ 2.23	$ 2.91
Franchisor [Member]
Revenues:
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	$ 162,078	$ 142,579	$ 469,332	$ 450,367
Financial Service [Member]
Revenues:
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	1,894	2,061	6,109	6,280
Food and Beverage [Member]
Revenues:
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 7,518

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income (loss)	$ 53,373	$ (412,650)
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to cash flows provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	23,730	23,053
Non-cash stock-based compensation expense	8,016	8,826
Non-cash interest expense	2,689	2,509
Debt refinancing costs	875	0
Closure and other impairment charges	61	3,672
Deferred income taxes	(4,706)	(75,849)
Gain on disposition of assets	(1,535)	(6,422)
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets	0	531,634
Other	(6,105)	(7,683)
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable, net	(7,222)	(1,385)
Current income tax receivables and payables	4,088	(1,699)
Gift card receivables and payables	(22,797)	(26,387)
Other current assets	9,254	(1,336)
Accounts payable	(5,764)	(7,530)
Accrued employee compensation and benefits	5,761	(1,146)
Other current liabilities	1,908	3,393
Cash flows provided by operating activities	61,626	31,000
Cash flows from investing activities:
Additions to property and equipment	(11,018)	(9,608)
Proceeds from sale of property and equipment	655	1,100
Principal receipts from notes, equipment contracts and other long-term receivables	20,029	15,283
Additions to long-term receivables	(6,030)	0
Other	(236)	(356)
Cash flows provided by investing activities	3,400	6,419
Cash flows from financing activities:
Borrowings under Variable Funding Notes	50,000	0
Repayments of Variable Funding Notes	(30,000)	0
Repayment of long-term debt	(9,750)	0
Payment of debt issuance costs	(3,118)	0
Dividends paid on common stock	(39,973)	(52,326)
Repurchase of common stock	(27,880)	(10,003)
Principal payments on capital lease and financing obligations	(10,374)	(10,621)
Tax payments for restricted stock upon vesting	(1,731)	(2,345)
Proceeds from stock options exercised	3,887	2,635
Cash flows used in financing activities	(68,939)	(72,660)
Net change in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	(3,913)	(35,241)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period	163,146	185,491
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period	159,233	150,250
Supplemental disclosures:
Interest paid in cash	49,761	50,808
Income taxes paid in cash	26,044	50,813
Non-cash conversion of accounts receivable to notes receivable	$ 11,559	$ 0

General	9 Months Ended
General	Sep. 30, 2018
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
General	General The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements of Dine Brands Global, Inc. (the “Company” or “Dine Brands Global”) have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. The operating results for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the twelve months ending December 31, 2018. The consolidated balance sheet at December 31, 2017 has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. These consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017.

Basis of Presentation	9 Months Ended
Basis of Presentation	Sep. 30, 2018
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation The Company’s fiscal quarters end on the Sunday closest to the last day of each calendar quarter. For convenience, the fiscal quarters of each year are referred to as ending on March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31. The first fiscal quarter of 2018 began on January 1, 2018 and ended on April 1, 2018; the second and third fiscal quarters of 2018 ended on July 1, 2018 and September 30, 2018, respectively. The first fiscal quarter of 2017 began on January 2, 2017 and ended on April 2, 2017; the second and third fiscal quarters of 2017 ended on July 2, 2017 and October 1, 2017, respectively. The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries that are consolidated in accordance with U.S. GAAP. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires the Company’s management to make assumptions and estimates that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities, if any, at the date of the consolidated financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Significant estimates are made in the calculation and assessment of the following: impairment of goodwill, other intangible assets and tangible assets; income taxes; allowance for doubtful accounts and notes receivables; lease accounting estimates; contingencies; and stock-based compensation. On an ongoing basis, the Company evaluates its estimates based on historical experience, current conditions and various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The Company adjusts such estimates and assumptions when facts and circumstances dictate. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Accounting Changes and Error Corrections [Abstract]

Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

Accounting Standards Adopted Effective January 1, 2018

On January 1, 2018, the Company adopted the guidance of Accounting Standards Codification 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”). The Company adopted this change in accounting principles using the full retrospective method. Accordingly, previously reported financial information has been adjusted to reflect the application of ASC 606 to all comparative periods presented. The Company utilized all the practical expedients for adoption allowed under the full retrospective method. The Company believes utilization of the practical expedients did not have a significant impact on the consolidated financial statements of the periods presented herein.

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Balance Sheet as follows:



	Balance at December 31, 2017, as reported			Adjustments/Reclassifications Due to ASC 606 adoption			Balance at December 31, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Assets:
Receivables, net	$	150,174		$	(9,986	)	$	140,188
Prepaid income taxes	43,654			2,327			45,981
Long-term receivables, net	131,212			(4,642		)	126,570

Liabilities:
Deferred franchise revenue (short-term)	—			11,001			11,001
Other accrued expenses	17,780			(1,779		)	16,001
Deferred franchise revenue (long-term)	—			70,432			70,432
Other non-current liabilities	23,003			(4,932		)	18,071
Deferred income taxes, net	138,177			(18,181		)	119,996

Equity:
Accumulated deficit	$	(1,098	)	$	(68,842	)	$	(69,940	)

In conjunction with its adoption of ASC 606, the Company has separated “franchise and restaurant revenues” and “franchise and restaurant expenses,” previously combined when reported in the Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017, into separate line items for franchise revenues/expense and company restaurant sales/expense as follows:



	Three months ended September 30, 2017		Nine months ended September 30, 2017
	(in thousands)
Franchise and restaurant revenues, as combined	$	112,347	$	358,912

Franchise revenues	$	112,347	$	351,394
Company restaurant sales	—		7,518
	$	112,347	$	358,912

Franchise and restaurant expenses, as combined	$	41,800	$	123,476

Franchise expenses	41,783		115,669
Company restaurant expenses	17		$	7,807
	$	41,800	$	123,476

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the three months ended September 30, 2017, as follows:



	Three Months ended September 30, 2017, as reported			Adjustments due to ASC 606 adoption			Three Months ended September 30, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Franchise revenues (as shown separately above)	$	112,347		$	30,232		$	142,579
Franchise expenses (as shown separately above)	41,783			28,250			70,033
Income before income tax benefit	(508,273		)	1,982			(506,291		)
Income tax benefit	56,555			(616		)	55,939
Net loss	(451,718		)	1,366			(450,352		)
Net loss per share:
Basic	$	(24.98	)				$	(24.91	)
Diluted	$	(24.98	)				$	(24.91	)

Recognition of Applebee's advertising revenue and expense comprised $28.3 million of the revenue adjustment and all the expense adjustment. Approximately $2.0 million of the revenue adjustment is due to the change in method of recognizing franchise and development fees. See Note 4 - Revenue Disclosures, of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for a description of these changes.

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the nine months ended September 30, 2017, as follows:



	Nine Months ended September 30, 2017, as reported			Adjustments due to ASC 606 adoption			Nine Months ended September 30, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Franchise revenues (as shown separately above)	$	351,394		$	98,973		$	450,367
Franchise expenses (as shown separately above)	115,669			94,052			209,721
Income before income tax benefit	(444,303		)	4,921			(439,382		)
Income tax benefit	28,228			(1,496		)	26,732
Net loss	(416,075		)	3,425			(412,650		)
Net loss per share:
Basic	$	(23.09	)				$	(22.90	)
Diluted	$	(23.09	)				$	(22.90	)

Recognition of Applebee's advertising revenue and expense comprised $94.1 million of the revenue adjustment and all the expense adjustment. Approximately $4.9 million of the revenue adjustment is due to the change in method of recognizing franchise and development fees. See Note 4 - Revenue Disclosures, of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for a description of these changes.

The adoption of ASC 606 had no impact on the Company's cash provided by or used in operating, investing or financing activities as previously reported in its Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

Additional new accounting guidance became effective for the Company as of January 1, 2018 that the Company reviewed and concluded was either are not applicable to the Company's operations or had no material effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

In June 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued new guidance on the measurement of credit losses on financial instruments. The new guidance will replace the incurred loss methodology of recognizing credit losses on financial instruments that is currently required with a methodology that estimates the expected credit loss on financial instruments and reflects the net amount expected to be collected on the financial instrument. Application of the new guidance may result in the earlier recognition of credit losses as the new methodology will require entities to consider forward-looking information in addition to historical and current information used in assessing incurred losses. The Company will be required to adopt the new guidance on a modified retrospective basis beginning with its first fiscal quarter of 2020, with early adoption permitted in its first fiscal quarter of 2019. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the new guidance on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures and whether early adoption will be elected.

In February 2016, the FASB issued new guidance with respect to the accounting for leases. The new guidance will require lessees to recognize a right-of-use asset and a lease liability for virtually all leases, other than leases with a term of 12 months or less, and to provide additional disclosures about leasing arrangements. Accounting by lessors is largely unchanged from existing accounting guidance. The Company will be required to adopt the new guidance beginning with its first fiscal quarter of 2019. In July 2018, the FASB modified the new guidance to provide for transition adoption using either 1) a modified retrospective approach with periods prior to the adoption date being recast or 2) a prospective adoption approach with a cumulative-effect adjustment recognized to the opening balance of retained earnings on the adoption date with prior periods not recast. Prior to modification, the first transition adoption method was the only method available. Early adoption is permitted. The Company expects to use the prospective approach to its adoption of the new lease guidance.

While the Company is still in the process of evaluating the impact of the new guidance on its consolidated financial statements and disclosures, the Company expects adoption of the new guidance will have a material impact on its Consolidated Balance Sheets due to recognition of the right-of-use asset and lease liability related to its operating leases. While the new guidance is also expected to impact the measurement and presentation of elements of expenses and cash flows related to leasing arrangements, the Company does not presently believe there will be a material impact on its Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) or Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Recognition of a lease liability related to operating leases will not impact any covenants related to the Company's long-term debt because the debt agreements specify that covenant ratios be calculated using U.S. GAAP in effect at the time the debt agreements were entered.

In August 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) adopted the final rule under SEC Release No. 33-10532, Disclosure Update and Simplification, amending certain disclosure requirements that were redundant, duplicative, overlapping, outdated or superseded. The amendments also expanded the disclosure requirements related to the analysis of stockholders' equity for interim financial statements. Under the amendments, an analysis of changes in each caption of stockholders' equity presented in the balance sheet must be provided in a note or separate statement. The analysis should present a reconciliation of the beginning balance to the ending balance of each period for which a statement of comprehensive income is required to be filed. This final rule is effective on November 5, 2018. Pursuant to guidance issued by the SEC, the Company will provide the required disclosures in its interim financial statements beginning with the first fiscal quarter of 2019.

In August 2018, the FASB issued guidance designed to improve the effectiveness of disclosures by removing, modifying and adding disclosures related to fair value measurements. The Company will be required to adopt the new guidance beginning with its first fiscal quarter of 2020; early adoption in any interim period after issuance of the new guidance is permitted. The Company is currently assessing the impact this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements.

In August 2018, the FASB issued new guidance on the accounting for implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement that is a service contract. The guidance aligns the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract with existing guidance for capitalizing implementation cost incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software. The guidance also provides presentation and disclosure requirements for such capitalized costs. The Company will be required to adopt the new guidance beginning with its first fiscal quarter of 2020; early adoption in any interim period after issuance of the new guidance is permitted. The Company is currently assessing the impact this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements.

The Company reviewed all other newly issued accounting pronouncements and concluded that they either are not applicable to the Company's operations or that no material effect is expected on the Company's financial statements because of future adoption.

Revenue Disclosures (Notes)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]

Revenue Disclosures

Franchise revenue (which comprises most of the Company's revenues) and revenue from company-operated restaurants are recognized in accordance with ASC 606. Under ASC 606, revenue is recognized upon transfer of control of promised services or goods to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration the Company expects to receive for those services or goods. The Company's rental and financing revenues are recognized in accordance with applicable U.S. GAAP accounting standards promulgated prior to the issuance of ASC 606, which remain in effect.

Franchising Activities

The Company owns and franchises the Applebee’s and IHOP restaurant concepts. The franchise arrangement for both brands is documented in the form of a franchise agreement and, in most cases, a development agreement. The franchise arrangement between the Company as the franchisor and the franchisee as the customer requires the Company to perform various activities to support the brand that do not directly transfer goods and services to the franchisee, but instead represent a single performance obligation, which is the transfer of the franchise license. The intellectual property subject to the franchise license is symbolic intellectual property as it does not have significant standalone functionality, and substantially all the utility is derived from its association with the Company’s past or ongoing activities. The nature of the Company’s promise in granting the franchise license is to provide the franchisee with access to the brand’s symbolic intellectual property over the term of the license. The services provided by the Company are highly interrelated with the franchise license and as such are considered to represent a single performance obligation.

The transaction price in a standard franchise arrangement for both brands primarily consists of (a) initial franchise/development fees; (b) continuing franchise fees (royalties); and (c) advertising fees. Since the Company considers the licensing of the franchising right to be a single performance obligation, no allocation of the transaction price is required. Additionally, all domestic IHOP franchise agreements require franchisees to purchase proprietary pancake and waffle dry mix from the Company.

The Company recognizes the primary components of the transaction price as follows:


•	Franchise and development fees are recognized as revenue ratably on a straight-line basis over the term of the franchise agreement commencing with the restaurant opening date. As these fees are typically received in cash at or near the beginning of the franchise term, the cash received is initially recorded as a contract liability until recognized as revenue over time;

•

The Company is entitled to royalties and advertising fees based on a percentage of the franchisee's gross sales as defined in the franchise agreement. Royalty and advertising revenue are recognized when the franchisee's reported sales occur. Depending on timing within a fiscal period, the recognition of revenue results in either what is considered a contract asset (unbilled receivable) or, once billed, accounts receivable, on the balance sheet.


•	Revenue from the sales of proprietary pancake and waffle dry mix is recognized in the period in which distributors ship the franchisee's order; recognition of revenue results in accounts receivable on the balance sheet.

In determining the amount and timing of revenue from contracts with customers, the Company exercises significant judgment with respect to collectibility of the amount; however, the timing of recognition does not require significant judgments as it is based on either the franchise term, the month of reported sales by the franchisee or the date of product shipment, none of which require estimation.

The Company does not incur a significant amount of contract acquisition costs in conducting its franchising activities. The Company believes its franchising arrangements do not contain a significant financing component.

Prior to the adoption of ASC 606, the Company generally recognized the entire franchise and/or development fee as revenue at the restaurant opening date. The impact on the Company's previously reported financial statements of the change from that policy to the policy described above is presented in Note 3 - Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted, of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

Prior to the adoption of ASC 606, the Company did not record advertising fees received under Applebee's franchise agreements as franchise revenue. In evaluating advertising activity under the guidance of ASC 606, the Company considers itself to be primarily responsible for fulfilling the promise to provide all the services specified in the contract, including advertising activities, which are not considered to be distinct services in the context of providing the right to the symbolic intellectual property. Accordingly, under ASC 606, the Company records advertising fees received under Applebee's franchise agreements as franchise revenue. The Company had previously recorded advertising fees received under IHOP franchise agreements as franchise revenue. Under previously issued accounting guidance for franchisors, advertising revenue and expense were recognized in the same amount in each period. That guidance was superceded by ASC 606 such that advertising expense may now be different than the advertising revenue recognized as described above. The impact of these changes with respect to Applebee's advertising fees and advertising expenses on the Company's previously reported financial statements is presented in Note 3 - Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted, of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. An excess or deficiency of advertising fee revenue compared to advertising expenditures, if any, will be recognized in the fourth quarter, as permitted under ASC 606.

The adoption of ASC 606 had no impact on the Company's recording of royalties and sales of proprietary pancake and waffle dry mix.

The following table disaggregates our franchise revenue by major type for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 30,				September 30,
	2018		2017		2018		2017
	(In thousands)
Franchise Revenue:
Royalties	$	75,262	$	70,860	$	227,172	$	223,919
Advertising fees	71,017		56,218		193,557		178,381
Pancake and waffle dry mix sales and other	13,188		12,489		39,799		38,943
Franchise and development fees	2,611		3,012		8,804		9,124
Total franchise revenue	$	162,078	$	142,579	$	469,332	$	450,367

Receivables from franchisees as of September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 were $61.7 million (net of allowance of $24.4 million) and $66.2 million (net of allowance of $22.2 million), respectively, and were included in receivables, net in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Changes in the Company's contract liability for deferred franchise and development fees during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 are as follows:



	Deferred Franchise Revenue (short- and long-term)
	(In thousands)
Balance at December 31, 2017	$	81,433
Recognized as revenue during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	(8,053		)
Fees received and deferred during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	3,181
Balance at September 30, 2018	$	76,561

The balance of deferred revenue as of September 30, 2018 is expected to be recognized as follows:



	(In thousands)
Remainder of 2018	$	2,261
2019	10,523
2020	8,165
2021	7,616
2022	7,093
2023	6,529
Thereafter	34,374
Total	$	76,561

Company-operated Restaurants

The Company currently does not operate any restaurants but did operate restaurants in the comparative prior period. Sales by company-operated restaurants were recognized when food and beverage items were sold and were reported net of sales taxes collected from guests that were remitted to the appropriate taxing authorities. Recognition of revenue from company-operated restaurants was not impacted by the adoption of ASC 606 using the full retrospective method.

Long-Term Debt

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Debt Disclosure [Abstract]

Long-Term Debt

On September 5, 2018 (the “Closing Date”), Applebee’s Funding LLC and IHOP Funding LLC (“Co-Issuers”), each a special purpose wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of the Company, entered into a financing facility that allows for drawings of up to $225 million of variable funding notes on a revolving basis and the issuance of letters of credit (the “2018 Variable Funding Notes”). The 2018 Variable Funding Notes were issued under the Base Indenture, dated September 30, 2014, as amended, among the Co-Issuers and Citibank, N.A., as Trustee and Securities Intermediary (“Base Indenture”), and the Series 2018-1 Supplement to the Base Indenture, dated September 5, 2018, among the Co-Issuers and Citibank, N.A., as Trustee and the 2018-1 Securities Intermediary (“Series 2018-1 Supplement”). Drawings and certain additional terms related to the 2018 Variable Funding Notes are governed by the Class A-1 Note Purchase Agreement, dated September 5, 2018, among the Co-Issuers, certain special-purpose, wholly-owned indirect subsidiaries of the Company, each as a Guarantor, the Corporation, as manager, certain conduit investors, financial institutions and funding agents, and Barclays Bank PLC, as provider of letters credit, swingline lender and administrative agent (the “Purchase Agreement”).

The 2018 Variable Funding Notes will be governed, in part, by the Purchase Agreement and by certain generally applicable terms contained in the Base Indenture and the Series 2018-1 Supplement. The applicable interest rate under the 2018 Variable Funding Notes depends on the type of borrowing by the Co-Issuers. The applicable interest rate for advances is generally calculated at a per annum rate equal to the commercial paper funding rate or one-, two-, three- or six-month Eurodollar Funding Rate, in any case, plus 2.15%. There is an upfront fee of 1% and a fee of 50 basis points on any unused portion of the 2018 Variable Funding Notes facility. The applicable interest rate for swingline advances and unreimbursed draws on outstanding letters of credit is a per annum base rate equal to the sum of (a) 1.15% plus (b) the greater of (i) the Prime Rate in effect from time to time, (ii) the Federal Funds Rate in effect from time to time plus 0.50% and (iii) the one-month Eurodollar Funding Rate plus 1.00%. Undrawn face amounts of outstanding letters of credit that are not cash collateralized accrue a fee of 2.15% per annum. It is anticipated that the principal and interest on the 2018 Variable Funding Notes will be repaid in full on or prior to September 7, 2021 (the “Anticipated Repayment Date”), subject to four additional one-year extensions at the option of the Company upon the satisfaction of certain conditions. The 2018 Variable Funding Notes and other credit instruments issued under the Purchase Agreement are secured by the collateral described in the Base Indenture and the Guarantee and Collateral Agreement, dated September 30, 2014, by certain special-purpose, wholly-owned indirect subsidiaries of the Company, each as a Guarantor, in favor of Citibank, N.A., as Trustee (the “Guarantee and Collateral Agreement”).

In connection with the above transaction, the Company also amended and restated the Management Agreement, dated September 30, 2014 (the “Management Agreement”), among the Co-Issuers, other securitization entities party thereto from time to time, the Company, Applebee’s Services, Inc. and International House of Pancakes, LLC as Sub-managers and Citibank, N.A., as Trustee, to revise the calculation of the weekly management fee and to make certain other revisions. The Company also amended the Base Indenture to, among other things, make certain administrative and definitional updates.

In connection with the 2018 Variable Funding Notes above, on September 5, 2018, the Company repaid the entire $20 million then-outstanding principal amount of the Company’s $100 million revolving financing facility under certain Series 2014-1 Class A-1 Notes (the “2014 Variable Funding Notes”) pursuant to the Base Indenture and the Series 2014-1 Supplement to the Base Indenture, dated September 30, 2014, among the Co-Issuers and Citibank, N.A., as Trustee and Series 2014-1 Securities Intermediary (“Series 2014-1 Supplement”) and terminated the corresponding Class A-1 Note Purchase Agreement, dated September 30, 2014, among the Co-Issuers, certain special-purpose, wholly-owned indirect subsidiaries of the Corporation, each as a Guarantor, certain conduit investors, financial institutions and funding agents, and Cooperatieve Centrale Raiffeisen-Boerenleenbank, B.A., “Rabobank Nederland,” New York Branch, as provider of letters of credit, as swingline lender and as administrative agent (“2014 Purchase Agreement”).

The Company incurred costs of approximately $3.6 million in connection with the issuance of the 2018 Variable Funding Notes. These debt issuance costs are being amortized using the effective interest method over the estimated three-year life of the 2018 Variable Funding Notes. Unamortized debt issuance costs are reported as other long-term assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

In connection with the termination referenced above of the Class A-1 Note Purchase Agreement, dated September 30, 2014, the Company charged as expense $0.9 million of unamortized debt issuance costs associated with the 2014 Variable Funding Notes. In addition, the Company incurred costs of $1.6 million associated with the evaluation of various alternatives for refinancing its securitized indebtedness that were also charged to expense. These costs totaling $2.5 million are reported as “Debt refinancing costs” in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss).

At September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, long-term debt consisted of the following components:



	September 30, 2018			December 31, 2017
	(In millions)
Series 2014-1 4.277% Fixed Rate Senior Secured Notes, Class A-2	$	1,287.0		$	1,296.8
Series 2018-1 Variable Funding Senior Notes Class A-1, at a variable interest rate of 4.403% as of September 30, 2018	20.0			—
Debt issuance costs	(10.5		)	(13.9		)
Long-term debt, net of debt issuance costs	1,296.5			1,282.8
Current portion of long-term debt	(23.2		)	(13.0		)
Long-term debt	$	1,273.3		$	1,269.8

For a description of the Series 2014-1 4.277% Fixed Rate Senior Secured Notes, Class A-2, refer to Note 7 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017.

Stockholders' Deficit

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Equity [Abstract]

Stockholders' Deficit

Dividends

During the nine months ended September 30, 2018, the Company paid dividends on common stock of $40.0 million, representing a cash dividend of $0.97 per share declared in the fourth quarter of 2017 and cash dividends of $0.63 per share declared in the first and second quarters of 2018. On August 2, 2018, the Company's Board of Directors declared a third quarter 2018 cash dividend of $0.63 per share of common stock. This dividend was paid on October 5, 2018 to the Company's stockholders of record at the close of business on September 20, 2018. The Company reported dividends payable of $11.4 million at September 30, 2018.

Stock Repurchase Program

In October 2015, the Company's Board of Directors approved a stock repurchase program authorizing the Company to repurchase up to $150 million of its common stock (the “2015 Repurchase Program”) on an opportunistic basis from time to time in open market transactions and in privately negotiated transactions based on business, market, applicable legal requirements and other considerations. The 2015 Repurchase Program, as approved by the Board of Directors, does not require the repurchase of a specific number of shares and can be terminated at any time. A summary of shares repurchased under the 2015 Repurchase Program, during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and cumulatively, is as follows:



2015 Repurchase Program	Shares	Cost of shares
		(In millions)
Repurchased during the three months ended September 30, 2018	107,814	$	7.9
Repurchased during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	383,615	$	27.9
Cumulative (life-of-program) repurchases as of September 30, 2018	1,384,272	$	110.8
Remaining dollar value of shares that may be repurchased	n/a	$	39.2

Treasury Stock

Repurchases of the Company's common stock are included in treasury stock at the cost of shares repurchased plus any transaction costs. Treasury stock may be re-issued when stock options are exercised, when restricted stock awards are granted and when restricted stock units settle in stock upon vesting. The cost of treasury stock re-issued is determined using the first-in, first-out (“FIFO”) method. During the nine months ended September 30, 2018, the Company re-issued 165,189 shares of treasury stock at a total FIFO cost of $6.4 million.

Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
Income Taxes	Sep. 30, 2018
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Income Taxes The Company's effective tax rate was 32.1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 as compared to 6.1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. The effective tax rate of 32.1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 was higher than the current federal statutory rate of 21% due to a $5.7 million increase to our tax provision related to adjustments resulting from Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) audits for tax years 2011 through 2013. The effective tax rate of 6.1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 was lower than the then-statutory federal tax rate of 35% because the Company’s $358.2 million impairment of goodwill was not deductible for federal income tax purposes and therefore had no associated tax benefit. See Note 14 - Impairment of Goodwill and Intangible Assets, of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for the description of impairment. The total gross unrecognized tax benefit as of September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 was $8.3 million and $5.9 million, respectively, excluding interest, penalties and related tax benefits. The increase in the unrecognized tax benefit of $2.4 million was primarily related to the IRS examination of tax years 2011 to 2013. The Company estimates the unrecognized tax benefit may decrease over the upcoming 12 months by an amount up to $5.1 million related to settlements with taxing authorities and the lapse of statutes of limitations. For the remaining liability, due to the uncertainties related to these tax matters, the Company is unable to make a reasonably reliable estimate as to when cash settlement with a taxing authority will occur. As of September 30, 2018, accrued interest was $1.6 million and accrued penalties were less than $0.1 million, excluding any related income tax benefits. As of December 31, 2017, accrued interest was $1.1 million and accrued penalties were less than $0.1 million, excluding any related income tax benefits. The Company recognizes interest accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits and penalties as a component of its income tax provision recognized in its Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss). The Company files federal income tax returns and the Company or one of its subsidiaries files income tax returns in various state and foreign jurisdictions. With few exceptions, the Company is no longer subject to federal, state or non-United States tax examinations by tax authorities for years before 2011. The IRS commenced examination of the Company’s U.S. federal income tax return for the tax years 2011 to 2013 in fiscal year 2016. The examination is anticipated to conclude during fiscal year 2018. The Company believes that adequate reserves have been provided relating to all matters contained in the tax periods open to examination. The SEC has issued guidance which provides for a measurement period of one year from the enactment date to finalize the accounting for effects of the Tax Act. Consistent with that guidance, the Company provisionally recorded income tax benefit of $77.5 million related to the Tax Act in the fourth quarter of 2017. As of September 30, 2018, the Company has not yet completed its accounting for the tax effects of the enactment of the Tax Act. The Internal Revenue Service is expected to issue additional guidance clarifying provisions of the Act. As additional guidance is issued, one or more of the provisional amounts may change.

Stock-Based Compensation

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]

Stock-Based Compensation

The following table summarizes the components of stock-based compensation expense included in general and administrative expenses in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss):



	Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
	2018			2017			2018			2017
	(In millions)
Total stock-based compensation expense:
Equity classified awards expense	$	2.4		$	1.3		$	8.1		$	9.0
Liability classified awards expense (credit)	1.4			0.0			2.3			(1.1		)
Total pre-tax stock-based compensation expense	3.8			1.3			10.4			7.9
Book income tax benefit	(1.0		)	(0.5		)	(2.7		)	(3.0		)
Total stock-based compensation expense, net of tax	$	2.8		$	0.8		$	7.7		$	4.9

As of September 30, 2018, total unrecognized compensation expense of $20.1 million related to restricted stock and restricted stock units and $4.1 million related to stock options are expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 1.8 years for restricted stock and restricted stock units and 1.7 years for stock options.

Fair Value Assumptions

The Company granted 223,570 stock options during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 for which the fair value was estimated using a Black-Scholes option pricing model. The following summarizes the assumptions used in the Black-Scholes model:



Risk-free interest rate	2.6	%
Weighted average historical volatility	26.1	%
Dividend yield	3.6	%
Expected years until exercise	4.6
Weighted average fair value of options granted	$11.94

The Company granted 25,330 performance-based stock options and 26,670 performance-based restricted stock units during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 for which the fair value was estimated using a Monte Carlo simulation method. The following summarizes the assumptions used in estimating the fair values:



Risk-free interest rate	2.4	%
Weighted average historical volatility	33.0	%
Dividend yield	3.7	%
Expected years until exercise	3.0
Weighted average fair value of options granted	$9.79
Weighted average fair value of restricted stock units granted	$34.53

Equity Classified Awards - Stock Options

Stock option balances at September 30, 2018, and activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 were as follows:



	Shares		Weighted Average Exercise Price		Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term (in Years)	Aggregate Intrinsic Value (in Millions)
Outstanding at December 31, 2017	1,272,048		$	61.44
Granted	248,899		69.12
Exercised	(73,741	)	52.72
Forfeited	(6,309	)	68.80
Outstanding at September 30, 2018	1,440,897		63.18		6.9	$	30.4
Vested at September 30, 2018 and Expected to Vest	1,279,379		64.78		6.6	$	25.5
Exercisable at September 30, 2018	572,957		$	77.64	3.8	$	6.2

The aggregate intrinsic value in the table above represents the total pre-tax intrinsic value (the difference between the closing stock price of the Company’s common stock on the last trading day of the third quarter of 2018 and the exercise price, multiplied by the number of in-the-money options) that would have been received by the option holders had all option holders exercised their options on September 30, 2018. The aggregate intrinsic value will change based on the fair market value of the Company’s common stock and the number of in-the-money options.

Equity Classified Awards - Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units

Outstanding balances as of September 30, 2018, and activity related to restricted stock and restricted stock units for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 were as follows:



	Restricted Stock		Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		Restricted Stock Units		Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value
Outstanding at December 31, 2017	275,191		$	65.81	303,348		$	28.39
Granted	91,448		68.96		55,584		48.12
Released	(65,704	)	81.68		(15,737	)	98.54
Forfeited	(23,666	)	61.09		(71	)	53.49
Outstanding at September 30, 2018	277,269		$	63.61	343,124		$	27.70

Liability Classified Awards - Cash-settled Restricted Stock Units

The Company has granted cash-settled restricted stock units to certain employees. These instruments are recorded as liabilities at fair value as of the respective period end. During the nine months ended September 30, 2018, 59,229 units were issued, 60 units were vested and 3,806 units were forfeited. At September 30, 2018, there were 55,363 units outstanding. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, $0.3 million and $0.7 million was included as stock-based compensation expense related to cash-settled restricted stock units.

Liability Classified Awards - Long-Term Incentive Awards

The Company has granted cash long-term incentive awards (“LTIP awards”) to certain employees. Annual LTIP awards vest over a three-year period and are determined using a multiplier from 0% to 200% of the target award based on the total stockholder return of Dine Brands Global common stock compared to the total stockholder returns of a peer group of companies. Although LTIP awards are only paid in cash, since the multiplier is based on the price of the Company's common stock, the awards are considered stock-based compensation in accordance with U.S. GAAP and are classified as liabilities. For the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, $1.1 million and less than $0.1 million, respectively was included in total stock-based compensation expense related to LTIP awards. For the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, an expense of $1.6 million and a credit of $1.0 million, respectively, were included in total stock-based compensation expense related to LTIP awards. At September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, liabilities of $1.8 million and $0.2 million, respectively, related to LTIP awards were included as part of accrued employee compensation and benefits in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Segments

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Segments

The Company identifies its reporting segments based on the organizational units used by management to monitor performance and make operating decisions. The Company currently has four operating segments: Applebee's franchise operations, IHOP franchise operations, rental operations and financing operations. During one or more of the comparative periods presented herein, the Company operated a small number of IHOP restaurants and those operations were considered to be a fifth operating segment. Including these historically company-operated restaurants, the Company has four reportable segments: franchise operations, (an aggregation of Applebee's and IHOP franchise operations), rental operations, financing operations and company-operated restaurant operations. The Company considers these to be its reportable segments, regardless of whether any segment exceeds 10% of consolidated revenues, income before income tax provision or total assets.

As of September 30, 2018, the franchise operations segment consisted of (i) 1,856 restaurants operated by Applebee’s franchisees in the United States, two U.S. territories and 13 countries outside the United States and (ii) 1,814 restaurants operated by IHOP franchisees and area licensees in the United States, three U.S. territories and 12 countries outside the United States. Franchise operations revenue consists primarily of franchise royalty revenues, franchise advertising revenue, sales of proprietary products to franchisees (primarily pancake and waffle dry mixes for the IHOP restaurants), and franchise fees. Franchise operations expenses include advertising expenses, the cost of IHOP proprietary products, bad debt expense, franchisor contributions to marketing funds, pre-opening training expenses and other franchise-related costs.

Rental operations revenue includes revenue from operating leases and interest income from direct financing leases. Rental operations expenses are costs of operating leases and interest expense from capital leases on franchisee-operated restaurants.

Financing operations revenue primarily consists of interest income from the financing of franchise fees and equipment leases and sales of equipment associated with refranchised IHOP restaurants. Financing expenses are primarily the cost of restaurant equipment associated with refranchised IHOP restaurants.

Company restaurant sales were retail sales at company-operated restaurants. Company restaurant expenses were operating expenses at company-operated restaurants and include food, labor, utilities, rent and other restaurant operating costs. In June 2017, the Company refranchised nine of ten IHOP company-operated restaurants in the Cincinnati, Ohio market area; the one restaurant not refranchised was closed. As a result, the Company no longer operates any restaurants on a permanent basis. The Company has not presented these restaurants as discontinued operations as defined by U.S. GAAP because the refranchising of nine restaurants out of a total of approximately 3,700 restaurants did not represent a strategic shift that had a major effect on the Company's operations.

From time to time, the Company may operate restaurants reacquired from franchisees on a temporary basis until those restaurants are refranchised. There were no restaurants under temporary company operation at September 30, 2018.

Information on segments is as follows:



	Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
	2018			2017 (as adjusted)			2018			2017 (as adjusted)
	(In millions)
Revenues from external customers:
Franchise operations	$	162.1		$	142.6		$	469.3		$	450.4
Rental operations	30.1			30.3			91.3			90.9
Company restaurants	—			—			—			7.5
Financing operations	1.9			2.1			6.1			6.3
Total	$	194.1		$	174.9		$	566.7		$	555.0

Interest expense:
Rental operations	$	2.3		$	2.6		$	7.0		$	8.0
Company restaurants	—			—			—			0.2
Corporate	15.4			15.4			46.1			46.5
Total	$	17.7		$	18.0		$	53.1		$	54.7

Depreciation and amortization:
Franchise operations	$	2.6		$	2.7		$	8.0		$	8.1
Rental operations	2.9			3.0			8.7			9.1
Company restaurants	—			—			—			0.1
Corporate	2.4			1.9			7.0			5.8
Total	$	7.9		$	7.6		$	23.7		$	23.1

Gross profit, by segment:
Franchise operations	$	83.7		$	72.5		$	226.2		$	240.6
Rental operations	7.1			7.9			22.9			23.2
Company restaurants	—			(0.0		)	—			(0.3		)
Financing operations	1.7			1.6			5.7			5.8
Total gross profit	92.6			82.1			254.7			269.4
Corporate and unallocated expenses, net	(61.4		)	(588.4		)	(176.1		)	(708.8		)
Income before income tax provision	$	31.2		$	(506.3	)	$	78.6		$	(439.4	)

Net Income per Share

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Earnings Per Share [Abstract]

Net Income per Share

The computation of the Company's basic and diluted net income per share is as follows:



	Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
	2018			2017			2018			2017
				(as adjusted)						(as adjusted)
	(In thousands, except per share data)
Numerator for basic and diluted income per common share:
Net income	$	23,587		$	(450,352	)	$	53,373		$	(412,650	)
Less: Net income allocated to unvested participating restricted stock	(799		)	8,469			(1,793		)	6,863
Net income available to common stockholders - basic	22,788			(441,883		)	51,580			(405,787		)
Effect of unvested participating restricted stock in two-class calculation	7			—			8			4
Net income available to common stockholders - diluted	$	22,795		$	(441,883	)	$	51,588		$	(405,783	)
Denominator:
Weighted average outstanding shares of common stock - basic	17,439			17,742			17,562			17,718
Dilutive effect of stock options	299			—			235			—
Weighted average outstanding shares of common stock - diluted	17,738			17,742			17,797			17,718
Net income per common share:
Basic	$	1.31		$	(24.91	)	$	2.94		$	(22.90	)
Diluted	$	1.29		$	(24.91	)	$	2.90		$	(22.90	)

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017, diluted loss per common share was computed using the weighted average number of shares outstanding during each period as the 1,000 and 11,000 shares, respectively, from common stock equivalents would have been antidilutive.

Fair Value Measurements

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]

Fair Value Measurements

The Company does not have a material amount of financial assets or liabilities that are required under U.S. GAAP to be measured on a recurring basis at fair value. The Company is not a party to any derivative financial instruments. The Company does not have a material amount of non-financial assets or non-financial liabilities that are required under U.S. GAAP to be measured at fair value on a recurring basis. The Company has not elected to use the fair value measurement option, as permitted under U.S. GAAP, for any assets or liabilities for which fair value measurement is not presently required.

The Company believes the fair values of cash equivalents, accounts receivable and accounts payable approximate their carrying amounts due to their short duration.

The fair values of the Company's Series 2014-1 Class A-2 Notes (the “Class A-2 Notes”) at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 were as follows:



	September 30, 2018				December 31, 2017
	Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Carrying Amount		Fair Value
	(In millions)
Long-term debt, current and long-term	$	1,276.5	$	1,268.8	$	1,282.8	$	1,265.5

The fair values were determined based on Level 2 inputs, including information gathered from brokers who trade in the Company’s Class A-2 Notes and information on notes that are similar to those of the Company.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References + Details

Commitments and Contingencies	9 Months Ended
Commitments and Contingencies	Sep. 30, 2018
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Commitments and Contingencies	Commitments and Contingencies Litigation, Claims and Disputes The Company is subject to various lawsuits, administrative proceedings, audits and claims arising in the ordinary course of business. Some of these lawsuits purport to be class actions and/or seek substantial damages. The Company is required under U.S. GAAP to record an accrual for litigation loss contingencies that are both probable and reasonably estimable. Legal fees and expenses associated with the defense of all of the Company's litigation are expensed as such fees and expenses are incurred. Management regularly assesses the Company's insurance coverage, analyzes litigation information with the Company's attorneys and evaluates the Company's loss experience in connection with pending legal proceedings. While the Company does not presently believe that any of the legal proceedings to which it is currently a party will ultimately have a material adverse impact on the Company, there can be no assurance that the Company will prevail in all the proceedings the Company is party to, or that the Company will not incur material losses from them. Lease Guarantees In connection with the sale of Applebee’s restaurants to franchisees, the Company has, in certain cases, guaranteed or has potential continuing liability for lease payments totaling $288.7 million as of September 30, 2018. This amount represents the maximum potential liability for future payments under these leases. These leases have been assigned to the buyers and expire at the end of the respective lease terms, which range from 2018 through 2048. Excluding unexercised option periods, the Company's potential liability for future payments under these leases is $47.1 million. In the event of default, the indemnity and default clauses in the sale or assignment agreements govern the Company's ability to pursue and recover damages incurred.

Restricted Cash	9 Months Ended
Restricted Cash	Sep. 30, 2018
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Abstract]
Restricted Cash	Restricted Cash Current restricted cash of $41.9 million at September 30, 2018 primarily consisted of $37.6 million of funds required to be held in trust in connection with the Company's securitized debt and $4.3 million of funds from Applebee's franchisees pursuant to franchise agreements, usage of which was restricted to advertising activities. Current restricted cash of $31.4 million at December 31, 2017 primarily consisted of $29.3 million of funds required to be held in trust in connection with the Company's securitized debt and $2.1 million of funds from Applebee's franchisees pursuant to franchise agreements, usage of which was restricted to advertising activities. Non-current restricted cash of $14.7 million at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 represents interest reserves required to be set aside for the duration of the Company's securitized debt.

Impairment of Goodwill and Intangible Assets (Notes)	9 Months Ended
Impairment of Goodwill and Intangible Assets (Notes)	Sep. 30, 2018
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Impairment of Goodwill and Intangible Assets	Impairment of Goodwill and Intangible Assets The Company evaluates its goodwill and the indefinite-lived Applebee's tradename for impairment annually in the fourth quarter of each year. In addition to the annual evaluation for impairment, goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets are evaluated more frequently if the Company believes indicators of impairment exist. In the third quarter of 2017, the Company noted that the decline in the market price of the Company's common stock since December 31, 2016, which the Company had believed to be temporary, persisted throughout the first eight months of 2017 and that the favorable trend in Applebee's domestic same-restaurant sales experienced in the second quarter of 2017 did not continue into the first two months of the third quarter. The Company also noted a continuing increase in Applebee's bad debt expense and in royalties not recognized in income until paid in cash. Additionally, the Company also determined an increasing shortfall in franchisee contributions to the Applebee's national advertising fund could require a larger amount of future subsidization in the form of additional franchisor contributions to the fund than previously estimated. Based on these unfavorable developments, primarily the decline in the market price of the Company's common stock, the Company determined that indicators of impairment existed and that an interim test of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment should be performed. The Company performed an interim quantitative test of impairment of Applebee's goodwill and tradename in the third quarter of 2017. In performing the quantitative test of goodwill, the Company used the income approach method of valuation that included the discounted cash flow method as well as other generally accepted valuation methodologies to determine the fair value of goodwill and intangible assets. Significant assumptions used to determine fair value under the discounted cash flow model included expected future trends in sales, operating expenses, overhead expenses, capital expenditures and changes in working capital, along with an appropriate discount rate based on the Company's estimated cost of equity capital and after-tax cost of debt. In performing the impairment review of the tradename, the Company used the relief of royalty method under the income approach method of valuation. Significant assumptions used to determine fair value under the relief of royalty method include future trends in sales, a royalty rate and a discount rate to be applied to the forecast revenue stream. As a result of performing the quantitative test of impairment, the Company recognized an impairment of Applebee's goodwill of $358.2 million and an impairment of Applebee's tradename of $173.4 million. The Company adopted the guidance in FASB Accounting Standards Update 2017-04 on January 1, 2017; accordingly, the amount of the goodwill impairment was determined as the amount by which the carrying amount of the goodwill exceeded the fair value of the Applebee's franchise reporting unit as estimated in the impairment test. These assets are at risk of additional impairment in the future in the event of sustained downward movement in the Company's stock price, downward revisions of long-term performance assumptions or increases in the assumed long-term discount rate. Throughout 2018, we performed assessments to determine whether events or changes in circumstances have occurred that could indicate any potential additional impairment to our goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets. We considered, among other things, Applebee's key performance indicators during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and what, if any, impact that performance had on the long-term forecast of future trends in sales, operating expenses, overhead expenses, depreciation, capital expenditures and changes in working capital that was used in performing the quantitative impairment test in the third quarter of 2017. We also considered the current market price of our common stock and the favorable impact of the Tax Act on future cash flows. We concluded there were no indicators of impairment as of September 30, 2018.

Subsequent Event (Notes)	9 Months Ended
Subsequent Event (Notes)	Sep. 30, 2018
Subsequent Events [Abstract]
Subsequent Event	Subsequent Event On October 19, 2018, the Company signed an asset purchase agreement to acquire 69 Applebee’s restaurants in North Carolina and South Carolina from an Applebee's franchisee. The Company expects the transaction to close in the fourth quarter of 2018. The Company currently intends to own and operate these restaurants for the foreseeable future; results of their operations will be included as Company-operated restaurants for segment reporting purposes. The Company will assess and monitor opportunities to refranchise these restaurants under favorable circumstances.

Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Accounting Changes and Error Corrections [Abstract]

Fiscal Period

The Company’s fiscal quarters end on the Sunday closest to the last day of each calendar quarter. For convenience, the fiscal quarters of each year are referred to as ending on March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31. The first fiscal quarter of 2018 began on January 1, 2018 and ended on April 1, 2018; the second and third fiscal quarters of 2018 ended on July 1, 2018 and September 30, 2018, respectively. The first fiscal quarter of 2017 began on January 2, 2017 and ended on April 2, 2017; the second and third fiscal quarters of 2017 ended on July 2, 2017 and October 1, 2017, respectively.

Accounting Standards Adopted in the Current Fiscal Year and Not Yet Adopted

Accounting Standards Adopted Effective January 1, 2018

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Balance Sheet as follows:



	Balance at December 31, 2017, as reported			Adjustments/Reclassifications Due to ASC 606 adoption			Balance at December 31, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Assets:
Receivables, net	$	150,174		$	(9,986	)	$	140,188
Prepaid income taxes	43,654			2,327			45,981
Long-term receivables, net	131,212			(4,642		)	126,570

Liabilities:
Deferred franchise revenue (short-term)	—			11,001			11,001
Other accrued expenses	17,780			(1,779		)	16,001
Deferred franchise revenue (long-term)	—			70,432			70,432
Other non-current liabilities	23,003			(4,932		)	18,071
Deferred income taxes, net	138,177			(18,181		)	119,996

Equity:
Accumulated deficit	$	(1,098	)	$	(68,842	)	$	(69,940	)



	Three months ended September 30, 2017		Nine months ended September 30, 2017
	(in thousands)
Franchise and restaurant revenues, as combined	$	112,347	$	358,912

Franchise revenues	$	112,347	$	351,394
Company restaurant sales	—		7,518
	$	112,347	$	358,912

Franchise and restaurant expenses, as combined	$	41,800	$	123,476

Franchise expenses	41,783		115,669
Company restaurant expenses	17		$	7,807
	$	41,800	$	123,476

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the three months ended September 30, 2017, as follows:



	Three Months ended September 30, 2017, as reported			Adjustments due to ASC 606 adoption			Three Months ended September 30, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Franchise revenues (as shown separately above)	$	112,347		$	30,232		$	142,579
Franchise expenses (as shown separately above)	41,783			28,250			70,033
Income before income tax benefit	(508,273		)	1,982			(506,291		)
Income tax benefit	56,555			(616		)	55,939
Net loss	(451,718		)	1,366			(450,352		)
Net loss per share:
Basic	$	(24.98	)				$	(24.91	)
Diluted	$	(24.98	)				$	(24.91	)

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the nine months ended September 30, 2017, as follows:



	Nine Months ended September 30, 2017, as reported			Adjustments due to ASC 606 adoption			Nine Months ended September 30, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Franchise revenues (as shown separately above)	$	351,394		$	98,973		$	450,367
Franchise expenses (as shown separately above)	115,669			94,052			209,721
Income before income tax benefit	(444,303		)	4,921			(439,382		)
Income tax benefit	28,228			(1,496		)	26,732
Net loss	(416,075		)	3,425			(412,650		)
Net loss per share:
Basic	$	(23.09	)				$	(22.90	)
Diluted	$	(23.09	)				$	(22.90	)

The adoption of ASC 606 had no impact on the Company's cash provided by or used in operating, investing or financing activities as previously reported in its Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted - (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Accounting Changes and Error Corrections [Abstract]

Schedule of New Accounting Pronouncements and Changes in Accounting Principles

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Balance Sheet as follows:



	Balance at December 31, 2017, as reported			Adjustments/Reclassifications Due to ASC 606 adoption			Balance at December 31, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Assets:
Receivables, net	$	150,174		$	(9,986	)	$	140,188
Prepaid income taxes	43,654			2,327			45,981
Long-term receivables, net	131,212			(4,642		)	126,570

Liabilities:
Deferred franchise revenue (short-term)	—			11,001			11,001
Other accrued expenses	17,780			(1,779		)	16,001
Deferred franchise revenue (long-term)	—			70,432			70,432
Other non-current liabilities	23,003			(4,932		)	18,071
Deferred income taxes, net	138,177			(18,181		)	119,996

Equity:
Accumulated deficit	$	(1,098	)	$	(68,842	)	$	(69,940	)

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the nine months ended September 30, 2017, as follows:



	Nine Months ended September 30, 2017, as reported			Adjustments due to ASC 606 adoption			Nine Months ended September 30, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Franchise revenues (as shown separately above)	$	351,394		$	98,973		$	450,367
Franchise expenses (as shown separately above)	115,669			94,052			209,721
Income before income tax benefit	(444,303		)	4,921			(439,382		)
Income tax benefit	28,228			(1,496		)	26,732
Net loss	(416,075		)	3,425			(412,650		)
Net loss per share:
Basic	$	(23.09	)				$	(22.90	)
Diluted	$	(23.09	)				$	(22.90	)



	Three months ended September 30, 2017		Nine months ended September 30, 2017
	(in thousands)
Franchise and restaurant revenues, as combined	$	112,347	$	358,912

Franchise revenues	$	112,347	$	351,394
Company restaurant sales	—		7,518
	$	112,347	$	358,912

Franchise and restaurant expenses, as combined	$	41,800	$	123,476

Franchise expenses	41,783		115,669
Company restaurant expenses	17		$	7,807
	$	41,800	$	123,476

Adoption of ASC 606 impacted our previously reported Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the three months ended September 30, 2017, as follows:



	Three Months ended September 30, 2017, as reported			Adjustments due to ASC 606 adoption			Three Months ended September 30, 2017, as adjusted
	(In thousands)
Franchise revenues (as shown separately above)	$	112,347		$	30,232		$	142,579
Franchise expenses (as shown separately above)	41,783			28,250			70,033
Income before income tax benefit	(508,273		)	1,982			(506,291		)
Income tax benefit	56,555			(616		)	55,939
Net loss	(451,718		)	1,366			(450,352		)
Net loss per share:
Basic	$	(24.98	)				$	(24.91	)
Diluted	$	(24.98	)				$	(24.91	)

Revenue Disclosures (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]

Schedule of Disaggregation of Revenue

The following table disaggregates our franchise revenue by major type for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 30,				September 30,
	2018		2017		2018		2017
	(In thousands)
Franchise Revenue:
Royalties	$	75,262	$	70,860	$	227,172	$	223,919
Advertising fees	71,017		56,218		193,557		178,381
Pancake and waffle dry mix sales and other	13,188		12,489		39,799		38,943
Franchise and development fees	2,611		3,012		8,804		9,124
Total franchise revenue	$	162,078	$	142,579	$	469,332	$	450,367

Schedule of Changes in Deferred Revenue

Changes in the Company's contract liability for deferred franchise and development fees during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 are as follows:



	Deferred Franchise Revenue (short- and long-term)
	(In thousands)
Balance at December 31, 2017	$	81,433
Recognized as revenue during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	(8,053		)
Fees received and deferred during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	3,181
Balance at September 30, 2018	$	76,561

Schedule of Remaining Performance Obligations

The balance of deferred revenue as of September 30, 2018 is expected to be recognized as follows:



	(In thousands)
Remainder of 2018	$	2,261
2019	10,523
2020	8,165
2021	7,616
2022	7,093
2023	6,529
Thereafter	34,374
Total	$	76,561

Long-Term Debt (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Debt Disclosure [Abstract]

Schedule of debt

ong-term debt consisted of the following components:



	September 30, 2018			December 31, 2017
	(In millions)
Series 2014-1 4.277% Fixed Rate Senior Secured Notes, Class A-2	$	1,287.0		$	1,296.8
Series 2018-1 Variable Funding Senior Notes Class A-1, at a variable interest rate of 4.403% as of September 30, 2018	20.0			—
Debt issuance costs	(10.5		)	(13.9		)
Long-term debt, net of debt issuance costs	1,296.5			1,282.8
Current portion of long-term debt	(23.2		)	(13.0		)
Long-term debt	$	1,273.3		$	1,269.8

Stockholders' Deficit (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Equity [Abstract]

Class of Treasury Stock

A summary of shares repurchased under the 2015 Repurchase Program, during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and cumulatively, is as follows:



2015 Repurchase Program	Shares	Cost of shares
		(In millions)
Repurchased during the three months ended September 30, 2018	107,814	$	7.9
Repurchased during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	383,615	$	27.9
Cumulative (life-of-program) repurchases as of September 30, 2018	1,384,272	$	110.8
Remaining dollar value of shares that may be repurchased	n/a	$	39.2

Stock-Based Compensation (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]

Components of the Company’s stock-based compensation expense

The following table summarizes the components of stock-based compensation expense included in general and administrative expenses in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss):



	Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
	2018			2017			2018			2017
	(In millions)
Total stock-based compensation expense:
Equity classified awards expense	$	2.4		$	1.3		$	8.1		$	9.0
Liability classified awards expense (credit)	1.4			0.0			2.3			(1.1		)
Total pre-tax stock-based compensation expense	3.8			1.3			10.4			7.9
Book income tax benefit	(1.0		)	(0.5		)	(2.7		)	(3.0		)
Total stock-based compensation expense, net of tax	$	2.8		$	0.8		$	7.7		$	4.9

Schedule of stock option valuation assumptions

The following summarizes the assumptions used in the Black-Scholes model:



Risk-free interest rate	2.6	%
Weighted average historical volatility	26.1	%
Dividend yield	3.6	%
Expected years until exercise	4.6
Weighted average fair value of options granted	$11.94

The following summarizes the assumptions used in estimating the fair values:



Risk-free interest rate	2.4	%
Weighted average historical volatility	33.0	%
Dividend yield	3.7	%
Expected years until exercise	3.0
Weighted average fair value of options granted	$9.79
Weighted average fair value of restricted stock units granted	$34.53

Schedule of stock option activity

Stock option balances at September 30, 2018, and activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 were as follows:



	Shares		Weighted Average Exercise Price		Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term (in Years)	Aggregate Intrinsic Value (in Millions)
Outstanding at December 31, 2017	1,272,048		$	61.44
Granted	248,899		69.12
Exercised	(73,741	)	52.72
Forfeited	(6,309	)	68.80
Outstanding at September 30, 2018	1,440,897		63.18		6.9	$	30.4
Vested at September 30, 2018 and Expected to Vest	1,279,379		64.78		6.6	$	25.5
Exercisable at September 30, 2018	572,957		$	77.64	3.8	$	6.2

Schedule of restricted stock unit activity

Outstanding balances as of September 30, 2018, and activity related to restricted stock and restricted stock units for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 were as follows:



	Restricted Stock		Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		Restricted Stock Units		Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value
Outstanding at December 31, 2017	275,191		$	65.81	303,348		$	28.39
Granted	91,448		68.96		55,584		48.12
Released	(65,704	)	81.68		(15,737	)	98.54
Forfeited	(23,666	)	61.09		(71	)	53.49
Outstanding at September 30, 2018	277,269		$	63.61	343,124		$	27.70

Segments (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Schedule of segment reporting information by segment

Information on segments is as follows:



	Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
	2018			2017 (as adjusted)			2018			2017 (as adjusted)
	(In millions)
Revenues from external customers:
Franchise operations	$	162.1		$	142.6		$	469.3		$	450.4
Rental operations	30.1			30.3			91.3			90.9
Company restaurants	—			—			—			7.5
Financing operations	1.9			2.1			6.1			6.3
Total	$	194.1		$	174.9		$	566.7		$	555.0

Interest expense:
Rental operations	$	2.3		$	2.6		$	7.0		$	8.0
Company restaurants	—			—			—			0.2
Corporate	15.4			15.4			46.1			46.5
Total	$	17.7		$	18.0		$	53.1		$	54.7

Depreciation and amortization:
Franchise operations	$	2.6		$	2.7		$	8.0		$	8.1
Rental operations	2.9			3.0			8.7			9.1
Company restaurants	—			—			—			0.1
Corporate	2.4			1.9			7.0			5.8
Total	$	7.9		$	7.6		$	23.7		$	23.1

Gross profit, by segment:
Franchise operations	$	83.7		$	72.5		$	226.2		$	240.6
Rental operations	7.1			7.9			22.9			23.2
Company restaurants	—			(0.0		)	—			(0.3		)
Financing operations	1.7			1.6			5.7			5.8
Total gross profit	92.6			82.1			254.7			269.4
Corporate and unallocated expenses, net	(61.4		)	(588.4		)	(176.1		)	(708.8		)
Income before income tax provision	$	31.2		$	(506.3	)	$	78.6		$	(439.4	)

Net Income per Share (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Earnings Per Share [Abstract]

Computation of the Company’s basic and diluted net income per share

The computation of the Company's basic and diluted net income per share is as follows:



	Three months ended September 30,						Nine months ended September 30,
	2018			2017			2018			2017
				(as adjusted)						(as adjusted)
	(In thousands, except per share data)
Numerator for basic and diluted income per common share:
Net income	$	23,587		$	(450,352	)	$	53,373		$	(412,650	)
Less: Net income allocated to unvested participating restricted stock	(799		)	8,469			(1,793		)	6,863
Net income available to common stockholders - basic	22,788			(441,883		)	51,580			(405,787		)
Effect of unvested participating restricted stock in two-class calculation	7			—			8			4
Net income available to common stockholders - diluted	$	22,795		$	(441,883	)	$	51,588		$	(405,783	)
Denominator:
Weighted average outstanding shares of common stock - basic	17,439			17,742			17,562			17,718
Dilutive effect of stock options	299			—			235			—
Weighted average outstanding shares of common stock - diluted	17,738			17,742			17,797			17,718
Net income per common share:
Basic	$	1.31		$	(24.91	)	$	2.94		$	(22.90	)
Diluted	$	1.29		$	(24.91	)	$	2.90		$	(22.90	)

Fair Value Measurements (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]

Fair Value of non-current financial liabilities

The fair values of the Company's Series 2014-1 Class A-2 Notes (the “Class A-2 Notes”) at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017 were as follows:



	September 30, 2018				December 31, 2017
	Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Carrying Amount		Fair Value
	(In millions)
Long-term debt, current and long-term	$	1,276.5	$	1,268.8	$	1,282.8	$	1,265.5

Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted - Adoption of ASC 606 on impacted Consolidated Balance Sheet (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Assets:
Receivables, net	$ 94,296	$ 140,188
Prepaid income taxes	42,398	45,981
Long-term receivables, net	120,541	126,570
Liabilities:
Deferred franchise revenue (short-term)	10,641	11,001
Other accrued expenses	19,540	16,001
Deferred franchise revenue, long-term	65,920	70,432
Other non-current liabilities	20,461	18,071
Deferred income taxes, net	113,320	119,996
Equity:
Accumulated deficit	$ (16,567)	(69,940)
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member]
Assets:
Receivables, net		150,174
Prepaid income taxes		43,654
Long-term receivables, net		131,212
Liabilities:
Deferred franchise revenue (short-term)		0
Other accrued expenses		17,780
Deferred franchise revenue, long-term		0
Other non-current liabilities		23,003
Deferred income taxes, net		138,177
Equity:
Accumulated deficit		(1,098)
Difference between Revenue Guidance in Effect before and after Topic 606 [Member] \| Accounting Standards Update 2014-09
Assets:
Receivables, net		(9,986)
Prepaid income taxes		2,327
Long-term receivables, net		(4,642)
Liabilities:
Deferred franchise revenue (short-term)		11,001
Other accrued expenses		(1,779)
Deferred franchise revenue, long-term		70,432
Other non-current liabilities		(4,932)
Deferred income taxes, net		(18,181)
Equity:
Accumulated deficit		$ (68,842)

Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted - Reclassified franchise and restaurant revenues and expenses (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended			9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Franchise expenses	$ 78,341	$ 70,033		$ 243,157	$ 209,721
Company restaurant expenses	0	17		0	7,807
Franchisor [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	162,078	142,579		469,332	450,367
Food and Beverage [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	$ 0	0		$ 0	7,518
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Franchise and restaurant revenues		112,347			358,912
Franchise and Restaurant Expenses		41,800			123,476
Franchise expenses		41,783			115,669
Company restaurant expenses		17			7,807
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member] \| Franchisor [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax		$ 112,347			351,394
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member] \| Food and Beverage [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax			$ 0		$ 7,518

Accounting Standards Adopted and Newly Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted - The effect of the adoption of ASC 606 on Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Franchise expenses	$ 78,341	$ 70,033	$ 243,157	$ 209,721
Income before income tax benefit	31,247	(506,291)	78,554	(439,382)
Income tax benefit	(7,660)	55,939	(25,181)	26,732
Net income (loss)	$ 23,587	$ (450,352)	$ 53,373	$ (412,650)
Net income (loss) available to common stockholders per share:
Net income per common share - basic (USD per share)	$ 1.31	$ (24.91)	$ 2.94	$ (22.90)
Net income per common share - diluted (USD per share)	$ 1.29	$ (24.91)	$ 2.90	(22.90)
Accounting Standards Update 2014-09
Net income (loss) available to common stockholders per share:
Net income per common share - diluted (USD per share)
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Franchise expenses		$ 41,783		$ 115,669
Income before income tax benefit		(508,273)		(444,303)
Income tax benefit		56,555		28,228
Net income (loss)		$ (451,718)		$ (416,075)
Net income (loss) available to common stockholders per share:
Net income per common share - basic (USD per share)		$ (24.98)		$ (23.09)
Net income per common share - diluted (USD per share)		$ (24.98)		$ (23.09)
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member] \| Applebee's \| Accounting Standards Update 2014-09
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax		$ 28,300		$ 94,100
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member] \| Applebee's \| Accounting Standards Update 2014-09, Change In Method Of Recognizing Franchise And Development Fees
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax		2,000		4,900
Difference between Revenue Guidance in Effect before and after Topic 606 [Member] \| Accounting Standards Update 2014-09
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Franchise expenses		28,250		94,052
Income before income tax benefit		1,982		4,921
Income tax benefit		(616)		(1,496)
Net income (loss)		1,366		3,425
Franchisor [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	$ 162,078	142,579	$ 469,332	450,367
Franchisor [Member] \| Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606 [Member]
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax		112,347		351,394
Franchisor [Member] \| Difference between Revenue Guidance in Effect before and after Topic 606 [Member] \| Accounting Standards Update 2014-09
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax		$ 30,232		$ 98,973

Revenue Disclosures - Disaggregation of Franchise Revenue by Major Type (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Franchisor [Member]
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total franchise revenue	$ 162,078	$ 142,579	$ 469,332	$ 450,367
Royalties
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total franchise revenue	75,262	70,860	227,172	223,919
Advertising fees
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total franchise revenue	71,017	56,218	193,557	178,381
Pancake and waffle dry mix sales and other
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total franchise revenue	13,188	12,489	39,799	38,943
Franchise and development fees
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total franchise revenue	$ 2,611	$ 3,012	$ 8,804	$ 9,124

Revenue Disclosures - Changes in the Company's contract liability for deferred franchise and development fees (Details) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)
Change in Contract with Customer, Liability [Roll Forward]
Balance at December 31, 2017	$ 81,433
Recognized as revenue during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	(8,053)
Fees received and deferred during the nine months ended September 30, 2018	3,181
Balance at September 30, 2018	$ 76,561

Revenue Disclosures - (Details) - Receivables From Franchise Revenue Transactions [Member] - USD ($) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Billed and unbilled receivables	$ 61.7	$ 66.2
Billed and unbilled receivables, accumulated allowance for credit loss	$ 24.4	$ 22.2

Revenue Disclosures - Deferred revenue expected to be recognized (Details) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 76,561
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2018-10-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 2,261
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied, expected timing	3 months
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2019-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 10,523
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied, expected timing	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2020-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 8,165
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied, expected timing	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2021-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 7,616
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied, expected timing	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2022-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 7,093
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied, expected timing	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2023-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 6,529
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied, expected timing	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: (nil)
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied	$ 34,374
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Performance obligations expected to be satisfied, expected timing

Long-Term Debt (Schedule of Debt) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Discount	$ (10,500)	$ (13,900)
Total Long-term Debt	1,296,500	1,282,800
Less current maturities	(23,241)	(12,965)
Long-term debt, less current maturities	$ 1,273,287	$ 1,269,849
Series 2014-1 4.277% Fixed Rate Senior Secured Notes, Class A-2
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt interest rate (percent)	4.277%	4.277%
Senior Notes due October 2018, at a fixed rate of 9.5%	$ 1,287,000	$ 1,296,800
Series 2014-1 Variable Funding Senior Notes Class A-1, At A Variable Interest Rate Of 4.5245%
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt interest rate (percent)	4.403%
Senior Notes due October 2018, at a fixed rate of 9.5%	$ 20,000	$ 0

Long-Term Debt - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	9 Months Ended
Long-Term Debt - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 05, 2018	Sep. 30, 2014
2018 Variable Funding Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Upfront fee, unused capacity, percentage	1.00%
Line of credit facility, unused capacity, commitment fee percentage	0.50%
Debt issuance costs, net	$ 3,600,000
Debt instrument, term	3 years
Series 2014-1 Variable Funding Senior Notes Class A-1
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Line of credit facility, maximum borrowing capacity			$ 100,000,000
Repayments of debt	$ 20,000,000
Debt issuance costs, net	2,500,000
Unamortized debt issuance expense	900,000
Costs incurred, debt	$ 1,600,000
Revolving Credit Facility \| 2018 Variable Funding Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Line of credit facility, maximum borrowing capacity		$ 225,000,000
Revolving Credit Facility \| 2018 Variable Funding Notes \| Eurodollar
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument, basis spread on variable rate	2.15%
Letter of Credit \| 2018 Variable Funding Notes \| Eurodollar
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument, basis spread on variable rate	1.00%
Letter of Credit \| 2018 Variable Funding Notes \| Base Rate
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument, basis spread on variable rate	1.15%
Letter of Credit \| 2018 Variable Funding Notes \| Federal Funds Rate
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument, basis spread on variable rate	0.50%

Stockholders' Deficit - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)		3 Months Ended					9 Months Ended
Stockholders' Deficit - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	Aug. 02, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Oct. 31, 2015
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock [Line Items]
Dividends paid on common stock							$ 39,973,000	$ 52,326,000
Dividends declared per common share (USD per share)	$ 0.63	$ 0.63	$ 0.63	$ 0.63	$ 0.97	$ 0.97	$ 1.89	$ 2.91
Dividends paid per common share (USD per share)		$ 0.63	$ 0.63	$ 0.63	$ 0.97	$ 0.97	$ 2.23	$ 2.91
Dividends payable		$ 11,398,000			$ 17,748,000		$ 11,398,000
Treasury stock reissued (shares)							165,189
Treasury stock reissued							$ 6,400,000
October 2015 Share Repurchase Program
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock [Line Items]
Stock repurchase program, authorized amount									$ 150,000,000

Stockholders' Deficit - Share Repurchases (Details) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($) shares	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($) shares
Equity [Abstract]
Stock repurchased during period (in shares) \| shares	107,814	383,615
Stock repurchased during period, value	$ 7.9	$ 27.9
Cumulative amount of shares repurchased (in shares) \| shares	1,384,272	1,384,272
Cumulative payments for repurchase of common stock	$ 110.8	$ 110.8
Remaining dollar value of shares that may be repurchased	$ 39.2	$ 39.2

Income Taxes - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
Income Taxes - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Effective income tax rate (percent)		32.10%	6.10%
Effective income tax rate reconciliation, increase (decrease) to the tax provision		$ 5,700,000
Impairment loss		0	$ 358,200,000
Gross unrecognized tax benefit	$ 5,900,000	8,300,000
Expected change in unrecognized tax benefits		5,100,000
Accrued interest on income taxes	1,100,000	1,600,000
Accrued penalties on income taxes, less than	100,000	$ 100,000
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, incomplete accounting, provisional income tax expense (benefit)	$ (77,500,000)

Stock-Based Compensation (Components of Stock-Based Compensation Expense) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]
Equity classified awards expense	$ 2.4	$ 1.3	$ 8.1	$ 9.0
Liability classified awards expense (credit)	1.4	0.0	2.3	(1.1)
Total pre-tax stock-based compensation expense	3.8	1.3	10.4	7.9
Book income tax benefit	(1.0)	(0.5)	(2.7)	(3.0)
Total stock-based compensation expense, net of tax	$ 2.8	$ 0.8	$ 7.7	$ 4.9

Stock-Based Compensation - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Grants in period (in shares)			223,570
Share-based compensation expense	$ 3,800	$ 1,300	$ 10,400	$ 7,900
Accrued employee compensation and benefits	19,308		19,308		$ 13,547
Restricted Stock Units (RSUs)
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Total compensation cost not yet recognized	$ 20,100		$ 20,100
Total compensation cost not yet recognized, period for recognition (in years)			1 year 9 months 3 days
Restricted stock, granted (in shares)			55,584
Vested in period (in shares)			15,737
Restricted stock, forfeited (in shares)			71
Cash-settled restricted stock units, outstanding (in shares)	343,124		343,124		303,348
Stock Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Total compensation cost not yet recognized	$ 4,100		$ 4,100
Total compensation cost not yet recognized, period for recognition (in years)			1 year 8 months 1 day
Performance Shares
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Grants in period (in shares)	25,330
Performance Based Restricted Stock Units
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Restricted stock, granted (in shares)	26,670
Cash-settled Restricted Stock Units
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares issued in period (in shares)			59,229
Vested in period (in shares)			60
Restricted stock, forfeited (in shares)			3,806
Cash-settled restricted stock units, outstanding (in shares)	55,363		55,363
Share-based compensation expense	$ 300		$ 700
LTIP
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Award vesting period (in years)			3 years
Share-based compensation expense	1,100	$ 100	$ 1,600	$ (1,000)
Accrued employee compensation and benefits	$ 1,800		$ 1,800		$ 200
LTIP \| Minimum
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Multiplier for target award based on total shareholder return on common stock (percent)			0.00%
LTIP \| Maximum
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Multiplier for target award based on total shareholder return on common stock (percent)			200.00%

Stock-Based Compensation (Options Value Assumptions) (Details)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018 $ / shares
Performance Based Restricted Stock Units
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate (percent)	2.40%
Weighted average historical volatility (percent)	33.00%
Dividend yield (percent)	3.70%
Expected years until exercise (years)	3 years
Weighted average fair value of restricted stock units granted (USD per share)	$ 34.53
Performance Shares
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate (percent)	2.40%
Weighted average historical volatility (percent)	33.00%
Dividend yield (percent)	3.70%
Expected years until exercise (years)	3 years
Weighted average fair value of options granted (USD per share)	$ 9.79
Stock Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate (percent)	2.60%
Weighted average historical volatility (percent)	26.10%
Dividend yield (percent)	3.60%
Expected years until exercise (years)	4 years 7 months 20 days
Weighted average fair value of options granted (USD per share)	$ 11.94

Stock-Based Compensation (Stock Option Activity) (Details) - Stock Options $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($) $ / shares shares
Shares
Options, outstanding, beginning of period (in shares) \| shares	1,272,048
Options, granted (in shares) \| shares	248,899
Options, exercised (in shares) \| shares	(73,741)
Options, forfeited (in shares) \| shares	(6,309)
Options, outstanding, end of period (in shares) \| shares	1,440,897
Options, vested and expected to vest (in shares) \| shares	1,279,379
Options, exercisable (in shares) \| shares	572,957
Weighted Average Exercise Price
Weighted average exercise price, beginning of period (per share) \| $ / shares	$ 61.44
Weighted average exercise price, granted (per share) \| $ / shares	69.12
Weighted average exercise price, exercised (per share) \| $ / shares	52.72
Weighted average exercise price, forfeited (per share) \| $ / shares	68.80
Weighted average exercise price, end of period (per share) \| $ / shares	63.18
Weighted average exercise price, vested and expected to vest (per share) \| $ / shares	64.78
Weighted average exercise price, exercisable (per share) \| $ / shares	$ 77.64
Weighted average remaining contractual term (in years)	6 years 10 months 18 days
Weighted average remaining contractual term, vested and expected to vest (in years)	6 years 7 months 12 days
Weighted average remaining contractual term, exercisable (in years)	3 years 10 months
Options, outstanding, intrinsic value \| $	$ 30.4
Options, vested and expected to vest, intrinsic value \| $	25.5
Options, vested and expected to vest, exercisable \| $	$ 6.2

Stock-Based Compensation (Restricted Stock) (Details)	9 Months Ended
Stock-Based Compensation (Restricted Stock) (Details)	Sep. 30, 2018 $ / shares shares
Restricted Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested [Roll Forward]
Restricted stock, beginning of period (in shares) \| shares	275,191
Restricted stock, granted (in shares) \| shares	91,448
Restricted stock, released (in shares) \| shares	(65,704)
Restricted stock, forfeited (in shares) \| shares	(23,666)
Restricted stock, end of period (in shares) \| shares	277,269
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value [Roll Forward]
Weighted average grant date fair value, beginning balance (per share) \| $ / shares	$ 65.81
Weighted average grant date fair value, granted (per share) \| $ / shares	68.96
Weighted average grant date fair value, released (per share) \| $ / shares	81.68
Weighted average grant date fair value, forfeited (per share) \| $ / shares	61.09
Weighted average grant date fair value, ending balance (per share) \| $ / shares	$ 63.61
Restricted Stock Units (RSUs)
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested [Roll Forward]
Restricted stock, beginning of period (in shares) \| shares	303,348
Restricted stock, granted (in shares) \| shares	55,584
Restricted stock, released (in shares) \| shares	(15,737)
Restricted stock, forfeited (in shares) \| shares	(71)
Restricted stock, end of period (in shares) \| shares	343,124
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value [Roll Forward]
Weighted average grant date fair value, beginning balance (per share) \| $ / shares	$ 28.39
Weighted average grant date fair value, granted (per share) \| $ / shares	48.12
Weighted average grant date fair value, released (per share) \| $ / shares	98.54
Weighted average grant date fair value, forfeited (per share) \| $ / shares	53.49
Weighted average grant date fair value, ending balance (per share) \| $ / shares	$ 27.70

Segments - Narrative (Details)	3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
Segments - Narrative (Details)	Sep. 30, 2018 Restaurant Country segment Territory	Jun. 30, 2017 Restaurant
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of segments (segment) \| segment	4
Number of restaurants (restaurant)		3,700
Applebee's
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of territories in which entity operates (territory) \| Territory	2
Number of countries in which entity operates (country) \| Country	13
IHOP
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of territories in which entity operates (territory) \| Territory	3
Number of countries in which entity operates (country) \| Country	12
Cincinnati, Ohio market area restaurants
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of restaurants (restaurant)		10
Number of restaurants Not refranchised (restaurants)		1
Franchised Units
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of restaurants refranchised (restaurant)		9
Franchised Units \| Applebee's
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of restaurants (restaurant)	1,856
Franchised Units \| IHOP
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of restaurants (restaurant)	1,814
Franchised Units \| Cincinnati, Ohio market area restaurants
Franchisor Disclosure [Line Items]
Number of restaurants refranchised (restaurant)		9

Segments (Schedule of Segment Reporting Information by Segment) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Rental revenues	$ 30,127	$ 30,263	$ 91,292	$ 90,852
Total revenues	194,099	174,903	566,733	555,017
Interest expense	17,700	18,000	53,100	54,700
Depreciation and amortization	7,900	7,600	23,730	23,053
Segment profit	31,247	(506,291)	78,554	(439,382)
Operating Segments
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Segment profit	92,600	82,100	254,700	269,400
Operating Segments \| Franchise operations
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Depreciation and amortization	2,600	2,700	8,000	8,100
Segment profit	83,700	72,500	226,200	240,600
Operating Segments \| Rental operations
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Rental revenues	30,100	30,300	91,300	90,900
Interest expense	2,300	2,600	7,000	8,000
Depreciation and amortization	2,900	3,000	8,700	9,100
Segment profit	7,100	7,900	22,900	23,200
Operating Segments \| Company restaurants
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Interest expense	0	0	0	200
Depreciation and amortization	0	0	0	100
Segment profit	0	0	0	(300)
Operating Segments \| Financing operations
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Segment profit	1,700	1,600	5,700	5,800
Corporate
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Interest expense	15,400	15,400	46,100	46,500
Depreciation and amortization	2,400	1,900	7,000	5,800
Segment profit	(61,400)	(588,400)	(176,100)	(708,800)
Franchisor [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	162,078	142,579	469,332	450,367
Franchisor [Member] \| Operating Segments \| Franchise operations
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	162,100	142,600	469,300	450,400
Food and Beverage [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	0	0	0	7,518
Food and Beverage [Member] \| Operating Segments \| Company restaurants
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	0	0	0	7,500
Financial Service [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	1,894	2,061	6,109	6,280
Financial Service [Member] \| Operating Segments \| Financing operations
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue from contract with customer, excluding assessed Tax	$ 1,900	$ 2,100	$ 6,100	$ 6,300

Net Income per Share - Computation of Basic and Diluted Earnings Per Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Net income (loss)	$ 23,587	$ (450,352)	$ 53,373	$ (412,650)
Less: Net income allocated to unvested participating restricted stock	(799)	8,469	(1,793)	6,863
Net income available to common stockholders - basic	22,788	(441,883)	51,580	(405,787)
Effect of unvested participating restricted stock in two-class calculation	7	0	8	4
Net income available to common stockholders - diluted	$ 22,795	$ (441,883)	$ 51,588	$ (405,783)
Weighted average outstanding shares of common stock - basic (in shares)	17,439	17,742	17,562	17,718
Dilutive effect of stock options (in shares)	299	0	235	0
Weighted average outstanding shares of common stock - diluted (in shares)	17,738	17,742	17,797	17,718
Net income per common share - basic (USD per share)	$ 1.31	$ (24.91)	$ 2.94	$ (22.90)
Net income per common share - diluted (USD per share)	$ 1.29	$ (24.91)	$ 2.90	$ (22.90)
Antidilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share (in shares)		1,000		11,000

Fair Value Measurements - Fair Value of Non-Current Financial Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Carrying Amount
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Long-term debt, current and long-term	$ 1,276.5	$ 1,282.8
Fair Value \| Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Long-term debt, current and long-term	$ 1,268.8	$ 1,265.5

Commitments and Contingencies - Narrative (Details) - Applebee's - Property Lease Guarantee $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Potential liability for guaranteed leases	$ 288.7
Potential liability for guaranteed leases excluding unexercised option periods	$ 47.1

Restricted Cash (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents Items [Line Items]
Current restricted cash	$ 41,866	$ 31,436
Non-current restricted cash	14,700	14,700
Held in Trust Deposits
Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents Items [Line Items]
Current restricted cash	37,600	29,300
Held for Advertising Activity Deposits
Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents Items [Line Items]
Current restricted cash	$ 4,300	$ 2,100

Impairment of Goodwill and Intangible Assets (Details) - USD ($)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Goodwill [Line Items]
Impairment loss	$ 0	$ 358,200,000
Applebee's
Goodwill [Line Items]
Impairment loss		358,200,000
Trade Names \| Applebee's
Goodwill [Line Items]
Impairment of intangible assets, indefinite-lived (excluding goodwill)		$ 173,400,000

Subsequent Event (Details)	Oct. 19, 2018 Restaurant
Subsequent Event
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Number of businesses acquired	69