Do you have a favorite place to eat out? Cafe or Resturant?

[NewCreation435]

My wife and I eat out probably at least once a week. She likes fresh vegetables, so that is always a part of the criteria for us. I grew up on eating Mexican food so usually we go to one of the local Mexican resturants. Where do you like to go to eat out? Would you rather go to a chain resturant or a local place?

 

[Josiah]

I tend to like small, "mom and pop", ethnic restaurants....

 

[NewCreation435]

I tend to like small, "mom and pop", ethnic restaurants....

what type? I know when I visited Asheville, North Carolina last year we went to a couple of small downtown places that had a lot of character to them.

 

[Josiah]

Italian.... Mexican..... Filipino.... Greek..... Indian.....

But I tend to avoid the chains and look for small "mom and pop" types. Even for "American" and breakfast places. One of the many blessings of California is that such abound.

 

[psalms 91]

seafood

 

[Lamb]

We moved away from all friends and family almost 4 years ago. Since then I try to drag my husband out once a month to try someplace new! We do not go to chains unless it's a chain we don't know is a chain...like our favorite wings place. I didn't know it was a chain LOL But the wings are the best so when I get my oil change in my car I go there afterward

My favorite place to go out to eat around here? My favorite place to GO to is a Mexican restaurant. They have the BEST salsas and they bring out two to the table, one mild and one hot.

My favorite takeout place is one where the owner has 2 other locations by different names. They food is reasonably priced and they haven't gotten our order wrong yet. I love getting their pizza cheesesteak!

My husband's favorite place is a bar/restaurant in town. It's kind of dumpy so it's not my favorite place although the majority of the time the food is excellent.

 

[Imalive]

The kids farm, the MacDonalds or the Chinese rest sometimes.

 

[NewCreation435]

When i was a kid living in Ohio there was a place called White House Chicken. Now that I think about it I'm not sure if that was its name or if that is just what we called it. You would get a plate of fried chicken with spanish rice and enough fries that they were nearly falling off the plate.

 

[Josiah]

When i was a kid living in Ohio there was a place called White House Chicken. Now that I think about it I'm not sure if that was its name or if that is just what we called it. You would get a plate of fried chicken with spanish rice and enough fries that they were nearly falling off the plate.

I've found there seems to be an inverse relationship between price and quantity..... The more you pay, the less food you get. Very expensive restaurants may serve it very pretty on the plate! It may taste wonderful! You just get so little of it. There ARE exceptions (Ruth Criss Steakhouse comes to mind.....)

When I was a kid.... in our town.... there was this Mom and Pop diner that served Chicken Fried Steak. I mean, it was meaty (not too bready) and huge (hung over the plate!), smothered in rich gravy - with enough fat and calories to insure an instant heart attack. Served with a MOUNTAIN of homemade mashed potatoes and gobs of that fat filled gravy (with endless rolls and butter). Probably 10,000 calories and enough fat for a week. And SO amazingly good. I had to take most home (no one could eat it all) and it was too rich, but so amazingly GOOD. I've never found a good place for Chicken Fried Steak since that place closed.

We don't go out often (much less than most people our age, it seems) but when we do, we like to have something we'd never have at home, and because we don't do it regularly, we seem willing to set aside our usual dietary rules and just enjoy.



- Josiah



[EDIT] Actually, I make a pretty good Chicken Fried Steak (rarely)......

1. Cube Steak. Your butcher will have or make this, it's just a thinner cute steak of some kind which is run through a tenderizer, ends up 1/4 inch thick or so and tender.

2. Dip in milk

3. Dip in flour (with some salt and pepper) on both sides

4. Fry in oil on both sides, till nice and brown (the steak will be cooked in the process)

5. Remove steaks and most of the oil from pan. Add butter and flour and all the drippings until thick, stir adding milk until you get the consistency of the gravy that you like. Add pork sasuage if you like (I don't).

Serve with mashed potatoes.

So good. SO bad for you.




.

 

[Tigger]

I usually take my wife out to dinner on Friday evenings, to give her a break and start the weekend off right . She likes me to pick the restaurant and surprise her. I'm thinking Indian tonight. I have a craving for some lamb curry.

 

[Josiah]

My Beloved and I at times go out to eat as a date, but more often because our date involves something (theater, for example) that causes us to eat out.

We enjoy creating dinner together.... usually fairly simple (we're simple folk), maybe some fish and rice and salad or similar. We tend to enjoy sharing some wine with the process, and we do clean-up as we go to avoid the big "washing" after dinner. Kind of romantic, lol.... even sexy, lol.... My wife's tradition is that dinner is a big deal: NO TV, table nicely set, food nicely on table, conversation. (Note my tradition, we ate a lot on the run with the TV on, serve yourself from the kitchen typically). I like her tradition and have totally embraced it. If there's any of that wine left from the preparation (wink) - it's eliminated with the meal (may even open another bottle). Quiet. Private. Relaxing after long day. We'll have the plates and things to clean up (cooking stuff is washed as we use it), and we do that together too. Typically.

Now, there are times when we get home late (or exhausted) and go out for dinner but I always feel that's LESS of a date than when we create our meal together. Even then, well.... we have a freezer well supplied by Costco (I'm a big fan of Costco) and we're more apt to grab some microwave thing from there than go out.



My parents did (and still do) the "Friday Date" thing most weeks. I recall as a lid imagining my parents at some VERY fancy restaurant, kissing over the candlelight.... Nice, good, but I kind of resented the hot dogs with the babysitter.



- Josiah

 

[Lamb]

When I lived in another state where I grew up we rarely went "out" to eat. We mostly picked up pizza or sandwiches to eat at home. It was my husband's choice mostly since he never wanted to pay a tip to a waitress because that makes going out more costly.

 

[Imalive]

When I lived in another state where I grew up we rarely went "out" to eat. We mostly picked up pizza or sandwiches to eat at home. It was my husband's choice mostly since he never wanted to pay a tip to a waitress because that makes going out more costly.

Lol oh yes you have to tip. Another reason to move to Holland. Supermarket people shut up and if you tip more than a euro they freak out and don't wanna take it.
That's a bit exaggerated but you don't have to tip here. They get a salary. An American preacher came here. He tipped 200 or so to bless a girl. She freaked out and first didn't wanna take it.

 

[Ruth]

I don't want to go to a restaurant alone and can't take my dog so me and her go to Rally's for hamburgers every week. I love their fries~

 

[Lamb]

That's another good point...how many go to restaurants alone? I hate doing that just like Ruth! I've done it but it's so uncomfortable.

 

[Imalive]

Nice, good, but I kind of resented the hot dogs with the babysitter.



- Josiah

LOL

 

[Stravinsk]

I very rarely eat out. When I do it's when I've procrastinated and/or am really pressed for time. If that's the case it's take out food not a restaurant. It's been a long time since I've been to a restaurant.

I don't mind cooking and making my own food with my own recipes or variants of others (as I think is probably demonstrated in the "what are you eating" thread). I consider take-out or restaurants huge wastes of money. Instead of having a favorite - I'd rather learn to make the food myself for 1/20th of the price, minus the msg or anything else used to hook a customer.

 

[MoreCoffee]

I like a local Spanish restaurant and a local Thai restaurant and also a local Chinese restaurant.

 

[Lamb]

I like a local Spanish restaurant and a local Thai restaurant and also a local Chinese restaurant.

OH I wish we had a good Thai place here. It's like they lump all Asian foods together in one restaurant. No thanks.

 

[MoreCoffee]

OH I wish we had a good Thai place here. It's like they lump all Asian foods together in one restaurant. No thanks.

We are fortunate to have three Thai restaurants in my suburb all within 5 or so minutes of my house.