Denny's new late-night menu includes the Smokin' Q Four Pak which features four petite sirloin patties topped with fried onion crisps, bacon, cheddar cheese and house dressing.

Late-night diners still have the option of chowing down on regular menu items after 10 p.m. But designing an additional menu of value-priced snacks and party-platter shareables specifically tuned to the late-night contingent is a new strategy for Spartanburg, S.C.-based Denny's. The All Nighter is the first part of a three-tier revitalization and rebranding strategy the 1,550-unit chain has kicked off to reverse declines in sales and traffic. New packaging and portable, fast-casual breakfast items will come soon.

The All Nighter menu is based on six months of extensive guest research. “Our core, 18-to-24-year-old, late-night guests come to Denny's because they want to keep the party going,” says Mark Chmiel, chief innovation and marketing officer. “They don't want food from the QSR window. They want food and a vibe that will help them continue the fun and socializing around the table that they started earlier at the bowling alley or club.”

Denny's has been working on the new alternative-rock-music program and new menu items since fall 2007. To ensure the changes would have relevance with its young target audience, Denny's did ethnographic research in Cleveland, Los Angeles and Dallas. The company recruited a diverse group of 18- to 24-year-old men and women to host chats at their homes with eight to 12 peers and Denny's marketers present.

From those chats, Denny's learned that this group is very tuned in to alternative music and likes the idea of Denny's sponsoring bands—feeding them on tour, hosting their parties, and featuring their music and favorite foods in restaurants and online. The group was equally vocal about its own “craveable” foods preferences for late-night noshing.

“It was clear to us that whatever we did with the music and the food, it had to be genuine,” says Andrew Dismore, Denny's director of paradigm innovation. “The 18- to 24-year-old group has a low tolerance for BS.”

To create the menu, Denny's hosted late-night ideation sessions with the same targeted demographic. “We asked them what shareable foods they craved most late at night,” says Dismore. Then the Denny's team of chefs would go into the kitchen and cook the suggested items. “I'd say, 'Is this what you meant?'” Dismore recalls. Participants would taste the dishes and make suggestions. Then Dismore and his team would tweak the dishes to get them right.

Dishes that evolved out of the late-night menu sessions include best-selling Potachos and mini burgers. Potachos, $7.62, are fresh kettle-style potato chips, seasoned and served with sausage, bacon, onions, diced bell peppers, cheddar-cheese sauce and cheddar cheese. The Smokin' Q Four Pak, $8.46, features four petite sirloin patties topped with fried onion crisps, bacon, cheddar cheese and house dressing on petite buns. The Cheesy Four Pak, $7.99, includes four mini cheeseburgers topped with grilled onions, mustard, fried onion rings and American cheese.

Sweet Ride Nachos are a shareable dessert of fried flour tortilla chips dusted with cinnamon sugar and topped with chocolate fudge sauce, fruit sauce, white chocolate chips and whipped cream.

In addition, Denny's Corporate Chef Scott Richard developed several value-priced items starting at $3.99: the Sweet & Tangy BBQ Bacon Burger, Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Chicken Strips and Mozzarella Sticks combo, and Nacho Cheese Fries.

But the late-night menus don't stop there. Merging its target guests' fondness for alternative rock and love of shareable noshes, Denny's will be featuring dishes based on bands' favorite foods. Offered as limited-time “Rock Star” specials on the All Nighter menu, these dishes will be featured late night at Denny's in the late summer and fall. The only requirements for each band's menu creations: “The dishes must be uber-craveable, built for late night and embody the personality of the band,” says Dismore.

Bacon Cheeseburger Fries, a plate of french fries loaded with bacon cheeseburger-inspired toppings down to the ketchup, mustard and pickles, is the first Rock Star special. Developed by New York-based band Taking Back Sunday, the dish rolls in late August. Rock Star specials from six more bands will be featured throughout the rest of 2008.

To attract attention to the specials, Denny's created a Web site, www.dennysallnighter.com, which promotes the All Nighter menu and music program. The Web site includes videos of each band in the kitchen creating each dish. The Web site has had more than 1 million page views, and visitors to the site have recommended over 500 bands that Denny's might adopt.

To pique interest and drive traffic, all All Nighter menu options are only offered from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Although it's too soon to say how sales of the All Nighter menu items compare with sales of items from the regular menu, the company is optimistic about the late-night strategy overall.

“What band hasn't been to Denny's after its gig?” asks Dismore. “It's a perfect fit for us, and response from the public has been overwhelmingly positive.”

Bet you can't wait to see what the Plain White T's, the All American Rejects and the Eagles of Death Metal cook up.