Nick01

Which is your favorite family restaurant chain?

One step above the "fast food joints" are the family restaurants, they all developed out of the original "American Diner" a concept I cherish a lot:
an informal and inexpensive place to eat hearty and good food around the clock, drink endless amounts of free coffee and chat with the sexy waitresses. I love american diners

mattbutt

What diners are you going too? cos there aint no sexy women in the ones near me!

Nick01

You have to move to Monterey, California where I met a very sexy waitress in a family restaurant

James Box

Hooters?

dbj1000

Well I must have missed the option in your poll for "None of these shitty chain-restaurants that are killing small-town America with their bland clone-food"

We have many favourite family restaurants around us here, but even in the depths of suburbia, we stick to one-off family-run places whenever we can. They're out there, you just have to look for them!

Ash UK/US

From your list? Applebees however my favourite chain is Olive Garden Mmmm

Ash

bodmin13

OH my God, I can't believe anyone actually eats at Olive Garden. In VA we used to eat at Topekas Steak house but in CA we like to eat at The Cheesecake Factory, it ain't all about the pudding.

Ash UK/US

Different horses for different courses In other words each to thier own.

Love their salad and bread sticks Mmmm

bodmin13

I didn't mean any offence but the 1 time I ate there they charged a minor fortune for a tiny portion of COLD Lasagna which didn't taste nice at all.
My step-mother in law is Italian born and raised and she has spoiled us with real italian cooking, her mother at 80+ years old still makes her own pasta and Gnocci to die for.*drool running down chin*

Ash UK/US

None taken

Ash

NC Penguin

I would've thought that "family chain restaurants" arose from the restaurant business creating a dining atmosphere a little more restaurant like than a fast food joint, offering meals that are probably not unlike American frozen food dinners but at inflated prices.

I had the misfortune to go to a Chilli's once. I went with colleagues at lunchtime. The food was unremarkable and the service was deathly slow (not a good idea for lunchtime when feeding workers).

The last time I dined at a family style chain restaurant was probably in the spring. I had fish and broccolli entree from the low carb menu at my local Ruby Tuesday's. It was pretty good.

Also, I prefer ethnic foods and regional American foods and these tend to get bastardized at chain restaurants ('cos they want to attract the lowest common denominator. Means big bucks 'cos they don't take chances).

So, the PF Changs experience was underwhelming as well as being noisy (imagine a dining atmosphere in a nightclub without the sweaty bodies) and same low level of lighting.




NC Penguin

mattbutt

Cheesecake Factory is good, but you always have to wait at the one near me!!!!

Tone

No no Winghouse.....

NC Penguin

There's a CF near me (well, it's probaby about 30 miles away) and I've heard that there's long queues to get in. Back on Valentine's Day, I heard the wait was as much 4 hours for a table. Hardly a romantic way to spend the day, is it?




NC Penguin

Pimpbot

We have two near us.

If I had to choose between the list, then maybe Denny's. Usually have their buffalo tenders.

P.S. I like Olive Garden. Three meat ravioli(sp) is awsome.