I am the biggest fan you’ll ever meet of Bourbon Chicken, that wonderful food court staple. The Cajun Grill restaurant headquarters is based in Coral Gables, Florida, near where I grew up, and it is also the only free-standing Cajun Grill location I’ve ever seen. The rest are all in mall food courts, and damn, sometimes that’s the only thing that can draw me out to go clothes-shopping. I’ve tried duplicating their recipe at home several times, to no avail. I have discerned that they don’t actually use bourbon, but hey, buying that bottle for my culinary experimentation it helped me develop a taste for fine Maker’s Mark, straight on the rocks.
I’ve got two places I sometimes crave for from the mall food court: Great Steak and Potato & Panda Express.
Now Panda Express has recently expanded in a major way in the Chicago area and it’s not as hard to find as it used to be. About 5 years ago, however, the only one I had ever encountered was at Golf Mill Mall in Niles, IL. I still like Panda Express but ‘it ain’t what it used to be!’ was never truer. The formerly spicy dishes seem to have been weakened and portions seem smaller. Also, when I worked at the mall for a while, a grrreeeat lunch was a regular fried rice ($1.99, IIR) and three sides of jalapenoes from the Taco Bell. MMMM…I could go for some of that right now. THey have steadily raised the price of a regular carton of fried rice at PE and I think it’s now about $3.50. I still eat there, tho.
And Great Steak and Potato is sooo good. The fries are superb but the sandwiches are teh Yum. The veggie sandwich saves a buck and is just as good as the meat one, IMO. Man, I might have to hit the mall tomorrow.
Chick-fil-a I actually kind of miss those.
I’m kind of disturbed by these ‘combo’ places. Nathans and Auther Treachers Fish and Chips? KFC/Pizza Hut/Taco Bell?
Good Lord, do you doctors have to take the fun out of EVERYTHING? We know mall food is not as good as “fast food joint” food which isn’t as good as “the same building the Happy Meals guys work” in food (truly, the BEST McDonalds on Earth!) but do you need to rub our faces in it?
II recall watching the sad, sad faces of an Indonesian couple as they walked out of a Cinnabon that prominently featured its INDONESIAN cinnamon. No, my dears, no satay nor rijstafel here.
A lot can be said for free food. A fancy meal you remember for a while. A free, or half-price, meal you remember for about ten minutes but it was free.
Actually the fried chicken two-for-one we had at Popeye’s was pure art. The coating on the chicken was crisp and hot while the interior was moist and quite flavorful. The fries served with it were also crispy but full of flavor. Someone behind the counter knew exactly what they were doing.
So kudos to Popeye’s. We had a very nice little meal for a darned good price. If I ever run out of food court coupons I may even eat there again.
May I suggest taking the suggestion of the kid advertising the Japanese place, whatever it is called by you? The stir-fried chicken is surprisingly good. The rice is too moist but…
Oooh, seconded on this and on Panda Express as well (Actually, I’m a sucker for any Chinese Greasy Spoon, but I digress). I’ll add Thai Express to the list, too. My favorite food court is at the Cambridgeside Galleria in Cambridge (obviously), MA. The food is great, and it’s very roomy. The Corner in downtown Boston is OK, but it’s kind of crowded, and the selection isn’t nearly as good.
I’m one of those guys who can’t study in a quiet environment, so food courts and coffee shops are my home away from home during the semester. Between the Cambridgeside Galleria food court and the Starbucks coffee shop in Davis Square, I have no reason to travel anywhere outside of the HUB.
Shouldn’t that be Greasy Chopstick? But I agree…Panda Express is great bad Chinese food. There is one inside the Student Union at Cal State Long Beach that has been my salvation at many a speech tournament.