Originally Posted by Janek66

I eat Chipotle on a fairly regular basis. However, the chicken is nasty. Steak soft tacos for me with hot sauce

Originally Posted by Lord Lionheart

Anyone been to Bubba Gumps? I used to take a client who insisted on eating there. Overpriced fried shite and tasteless shrimp, at least I expensed it.

Originally Posted by Lord Lionheart

Another bad one we went to for a work lunch was Bucca di Beppo, another so-called Italian restuarant with massive portions of 'Italian' food;

http://www.bucadibeppo.com/locations/

One of the guys ordered a couple of side dishes of meatballs to share. No pasta just some big meatballs about the size of a baseball

From the menu;

Meatball
Our famous half-pound meatball made with 100% premium ground beef served in our marinara sauce.

each $4.99

Originally Posted by Steerpike

"Been there, done that" . In my case, a nephew who thought it was cool. Not only is the place a rip, but in SF, you have to go to Pier 39 to find one, and that is an ordeal in itself. I could not expense my visit I think I ended up with a 'souvenir flashing drink glass' for my troubles ...

Isn't "Hardrock Cafe" the same deal - overpriced burgers? I've never been to one here in US; I think I went to one in London decades ago ...

How about "Claim Jumper"? I went to one near me once, and was disgusted at the sheer volume of food presented to me. Everything was huge, and by the time my main course arrived, I was full ... (I'm a skinny dude, prefer quality to quantity!).

Originally Posted by Steerpike

Oh yuk - steaks can be so awful in the wrong place! I never liked steaks back in UK - always over cooked and dry. Then I came here, and discovered moist, juicy, tasty steaks - but cooked for me by friends, or at decent eating establishments. Then I started ordering them at places like Chilies, TGIF, and other 'cheap'(ish) places, and they taste like CRAP even if you can get them cooked to the right level of 'done-ness' (which is a HUGE challenge in itself). I've all but given up eating steaks at restaurants.

Originally Posted by Lord Lionheart

There's your problem right there. You have to go to a steak house like Ruth Chris or Morton's. We went to the Cheesecake Factory last christmas and their fillet mignon was passable.
Talking of steak, I play soccer with some Argentinian guys who introduced me to flank steak and Chimichurri sauce, it's more the Chimichurri sauce and I'm addicted to that stuff now Very easy to make too

Originally Posted by Bob

If your ever up in Maine, Maine cold water shrimp, about a buck a pound on the side of the road from the fishermen...way to get lobster too, it's fantastic, pain in the arse to shell the little buggers but so lovely, very different from the usual shrimp you get at the grocery stores.

One chain I'm intrigued about - Reb Lobster...anyone eaten there? They don't have any in Maine as they couldnt' compete against all the lobster/shrimp shacks, but they still showed the ads...looked lovely and gross at the same time

Originally Posted by Steerpike

Speaking of Lobster, and rip-off places, what about 'Benihana'? That place is a huge, huge rip-off, but - I have to admit - their lobster is the best I've ever had - basically stir fried with butter ...

Originally Posted by tamms_1965

Hard Rock is total crap too. The best one is the one in London and that's not saying much.

Originally Posted by tamms_1965

Flank steak is my new favorite. It is excellent if marinated and cooked just right on the grill. It is fast, easy, and yummy. We eat it at least once a week in the summer (Kroger actually has decent cuts and has specials on it often when the weather is warm.)

Originally Posted by Kaffy Mintcake

I like Hard Rock - I've collected their guitar pins for years. That's where I saw Davey Jones in London.

Originally Posted by Steerpike

If you like Flank, try Skirt! I find the skirt steak 10x better than flank. But it's hard to find. It's a smaller cut, and looks quite unappealing in some ways, but is super tender and very tasty. I think there is only a small strip of it per animal, and it's bought up by Mexican places as it is the 'preferred' meat of Fajitas (although it's expensive, and a lot of places use 'regular' steak).

I was trying to explain 'skirt steak' to my family in UK; they claim never to have seen it. So if it goes by a different name, or is 'cut up differently there', I'd be curious to know more.

Originally Posted by tamms_1965

Flank steak is my new favorite. It is excellent if marinated and cooked just right on the grill. It is fast, easy, and yummy. We eat it at least once a week in the summer (Kroger actually has decent cuts and has specials on it often when the weather is warm.)