Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar

Low-fat chicken quesadilla: something good in the neighborhood

Applebee's recently added weight to its menu with the overhaul of its low-fat chicken quesadilla, which was overseen by Kurt Hankins, vice president of menu development and innovation.

Topping the restaurant's healthful menu is the low-fat chicken quesadilla, featuring chiptole chicken breast, mozzarella and cheddar cheese, mushrooms, carrots, corn, red pepper and red onion, all grilled in a whole-wheat tortilla. The product is topped with nonfat cilantro-ranch dressing with a side of salsa. The entire dish contains less than 16 grams of fat.

"When I arrived at Applebee's, we had a few low-fat items on the menu, but, frankly, they weren't that great," says Hankins, who joined the 1,500-unit chain in 2001. "They were on the menu because they were low fat, not because they were really good food. So we decided to step back and look at all of our low-fat offerings."

From that point on, Applebee's decided that its low-fat items also would be great food. "That was a paradigm shift for us," Hankins notes.

With that criterion set, Hankins and his team began developing low-fat items that met a high-quality standard. "We had a low-fat chicken quesadilla on the menu, but it was a shadow of what we would eventually get to," he explains.

The culinary team at Applebee's includes four development chefs and four executive chefs. "Jim Doke is our director of product development and our right-hand man on menu strategy. All the chefs report through him," Hankins says.

One of the goals of the culinary team was to revamp the old chicken quesadilla into a great-tasting flagship item on the low-fat menu. The enhancements included putting three different seasonings in the vegetable mix that was added to the chicken, significantly punching up the flavor, Hankins says.

Another big change came with the introduction of a new cheese. "The original quesadilla had no-fat cheese," Hankins explains, "and if you've ever tasted no-fat cheese, it tastes like plastic. It literally doesn't melt and is not satisfying at all. So we decided to go with a low-fat cheese blend of mozzarella and shredded cheddar."

A final key task was selecting the wrapper. The Applebee's team decided on a whole-wheat tortilla because it offered an interesting, nuttier flavor.

"I think people see whole wheat, and they think healthy, they think fiber, which is good for you," Hankins observes. "That wrapper rounded out the quesadilla very nicely."

John Cywinski, Applebee's chief marketing officer, says the original quesadilla product had been around for about five years until last fall "when we just re-engineered the entire product."

According to Cywinski, "We learned the simple fact that guests aren't willing to compromise taste for low fat. A decade ago they might have, but today's consumer expects both."

Hankins arrived at Applebee's from Red Lobster with more than 25 years of culinary experience on his résumé. Cywinski says, "Kurt brings a unique balance of creativity, business instincts and an understanding of the Applebee's guest."

Even while at Red Lobster, Hankins recalls thinking highly of the Applebee's concept. "I had a lot of respect for them. And when I had the chance to join the chain, I felt there was a lot of upside to an already great program."

For Hankins, working at Applebee's presents a greater challenge than at Red Lobster because there is more direct competition in the general casual-dining segment than there is in casual seafood, where Red Lobster holds sway.

"But no matter who you work for, you always have four or five close competitors you watch carefully. To me it's a great challenge to go head-to-head with concepts like Ruby Tuesday, Chili's, O'Charley's, Red Robin and others," he explains.

Although he doesn't cook as much as he used to as a development chef in earlier days, Hankins sets the strategic direction for the chain and the standards for his team.

"Ultimately, it's my taste buds that decide what goes in and what we move forward with," he notes. "There are those who can cook, but you've got to be able to taste, and my palate has been educated over 25 years in this business."

The success of the low-fat chicken quesadilla shows the accuracy of Hankins' palate.

"This has been extremely well received by our guests," Cywinski says. "I would classify it as a genuine signature product in the making for us."

While the cost of the low-fat chicken quesadilla varies from region to region, the typical menu price is $6.99. The quesadilla is available at the majority of the chain's restaurants. "We don't require the restaurants to carry it," Cywinski adds.

Hankins says the MenuMasters Award is an indicator that Applebee's has put together an organization that can be a serious player in food.

"We have a talented team here, and the low-fat chicken quesadilla is one example of the 30 or 40 items that we've enhanced or added to the menu over the last year and a half," he says. "By this fall about 70 percent of our menu will be new or improved."