| rev:text
| - I'm not sure why we went back. Laziness? Still being attracted to the concept? But I'm so glad we did. I guess this shows that every place can have an off day... or that restaurants can respond well to criticism and be worthy of a second chance.
We've been back a few times to Mac Shack since that underwhelming first try, and each time we've been treated with extreme courtesy, and each time the food has been delicious.
The protein and other chunky "add-ons" (like mushrooms) are now plentiful and easy to find in the bowl, unlike the first trip. The bread is hot, soft, and delicious - which I only know because it's free with a Yelp app check-in, along with a soda. I have to respect how savvy Mac Shack is to offer this to their (presumably) more opinionated customers. (And now my smartphone-less husband will be ordering his own on future visits and trying some of mine. Way to get us hooked!)
I also appreciate that the company offers a discount if you order a meatless dish on a Monday. As a vegetarian living in 2011 (as opposed to the less enlightened days of endless baked potatoes and cheese pizza), it boggles my mind that people still ask, "But-but-but, what do you EAT?" Mac Shack is challenging its value-minded meat-eating customers to get creative while saving some money. (With a bonus of rewarding vegetarians plus getting more people to save some resources, but - shhh - no preaching.)
Our return visits have been so satisfying that I'm tempted to give Mac Shack five stars. Only one thing - okay, two things - prevents this. First, and this is a total nitpick issue that I expect any sensible person to ignore, they've started selling really expensive (and not particularly impressive) cupcakes from a certain popular local bakery. Didn't I just mention that it's 2011? Why are they trying to jump on the Hipster Cupcake Wagon *now*? (And why with a subpar, overhyped product?)
The second thing, and this is the real reason I'm docking a star, is that you can't go half-n-half on the sauces at Mac Shack. If you want, say, alfredo and spicy red mixed together, you have to pay the full price for EACH sauce, even though you're only getting half of each. For a place that's all about designing your own pasta dish, this seems like a strange rule. (And one I don't encounter at live pasta stations at buffets, which work under a similar philosophy of choosing your own ingredients.) I'd understand if they were just trying to prevent a bad mix, but you *can* mix the sauces, you just have to pay twice as much. It's, like, a creativity tax, you could say. (Something you wouldn't expect from a place selling cupcakes topped in the emperor's new icing.)
But overall, I'm really pleased we gave Mac Shack another go. Solid fare, plenty of variety, and a pleasant, casual atmosphere.
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