Best Chain Restaurant

[Alice The Goon]

I know, food snobs, that they are few and far between. But they are out there. Good chain restaurants- they exist!

My nominations:

Mimi's Cafe. Possibly my favorite, especially for breakfast. Mmmm, Mimi's, I love you.

Sweet Tomatoes/Soup Plantation. Not everyone's favorite, especially my 3 sons', because there's very little meat. But I love that place, or at least I used to before I moved to an area without them. My loss.

Del Taco. Fast food, yes, but possibly the best fries out there.

El Taco Tote. Expensive, for fast Mexican food, but yummy and fresh.

Zaxby's. One good thing I have found about moving to the South. I love the buffalo blue salad like crazy. Maybe one day I'll get sick of this place, but I doubt it.

What are your favorites?

[silenus]

The chain restaurant we eat at most is probably Red Robin. Good, customizable burgers, endless steak fries, fish & chips that isn't all batter, a decent selection of microbrews...what's not to love?

Sharing the love for Soup Plantation. But not for Mimis. Absolutely loathe that place.

[Slithy Tove]

Waffle House a grits & biscuits diner with no pretention of "experience dining." And they make a policy to hire ex-cons.

Pollo Loco spicy but not greasy, since it's roasted on a huge grill.

Taco del Mar hand-held seafood: not only do we eat the fish, but we grasp them, asserting our dominance in two ways. And it's that rarity among faux Mexican cuisine: it's not Tex-Mex.

[carnut]

McCormick and Schmick's is pretty awesome, but also pretty pricy. Axel's Bonfire is another good one.

For cheaper food, Waffle House for breakfast, Panera for soup & salad.

[Rampant Coypu]

Macaroni Grill. They drain their pasta before putting the sauce on it. Plentiful cheap wine.

Whataburger. Fast food for adults. No marketing tie ins. All burgers are heavy on the mustard unless you ask them to leave it off. They still serve real french fries. Most locations are 24 hrs. Mostly in the Southern US.

Taco Cabana. Reliable Tex-Mex in a drive-thru. Texas and Louisiana only.

Pappadeaux. South only. Metric buttloads of passable seafood. I prefer Connie's or Tampico down by the wholesale fish markets on Airline Drive, but a Pappas family chain restaurant is not that bad.

[LawMonkey]

Despite the opprobrium of burrito-snobs, I remain quite fond of Chipotle--though they seem to have changed their margaritas for the worse lately.

Also, having grown up on it, I love White Castle.

[Alice The Goon]

Originally Posted by LawMonkey

Despite the opprobrium of burrito-snobs, I remain quite fond of Chipotle--though they seem to have changed their margaritas for the worse lately.

Also, having grown up on it, I love White Castle.

I don't like their burritos, but I do love Chipotle. That's another place that's missing here in this place where I've recently moved to. Why did I move here, again?

[bump]

Originally Posted by Rampant Coypu

Taco Cabana. Reliable Tex-Mex in a drive-thru. Texas and Louisiana only.

Pappadeaux. South only. Metric buttloads of passable seafood. I prefer Connie's or Tampico down by the wholesale fish markets on Airline Drive, but a Pappas family chain restaurant is not that bad.

Taco C for the win! I must eat there twice a week, and every time I'm surprised that I can get such good Tex-Mex for so cheap. I mean, I've paid 5 times the price and had food that was no better, and in many cases, worse. You have to work pretty hard to come up with better beef fajitas than they have, and their charro beans are extremely good.

Pappas restaurants are routinely high quality as well- Pappadeaux is pretty good.

Whataburger is my go-to burger place as well. There's a lot more competition there though; In-n-Out is pretty good, as are Smashburger, Five Guys and Mooyah (chain in D/FW, AFAIK).

[RealityChuck]

Panera Bread is best overall; I've always like their selections.

Five Guys is the best hamburger place.

I've also gotten some pretty good seafood at Red Lobster (though the quality can be uneven at different restaurants). You also have to know what to pick; their daily specials are usually more dependable than the regular menu.

[tomcar]

It's probably too expensive, but Jimmy Johns is alright. Same with Potbelly.
I haven't made up my mind about Piada yet.

[Alice The Goon]

Originally Posted by RealityChuck

Panera Bread is best overall; I've always like their selections.

Five Guys is the best hamburger place.

I've also gotten some pretty good seafood at Red Lobster (though the quality can be uneven at different restaurants). You also have to know what to pick; their daily specials are usually more dependable than the regular menu.

Ooo, I forgot about Five Guys. And In-and-Out. I miss them.

[oreally]

Until this year I would have said chik-fil-a but I ate there a few months back for the first time in years and wow did it suck. So I guess Ruth Chris is the only one I can think of, although they are overpriced. Outback was pretty good when it first came out and went downhill it seems (along w/the clientele).

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Red Robin
Pappadeaux
Olive Garden (yes, I went there!)
Quaker Steak
Mitchell's Fish House
Morton's
Five Guys
Chipotle
Qdoba
Waffle House
IHOP

[Drum God]

Sit-down Tex-Mex: Chuy's
Fast Tex-Mex: Taco Cabana
Fast burritos: Freebird's
Fast burgers and shakes: Mighty Fine
Pricier Mexican: Pappasito's
Most consistently pleasant and available everywhere: Chili's

[Wendell Wagner]

Nando's. A lot of them outside the U.S. Not many inside the U.S.

[boytyperanma]

I like Texas Roadhouse a lot. I find their cost to quality ratio very good.

Cheesecake Factory used to be my favorite but they have gone down hill with their expansion.


Places like Morton's, McCormick and Schmick's, Fogo de Chao, Legal Seafood, Craftsteak don't really belong on the list in my opinion. They are very good but are different then what I would consider a chain.

[Dag Otto]

Rubio's, for the Mango Habanero Ono tacos.

[Stink Fish Pot]

For the expensive chain, I'd go with Ruth Chris' Steak House. I've never had a bad meat there, and that includes their seafood selections. The jumbo lump crab cakes are excellent.

For the cheap, drive through fast food places I have to go with Burger King. Ever since they finally got the hint that their fries actually DID SUCK, and revamped them, I can go there and have my Whopper (best fast food burger iMO on the planet) without having to stop at the McDonalds to get my fries first.

Taco Bell gets a close second simply because they have been serving the same five ingredients since it opened, and they always make it taste pretty good. I can't remember anything crappy I've eaten there, probably because if it was crappy, for 59 cents, who cares?

[Lacunae Matata]

For breakfast: Waffle House

Sandwiches: Firehouse Subs

Other fast food: Zaxby's

Sit down, moderate price: Chili's

Pizza: Mellow Mushroom

[grude]

I came in here to nominate Taco Cabana but I see it has been covered, if there any other self serve fast food place where you get the fajita meat on a skillet? They also have great vegetarian options and excellent breakfast burritos.

[Hockey Monkey]

Red Robin
Five Guys
Bonefish Grill
Outback Steakhouse
Rockfish Grill (only have locations in TX and one in NC)

[Alice The Goon]

Another one I forgot about- Pei Wei.

[N9IWP]

Fazoulis - semi fast food, good breadsticks
Quiznos - Thier current French Dip is nowhere near as good as thier previous Steakhouse Beef Dip, but still decent.

Brian

[Surbey]

another for 5 guys. That place is awesome.

[joebuck20]

Steak N Shake is my favorite of the burger chains.

Texas Roadhouse is probably the best place to get a steak for under $20. I also like that you can actually see them grilling it when you come in the door.

[aruvqan]

I like the way too expensive Ruth's Chris Steak House, we go there for our anniversary every year.

Cheaper chains - well, I finally managed to get to the west coast and southern fast food places. I did like the waffles at the Wafflehouse, but their bacon tasted odd, almost fishy so I would imagine that they get some extremely cheap brand of bacon that fattens the pigs up on fishmeal. I was underwhelmed by In-n-Out, Carl Jrs/Hardies, thought their biscuit and gravy breakfast has deteriorated from what I remember from when I lived in Norfolk VA. I still found that Bojangles was better than KFC, though Popeyes is a close second.

I have pretty much given up fast food unless I am going to be at home or in a hotel room within the half hour, the digestive issues are not worth it otherwise. I am resigned to having to pack sandwich makings for road trips. Not a big deal. Though I really miss being able to head to the nearest Long John Silvers or fried chicken joint with impunity. [well, the runs and also the issue with it really not fitting into what my diabetic nutritionist wanting me to eat. Way too carby and hidden sugary.]

[Pine Fresh Scent]

Whataburger for me - great skinny french fries and the table side delivery of your order is a nice touch. Also, their ketchup comes in little tubs instead of squeeze packets for less messy dipping. Oh yeah, the ice cubes are those little pellets that are great for crunching, and their styrofoam cups don't sweat condensation all over my car on humid days, too. Their burger patties aren't as flavorful as Burger King or Red Robin, but I'll still drive a few miles further to make it to a Whataburger. "Fast Food for Adults" - I like that, Rampant Coypu.

[HelloKitty]

For burgers, I'm currently on a Culver's kick. They have fabulous steak burgers called "butterburgers"! YUM

Also crinkle cut fries, everything cooked when you order so you have to wait a little longer than a usual burger joint but it is oh so tasty! If that's not enough they have excellent frozen custard. If you eat inside they come around with a tasting tray of different flavors.

::drooling::

[Icarus]

If you consider chains to be any organization with multiple locations, then:

Il Fornaio
Roy's
Maggiano's
and their little sister Corner Bakery Cafe

[etv78]

My faves:

5 Guys (can never finish fries though)
Panera (love chix caesar sandwich)

[Jackmannii]

City Barbecue
Pappadeaux*

*crawfish platter, gumbo

[midnight-dreary]

Grill'd. They are expensive (9.50 for the most simple burger on the menu) compared to fast food places, but they are amazing. To bad the closest one to me is an hour train trip.

[LavenderBlue]

Qdobas because they don't stint on seasoning.

Panera's for the freshly baked bread and soups.

Pizzeria Unos because it is only good national pizza chain I've ever found.

[MadTheSwine]

Whataburger and yes.. Taco Bell

[IvoryTowerDenizen]

Local chain from my youth: Mighty Taco.

[TBG]

Jet's has to be the best chain pizza around.

[Gatopescado]

Originally Posted by Slithy Tove

Waffle House a grits & biscuits diner with no pretention of "experience dining." And they make a policy to hire ex-cons.

Huh, same reasons I used in the "Worst" thread!

Originally Posted by Rampant Coypu

Taco Cabana. Reliable Tex-Mex in a drive-thru. Texas and Louisiana only.

Had one in Las Vegas, right next door to where I worked. You're right. It was good and I used to eat there all the time. I kinda miss that place.....

[Slithy Tove]

Sir, obviously the conneseuirship of skanky waitresses is lost to you.

[Brynda]

Panera and 5 Guys are consistently good. I also have to give a shout out to Bojangles. They make some damn good fried chicken.

[Jophiel]

National chain, I'll go with Red Robin.

Local/Regional chain, I'll easily go with Portillo's.

I know Golden Corral is very hit or miss (and usually miss) but the one by us is clean and has decent enough food to make it a value for feeding a bottomless 13 year old and the instant-food convenience of feeding a 2 year old. Also, they once switched out the person on steak duty with a woman who was just terrible at it. Small pieces and poorly cooked. After a couple weeks, my wife mentioned the change to a manager and a week later they had a new cook on it and were back to serving good sized pieces cooked properly. I'm guessing there were more complaints than just ours but the change made me appreciative that they were listening and concerned. We only go for breakfast though so I won't speak for their lunch/dinner experiences.

[carnut]

Originally Posted by HelloKitty

For burgers, I'm currently on a Culver's kick. They have fabulous steak burgers called "butterburgers"! YUM

Also crinkle cut fries, everything cooked when you order so you have to wait a little longer than a usual burger joint but it is oh so tasty! If that's not enough they have excellent frozen custard. If you eat inside they come around with a tasting tray of different flavors.

::drooling::

Wow. I think their fries are incredibly bland. But the butter burgers (on a buttered and toasted bun) hit the spot with many of my non-GF friends. I'm just after the Concrete Shake. And their chili. And the Concrete Shake. And maybe just a scoopie some days. Did I mention the Concrete Shake?

[John DiFool]

Originally Posted by Alice The Goon

Zaxby's. One good thing I have found about moving to the South. I love the buffalo blue salad like crazy. Maybe one day I'll get sick of this place, but I doubt it.

For some odd reason, I thought they were a jewelry chain. There must be one with a similar name that I am forgetting...

For me, I eat at Jason's Deli 1-2 times a week-excellent sandwiches, free ice cream bar, and they sell the only soda that I'll ever consider consuming anymore (Boylan's root beer). Moe's is pretty good, but my diet lifestyle change limits them to a once every 2-3 weeks thing.

[missred]

Casual dining: Ruby Tuesday (love their garden bar), any of the Pappa's chains
Fast food: Wendy's (salads are awsome), Zaxby's (love the Roadhouse salad), Sonic (tots and diet cherry limeade)
Fast food (local chain): Fat Mo's (BEST burger in town, bar none)
Pizza: Jet's

[Jophiel]

Originally Posted by carnut

I'm just after the Concrete Shake. And their chili. And the Concrete Shake. And maybe just a scoopie some days. Did I mention the Concrete Shake?

Cake shake

[Kitty A.]

1. Five Guys - I like the bacon cheeseburger "all the way." I'm not crazy about their fries, but you can't complain about the quantity.

2. Raising Cane's - great chicken fingers, but I have not lived near one since I moved from Louisiana. How has this not been mentioned yet?!

I like some of the chains that have popped up in the last decade or so, places like ChipotLe, Panerra, Noodles and Company, Pot Belly,etc. They are a step up from fast food, but faster and still less expensive than a typical dine in sort of place. I do try to frequent independent, local type places, but sometimes it's just nice to have the consistency of a chain.

[Ponch8]

Rubio's fish tacos. Unfortunately I haven't been to one in over 10 years.

[Rampant Coypu]

Originally Posted by Gatopescado

Huh, same reasons I used in the "Worst" thread!



Had one in Las Vegas, right next door to where I worked. You're right. It was good and I used to eat there all the time. I kinda miss that place.....

I had no idea they had expanded so far. All hail Taco Cabana. Used to be a chain in Houston called Two Pesos that had the same color scheme as Taco Cabana back in the 80's. There were lawsuits and Taco Cabana ended up buying out Two Pesos for cheap. Been loving the Cabana for a while now, but the one just a few blocks from me is always mobbed.

[Curiosity Kills Her]

I didn't realize I was chain restaurant challenged until I read this thread. I've never even heard of most of the places mentioned.

[boytyperanma]

Originally Posted by Curiosity Kills Her

I didn't realize I was chain restaurant challenged until I read this thread. I've never even heard of most of the places mentioned.

They problem is most the restaurants being mentioned are regional chains.

As someone who has been to most major cities in the US I don't recognize a few of them.

Most national chains will fail to make the top of the list because in order to be nationally successful it does require a certain level of blandness to appeal to as many people as possible.

[It's Not Rocket Surgery!]

Best sit-down restaurants:
Carrabbas - Even though they are pricey, they actually spice the food the right way (not just salt and pepper) and everything seems fresh.
Maggiano's - Hands down the best linguine with white clam sauce I've had.
Weathervane (regional) - Simple, yet good seafood. I really, really miss them (they are up in New England).
O'Charley's (might be regional) - Most items are very reasonably priced. Good steak.

Fast Food:
Nathan's (semi-regional) - The best hot dogs AND the best fries, both by large margins.
Back Yard Burgers (regional) - Still good even though they've backslid a bit.
Sarku Japan - Tasty, and reasonably healthy for fast food. I tried a Sarku Sushi place at a food court in Philadelphia that, surprisingly, had EXCELLENT sushi.