I think they’ve all gotten the memo by now. TGI Fridays and Ruby Tuesdays have all been remodeled while Bennigans has gone out of business. I haven’t been to a Chilis in years so I don’t know about them.
Mac: But our shenanigans are cheeky and fun.
Thorny: Yeah, his shenanigans are cruel and tragic.
Foster: Which wouldn’t make them shenanigans, at all, really.
Mac: Evil shenanigans!
O’Hagen: I swear to God, I’ll pistol whip the next guy that says ‘shenanigans!’
Mac: Hey Farva, what’s the name of that restaurant you like with all the goofy shit on the walls and the mozzarella sticks?
Farva: You mean Shenanigans?
It’s “Random Crap Nailed to the Walls” Style.
Now I have an urge to go to Applebee’s for dinner.
You are correct!
The identifying features of Casual Dining chains:
- Usually only open for lunch and dinner (though there are a few exceptions, particularly for Sunday brunch)
- Table service, with waiters
- Nearly always have a full bar (except in areas in which local laws don’t allow it)
- Offer appetizers, entrees, desserts
- Typically “moderately priced” (in the US, this usually means entrees in the $10-$20 range)
- This includes the “Bar & Grill” segment, as well as some steakhouses, ethnic, and specialty chains (such as Outback, Red Lobster, Olive Garden, etc.)
They’re distinguished from “family restaurants” (such as IHOP and Denny’s), which often have breakfast as a big part of the menu, rarely offer alcohol, and typically are a little lower-priced.
And, on the other side of Casual Dining is “Fine Dining” or “White Tablecloth” (mostly distinguished from casual dining by the level of service and the price).
Years ago we referred to Bennigans as a fern bar due to all of the fake hanging plants everywhere. I haven’t been in one for twenty years or so.
It wasn’t just you; “fern bar” was a common term a few decades ago.
Bennigans has contracted phenomenally. They’re gone from the Northeast and from everywhere west of Texas (except for one in California). Check out their map:
Actually, aside from two in NJ and two in Virginia, they’re gone from the whole East Coast as well.
“restaurateur”
“Face Stuffers”. Hee Hee.
I’m going to coin a new word: “Fauxlksy”.
Looks like they’re re-branding. This time sans kitsch decor.
You can’t forget the Texas Cheesecake Depository.
For some reason Firefox ( US ) spell-checker gave me restauranteur.
Maybe, but beware: We have a rapidly growing hot dog chain in the Chicago area, Portillo’s, that takes this look even further than the national chains. If they go national, no one will be safe from old gas pumps, non-working pay phones, comic book cut-outs, cigarette ads, posters for long-dead politicians, and bowling photo spreads from Life magazine.
The Ninety Nine casual dining restaurant chain is growing in New England. They make it a point to have pictures of local history sites and local high school sports teams on the walls: http://www.99restaurants.com/
:: laughs; holds out sidearm ::
And by not being a franchise-chain? Is there such thing as a white-tablecloth franchise-chain?
Yes, there are white-tablecloth chain restaurants. Darden Restaurants, for one, owns Red Lobster. But they also own Capital Grille.
Only if your costume is pinned to the wall.
Portillo’s at least makes the effort of keeping a theme to each location. Which beats a framed photo of the Pointer Sisters next to some rusty ice tongs next to a vintage baseball jersey.
Last TGI Fridays I was in had toned it down to mainly vintage photos, posters and other flat art and gotten away from the “warehouse explosion” look. Probably cheaper and people are just as likely to look at/talk about an Invasion of the Body Snatchers poster as they are a tin ray gun.
By any chance, has anyone other than me, been to Bubba’s Sulky Lounge in Portland, Maine? I think Bubba originated the whole idea and everywhere else is just imitating it.
http://bubbassulkylounge.com/barbershop.html
Bubba’s has been there for about 50 years. Hit the lunch box section on the website for more of it.