Celebrate New Year’s at Applebees — for $375 per person

The pitch:

Sure, you may think of Applebee's as an affordable casual-dining chain, famed for its whiskey-flavored steaks and two-for-$20 dinner specials (and also for its memorable part in the Will Ferrell pic, "Talladega Nights"). But once a year, Applebee's goes high-end. The chain's franchise-owned restaurant in the heart of New York's Times Square offers a $375-a-person New Year's Eve bash that's billed as "a night to remember." (Those under 12 can get in for $250.)

But this isn't your standard Applebee's bill of fare, the franchisee notes. The party, which starts at 8 p.m. and wraps up at midnight, features an extensive buffet, a "premium" open bar, a house DJ, a dance floor, plus party favors galore. And for those eager to see the ball drop, the restaurant lets patrons "make their way to the streets of Times Square." As for the vittles themselves, be prepared for "a ton of food" (steak and shrimp included) prepared by "some fairly sophisticated culinary people," says Zane Tankel, who heads up all 38 Applebee's restaurants in the New York metro area. Add in the décor and "you wouldn't know you were at an Applebee's for that one night," Tankel says.

The reality:

Sure, you can spend $375 on an Applebee's meal and be close to the center of the New Year's Eve action. But you can also spend nothing and accomplish the same thing. That's because there's no admission to the Times Square festivities. "It is totally free," says Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance.

Even more to the point:

Buying a ticket to the Applebee's bash—or to many other ticketed events in Times Square that night—may not even guarantee you a view of the ball drop. As Tompkins explains, when it gets close to midnight, patrons who leave restaurants or other party spaces in the prime viewing area may be directed to move elsewhere by members of the New York Police Department (NYPD), who are mindful of maintaining order and paying heed to revelers who showed up earlier in the day. "Security is much more tightly controlled and there are so many people," says Tompkins of the event, which has attracted up to 1 million attendees in recent years. Even on the Applebee's website there's a warning that viewing of the ball drop is "subject to NYPD approval."

That said, the $375 Applebee's bash may not be as expensive or as outrageous as it seems. For starters, almost all Times Square restaurants and hotels have high-priced party packages, be they at a TGI Friday's (starting at $225) or at the Andaz 5th Avenue (for $14,000, but it includes a two-night stay at the hotel, plus meals and spa treatments). And while seeing the ball drop for free may be tempting, it comes with a "price" in a different sense: The Times Square Alliance notes that the prime viewing areas fill up by afternoon, which means patrons will have to wait in the cold for anywhere from 6 to 12 hours. ("Wear your long johns," advises Tompkins of the Times Square Alliance.) On top of that, there are no public restrooms in the area that are open during the festivities.

Of course, if $375 is way too much, Zane Tankel of Applebee's has another thought: You can visit almost any of the chain's other New York locations that night, which feature the standard Applebee's menu (Tankel says the average check runs slightly above $20). Plus, the restaurants offer a free Champagne toast and a chance to see the ball drop—in a manner of speaking. "We have large-screen TVs" tuned to the event, Tankel notes.

This article originally appeared on MarketWatch.com.

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