I like the crispy beef. It's got 1706 calories but that's still one of the lighter things on their menu. I used to eat there for free as an undercover food critic. All I had to do was eat their food, use the bathroom, and write reviews. One time I had to shop the cheese cake counter and comment on the experience. When I got there I heard the guy behind the counter talking about his dick so I wrote that up. Oddly that was last time I ever got my meal for free.
Cheesecake Factory is a nice place to go with alot of people. Although almost everything in their menu is of frozen origin, it's still passable and it'll get you to come back as a repeat customer. and phisix, it's called cheesecake factory because that really is their specialty. when you walk in, you'll see a huge display of tons of cheesecake in flavors you didn't even think existed. but they're also a bit more upscale than your regular ol restaurant.
1706 calories lighter than some things? Damn. I can imagine how much more other things must be. Care to band some about? I love cheesecake! ;D
I can't really comment on that since I'm not much of a cheesecake person, but here's their menu. http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/menu/Cheesecake/
I think that's why they always seem to put them next to movie theaters. It's an okay place to go with a large group where the ridiculous portions are less of an issue due to sharing and no one is going to complain about mediocre food. They do have good cheesecake if you stick to basics and avoid their flavor of the week experimental stuff.
One of the perks of PVCF4 is that the grossly misrepresented, out of context, food thread has been scrubbed from the internet.... So, now we can have a new judgement free food thread. I tried Dinosaur BBQ tonight... this place has A LOT of hype in the area, but lived up. There menu is standard BBQ joint: chicken, pork, brisket, ribs in your choice of a chunk of meat or a sandwich. Several combinations were possible to try the different meats and flavors. I had the fried green tomato appetizer, followed by a combo plate of St. Louis Ribs, brisket, and pulled pork. All of the meat was top notch, and the brisket was the softest well cooked that I can remember. I chose healthy sides of mashed potatoes and mac and cheese, which were OK at best. The prices were reasonable. The combo plate was $18 (appetizer $9) but you can top out over $50 depending on how much meat you want. All in all, it's quite reasonably priced for a BBQ restaurant, if not cheaper than some others in the area. Would recommend! I gobbled it all up before thinking to take pics. But this is it, minus the sides:
Ever been to a Gates Bar-B-Q? The BBQ is average but the locals all love them. As soon as you walk in the door someone is yelling, "May I help you!". It doesn't matter if they are half way across the restaurant. They will stop what they are doing and wait for you to answer. It gets awkward if you don't know what the hell is going on.
There is a Colorado Pizza chain called Beaujos that makes these things called mountain pies. I'm not a huge fan of them but they're impressive to look at. It's the thickest pizza I've ever seen. We also have an awesome place called Pizza Casbah. They were featured on a Food Network show because they make this.
I've never been to that place, but I've noticed the quality of service and order taking methods of Waffle House varies tremendously by region. In my state in the northern US, they tend to write down what I say when I order and give that to the cook. The further south I have been, the more likely it seems that the waitress will scream to the cook each thing I say as I say it and expect him to remember everything from every order after hearing several only once, which of course leads to getting some aspect of just about every component of your meal to be screwed up. You won't get your grits, your steamed hash browns will be soaked in a pool of oil, and your dry raisin toast will have half a stick of butter between the pieces.
The fact that you've been inside more than one Waffle House is amazing. Pretty sure they are just demarcation points dividing safety zones. There is always a U-Turn by a Waffle House.
Dinosaur BBQ is supposed to be coming to the Boston area in the next "couple of years". They don't seem to have rapid expansion plans. The best BBQ place that I ever ate at was this tiny little hole-in-the-wall place near downtown Cleveland. Of course, it was run by a family that had moved from Alabama.
The Waffle House would be really good if it wasn't so expensive and it didn't attract the oddest people. I used to live near one that always had a CB radio crowd hanging out there. The parking lot would be full of cars with 6 foot antennas on their roofs. I was in Atlanta once, traveling with a guy from Minneapolis. He'd never heard of a Waffle House so we drove an hour out of our way just so he could eat there. We told amusing Waffle House stories along the way to pass the time. He wasn't disappointed.
Waffle House near me has a reputation for being dirtier than Denny's. I think it caused a hepatitis outbreak at one point. Edit: yep, it was even in the local news: http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2002-09-12/news/0209111274_1_waffle-house-immune-globulin-shots-northlake-foods That was just the initial story. I remember a bunch of people ended up getting sick. Needless to say, I do not eat at Waffle House.
Prices vary by location but in my experience IHOP, Village Inn, and Perkins are all better values for breakfast.
The IHOP experience is unparalleled in my opinion.... I've only been to a Waffle House on accident, thinking it was the Waffle Shop. Big mistake. The place was at the border of the sketchy area of town. It was like Arkham Asylum in there, management had no control over it. The crowd was the typical wanna be gangster kids being obnoxious. Food was dirt cheap though. A more rowdy Denny's seems like an apt description.
I like getting brunch at nice restaurants on Sunday. IHOP, Denny's, Waffle House, etc are disgusting and I can make better food at home myself.