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I'm very happy to say that my town has more locally owned places now. We still have the chains but I like going to those that are local. Many of them do a great job. One chain I do enjoy is Longhorn. Most of the chains here seem to be out in the Mall area and locals seem to be in the old downtown, which is closer for me anyway.
This all depends on where you ate back then, and now. Real glasses? What restaurants don't have real glasses (other than fast food places)? There were places with baskets of crackers or rolls then, and salads with "real" greens, not iceberg, back then, and there still are now. And there was fresh-made vinaigrette back then, too. It depends on where you chose to dine.
I think "real glasses" meaning not the hard plastic ones that a lot of restaurants use. (Mostly chains it seems).
And no one was yapping on a cell phone. I remember being at dinner once and the waiter brought the house phone to another table. Seems the guy was a Doctor and had an important call. After he hung up, the Doctor apologized for the "disturbance". Can you imagine anyone apologizing today?
Wow. No, I can't. People are oblivious and pretty disrespectful of others these days.
The MAJOR difference between dining today and 30 years ago is that in the past, people knew how to service and took great pride in delivering good service.
I gotta say overall I prefer a more modern dining experience ...
Certainly there are more options these days. From the most to the least expensive price ranges, we all have more choices. More people eat out so there is an audience for more restaurants. And because people are more widely traveled, there is an interest in the cuisine of other cultures. I have to laugh even thinking of telling my late father he should try a Thai restaurant or get take-out from a Middle Eastern place. He wouldn't even eat casseroles. To him, all dinners had to have brown, white, and green components and they needed to be separated on the plate.
My maternal grandfather had the first Chinese restaurant in Atlanta (read Chinese-American food being served and guests thought it was exotic to eat a steak at a Chinese restaurant). There are family photos of his restaurant and patrons. All the diners were dressed to the 9's - men in suits and ladies in dresses. He had a 'cigarette girl' working at his establishment and had Muzak playing in his restaurant. I have a piece of his restaurant's stationary and it proudly states "music provided by Muzak".
My maternal grandfather had the first Chinese restaurant in Atlanta (read Chinese-American food being served and guests thought it was exotic to eat a steak at a Chinese restaurant). There are family photos of his restaurant and patrons. All the diners were dressed to the 9's - men in suits and ladies in dresses. He had a 'cigarette girl' working at his establishment and had Muzak playing in his restaurant. I have a piece of his restaurant's stationary and it proudly states "music provided by Muzak".
i remember 30 yrs ago going to a chinese restaurant, having a pupu platter (i know its not genuine chinese food) but we thought it was delicious,,and the small Asian waitresses were very pretty
Certainly there are more options these days. From the most to the least expensive price ranges, we all have more choices. More people eat out so there is an audience for more restaurants. And because people are more widely traveled, there is an interest in the cuisine of other cultures. I have to laugh even thinking of telling my late father he should try a Thai restaurant or get take-out from a Middle Eastern place. He wouldn't even eat casseroles. To him, all dinners had to have brown, white, and green components and they needed to be separated on the plate.
Oh, I know a few people like this and they are not all of an "older generation" either! But, I now live in the Upper Midwest where people as a general rule (stereotype alert!) tend to be wary and conservative about their food choices.
I do think personally that it's valuable to experience all sorts of dining experiences. But I've always had a soift spot for American diners. And also for the "Brown Derby" type restaurants where we all dressed nicely, watched our table manners and received impeccable and formal service. I like that. It makes the meal seem more special, even if it's sort of mediocre.
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