DIN

What You Should Know

Dine Brands Global, Inc. is a restaurant franchisor that owns and franchises the Applebee's Neighborhood Grill + Bar and IHOP (International House of Pancakes) brands, along with the Fuzzy's Taco Shop concept, operating a predominantly franchised model with a small number of company-operated locations. Restaurant franchising is permissible at the activity level under standard Sharia methodology, but Dine Brands raises two specific concerns. First, alcohol is a meaningful part of the Applebee's bar-and-grill concept — beer, wine, and cocktails are a core part of the offering — so alcohol-related revenue across the system likely exceeds the typical 5% haram-revenue screen threshold. Second, the menus serve non-halal-certified meat, including pork products (bacon and sausage at IHOP, and pork and non-halal beef at Applebee's). Separately, Dine Brands carries substantial securitization-related debt, so its total-debt-to-market-cap ratio frequently sits above the 33% Sharia threshold, a second deciding screen. Given the combination of alcohol exposure and elevated leverage, most major Sharia advisory boards classify DIN as doubtful or non-compliant.