Why do I waste my money at places like this? After a trip from Cleveland to Ikea--to purchase a couple 'kids furniture storage items'--the family was desperately hungry. We were trapped in the middle of a bunch of power centers and a mall. There may have been a decent restaurant somewhere nearby, but we wouldn't have known. The idea of going to Chipotle--again--was giving me very dark thoughts.
So we tried this place. Oh, why do I let myself forget what experience has told me over and over and over again: these chain restaurants all taste the same. Butter, fat and salt. Bar-B-Q? Yeah, I tasted some of that. But I had to keep reminding myself that I was at a BBQ place and not an Applebees or Fridays or Bahama Breeze or Outback or whatever. They're all the same; they all use the same cooking techniques, they all have similar menu items with a few 'special' dishes thrown in for variety. I think we're approaching chain restaurant singularity.
A couple times a year we give a chain a chance--with a gift card to redeem, or caught in desperation after a shopping trip. Every time, I leave feeling that I may as well have set fire to the money I just spent. Please friends, help me remember to plan more carefully next time.