Not worth your time or money, btw.
Happens all the time with my parents, when they’re visiting me in some other city I’m living in. They’re still in Buffalo, which tends to be the very last major metro that chain restaurants will expand to, so they’re not familiar with the chains that might be in every other city. Just one example: the first time they saw a Cheesecake Factory was when I took them to one in Denver; they thought it was a local.
There’s a Prezzo’s in my town, and I didn’t realise it was a chain originating in the West End until I’d already eaten there. In my defence I don’t think it can have had more than a dozen or restaurants then, and it’s expanded a lot since. Plus, I can count the chain shops here on one hand, and the chain cafes with one finger (bloody Costa going and ruining it!)
I thought the 94th Aero Squadron was unique to Denver for most of my life. I was 40 when I discovered the one in San Diego!
It took me about 3 days to realize Mimi’s is a chain. I had lunch at the one in Thousand Oaks with a coworker on Thursday, and the next Sunday morning, my husband wanted to go to this “great” place for breakfast in Ventura one of his coworkers had told him about. Turns out there are lots of Mimi’s.
I did not realize 94th Aero Squadron was a chain until just now. I’ve never been, but I know we have one.
When my husband and I visited Chicago, we stopped for brunch at a seafood place called McCormick and Schmick’s. The entire time we were there, we were debating as to whether or not it was a chain. It LOOKED like a chain, but the food was much, much better than either of us thought it would be. We had to look it up on the internet when we got back to our hotel room. Now we have one in Columbus, so we can go all the time.
Love the name! Does it serve chicken?
…with hot thai peanut sauce dressing! I thought it was great!
Yep. That’s what I came to post. I thought it was local to here in Sacramento, but I was pleasantly surprised to find its a chain. I really like the food, though.
Many many years ago I discovered a very chic seafood place called The Atlantic Fish Company. Several years later, I ate at a place called Charley’s Eating and Drinking Saloon. There were a few of those. Not long after, I ate at American Joe’s. In the past several years, I discovered an amazing Italian place, Papa-Razzi. Apparently there are several of those, too.
A few months ago, I went back to AFC, which was next door to the classy Abe & Louis’s. Imagine my surprise when the waitress told us that all of those places were owned by the same people.
Not in Particular. It’s a wierd kind of breakfast brunch only place that does fancy breakfasts like Eggs hollandaise and crepes, then closes down at 2P.M.
Part of the reason I had never noticed they were all around, is because it’s the kind of place I never go, we were really eating there ironically. 
It became a tradition for about 10 or twelve of us, when we were up camping in Steamboat, to stop at Le Peep before going home. A bunch of badly hungover stumblers who looked like Mad Max residents after not showering for 4 days, and covered in camping grime, eating among the delicate tea folk and
Church-Hat ladies. Aparently their normal sober clientele didn’t ask for ‘8 side orders of bacon for the table while we look at the menu’ or something.
Although the last time I was there is was much more of a general family place, then a pretensious brunch.
I saw a Bucca di Beppo being built in Daytona Beach in the late 90’s and thought “interesting, must be a newish chain restaurant” and saw other popping up in other towns.
Then when I was with a friend driving around downtown Minneapolis there was one on the bottom floor of an apartment tower.
I commented “Hmm, that looks nothing like their free standing locations.”
My friend replied “Yeah, well, that’s probably because that’s the original one that’s been there since 93’.”
Hey, I’ve eaten in that one, didn’t know it was the original though. I remember thinking it was cool that they actually put one in a basement(The name neams “Joe’s basement”), pehaps I should have put it together.
Same here. I hadn’t ever seen one until I was 11 and we visited DC so Dad could go to a week-long symposium. A Ground Round, presumably on Lee Highway somewhere, was near our hotel and Dad’s employer was paying for the whole thing so we ate there pretty much every night. Don’t recall ever seeing one again until some 25 years later while visiting a sister in Michigan.
Mmm, the Steamboat Le Peep was so good. And then I went to one here in Texas and it was just a crappy IHOP-type place. I was confused. 
It was, for about 40 years.
I ate at the original Uno at least once, about a decade before franchises started popping up.
Same here, although the Macados in Charlottesville VA closed years ago.
Other restaurants I didn’t realize were part of smallish chains are Pargo’s, Country Cookin’, and Aberdeen Barn.
They started in Dallas and now have sixty-two locations in four states, the vast majority of them are in TX though. They’re good, very good. I still remember the first one, near an upscale mall in Dallas. The original owners sold it about ten years ago and the buyers are the ones expanding it. The original owners only opened about ten of them, all in Dallas IIRC.
The place I’m hoping takes off is another place which started here in Dallas, called Paciugo, which is an Italian Gelato and cafe place. Founded by an Italian who grew up running a coffee plantation in Brazil and whose wife made gelato, they have the best gelato I’ve ever tasted and supposedly their coffee is first rate(I’m not a coffee drinker). Paciugo is doing very well so far, they’re about ten years old and have about forty locations in ten states and Mexico, with another fifteen or so due to open soon, including three in states where they didn’t have stores before. If there’s one near you, give it a try.
Also, Blue Mesa Grill is another Dallas-spawned chain which is up to five stores celebrating their 20th anniversary. They have a wonderful take on southwestern style Mexican food. Very different from the Tex-Mex which most people think of when they think Mexican food. Sweet Potato chips forever!
Enjoy,
Steven
We ate at Carino’s and were somewhat surprised to find it was a chain - the food and service were absolutely top-notch!
OK, I didn’t realize that Le Peep was a chain until this thread.
I’ve been going to the one in the Rice Village in Houston, Texas for at least 10 years. However, on my last visit to Texas, my mother did mention there was another one in town…
I had no idea they were a national chain. Looking at their website, they have five locations in Houston alone. :smack:
Last time I went, the one in the Rice Village is still a pretentious brunch-type place.
El Torito – we used to eat at the one in Federal Way, Washington, and I had no idea it was a chain. I don’t know how good it is compared to other Mexican restaurants, but the only Mexican food I’d had before El Torito was from Taco Time, so my bar was set pretty low.