All Applebee’s restaurants in Costa Rica have been closed due to problems with profitability. The manager for Costa Rican operations, Julio Villegas, explained that there was not enough profit being brought in to sustain the operations.
The chain arrived in 2009. It was first opened by Aguacero de Bendiciones SA and later transferred to Dine Equity, which also manages IHOP. The restaurant franchise had three locations in the country, in the Terrazas Lindora shopping center, plaza Carolina in San Pedro, and Plaza Real Cariari in Heredia.
The company took responsible actions to close in a way that takes into account the needs and interests of its 90 employees, some of whom were with the company for 10 years, since the start. There were employees in customer service, kitchen, and administrative positions.
