Positive chain remarks

I'm generally with the anti-chain folks in this group, although I'm not a purist about it.

My visiting in-laws and we went to Houston's for dinner on Saturday. Houston's is apparently a chain, and the New York version is located two blocks from my apartment. I've lived in the neighborhood for two years, and had never tried it. My in-laws like the place and, post c-section, it's about as far as my wife can walk right now.

I've got to admit we had a really good meal. My ribs were good (not of Southern quality, of course, but still good), and everyone else truly enjoyed their meals. We also liked the spinach and cheese dip we had as an appetizer. Plus, there was a neat jazz combo playing.

Two other things struck me: one, it was a lot pricier than I thought it would be. Not inappropriately so given what we ate, but more than I expected would be the case. And, we appeared to be the only locals in the bunch (when you live in Manhattan, you can just tell these things.) It appeared to be mainly young people getting ready to go out for the evening.

I'd definitely go back, to my pleasant surprise. I'd still prefer to eat at a number of other places in my neighborhood, but had no problem with Houston's at all.

Here's a positive chain remark:

Whenever I go to a chain, I never need to concern
myself that the 16-year-old kitchen worker will be
overwhelmed by the two-step, microwave process it'll
take to prepare my once frozen meal.


There. Whew. It actually felt good to say something so positive about the often maligned chain restaurant.

quote:

Originally posted by i95

Here's a positive chain remark:

Whenever I go to a chain, I never need to concern
myself that the 16-year-old kitchen worker will be
overwhelmed by the two-step, microwave process it'll
take to prepare my once frozen meal.


There. Whew. It actually felt good to say something so positive about the often maligned chain restaurant.

Your positive world view does my heart well.

Look, I generally agree with you: chains, bad; independents, good. I'm confident in my RC (Roadfoodily Correct) credentials.

But the food was good. And it took about 20 minutes to arrive, so at the very least they took the trouble to microwave it several times.

I think it is great that you guys are so positive about "chains". My son once said to me (after his wife and I begged him to go to The Cheesecake Factory) "No way; life is too short to be in chains!"

quote:

Originally posted by chezkatie

I think it is great that you guys are so positive about "chains". My son once said to me (after his wife and I begged him to go to The Cheesecake Factory) "No way; life is too short to be in chains!"

I've got a good friend whose favorite restaurant in the world is The Cheesecake Factory. I find that so sad. Of course, he works for Disney, so what would you expect?

As a sidenote, and I know this has come up before, but even though I liked the CF well enough when I tried it, I can't believe people wait 45 minutes for a table. I can't believe people wait that long for a table anywhere! Then again, I used to bus tables at Denny's way back when, and during the summer people would easily wait 45 minutes at rush hours. Even as an 18-year-old, I was stunned.

In defense of chain restaurants, from someone who spends a LOT of time on the road for work with very little time available for eating...

Name me one that you can't walk into and know exactly what you're getting no matter where in the country you are.

There's something to be said for that, when you find yourself with 30 minutes to get food before you have to be somewhere, and you're in a city you never knew existed that you didn't have time to research before being sent there, because you were in another city you barely know the day before.

Sure, I'd prefer an independent place, and if I have forewarning I'm going somewhere, I'll try to find one. But given the options sometimes, I'd rather eat at Big Boy or I-Hop than take my chances on some restaurant I happened to drive by. Not all roadfood is good food, unfortunately.

quote:

Originally posted by Phil J.

Your positive world view does my heart well.

Look, I generally agree with you: chains, bad; independents, good. I'm confident in my RC (Roadfoodily Correct) credentials.

But the food was good. And it took about 20 minutes to arrive, so at the very least they took the trouble to microwave it several times.

OK. I am nothing if not an optimist. So here we go again:

What most impresses me about the average Manhattan
kitchen worker is their unparalleled ingenuity in combining five
minutes worth of defrost time with fifteen minutes playing a one-dollar
craps game yielding a twenty-minute prep time.

As a s(n)ide note here , there are indeed a number of high-quality, well-managed and growth-controlled chain restaurants where I delight in dining. In the Washington, D.C. area, these include: Austin Grill, Crisp & Juicy, Rocklands, Thai Pillin and Cactus Cantina amongst others.

To paraphrase, "it's the quality, stupid."

phil J, .... what constitutes locals to you? where did these "young people" come from? Brooklyn? Is this like Saturday Night Fever? Did he bring the can of paint with him? .....and where were they going after they left Houston's? Is that pronounced House-ton's or hu-stun's?
Most chains are acceptable; that's why they thrive. To the unwashed masses who enjoy their Impalas and their compaq computers it's perfectly fine. I've been to applebee's, but not willingly. (We were given a gift certificate) It was OK. When fish sandwiches are $1.00 at Mickey D's, we go to get them..There's just no prize at the bottom of the crackerjacks.....

quote:

Originally posted by bill voss

There's just no prize at the bottom of the crackerjacks.....

Well said, BV. So, too, felix4067 who penned (above) that "not all roadfood is good food, unfortunately."

However, as best as I know it, nor is there a food-themed web site where a global community gushes about the outstanding mozzarella sticks they had at the Chicago Loop's Ruby Tuesdays or the unmatched pocorn shrimp they tasted at Newark's Ruby Tuesdays nor the culinary experience to feast on nachos at the Orlando Ruby Tuesdays...

You get the picture.

True, I can't think of when I've raved about something I got at a chain (other than the fact that Cracker Barrel serves Stewarts Orange Cream soda . It's just that they're not necessarily the evil den of iniquity some folks would have you believe.

Tonight, about 10 salesmen for our company arrived in town for a meeting. They are mostly guys who have worked their way up through the ranks and are live in various areas of the East Coast of the U.S. They're going to Damon's. The BBQ ribs might suck (my opinion) but the food is secondary to the companionship and the menu offers something that everyone will find palatable.

I have suggested going to some of my favorite roadfood haunts but:
1) Food is cooked to order so service is slower than the chains
2) In PA, there are a limited number of licenses to serve liquor in a geographic area so most of the places I would recommend have sold their liqour licenses to chains to fund their retirement years.
3) They just want to talk and the food is not that important.

I don't plan these events but I'll be going along tomorrow night to Buca Di Beppo and am sure we'll have a good time. We'll have to take a picture of our boss pretending to put a giant meatball into his mouth.

As a Double Cheeseburger, you know I am a Roadfood fan but sometimes chains just fit the bill perfectly.

quote:

Originally posted by bill voss

Is that pronounced House-ton's or hu-stun's?

Bill,
Funny thing, there's a family in North Carolina named Huston who resolutely pronounce it HUSS'ton. Not to mention that near Shreveport, Louisiana there's a town named Hosston, Hoss. Apparently it's named after a family.
Since Hu-stun is in Texas and Georgia's county (not to mention the major avenue in Macon) is House-ton, it's nice to find a third variant.
I now attempt to return to the food topic.
Ye Galloping Gourmand, Ort. Carlton in Athens, Georgia.

I for one would like a little clarification. Are small local chains being lumped in with the likes of Taco Bell, Outback Steakhouse, and TGIF's. This I believe would be a grievious error as Kelly's Roast beef has recieved a decent review here, and aren't there various locations for some of the "great" hotdog and Italian beef joint's in Chicago? Correct me If I'm wrong, but doesn't a decent small start-up entrepreneur deserve an opportunity to "expand" a bit without becoming a villified sellout?

2 Sense

True enough.

There is a small (maybe 7-8 locations) pizza chain called Mios here in Cincinnati that is truly wonderful...Many of my coworkers are from Chicago and after sampling Mio's stuffed pie they pronounced it nearly the equal of the great stuffed pizza joints in Chicago.

(speaking of which, many of those are small chains as well)

Dunno about anyone else, but I was thinking more along the lines of national chains (Outback, Ruby Tuesdays, Denny's, I-Hop, TGI Fridays, etc.), but not fast food chains (because really...we all know those are rotten but eat there anyway because they're easy and cheap).

Wholeheartedly agree on the small chain thing...some of the best Cajun food I've ever eaten was at a Chicago-only chain called Heaven on Seven. :)

Ok. There needs to be a distiction between fast food chains and the chains that acually offer good food. The fast food chains we all know about and have been mentioned previously, ie. McDs, Taco Bell, Burger King etc. I go to those places only when I have to.

However there are some chains that are really pretty good. For instance here in the Baltimore area we have McCormick and Schmicks, Ruth Chris's, Legal Seafood, Carrabas, and The Macaroni Grill. I know that these are large corporations but they do offer a quality meal. One roadfood favorite is Cantlers in Annapolis. The last two times that I've been there the food has been horrible. On the other hand there is a roadfood restaurant in Annapolis called Luna Blue that has great Italian entrees.

I had the best osso buco at Balthazar in NYC. The second best was at Carrabas in Myrtle Beach, a chain. I try to avoid the chains but sometimes depending on the chain they can be very good.

Don't dismiss a chain until you've tried it. If you don't like it then just don't go back.

BB

I'm coming out of the closet to admit I really like Chipotle, the "Mexican" food chain owned by McD.
They have really high quality ingredients (where else can you get "free range" pork in a burrito or taco?)

I was going so often for a while (once or twice a week for a month) that during that month long period, the manager picked up my lunch tab twice!

Egads, I released a monster. I should have realized that any mention of a chain results in that.

Still, I'm curious: has anyone else here eaten at a Houston's (pronounced, to the best of my knowledge, HEW-stuns.)

I'm a fan of Chipotlen too, I like being able to see and choose my ingedients and that I can get my burrito in a bowl. I also like the Portillo's chain which is a Chicago area chain owned by Dick Portillo, a guy who started out with one hot dog cart. All of his stores are just a little different going from the basic 'dog to the upscale Key Wester in Naperville.

http://www.portillos.com/

I always liked Morton's which is a chain. There are definitely some that are better than others.

i dont mind chains---which are basically---"corporate food"---as long as there is as much care in the "food" as there is in the "corporate"!---- entrapaneurial (?spelling?) ambition is fine-- but its obvious to me that most big chains are based not on this invidual ambituon but on what i call--"theres a sucker born every minute" management.---individuals do try to user this style---you know them---it seems there are always those places that have new management and names and menus every 8 months--but then every now and then somebody really does it right--we find them and they open that 2nd or 3rd or 4th location not because the THINK they can make it but because they are so succesfull that need the seats!! Theres a Place here in Muscogee called the Boomerang Diner---tiny,efficiant,good---and busy all the ime---just opened there 3rd location---mush ti the deight of my wife---its right down the street from here work and saved here a crosstown trip! Now--if only some corporate enterprise doesnt make him an offer he cant refuse!!!---which is unfrotunatly all to commen----im sure the chicken at the 1st twenty Kentucky Fried Chicken is a long way fro "KFC"---but when you busted you butt for twenty years in a hot kitchen and got every dime youve ever made invested in your business and your still woking 60-70 hrs a week--its tough to turn down the big bucks !!

quote:

Originally posted by Phil J.

Still, I'm curious: has anyone else here eaten at a Houston's (pronounced, to the best of my knowledge, HEW-stuns.)

Yes, though it has been many years since doing so, I've eaten at the Houston's here in Nashville on several occasions. The food there, particularly the salads, was definitely a notch above that of the typical fern bar of that era...

quote:

Originally posted by Green_Chile

I for one would like a little clarification. Are small local chains being lumped in with the likes of Taco Bell, Outback Steakhouse, and TGIF's. This I believe would be a grievious error as Kelly's Roast beef has recieved a decent review here, and aren't there various locations for some of the "great" hotdog and Italian beef joint's in Chicago? Correct me If I'm wrong, but doesn't a decent small start-up entrepreneur deserve an opportunity to "expand" a bit without becoming a villified sellout?

2 Sense

Funny you use Kelly's as an example - My husband and I had their food about a week and a half ago. Now, there are very few constants in this world, but Kelly's was always one of them - or so I thought. I didn't go personally, my husband drove up there and brought it back. Instead of the huge plate of clams and scallops we usually get, this time we got about a third of what we used to. Also, my husband reports that the place has changed - they're pushing oysters now, which they didn't used to have (at least I don't remember seeing them on the menu) and the roast-beef carving neon chef above the window is no longer there. THe logo is completely different. Have they sold out as well? Has the corporate monster devoured one of the most popular places I've ever known? Say it ain't so!!

I ate at the Houston's on Embarcadero in San Francisco just before I left on a cruise. Tasty hors d'oevres, a juicy burger--all more satisfying than anything Princess would give us the next 11 days. Haven't been back because you can get stuff like that elsewhere cheaper here.

Chains are often appropriate for awkward social situations. When my brother, who lives in Biggsville, Illinois (pop. 300) visited my sister and me in Chicago, he emphatically stated he could only eat in a chain restaurant so as to be sure not to be served fish eyes, so we ate at Wendy's.

Just one time on Cracker Barrell, please. Several years ago this corporation publicly announced it had a policy of discharging any persons in its employ who were gay. Not just surreptitiously by the usual wink-and-a-nod and "failed to meet expectations" but by publicly announcing it. In all the years since this controversy, I have never read more about it. If they changed their policy and this injustice has been removed, good--but don't ask me to go in there, I will sit in the car.

Now, how about something positive about a chain? It's easy when it's a good one. Great? Maybe not, but it's a taste right out of my childhood. Steak 'n Shake added items but kept the core menu just the same as I remember. Even the bun is exactly the same, its light texture contrasts with the grilled edge. The chili dishes are delicious, as well as the fountain treats.

Sooner or later we all get stuck going to these places, so how about tips on what IS safe to order at a particular chain? Think of the power of knowing something that is actually safe to eat at Your Worst Chain Restaurant Nemesis!

quote:

Originally posted by Ballpark Roadtripper

While I object to and avoid what I call "corporate food", it is possible (but rare indeed) for a "chain" restaurant to be excellent. For example, Burritoville in New York City has about a dozen locations. Each and every one features the freshest Mexican food you can imagine. Their policy is "no cans in the kitchen". They're a little on the brain-dead side when it comes to delivery, but I've accepted that as part of the charm. Sadly, I just moved to one of the few sections of Manhattan that they don't service

"Brain dead" on delivery is putting it kindly. But, they are good. Based on anecdotal evidence, it seems that "local chains" are far less objectionable to most of us than national chains -- places such as Ruth's Chris and Morton's notwithstanding. But, then again, those are fairly high-end restaurants, and should be good.

quote:

Originally posted by jvsmom

quote:

Originally posted by Green_Chile

I for one would like a little clarification. Are small local chains being lumped in with the likes of Taco Bell, Outback Steakhouse, and TGIF's. This I believe would be a grievious error as Kelly's Roast beef has recieved a decent review here, and aren't there various locations for some of the "great" hotdog and Italian beef joint's in Chicago? Correct me If I'm wrong, but doesn't a decent small start-up entrepreneur deserve an opportunity to "expand" a bit without becoming a villified sellout?

2 Sense

Funny you use Kelly's as an example - My husband and I had their food about a week and a half ago. Now, there are very few constants in this world, but Kelly's was always one of them - or so I thought. I didn't go personally, my husband drove up there and brought it back. Instead of the huge plate of clams and scallops we usually get, this time we got about a third of what we used to. Also, my husband reports that the place has changed - they're pushing oysters now, which they didn't used to have (at least I don't remember seeing them on the menu) and the roast-beef carving neon chef above the window is no longer there. THe logo is completely different. Have they sold out as well? Has the corporate monster devoured one of the most popular places I've ever known? Say it ain't so!!

I actually chose to use Kelly's as an example since I have seen a ton of negative descriptions of it's current state. Controversy is a good thing;) I think there could be many arguments made about it and other small businesses...it could just be a greed factor at play since Kelly's has seemed to bloom in popularity since a mention in "GoodWillHunting" and the increasing interest in foodie related stuff on tv and the net. There are also economics to consider, consistent upward trends in prices of seafood and beef in particular. Smaller amounts of product available due to overfishing, lower beef availability and FAD DIETERS! You know who you are!
Quality is another factor that is controlled albeit to a lesser degree by economics....less profit=greater overhead, greater overhead=fewer employees or underpaid employees/more turn around. All of that can lead to worsened quality, but the main factor is the Owner/Management. Bad quality can only be placed on management since it's their impetus behind the whole thing. Ok now I'm getting preachy. I have seen a few small chains suffer through such a faultering....more often then not it tends to bring about their demise. Maybe better to burn out small then to explode super-nova style like Burger King eh?

Dont think Mortons are only in fairly large cities where a better alternative is available. Hackensack, NJ and Great Neck NY are a couple of plaes that come to mind. I think there is one in King of Prussia PA too...

Positive Chain Remarks...

Hmmm. You mean something like this :

GOLDEN CORRAL:
"Sheesh, maybe I won't get such a bad case of food poisoning this time."

KFC:
"It's strange, but I never get constipated after I eat my bucket-o-chicken here."

APPLEBEES:
"$2.95 for a beer? Shoot, give me a perfect margharita instead. I don't have a lot of cash on me today."

BK
"Why yes, I do love my burgers microwaved to a perfect crispness."

T. BELL
"Gimme' 3 Gordita Muchos with extra sour cream and green onions, a large taco salad, and a water to drink. I'm on a diet."

quote:

Originally posted by Ballpark Roadtripper

quote:

Originally posted by renfrew

Dont think Mortons are only in fairly large cities where a better alternative is available. Hackensack, NJ and Great Neck NY are a couple of plaes that come to mind. I think there is one in King of Prussia PA too...

You MUST be joking. The Morton's in Great Neck is approximately 300 yards from Peter Luger. Not to mention the 50 other steak houses within 10 miles of Great Neck. Same goes for Hackensack. There's SO MANY great steakhouses in the area.

Burton & Doyle, and Bryant & Cooper, to name two. Steakhouses, not law firms.