Mine would be Red Lobster. I LOVE seafood. If that was the only restaurant I could ever eat at, that would be fine with me! I love their pina-colada dipping sauce for coconut shrimp, Yummy! I wish I knew where they got it from.

So, what's yours?

I don't think I have a favorite. I like a lot of variety. In general, I like local, non chain, restaurants. Some of my favorites are Pho 88 (Vietnamese), Sakura (Japanese), Mysore Veggie (Indian), Rialto (Italian), and for really fancy-schmancy, Aujourd'hui.

Do you live near water? Around here (New England), Red Lobster is the last place you'd want to go. Maybe it's just the local Red Lobster, but yikes, it's nasty. I think they use frozen lobster. Oh well, sorry to rain on your fave. To each her own.

Edited to add my favorite seafood places: Fishbones, Captain Marden's, and Daily Catch. Boston's Legal Seafoods is riding on it's reputation, imho.

Best ribs: Redbones

__________________
If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

My all time favorite restaurant is no longer, sadly. It was ranked as the best restaurant in New Jersey in it's heyday. The Ryland Inn was in Whitehouse Station, NJ and closed a few years ago for financial reasons. It was outrageously expensive and the chef was world renowned. I only ate there twice but it was so good that I will never forget it!

Apparently, it was one of Ronald Reagan's favorites too. He would helicopter in for lunch or dinner once in awhile. There was a helipad on the property.

I don't have a favorite that we eat at regularly. I guess I just really like any place where someone else does the cooking and dishes for me!

__________________
Cecilia

"We must love them both--those whose opinions we share and those whose opinions we reject. For both have labored in the search for truth, and both have helped us in the finding of it."
Saint Thomas Aquinas

I have to agree....we had a Red Lobster open in our area (Maine), it lasted a very short time. There are just too many real seafood places to eat. One great place to eat is the Weathervane. They have one near us and several others scatter around the state. When you order a seafood platter....you get enough to feed two people. I am not a huge fan of chain resturants. About the only one we ever go to is Unos (they have a great beer special). We do have a couple of great Irish Pubs in our area that offer great food.

Fave right now is Rancho Allegre. A mom & pop joint. I haven't ever been to a chain I would call my "favorite" . I do enjoy Rock Bottom but I usually get beer and salad. They have the BEST ceasar dressing ever.

__________________
Proud to say I haven't shopped at a Wal-Mart since Sept 2003

No, I don't live near water. Well a lake but that doesn't really count. I know they pull the lobsters out of the bucket and boil them right there.

We always seem to find a couple of local "Mom and Pop" type places that just can't be beat - regardless of where we live.

There is a Middle Eastern place here that a husband/wife run and when out of school, their 2 daughters help with. It's always fresh, great and they are so appreciative and friendly.

There is no chain I would list. Chains are what you can get everywhere, pretty much the same thing steady.

Just can't beat the smaller, locally owned, hard working owner operated restuarants.

dl

Mine is a local place here in my town called Little Pigs. They have the best BBQ pork and the best baked beans!!

__________________
Support bacteria -- it's the only culture some people have!

If Vegetarians eat Vegetables. Do Humanitarians eat Humans?

'Vegetarian' is an old Native American word for bad hunter.

Boy, I can't really name just one favorite! We have several we love: Salvatores and Bravo (italian), The Hibachi (Japanese), Jalapeno Loco and El Patron (Mexican) and then The Branding Iron and Texas Roadhouse (steakhouses). Those are our usuals!

Red Lobster didnt make it around here. I`n in New Hampshire and you cant any greater seafood then in New England. Saugus Mass has some of the greatest places to eat in the country(I`ve been to alot of states). I dont really have a favorate. Like some of the small family restraunts better then the chains.

__________________

When you don`t know what to do-Walk fast and look worried.

I beg to differ, njfl!! I live down on the Gulf Of Mexico, and you just can't beat our seafood!!
I feel the same way about Red Lobster. We have one and I don't know how it stays open. We have sooo many fresh seafood restaurants, it's great.

You just can't beat eating fresh seafood while looking out over the water at the sun setting.

__________________
*** Find A Need , Fill A Need ***

The first and only Red Lobster I ever tried was in Nashua, NH. I didn't realize it was gone.

__________________
If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

dipping sauce
4 ounces pina colada mix
3 ounces sour cream
3 ounces crushed pineapple -- drained


Mix well and drain

Sorry folks are dissing your favorite, cajmom! We ate there once (in Lake Buena Vista, FL) and thought it was nice....the kids especially enjoyed it. I think it's hard to compete with fresh, local seafood for those who have it.

I am predisposed to LOVE any reaonably good restaurant (chain or no) where I can get a decent meal that I didn't have to cook delivered by a pleasant staff member. For the chains, my favorites would probably be On the Border and Bertuccis. Some of my co-workers absolutely love Olive Garden....

The only chain that I would skip based on several bad experiences is TGIFridays.

cj/

__________________
I was walking home one night and a guy hammering on a roof called me a paranoid little weirdo. In morse code. -Emo Phillips

OP,
I am not a seafood lover, but
I think the RL cheese biscuits are wondeful.

I also like the Olive Garden salad.


.

It's okay cjs. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I didn't realize that my question would make such a big fuss...lol. We don't have but a few little "mom and pop" restaurants in my area. I do agree with supporting them if they are in your area and good but where I live, we don't have any that are that good. I've been to several good ones while traveling but local, it's RL.

Thank you ican. I'll have to try that and see if it tastes the same. Sometimes things never taste the same when you make them as they do at a restaurant, even if it is the same recipe. kwim? thank you

I guess like the OP most of the restaurants near me now are chains. The only real good mom and pop's are Mexican and they certainly get a fair share of our business. Unfortunately I'm not a big chain fan and I really like to think I am a good cook so we have limited the times that we eat out.

__________________

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass
It's about learning to dance in the rain.

I am in love with a local grill called Willow Creek. The owner recently added an other restaurant next door called Raw. I can go sit at either restaurant and order from either menu. It's awesome! Great local chef, food, beer, and wine. I prefer to support local business before a big chain. I have been known to crave Joe's Crabshack though.

__________________
You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one

Have to agree with you about Bertuccis. I do love their food.

__________________

When you don`t know what to do-Walk fast and look worried.

Just one question. Do you have clams with bellies? I could not believe that on the west coast I couldnt get these. I`d say we have better lobsters and clams then you. You probably have better crabs then us.

__________________

When you don`t know what to do-Walk fast and look worried.

The red lobsters used to be right next door to the olive gardens. I`m not far from you. Do you still have one?

__________________

When you don`t know what to do-Walk fast and look worried.

Yes, you are totally right. Down here you don't here alot about lobsters and clams. I think our biggest would be fresh shrimp, then fish. Oysters too, and crabs.

I guess we both have it made!!
By the way cajmom, I didn't mean to jump on the RedLobster bashing wagon!! I just forget that not everywhere has fresh seafood like we do. So I apologize if I came off as obnoxious!!

Donna

__________________
*** Find A Need , Fill A Need ***

Red Lobster
Fatz
Arby's

__________________
Smile and the world smiles with you!

Tami ~*~

Olive Garden:

I could eat myself sick on their Pasta E Fagoli and breadsticks
I love LOVE their mango martinis

__________________

Friends are like butt cheeks.
Crap might separate them,
But they always come back together.

Hands down, J Alexanders. Fabulous food and impecable service.

__________________
Melissa

My favorite will always be Friendly's. I use to always go there as a kid and that's where I first had chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream . Haven't been to one in several years though.

I'm in MA. I don't think there are any Red Lobsters in MA. I think the closest Olive Garden is the one in Tyngsboro -- which must be near where RL used to be. (I've never been to Olive Garden.)

__________________
If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

Anyone remember Uncle John 's Pancake House in the MPLS/SP area?
I don't think there are any at this point.
When I was coming up I came from a larger than average fam, so going to restaurants was a rare and very big deal, we didn't get to do it often. Uncle John's was very big treat for us, and we would get those candy necklaces on our b'days. Those candy necklaces were muy coveted for us kids ;-)
I also remember once in a rare while my folks taking us to our local Big Boy's Country Kitchen. We needed more than one table so us older kids would get to sit at a table away from our parents and the younger ones. The staff always made me feel like a princess.
MZ

They are still good. Do you remember the fribble?

__________________

When you don`t know what to do-Walk fast and look worried.

My favorite restaurants are; (I cant pick just one- Im too much of a foodie, my list could go on to include chicken on a stick stands, lol)
Gandy Dancer in Pittsburgh- I'm a fan of their pasta primavera with shrimp and scallops- their poppyseed rolls with fresh butter and salad with house dressing and those little pasta shells !! I wished I still lived there!!

I also love Miyakos steakhouse in Cranberry PA (any hibachi steakhouse for that matter with great ginger dressing on their salads- I eat it over the rice too.

Summer Shack in Boston!!
I love the lobster with chervil and chives sauce.

Cleats in Cleveland! I love the Erie Island Smoke wings and the Garlic Parmesan

Last but not least- my favorite casual fare- Long John Silvers and Olive Garden!! The salad there is awesome.

To those of you that live in New England is seafood cheap at the store? I see movies where they are having these big crab bakes on the beach and my mouth waters. I would love to try it but I figure it must cost a fortune.

I know New York is not New england, but I know the closer you get, the cheaper it must get. because when I lived in NY, the lobsters were $5.99 on special almost every two weeks, here in the midwest, a sale is $9.99 a pound.

I wouldn't call it cheap. It is more expensive than poultry and beef per pound -- even here.

__________________
If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.

- Stephen Colbert.

Hell's Kitchen in Mpls. (there's also one in Duluth, never tried it). If you're in the area, it's the one restaurant I think folks shouldn't miss. Fun, unique, casual ambience, terrific service, and the food is..... I just can't think of enough superlatives. Pricier than chain restaurants, worth every cent. We go a coupla times a year and always come away in the best of moods.
Though it's not fancy,for breakfasts/brunches on weekends (only time we've ever gone) it's best to make reservations and make em at least a week in advance cuz they fill res. up quickly.
They have stuff like homemade peanut butter, wild rice cereal, bison sausage, rosti potatoes (my personal fav), and much, much more.
The wait staff wears pj's on Sat & Sun mornings cuz the owner's state that "NObody should have to work early on weekends." They also have old time gospel music during weekend brunches.
MZ