Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Narrative (Details)			1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended									12 Months Ended
		Apr. 25, 2015	Feb. 28, 2013 USD ($)	Apr. 29, 2016 USD ($) restaurant state $ / shares	Jan. 22, 2016 $ / shares	Oct. 23, 2015 $ / shares	Jul. 24, 2015 $ / shares	Apr. 24, 2015 USD ($) $ / shares	Jan. 23, 2015 $ / shares	Oct. 24, 2014 $ / shares	Jul. 25, 2014 $ / shares	Apr. 25, 2014	Apr. 28, 2017 USD ($)	Apr. 29, 2016 USD ($) customer restaurant facility state property segment $ / shares shares	Apr. 24, 2015 USD ($) property $ / shares shares	Apr. 25, 2014 USD ($) $ / shares shares
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Number of restaurants operated | restaurant				527										527
Number of states in which entity operates | state				18										18
Number of reporting segments | segment														2
Fiscal period duration												364 days		371 days	364 days
Deferred gift card revenue				$ 14,147,000				$ 13,714,000						$ 14,147,000	$ 13,714,000
Allowance for doubtful accounts				534,000				542,000						534,000	542,000
Notes receivable				20,886,000				18,544,000						20,886,000	18,544,000
Accretion income														2,082,000	1,859,000	$ 1,918,000
Accretion income	[1]													2,082,000	1,859,000	1,918,000
Raw materials and supplies				13,815,000				12,898,000						13,815,000	12,898,000
Finished goods				11,183,000				11,722,000						11,183,000	11,722,000
Depreciation														79,450,000	79,917,000	79,299,000
Current assets held for sale				31,644,000				22,243,000						31,644,000	22,243,000
Goodwill and other intangible assets				19,829,000				19,986,000						19,829,000	19,986,000
Impairment of trade name															2,761,000
Accrued non-income taxes				15,696,000				14,951,000						15,696,000	14,951,000
Self-insurance reserves				20,169,000				18,900,000						20,169,000	18,900,000
Deferred gain on sale leaseback transactions				$ 56,371,000				$ 0						56,371,000	0
Advertising expense														$ 36,566,000	$ 37,024,000	$ 34,368,000
Stock options to purchase | shares														207,538	124,766	127,201
Cash dividends per share (in dollars per share) | $ / shares				$ 0.34	$ 0.34	$ 0.31	$ 0.31	$ 0.31	$ 0.31	$ 0.31	$ 0.31			$ 1.3	$ 1.24	$ 1.205
Operating lease initial term														20 years
Operating lease minimum renewal term														5 years
Operating lease maximum renewal term														30 years
Bob Evans Restaurants
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Promotional expenses														$ 40,033,000	$ 53,636,000	$ 46,452,000
Deferred gain on sale leaseback transactions				$ 56,868,000										$ 56,868,000
Percent of advertising costs used by segment														82.00%
Rental expense from continuing operations														$ 5,783,000	5,460,000	5,153,000
BEF Foods
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Promotional expenses														79,302,000	56,618,000	49,130,000
Accounts receivable reduction														4,916,000	3,671,000
Deferred gain on sale leaseback transactions				2,305,000										$ 2,305,000
Leased production facility | facility														2
Rental expense from continuing operations														$ 2,202,000
BEF Foods Noncompetition Agreements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Estimated economic life														5 years
Building and Improvements | Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Estimated useful life														5 years
Building and Improvements | Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Estimated useful life														50 years
Machinery and Equipment | Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Estimated useful life														3 years
Machinery and Equipment | Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Estimated useful life														10 years
Capitalized Internal Labor Costs
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Depreciation														$ 2,308,000	4,498,000
ERP Capitalized Costs
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Depreciation														1,132,000	3,242,000
ERP System
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Estimated useful life		10 years
Restaurant Construction
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Depreciation															1,256,000
Business Trade Name
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Impairment of trade name															2,761,000
Mimi's Café
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Sale note receivable			$ 30,000,000
Sale interest rate			1.50%
Sale note receivable term			7 years
Notes receivable				$ 20,886,000				$ 18,337,000						20,886,000	18,337,000
Accretion income														468,000	461,000	454,000
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Shipping and handling costs														14,850,000	17,025,000	18,557,000
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses | BEF Foods
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Advertising expense															(3,607,000)	(4,344,000)
Interest Expense | Mimi's Café
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Accretion income														2,082,000	1,859,000	1,918,000
Other Operating Expenses
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Preopening expenses														$ 182,000	1,272,000	4,378,000
Other Expense | BEF Foods
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Advertising expense															3,607,000	4,344,000
Other Expense | BEF Foods | Restatement Adjustment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Shipping and handling costs															17,025,000	18,557,000
Impairment | Restatement Adjustment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Impairment charges															$ 6,203,000	$ 4,470,000
Other Accrued Expenses | Scenario, Forecast
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Net gain (loss) on sale													$ 2,952,000
Nonoperating Restaurant | Assets Held-for-sale | Bob Evans Restaurants
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Number of locations for non-operating properties | property														30	22
Total revenue | BEF Foods
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Number of customers causing credit risk | customer														2
Total revenue | Customer A and B
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Percent of total revenue														10.00%
Total revenue | Customer A and B | BEF Foods
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Percent of total revenue														35.00%

[1] Accretion on our $30,000 note receivable, obtained as part of the sale of Mimi’s Café to Le Duff.