Restaurants that make you say, *Blech*

[hammb]

I don't want to threadjack RUIT's post, and I don't think it really belongs there anyways. That was meant to be a discussion on food that is not even tolerable. However, Lord Byron did hit on an interesting point with his reply. So I thought I'd bring it over here.

What Restaurants do you just find to be terrible, or mediocre & overpriced?

I eat out quite a bit, even though I do enjoy cooking. Many times my laziness trumps even my joy of cooking and I end up grabbing a pizza or something. However, one of my things with restaurants is that I want them to give me something that I cannot do as well at home. I'll gladly pay for a more expensive meal if the food is genuinely good. As a general rule I detest chains as well, so that's where my list will fall. The following are the restaurants that I think are crap and I cannot understand why they're in business...please feel free to share your selections:

Olive Garden
Applebee's
Lone Star
Outback
Texas Roadhouse
TGI Friday's
Ruby Tuesday
Damon's
Fricker's

Many of these places will have a 1-2 hour wait on a Friday/Saturday evening and for the life of me I cannot figure out why.

[The Niz]

While Red Lobster's cheddar buisquits and Clam chowder are both good, the rest of the food is poor at best.

Buffalo Wild Wings can be adderd also.

[Lord_Byron]

Thanks, Hammb. Since there are no foods that I can think of that make me wretch, I moved it to restaurants. I'm with you on chains, I avoid them at all costs.

Here in Rochester, there are inumerable wonderful family owned Italian restaurants, yet I never fail to see a line waiting to get into the Olive Garden. When asked, people invariably state that the unlimited canned soup, soggy salad and greasy breadsticks are the reason they go there.

You've hit most of them, but some other chains that are horrid:

Famous Dave's Barbecue is always filthy.
Cheesecake Factory is overpriced.

Also, I've never been in one, but I don't understand "Golden Corral". Why would someone name a restaurant after a place where livestock is kept?

[hammb]

While Red Lobster's cheddar buisquits and Clam chowder are both good, the rest of the food is poor at best.

Buffalo Wild Wings can be adderd also.

Both of these places fit my chain profile of mediocre, overpriced food. Both of them were given strong consideration for being included on my list as well, but I left them off because I actually frequent BW-3 a LOT, and will occasionally go to Red Lobster as well.


Red Lobster makes the list because while the food is not wonderful, and it is overpriced, it is not something that's easy to make better at home, in most cases. Living in NW Ohio good fresh seafood is nearly impossible to come by, and if you do find it it's not cheap. I can easily eat for < $20 at Red Lobster, and by the time I make a good seafood dinner at home I will approach that price still. Certainly nothing they do is of high quality, but I find it to at least have a niche that the other places I brought up cannot claim to have.

BW-3 avoided my list because of the atmosphere. The BG location does not count because it's a craphole that is worthless. Most other BW-3's however, do offer 20-25 beers on tap (usually at least a couple of those are decent). They also offer a plethora of big screens and a fun atmosphere for watching games. I routinely watch football games at the Perrysburg location, and spent all day Saturday there...it's just a fun place to be. Yeah, the food is mediocre. Even though I do love their wing sauces I can make the ones I enjoy at home just as good as theirs and duplicate pretty much anything on their menu with ease for cheaper. If we're just looking at food I'd definitely put them with the others, but their atmosphere keeps them off my list. Despite not really enjoying any of their food, I find myself there often enough that the waitstaff knows me...

[hammb]

Famous Dave's Barbecue is always filthy.
Cheesecake Factory is overpriced.

Also, I've never been in one, but I don't understand "Golden Corral". Why would someone name a restaurant after a place where livestock is kept?

Never eaten at any of these places. I avoid BBQ places like the plague because I'm such a picky BBQ eater. I can make kickass BBQ at home and pork shoulder is like $1.39 a pound. I'll be damned if paying $8 for a 1/4# pulled pork sandwich. I did eat at Smokey Bones a couple times and it sucked, but they're going out of business for the most part so didn't include them.


Never been to Golden Corral but I think it's fair to add the following to the list:

Ponderosa
Old Country Buffet
Old Town Buffet
All other Buffets of this ilk


Despite my fatness and love of the all I can eat concept, I cannot stand these buffets. Why the hell should I pay > $10 just because it's all-u-can-eat?!? 90% of the items on the buffet are straight out of the GFS can and into the steam tray. The rest is not far removed from that. The ONLY good things on these buffets is the salad bar if you're lucky enough that it's not all rotten and brown.

I love Pagliai's Pizza Buffet. I love some of the high end buffets in Vegas. But these places are beyond bad. I can open random cans from my cupboard and put together a better meal than I'll get at one of these places.

[The Niz]

Not exactly a traditional restaraunt, but Dominos pizza is worthless. Some people actually pay money for it...

[Rightupinthere]

Chain popularity I don't get:

Olive Garden. Get me to Little Italy in the flats where I can spend the same amount on better food and wine.

Outback Steakhouse - although they have a really good salmon. All the other meat blows.

Any of you ever hear of "Panchos" in Texas. It's the food that will give you the trots at a very reasonable price. *shudder*

Smokey Bones. MY GOD DOES THIS FOOD SUCK. SUCK, SUCK, SUCKITY SUCK!

Agreed on Red Lobster. Worst. Seafood. Ever.

Any chain pizza joint. It all blows.

Crapper Barrel for lunch or dinner. Breakfast is decent. But, you get some wonderful ideas as to what NOT to buy for your own house.

IHOP (eye-hop) n. Schitty food AND service.

Eat-N-Park. Not only is the name freaking backwards, so is the food!

Any fast food, but that goes without saying.

Completely agree on TGIFriday's. THE most overrated establishment every - even though they trained the Cocktail cast.

[The Niz]

Any chain pizza joint. It all blows.

I like pizza hut. Then again they really don't make theirs like a chain place. They aren't afraid of making the cost sacrifice for a better product. It is extremely greasy, but its friggin pizza, what would we expect?

[Peregrinner]

Any chain pizza joint. It all blows.

I like pizza hut. Then again they really don't make theirs like a chain place. They aren't afraid of making the cost sacrifice for a better product. It is extremely greasy, but its friggin pizza, what would we expect?

I stand by Donatos as my favorite of all of the pizza chains. I'm not sure, but I think it started in/near my hometown. Many a youth soccer banquet was held there.

[hammb]

Any chain pizza joint. It all blows.

I like pizza hut. Then again they really don't make theirs like a chain place. They aren't afraid of making the cost sacrifice for a better product. It is extremely greasy, but its friggin pizza, what would we expect?

Pizza Hut is better than most chain pizza places, but it's still pretty terrible. You can usually see the sauce & crust through the toppings and cheese because they put so little on. I also detest pepperoni on the top of the pizza, it belongs under the cheese so it doesn't get crispy.

The ONLY redeemable quality of pizza hut, IMO, is the pan crust. I love the greasy bottom that also gets crispy. I haven't yet tried to make it, but I was informed by a former employee that they put dehydrated milk in their dough in order to create that crisp bottom on the pan crust. Someday I'll try to duplicate that.

[hammb]

Smokey Bones. MY GOD DOES THIS FOOD SUCK. SUCK, SUCK, SUCKITY SUCK!

Seriously, how do they screw up BBQ? I don't know how into it you are, but I'm a HUGE fan of BBQ. Slow cooked pork over wood smoke? An amazing combination, but that place was crap, and way overpriced.

IHOP (eye-hop) n. Schitty food AND service.

I actually don't mind the food here, but I only get breakfast here. You really cannot screw up eggs, bacon, pancakes, etc. Anybody can make that...then again you can make it at home pretty easily too

The thing I want to point out, though, is the service. Has anyone EVER gotten good service at an IHOP? I swear that every time I've ever eaten there and at multiple locations I always get nominees for the worst waitress award.

[factman]

Bob Evans for anything other than breakfast!

[Rightupinthere]

Smokey Bones. MY GOD DOES THIS FOOD SUCK. SUCK, SUCK, SUCKITY SUCK!

Seriously, how do they screw up BBQ? I don't know how into it you are, but I'm a HUGE fan of BBQ. Slow cooked pork over wood smoke? An amazing combination, but that place was crap, and way overpriced.

IHOP (eye-hop) n. Schitty food AND service.

I actually don't mind the food here, but I only get breakfast here. You really cannot screw up eggs, bacon, pancakes, etc. Anybody can make that...then again you can make it at home pretty easily too

The thing I want to point out, though, is the service. Has anyone EVER gotten good service at an IHOP? I swear that every time I've ever eaten there and at multiple locations I always get nominees for the worst waitress award.

I truly think that chain bbq joints are destined to fail. Why? Simple, low and slow doesn't maximize profits in the business world. With that said, Dickey's BBQ is amazing regardless of which store you go to. It's a franchise and they have strict controls on the quality of food.

There is one outside of Columbus. I HIGHLY recommend a trip.

[TG1996]

Even though I do love their wing sauces I can make the ones I enjoy at home just as good as theirs and duplicate pretty much anything on their menu with ease for cheaper.

I'd like to make a request for another thread, please.

[The Niz]

Smokey Bones. MY GOD DOES THIS FOOD SUCK. SUCK, SUCK, SUCKITY SUCK!

Seriously, how do they screw up BBQ? I don't know how into it you are, but I'm a HUGE fan of BBQ. Slow cooked pork over wood smoke? An amazing combination, but that place was crap, and way overpriced.

IHOP (eye-hop) n. Schitty food AND service.

I actually don't mind the food here, but I only get breakfast here. You really cannot screw up eggs, bacon, pancakes, etc. Anybody can make that...then again you can make it at home pretty easily too

The thing I want to point out, though, is the service. Has anyone EVER gotten good service at an IHOP? I swear that every time I've ever eaten there and at multiple locations I always get nominees for the worst waitress award.

I truly think that chain bbq joints are destined to fail. Why? Simple, low and slow doesn't maximize profits in the business world. With that said, Dickey's BBQ is amazing regardless of which store you go to. It's a franchise and they have strict controls on the quality of food.

There is one outside of Columbus. I HIGHLY recommend a trip.

There's a chain called Hoggys that is pretty decent also. The falcon fans met at the one in Columbus before the BG osu hockey game.