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Cheesecake Factory- a few facts

Fyre

By Fyre
in Restaurant Life

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KateW

KateW

Posted
Posted
Does he like sloppy joes?  Do you?

The sloppy joe thread was one of our more popular ones.

Now I have a craving for one.  See what you made me do.  :huh:  :blink:

(Just kidding.  Although I still have a craving for one.)

Soba

You just made me think of something else I make but don't eat.

Manwich is basically sloppy joe mix. You cook up some ground beef and add the manwich. Tada, sloppy joes. That's another thing that makes the SO happy and me, not so much. So then I gross him out with something *I* like. :biggrin:

SobaAddict70

SobaAddict70

Posted
Posted

um, unless it comes with tofu sour cream (blech).

lunch yesterday was a Burritoville Vegas platter: brown rice, turkey sausage, veggie chorizo, pico de gallo, tofu sour cream, guacamole and soy jack cheese. Horchata to drink. All for $8.95 with tax. :huh:

Soba

slkinsey

slkinsey

Posted
Posted (edited)
There is good to be said for chain restaurant food, if you don't compare them to something totally out of their league.  They are good when they stand alone, and if you spend all your time comparing it to something else, just go eat the thing you're comparing it to, for heaven's sake, if it bothers you that much.

I think that is exactly what most people are saying -- that they would choose to go eat something else. But, you know, as much as I think you have every "right" to wax rhapsodic about the Olive Garden's food, I think Bux has just as much "right" to explain why he thinks it's crap. And neither one of you should get your feelings hurt over it.

That, to me, seems to be the big issue. You seem to be getting your feelings hurt that other people don't agree with your choices and evaluations. Or at the very least, you seem to be getting upset about it. Which is not to say that you are unique in this reaction or that such a reaction is entirely unavoidable.

Edited by slkinsey (log)

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tommy

tommy

Posted
Posted
Not in my opinion, it isn't... and I have some pretty good arguments on my side (what with being a musician and all).  But this really isn't the time and certainly not a forum for such a discussion.

i, too, am a musician and all. and Pearl Jam RULES!!!!!!

tommy:eats.com
slkinsey

slkinsey

Posted
Posted (edited)
Not in my opinion, it isn't... and I have some pretty good arguments on my side (what with being a musician and all).  But this really isn't the time and certainly not a forum for such a discussion.

i, too, am a musician and all. and Pearl Jam RULES!!!!!!

BALDERDASH! I brand you a "musician" -- that's right, with quotes around the word -- you... you... overpackaged teen-angst Seattle "grunge" music liker! :raz:

OK... gotta go to a rehearsal. :smile:

Edited by slkinsey (log)

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beans

beans

Posted
Posted
There are plenty of other reasons people may go to them (convenience, children, live in suburban Ohio and there are no other choices, whatever) -- but none of these reasons has to do with the high quality of the food.

(emphasis added)

:shock::blink:

:laugh:

Sorry, I spotted that and had to stick in a .02!

:wub: Luv ya Sam!

Now, I'll actually continue reading the thread! :biggrin:

KateW

KateW

Posted
Posted

That, to me, seems to be the big issue.  You seem to be getting your feelings hurt that other people don't agree with your choices and evaluations.  Or at the very least, you seem to be getting upset about it.  Which is not to say that you are unique in this reaction or that such a reaction is entirely unavoidable.

What I'm getting offended at is that certain people seem to be saying I shouldn't be posting on this site that I like low-quality food.

beans

beans

Posted
Posted (edited)

It isn't personal. Please don't be offended Kate! :unsure:

edit to add: slkinsey is playing devil's advocate and stating there is the whole spectrum! Nothing is right or wrong, but there will always be someone else that doesn't share that same taste. Isn't it great that we're not all alike? Now wouldn't *that* be boring! :raz:

Edited by beans (log)
Varmint

Varmint

Posted
Posted

That, to me, seems to be the big issue.  You seem to be getting your feelings hurt that other people don't agree with your choices and evaluations.  Or at the very least, you seem to be getting upset about it.  Which is not to say that you are unique in this reaction or that such a reaction is entirely unavoidable.

What I'm getting offended at is that certain people seem to be saying I shouldn't be posting on this site that I like low-quality food.

I like raw, cheap hot dogs. I eat pre-sweetened breakfast cereal. I enjoy fast food. Fried baloney sandwiches are the bomb. People put up with me anyway.

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

beans

beans

Posted
Posted (edited)
Fried baloney sandwiches are the bomb.

:wub: Varmint, I knew there was some unknown reason I luv ya' !!!

edit: the mere thought of these sangies prevented proper typing...

Edited by beans (log)
Varmint

Varmint

Posted
Posted
Fried baloney sandwiches are the bomb.

:wub: Varmint, I knew there was some unkown reason I luv ya' !!!

C'mon, someone who uses the Screen Name of "Varmint" couldn't actually be a total food snob!

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

KateW

KateW

Posted
Posted
What I'm getting offended at is that certain people seem to be saying I shouldn't be posting on this site that I like low-quality food.

who. where.

Nevermind. Read the last couple pages and you'll find them.

MatthewB

MatthewB

Posted
Posted
What I'm getting offended at is that certain people seem to be saying I shouldn't be posting on this site that I like low-quality food.

who. where.

Nevermind. Read the last couple pages and you'll find them.

I can't find them. :huh:

KNorthrup

KNorthrup

Posted
Posted

(How have we gotten this far without hearing from LML?)

For what it's worth (very little), I interpreted those statements to mean that people who aren't dedicated to finest dining aren't particularly qualified to write professionally about food, not on this site.

beans

beans

Posted
Posted (edited)

Food snob? Did I hear that somewhere???!

Well, I'll admit that when I'm making dinner an event, well then I am. My first post on eG (60+ days ago) I admitted same. Some breakfasts, lunches or dinners are going for the whole "experience" route and then we get picky on which restaurant, which menu, ingredient, do they use instant demi?, etc. and of the like, which is found by some as positively revolting. Okay, but it's my hard earned penny that I'm spending, so I want perfection and *bang* for my buck!

But for "functional" eats, a group of buddies, a quicky bite, well, we can be seen at the sleaziest diner or biggest corporate soul sucking restaurant chain chowing down on whatevah. It's just something I won't write home about! However this sort of dining isn't something that I turn my nose up on doing either. Each has it's place.

So? S'no biggie! :raz:

And yes, that fried bologny sangie, my Gram's Jello and Cool Whip "ice cream" well, they all have a place in my heart. Yum.

edit: grammar :blink:

Edited by beans (log)
Andrew Fenton

Andrew Fenton

Posted
Posted
I like raw, cheap hot dogs.  I eat pre-sweetened breakfast cereal.  I enjoy fast food.  Fried baloney sandwiches are the bomb.  People put up with me anyway.

Pre-sweetened breakfast cereal? That's cool.

Fast food? Mais oui!

Fried baloney? Balonerrific, sez I!

But raw hot dogs? That just grosses me out. Glad you like 'em, though...

pariah_kerry

pariah_kerry

Posted
Posted

Yes, exactly! People who proclaim a preference for higher levels of quality and a disdain for lower levels of quality are constantly being labeled "elitist" -- as if that were a bad thing in this context!

So... some people feel that the food at Cheesecake Factory or Bennigan's or Olive Garden is below the level of quality which they prefer. So what? This means that they have a strong preference for higher quality, more inventive, more interesting, better executed cooking. How can this be bad?

Where I think the problem comes in is when people who enjoy Cheesecake Factory or Bennigan's or Olive Garden feel as though they are judged by the people who do not and somehow deemed "lower." That gets the defenses up and the next thing you know the foodie is being accused of "elitism" or "only liking that stuff because they think it impresses people" or "looking down at the people who like Bennigan's." And, really, it's not about that.

While on the subject, I would like to add that I don't think people here have an automatic dislike of chain restaurants or "middle brow" and "low brow" cooking. I think it is more a matter of execution. Fundamentaly, if Olive Garden made a really well-executed dish of pasta -- perfectly al dente; not oversauced; fresh, vibrant and distinct ingredients -- I think most people would not turn away from it. But, the fact of the matter is that places like Cheesecake Factory and Bennigan's and Olive Garden and TGI Friday's and Chili's and Applebee's and Romano's Macaroni Grill and Outback Steakhouse, et al. make their money selling to people who do not have very refined or adventurous palates and aren't really interested in a pasta dish such as I have described. Hence, their pasta tends to be mushy and oversauced with cheap ingredients and muddled flavors. This approach is further reinforced by the economics of chain restaurants. Now, I have never been to a Cheesecake Factory, and they may very well be a cut above Applebee's and their ilk. But I have a hard time believing that they can deliver the same quality of food at the same price as a good one-off family-owned little restaurant. At the same time, I understand that plenty of people in this country don't have easy access to a good one-off family-owned little restaurant, and that the TGI Bennigan's Outback Olive Grill may be the best game in town. So, why shouldn't they like it? But, if someone like me who lives in NYC and never needs to set foot in a chain restaurant decides he doesn't care for that food, does that make him a culinary snob? I don't see why. And the fact of the matter is that some people are going to dislike things that other people like. It's the way of the world.

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