Document and Entity Information - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Apr. 29, 2016	Jun. 17, 2016	Oct. 23, 2015
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Apr. 29, 2016
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	Bob Evans Farms Inc
Entity Central Index Key	0000033769
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--04-29
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Well Known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Common Stock Shares Outstanding		19,752,584
Entity Public Float			$ 915,522,220