Applebee's reopens after makeover

The Applebee's on South Carson Street reopened Thursday morning after a whirlwind remodeling of the restaurant.

"The construction crew did a bang-up job, working 24 hours straight, and some of our employees came in and helped them out," said Anthony Bencomo, general manager of the restaurant, after a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday.

The business shut down Sunday at 8 p.m. and reopened at 11 a.m. Thursday with a whole new interior. Prior to that, the outside received a new coat of paint and signage.

"The bar is the biggest change," Bencomo said. "The old design was kind of cramped and stodgy and outdated. This design pulls us back into this millennium."

The design lightens up the inside. The old Tiffany-style lamps and wall decorations were sold off, and replaced with murals duplicated from local photographs. Many framed photos of local people and places, supplied by the Carson City Chamber of Commerce, grace the walls. There are new tables and booths, and nine new plasma TVs viewable from just about any seat.

"After about a dozen years, it was time for a makeover," said Heather Banaszek, marketing specialist for Apple American Group LLC, which took over ownership of the franchise from the Applebee's corporation last October. "We are really trying to make an impact on the market ... and take away a lot of the generic stuff off the walls and make it much more focused on this community."

Bencomo said there will be a new menu in July, part of the improvements to the food they have been making over the past year.

"We have a lot more innovation, and we're keeping the prices down, to make it a value for our customers," Bencomo said. "We want people to come in and have an affordable meal. We want to make it a place you can come with your family and not break the bank."