Celebrate National Watermelon Day with Applebee’s #Woodfired #WatermelonSmile

Disclosure: In any review for a product or service, products or compensation may have been provided to me to help facilitate my review. All opinions are my own and honest. I am disclosing this in accordance with FTC Guidelines. Please see “Disclose” and "Terms of Use" tabs for more information.

Disclosure- I received an Applebee’s gift card in order to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own and honest. For more info, see “I Disclose”.

August 3rd is national watermelon day, and to celebrate Applebee’s has introduced some new Summertime favorite menu items called Wood Fired Grill Salads.  This menu includes some delightful combinations of fresh vegetables and succulent shrimp, chicken, and of course watermelon.
Southwestern Steak Salad: Hand-Cut Wood Fired USDA Choice Top Sirloin Steak paired with chimichurri, pico de gallo, corn and black bean salsa, cheddar, crispy tortilla strips and a creamy house-made cilantro ranch dressing.

They have a few new salads to try as well-

-Grilled Watermelon and Spicy Shrimp Salad: Mixed greens, cucumbers, feta, almonds and house-made creamy mint-Greek yogurt dressing. Also available with Spicy Blackened Chicken.

-Spicy Blackened Grilled Chicken, Avocado and Grapefruit Salad: Mixed greens, pickled in-house red onions, cilantro leaves and house-made champagne vinaigrette.

-Crispy Chicken ‘N Spicy Cornbread Salad: Mixed greens, made-in-house jalapeno cornbread croutons, grape tomatoes, shredded cheddar, applewood-smoked bacon and buttermilk dressing.

We recently went to check out these new menu items and tried the Crispy Chicken ‘N Spicy Cornbread Salad.  Upon first glance, the spice component might make some turn away from this delicious salad, but the spice is more of a flavor then a burning mouth sensation.  The jalapeno cornbread croutons a perfect complement to the smoked bacon flavor and buttermilk dressing.  For those of you not big on salads, Applebee’s has a menu full of delicious items including burgers, sandwiches, pasta dishes, steaks, chicken and fish dishes.

There is also the new wood fired grill menu including your 6, 8 or 12 oz sirloin steak, pork chops, salmon, chicken breast or baby back ribs then you get to pick two sides and your meal is created just for you.  The little guy is a cheese head and loves the mac and cheese and mozzarella sticks kids meal while my husband usually gets something different each time we go, this time he chose the crispy brewhouse chicken with a stout based gravy, cheddar cheese, garlic mashed potatoes and crispy onions on top.

In addition to all these fun new summer dishes, Applebee’s is also celebrating national watermelon day with a contest!  To celebrate this new salad and fun occasion, from July 20 to August 3 Applebee’s is inviting guests to submit their favorite salad recipes via photo or text on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtags #WoodFired and #Sweepstakes for a chance to win a $100 Applebee’s gift card.  See details and official rules at www.beesmeetup.com.