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This reminds me of an incident I witnessed near New York's Time Square about a year ago when I was visiting my favorite uncle. A family of tourists from either the midwest or the south were obviously sightseeing and Mom said "it's supper time and I'm hungry." Dad replied "me, too, let's see if we can find an Appleby's or an Olive Garden!"
I used to like Marie Calendar's but the two locations closest to me closed. (There are still other locations somewhat farther away). Reasons: Pretty good soup and salad bar plus a reasonable variety of other choices.
Souplantation is good: high quality, fresh ingredients for an extensive soup and salad bar with enough other choices such as baked potatoes, different kinds of muffins, and a few desert-like options such as frozen yogurt.
On the lower end of the price spectrum:
Chipotle (my go-to place, I probably eat there 3-4 times a month)
Jason's Deli (excellent salad bar, I'd go there more often if it was closer to my house)
Panera (reliable stand-by for soup +)
Einstein's Bagels (wrap sandwiches are excellent, to me the coffee is much better than Starbucks)
On the higher end
Firebirds (my fave, not only good food but great service and attractive space, every out-of-towner I've taken there has loved it)
BJ's Brewhouse (big menu for groups with varied tastes and picky eaters)
Macaroni Grill (young people in my family always want to go there)
Cheesecake Factory (usually pleases everyone, humungous servings ... I take home more than I eat)
California Pizza Kitchen (expensive for pizza but it's a nice experience and I like the meal salads as much as the pizza)
A new (to me) chain I discovered recently that I like:
Kneaders Bakery and Cafe (only in Idaho, Utah, Colorado, and Arizona right now ... franchise opportunities available, hint, hint) https://kneaders.com/
Last edited by Jukesgrrl; 02-25-2014 at 08:27 PM..
This reminds me of an incident I witnessed near New York's Time Square about a year ago when I was visiting my favorite uncle. A family of tourists from either the midwest or the south were obviously sightseeing and Mom said "it's supper time and I'm hungry." Dad replied "me, too, let's see if we can find an Appleby's or an Olive Garden!"
Doesn't surprise me in the least and reminds me of my late father. When I traveled abroad the first couple of times, he asked me if they had a McDonalds where I was going (as if it was some kind of sign of a civilization safe for his daughter?!?) That began a tradition. No matter where I went in the world I would take a picture of a McDonalds for my Dad. My traveling companions always thought this was hilarious and would take the photo of me, posing in front of MickeyD's, waving to Dad.
Fleming's
Morton's
CPK
Lucille's
In N Out
Daphne's
Those are about the only chain restaurants at which I'd be willing to dine. Everyplace else gets their food from Sysco (or worse). Who knows, if I find out any of the above also get theirs from Sysco, they are off my list too. Won't faze me since I prepare practically all the food we eat.
Chipotle, Chili's, Outback Steakhouse, Johnny Carino's; and the El Torito in Monterey if only for the beautiful view right on the water (not the other ET's).
We usually avoid chains because so much of the food looks like something I could have bought frozen at the grocery store. I can reheat my own frozen meals, you know?
That being said, we like Outback and Texas Roadhouse, because they can't (I don't think) precook a steak. We also eat at Panera, In-N-Out, Chipotle, and sometimes Pei Wei.
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Outback is surprisingly good, too. Not bad food.
