Too pretentious for chain restaurants?

[LookAtThisPOst]

Well...There are some family run businesses I've run into that their food was just as "meh" as the chains...quite a few actually.

 

I think Tijuana Flats is a great chain. I read the history on it as his first store was started up by a college kid with a loan from his parents.

 

Back then, it wasn't a chain.

 

Have to admire those Rags to Riches stories. ;-)

 

 

Different people have different food standards. Just like music or any other thing. If you're really into something chances are you have higher standards for it and also make it a habit to focus on quality. Example: one guy I dated was a musician. He graduated from a prominent music college, taught music at the same college later and also is a performing artist himself. That said, he knew way more than the average person about music, instruments, good audio quality, his speakers, sound system and headphones were all state of the art meanwhile I was quite happy with my little $20 ear buds. Although, he did get me some amazing expensive headphones that I had to admit made a huge difference, and I totally understood that for him and his interest and expertise he could tell a difference, quality mattered and it wasn't just him being a snob. Meanwhile, I didn't really care all that much, although being with him did up my game a little bit. I see food in the same way. If you're into it you will have different standards and it's not necessarily because you're trying to be pretentious.

 

Admittedly, I'm more of a foodie type. I don't think I'm pretentious but I like good food. I do go to chain restaurants casually but for dating I try to avoid doing that. Fortunately, where I live doesn't have that many chains. Just because something isn't a chain doesn't mean the food is good but often times with chains the food is not that spectacular and the ambiance isn't all that either. Some chains are also better than others. A man with good taste in food is a turn on for me.

 

If a woman is really into food and eating out at nice restaurants and you find it pretentious, naturally you all just aren't a match and she can find some other guy who feels the same. But to judge that it's pretentious is a bit much to me.

[Phoe]

Mexican restaurants in CA!! :love:

 

Best i ever had was some shack with picnic tables and a line of Mexicans out the door and around the corner in San Diego near the border.

 

I'll never forget how good that Mexican food was. We try on the east coast, but... i don't think we quite get it.

 

Yes, the Mexican food here in SoCal is SO GOOD.

 

The place I am talking to is definitely just a little hole in the wall. They struggled at first, given the demographic, but over time people caught on, and it became pretty popular!

 

When I went to Maryland back when I was school age, my spanish teacher gave me an assignment to do while I was away. She told me to eat at a Mexican restaurant. Wouldn't you know it, we couldn't frickin find one ANYWHERE. I had to get a taco from taco bell and apologize for the massive disgraceful choice haha.

[BluEyeL]

I do quite like Chipotle, there's one near my work, but it's far too expensive for me to eat more than maybe once every couple of months.

 

It's a bit of a treat for me though!

Like $7 with just water??

Chicken Bol and a drink 8.88 here where I live. IN fancier places I saw it's about one dollar more.

[BlackOpsZombieGirl]

I'm not picky when it comes to where I go out to eat. When I go out to eat by myself, with fam, with my kids or with friends, I'll eat where ever they want to go eat. From Mc Donalds or Taco Bell to Red Lobster or The Olive Garden, I'd eat at those restaurants because they're affordable and because most of my fam and friends eat there occasionally. I'm on a tight budget and can't afford the high priced high quality restaurants that are prevalent in my area.

 

Now, if I happen to have extra money to splurge on myself (which, even if I did, I'd feel guilty spending it on myself when I could spend it on my kids or save it), I'd probably treat myself to a nice Indian/Italian/Chinese/French or American restaurant because I know that the meals there are freshly prepared and of superior quality. If I'm out on a date, it doesn't matter to me where we go...because the whole point of the date is not for me to eat high quality cuisine; it's a means to get to know the guy I'm out on the date with.

 

Now...if I was a millionaire or had money to burn lol, then of course I'd probably dine at the best restaurants because - of course - the food will taste better and will be of superior high quality. I'm just not picky or anal when it comes to where I go out to eat. When I'm at home, I prepare and cook healthy meals for me and my kids; and as such, it's not a requirement for me to eat healthy high-priced food every breathing waking moment of my life.

 

 

.

[Phoe]

Like $7 with just water??

Chicken Bol and a drink 8.88 here where I live. IN fancier places I saw it's about one dollar more.

 

Yeah about $8

 

Way too much for just a lunch for me. That $8 can buy me ingredients at the grocery store to cook a week's worth of lunches.

 

$8 lunches add up QUICK. I've got bills to pay... lol.

 

Although I did have lunch out today for my birthday! $8 chicken curry at the little hole in the wall asian place I mentioned earlier.

 

The 3 women next to me were being awful. Complaining that their combination rice didn't have enough shrimp. If you wanted shrimp you should've ordered the shrimp rice, not the combo rice! When the server tried apologizing and explaining the rice to them, one of them just cut her off and said "whatever". Then a few minutes later they were like "we're not paying for this. We didn't get what we wanted"

 

This is why we can't have nice places where I live. Can't afford to stay open when customers expect you to feed them the entire kitchen's worth of food and then refuse to pay.

[123321]

I just started having a lot of milk in my coffee and not eating until I get home. It's not like I'm doing hard labor or something.

[KatZee]

Like $7 with just water??

Chicken Bol and a drink 8.88 here where I live. IN fancier places I saw it's about one dollar more.

 

Chipotle for me with a drink is $13.

 

Then again, I'm in NYC and everything is inflated. So, I can't go buying Chipotle every day either.

 

Chains I love: Carmine's Italian, Chipotle, Trader Joe's (I consider this a restaurant because I do 4 out of 5 days a week lunch from here), Ruth's Chris, IHOP, Red Robin, Cracker Barrel, Five Guys, P.F. Changs, and I DO love me some T-Bell.

 

I have no problems eating at chains at all. I think there's a far difference between eating at Olive Garden vs. Carmine's, Outback vs. Ruth's Chris, etc.

[JuneJulySeptember]

Me and a friend discussed restaurants and I talked about how I have met a lot of people and women when it comes to dating, that avoid chain restaurants like the plague.

 

His response was that only the pretentious types would think such things and one should attend a restaurant, chain or not, as long one thinks the food is good regardless of it's type.

 

Anyone?

 

There's this thing called language and people have been using it, in one form or another to communicate with each other for some time now.

 

If you don't want to eat at Outback, then possibly, why not just tell the guy you don't want to eat at Outback. A shocking idea, I know.

 

If you'd rather eat somewhere of comparable price, but more authentic, then say so.

 

If you think that's too cheap, then say so.

 

Or go on the date, complain about what a loser the guy was and then log in to LoveShack and make fun of him.

 

Either way.

[preraph]

I love Carraba's caesar salad. It's my favorite caesar salad. And I love their bread. But other than that, I don't really like their pasta and mostly can't afford the pricey meat dishes. I used to lover their Rosa cake, but not anymore.

[preraph]

How is Texas these days? ;-)

 

I avoid chain restaurants like the plague. Bad food and I like to vote with my money.

 

Unless it is Panda Express. Love me some Panda!

 

I live in Dallas, and we have over 7000 restaurants. I'd say most of those are chain restaurants. I think there's better food here (to include all the large Texas cities) than any place I've visited. Of course, the TexMex food is out of this world. I've wasted a bunch of time and money trying to make it for myself in case I ever need to move out of Texas, but nothing comes out right except chicken nachos.

 

Italian is a real mixed bag here. A lot of the Italian restaurants, chain and mom and pop, are really pricey -- and there's not reason for it. It's no indication of whether it's good or not. The one I mostly go to is close by and it's a mom and pop and their lasagna is better than anybody else's I've had in town. At lunchtime, it's $7 for entree, tea and salad (crap salads though). I often take out spaghetti and meatballs (5.95) or chicken parm (6.95), and both of them can be divided into 3-4 servings. It's honestly a lot cheaper than me cooking the same thing at home.

 

Steak houses are too expensive for me, and half of them don't char-broil either. So I can do that at home, but Texas Roadhouse, though it is a zoo in there and not open for lunch through the week) is the best bargain because their meat is good and they include 2 sides or salad (even caesar) and baked potato. So a good sirloin, caesar and baked potato is about $11, compared to over 20 most places.

 

I'm a little bit of a foodie, but not in the sense of being snobby about it because my tastes are down to earth, but I do write my own food blog when I have time about the local restaurants. I've been trying to cook mostly lately but have wasted money on three bad recipes so far. I really don't know if it's saving any money because so much time is spent shopping and cooking and then if it sucks, it gets thrown out. But it's the only place I think I ought to be able to cut back.

 

My favorite restaurant in Dallas is Blue Mesa Grill. (no not Flay's). It's wonderful. Southwest, I guess you'd say. Best TexMex here is the Herrera's on Sylvan, which is the original, except its new location. It's the real deal.

[Els]

There's this thing called language and people have been using it, in one form or another to communicate with each other for some time now.

 

If you don't want to eat at Outback, then possibly, why not just tell the guy you don't want to eat at Outback. A shocking idea, I know.

 

If you'd rather eat somewhere of comparable price, but more authentic, then say so.

 

If you think that's too cheap, then say so.

 

Or go on the date, complain about what a loser the guy was and then log in to LoveShack and make fun of him.

 

Either way.

 

Uh.... I'm pretty sure that the OP isn't complaining about a woman who DOESN'T express her preferences, but rather the opposite (because she's apparently pretentious if she has any sort of preferences about where she eats, you know).

[Gary S]

Wasn't that a joke?

 

I think it was. I has a good laugh and hit "like."

 

- Nope. What I wrote was not a joke, I am as serious as a heartbeat.

 

By the way, anyone who thinks Red Lobster is expensive does not need to worry about golddiggers... you are not a target

[LookAtThisPOst]

Uh.... I'm pretty sure that the OP isn't complaining about a woman who DOESN'T express her preferences, but rather the opposite (because she's apparently pretentious if she has any sort of preferences about where she eats, you know).

 

Thing is...I'm not really all that picky when it comes to eating, *Shrug* and neither should she.

 

There are just some things in life, priority-wise that some people should be picky about that are much more important.

 

Personally, I don't think chain restaurants are all that bad. NEVER noticed the amount of salt in their food at all.

[LookAtThisPOst]

I'm not picky when it comes to where I go out to eat. When I go out to eat by myself, with fam, with my kids or with friends, I'll eat where ever they want to go eat. From Mc Donalds or Taco Bell to Red Lobster or The Olive Garden, I'd eat at those restaurants because they're affordable and because most of my fam and friends eat there occasionally. I'm on a tight budget and can't afford the high priced high quality restaurants that are prevalent in my area.

 

Now, if I happen to have extra money to splurge on myself (which, even if I did, I'd feel guilty spending it on myself when I could spend it on my kids or save it), I'd probably treat myself to a nice Indian/Italian/Chinese/French or American restaurant because I know that the meals there are freshly prepared and of superior quality. If I'm out on a date, it doesn't matter to me where we go...because the whole point of the date is not for me to eat high quality cuisine; it's a means to get to know the guy I'm out on the date with.

 

Now...if I was a millionaire or had money to burn lol, then of course I'd probably dine at the best restaurants because - of course - the food will taste better and will be of superior high quality. I'm just not picky or anal when it comes to where I go out to eat. When I'm at home, I prepare and cook healthy meals for me and my kids; and as such, it's not a requirement for me to eat healthy high-priced food every breathing waking moment of my life.

 

 

.

 

BlackOps...my kind of woman and a geek to boot. ;-)

 

Another pet peeve of mine is when someone picks through their food making puzzled looks on their faces, sniffing it, etc. I'm thinking "Dang...EAT IT already!"

[xxoo]

Thing is...I'm not really all that picky when it comes to eating, *Shrug* and neither should she.

 

There are just some things in life, priority-wise that some people should be picky about that are much more important.

 

Personally, I don't think chain restaurants are all that bad. NEVER noticed the amount of salt in their food at all.

 

This is where compatibility comes in. Healthy eating is a priority for me, and should also be for my partner.

[Gary S]

This is where compatibility comes in. Healthy eating is a priority for me, and should also be for my partner.

 

- But what is eating healthy? There are a million different opinions on this. For example, one person will say meat is good for you because it's low-carb. Another will say it has hormones?

 

Bananas should be good for you, they are a fruit and keep you regular. But on the other hand, they rot inside you. So are they good or bad?

 

The latest news is, everything is bad for you (this is a joke).

[LookAtThisPOst]

This is where compatibility comes in. Healthy eating is a priority for me, and should also be for my partner.

 

You assume that eating at chain restaurants = unhealthy eating. You speak as if there is some kind of correlation. They even have a menu dedicated to certain dishes for this very thing. It is what you pick off the menu that depicts this.

[loveweary11]

- But what is eating healthy? There are a million different opinions on this. For example, one person will say meat is good for you because it's low-carb. Another will say it has hormones?

 

Bananas should be good for you, they are a fruit and keep you regular. But on the other hand, they rot inside you. So are they good or bad?

 

The latest news is, everything is bad for you (this is a joke).

 

Eating healthy is caring about what you put into your body and selecting foods based upon some thought.

 

Just putting whatever the company that owns the chain decides to put in the food into your body without thinking is the opposite of eating healthy.

 

Note: Plenty of non chain restaurants are unhealthy. Look foir tge Cysco or other packaged restaurant supply truck delivering the food. Healthy restaurants will have small vans from local farms delivering the food.

[LookAtThisPOst]

Right, I had recently cut out diary and started drinking almond milk...I said this to a overly zealous health nut and they informed me that, "Well, Almond Milk has Carrageenan in it.

 

I was like WTF is that?

 

That being said, I didn't stop drinking Almond Milk, only I think they are always attempting to fill the news/web blogs with things that they try dig and try too hard to find "what's bad for you.

 

 

- But what is eating healthy? There are a million different opinions on this. For example, one person will say meat is good for you because it's low-carb. Another will say it has hormones?

 

Bananas should be good for you, they are a fruit and keep you regular. But on the other hand, they rot inside you. So are they good or bad?

 

The latest news is, everything is bad for you (this is a joke).

[introverted1]

Right, I had recently cut out diary and started drinking almond milk...I said this to a overly zealous health nut and they informed me that, "Well, Almond Milk has Carrageenan in it.

 

I was like WTF is that?

 

That being said, I didn't stop drinking Almond Milk, only I think they are always attempting to fill the news/web blogs with things that they try dig and try too hard to find "what's bad for you.

 

T/J, not all almond milk contains cargeenan. Just read the label.

 

On topic: Food preferences are absolutely important to me. If I'm going to be a long-term relationship with someone, I want to know that we are generally restaurant/food compatible.

[xxoo]

- But what is eating healthy? There are a million different opinions on this. For example, one person will say meat is good for you because it's low-carb. Another will say it has hormones?

 

Bananas should be good for you, they are a fruit and keep you regular. But on the other hand, they rot inside you. So are they good or bad?

 

The latest news is, everything is bad for you (this is a joke).

 

The op said that he isn't picky about eating, and his date shouldn't be, either.

 

I said that I am concerned with healthy eating (therefore picky about eating and restaurants), and my partner should be, too.

 

This is compatibility. Definitions of healthy are secondary, but someone who is a lover of chain restaurants and indiscriminate about eating is definitely not going to be a good match for me.

[xxoo]

You assume that eating at chain restaurants = unhealthy eating. You speak as if there is some kind of correlation. They even have a menu dedicated to certain dishes for this very thing. It is what you pick off the menu that depicts this.

 

I mentioned the healthy eating priority in response to your post here:

 

Thing is...I'm not really all that picky when it comes to eating, *Shrug* and neither should she.

 

There are just some things in life, priority-wise that some people should be picky about that are much more important.

 

Personally, I don't think chain restaurants are all that bad. NEVER noticed the amount of salt in their food at all.

 

I'm sure it is possible to eat a healthy meal in many chain restaurants, but the choices will be limited and probably not great. As a healthy eater, I already know all the great places around town to get delicious, healthy food, cheaper than the chain restaurants, and that is my preference.

 

I'd rather meet at the hot bar in Whole Foods!

[LookAtThisPOst]

I mentioned the healthy eating priority in response to your post here:

 

 

 

I'm sure it is possible to eat a healthy meal in many chain restaurants, but the choices will be limited and probably not great. As a healthy eater, I already know all the great places around town to get delicious, healthy food, cheaper than the chain restaurants, and that is my preference.

 

I'd rather meet at the hot bar in Whole Foods!

 

Actually, I've never known private restaurants to be any cheaper than chains.

 

Just curious, would you eat at a Pizza Hut or get pick-up from a local, family owned "Chicago-style" touted pizza place? I'm guessing the latter uses real tomatoes, while others use tomato paste. Though, I've been known to make my own Chili with a combination of Tomato Paste, canned cubed tomotoes , etc.

 

Would you want home made meals (like Chili) using components stored in a can or cut fresh?

 

I'm a pretty decent cook, but considering I make a good chili, I get a lot of people turning their nose up at it because it has meat in it. Sure, a woman loves a man that can cook, but if you use meat and not meatless, the "I love a man that can cook" is kind of moot.

[d0nnivain]

Thing is...I'm not really all that picky when it comes to eating, *Shrug* and neither should she.

 

There are just some things in life, priority-wise that some people should be picky about that are much more important.

 

Personally, I don't think chain restaurants are all that bad. NEVER noticed the amount of salt in their food at all.

 

I hate chains. I will eat in them when there are no other choices but I avoid them like the plague. It drives some of my friends up a wall because they will want to meet for dinner and I'll roll my eyes when they suggest a chain. Probably 15+ years ago, they acquiesced to letting me pick the restaurant. Once they realized I was picking places that the price was about the same or better for what you got & the places were more willing to accommodate large groups, letting us linger etc. everybody was happier.

 

I'm not obnoxious about my preference but it's known. If a new person in my life suggests a chain, I will counter with a non-chain in the same location, same price point & same genre, meaning if they offer Olive Garden I'll know a cute little Italian place; Chilli's mexican; red lobster sea food etc.

[xxoo]

Actually, I've never known private restaurants to be any cheaper than chains.

 

Just curious, would you eat at a Pizza Hut or get pick-up from a local, family owned "Chicago-style" touted pizza place? I'm guessing the latter uses real tomatoes, while others use tomato paste. Though, I've been known to make my own Chili with a combination of Tomato Paste, canned cubed tomotoes , etc.

 

Would you want home made meals (like Chili) using components stored in a can or cut fresh?

 

I'm a pretty decent cook, but considering I make a good chili, I get a lot of people turning their nose up at it because it has meat in it. Sure, a woman loves a man that can cook, but if you use meat and not meatless, the "I love a man that can cook" is kind of moot.

 

I'll make chili (with turkey burger) and use canned tomato products, but I read labels and choose cans without HFCS, I read the sodium and sugar content, check for MSG, etc. I've been an avid label reader for over 20 years. When I eat at a restaurant, I have no idea what is in their sauce unless they advertise that they avoid such things. I do not eat at Pizza Hut.