Canadian-American Chains

[Alix]

OK, I'm wondering what your favourite restaurant chains are. I know that there are some in the US we don't have here and vice versa. For example, there are no TGIFridays here. I'd like to try one someday as I hear they're tasty. I suspect you don't have the Cheesecake Cafe there, but I think you do have the Outback Steakhouse. Do you have the Keg Steakhouse?

 

[Debbie]

Before I came to Canada.. I never heard of a Keg Restaurant, at least I never saw it in Washington.. we do have outback Steakhouse.. they used to be HUGE, but they are dying out in my part of the USA. Olive Garden is very popular, as is Black Angus ( steak house), also Tony roma Ribs... yummy!

 

[grumblebee]

Do they have Tim Horton's down south? I know that's not really a "restaurant", but it's definitely a favourite! I can't function without my Timmies in the morning... hehe.

Other Canadian favourites: Harvey's, Joey's Only Seafood, Second Cup.

Those are fast food/coffee places, but pretty decent IMO.

 

[texasgirl]

I don't know what is up there. But, here is my favorite ones.
On the Border -Tex mex
Chili's- All kinds of things
El Chico - Tex mex
Cheddars - same as Chili's
Ta Molly's - Mexican

 

[Erik]

Grumble...they are just starting to open Tim Horton's stores here in the US.
Always wondered about them, when I've seen their logos in the hockey games.

 

[GB]

There are not a lot of chains I enjoy. I will only go to a chain if there is nothing else around. Uno's is one that I don't mind, but you will never catch me in a TGIFridays or Olive Garden ever again.

Alix I have never heard of Cheesecake Cafe, but we do have Cheesecake Factory. I wonder if they are the same thing.

 

[ironchef]

Two that I enjoy are:

California Pizza Kitchen

Togo's Sandwiches. I think Togo's is only in Cali though.

 

[Andy M.]

...Togo's Sandwiches. I think Togo's is only in Cali though.

There was a TOGO's here in my town but it died a natural death a couple of years ago. I never ate there but my daughter thought they were expensive for what you got.

 

[Mylegsbig]

Cheesecake Factory is crap. They have 150 different dishes with every spectrum of food being covered, and they all taste the same

good dessert though

my fav chain is Benihana.

It's fantastic.

 

[ironchef]

Here's the website if anyone wants to take a look. Andy are you sure it was the same Togo's as this chain?

http://www.togos.com/

 

[Andy M.]

...Andy are you sure it was the same Togo's as this chain?

http://www.togos.com/

Yes, sir. It's the same one. I recognize the logo/sign. The nearest one now appears to be 18 miles away.

 

[buckytom]

so that's how you guys keep from floating away...

(bah dum dum)

ya know, now that i think aboot it , there isn't a canadian restaurant in nyc. i know, this thread is aboot chains, eh? but i've bragged aboot new york having a restaurant from every country in the world. i could be wrong.... nah. just gotta look more.

 

[jkath]

Alix, if all the TGIfridays simultaneously closed, I'd not miss them a bit. They used to be good, but they took a very sharp turn for the worse. "icky" is pretty much it. I do love the Outback Steakhouse - just went there again a couple of nights ago. aaaaah! I used to love Macaroni Grill, but they got really gross really fast, and service was non-existant. (sorry GB), but I do like Olive Garden quite a bit. BJ's brewery is one I like a lot. Always good service, and I like their beers. Yummy food too.

 

[GB]

In all fairness jkath, I do need to say that there have been a small handfull of things at Olvie Garden that I did not mind. The sausage soup (I can't remembe the real name) was actually very tasty and I have a recipe for it somewhere that I have yet to try. My wife got chicken parm when we were there (someone gave us a gift cert so we had to go) which was not bad. If I were ever to find myself there again that is what I would order. Whatever it was I got was loaded with salt and the pasta was overcooked by about 30 minutes. That is what my experiences were like everytime I have been (which is probably only 4 times maybe).

 

[Alix]

OK Bucky, I can say that we have a NY restaurant here. East Side Marios. LOL, and let me know when you get a Tims. It will blow Starbucks sorry butt right out of the water.

OK, we have Chilis, and Olive Garden. But I have to say if I am going for authentic Italian food Olive Garden would not be my pick. Its good for a cheap lunch though. I am not fond of the Outback as I find their prices ridiculous for what you get. If I'm going to pay through the nose for beef it darned will better be PRIME and not sirloin.

OK, how about Moxies? I like those. Julios Barrio? I KNOW you have Tony Romas.

 

[SierraCook]

One of my favorites is Black Angus, but the closest one I know of is in Redding, CA. That is a 4 hour drive from my house. Another family favorite is Claim Jumper. But a restaurant that I have fond memories of from my childhood is the Old Spaghetti Factory in Roseville, CA. I would order the Chicken Marsala so I could have the spaghetti with browned butter and Mizithra cheese. My brother and I would order the Italian cream sodas. The blackberry was my favorite.

 

[fireweaver]

GB, i gotta agree with you: chain restaurants are to be avoided, in general. but ironchef is so right, california pizza kitchen is rather tasty. at least, the ones i ate in when i was actually in CA were good, and that may have had something to do with the beautiful wine list. haven't eaten at one since then...

if i had to go to chain-italian, carabba's wins over olive garden in a huge way.

my two sadnesses about "regional" differences in food: there are no pappadeaux up here in MD (it's rather a TX thing, but it's super cajun food. ****, the whole papa's empire tends to be pretty tasty), and on the fast food front, no sonic. man, there are the (rare) days where i reeeeeeely miss cheese-tots & a fresh lime slushy.

 

[GB]

fireweaver you and I are on the same page for sure. I enjoy California Pizza Kitchen as well. I always forget about them when thinking about chains. I actually have a friend who is a regional manager of one of the busier CPK's here in MA. When we go over their house he often feeds us food from there which we always enjoy. Last time we went over there he gave us a few bottles of wine to take home with us. Turns out they ordered the wrong kind and were not going to serve it. He felt weird about giving booze to his staff to take home we we got it

I went to Carabbas once when I was in FL. I did not realize they were a chain. I enjoyed my meal there very much. I had a shrimp and scallop dish that was very tasty and cooked perfectly. 1000x better than Olive Garden IMO.

 

[Andy M.]

A Carrabba's opened near us a couple of year ago and we have gone there several times. We enjoy the food there. They have some very tasty dishes and they are well prepared. We don't care for the OG nearly as much. Try Carraba's pork chop marsala.

I like the ribs at Chile's. They serve them dry rather than smothered in sauce.

I prefer local independents when I can find good ones. There is a little (9 tables) family owned Italian restaurant about 5 minutes from home and if you're willing to stand and wait for 30-45 minutes or more, you can get a great meal for a reasonable price.

 

[college_cook]

The sausage soup (I can't remembe the real name) was actually very tasty and I have a recipe for it somewhere that I have yet to try.

It's the Zuppa Tuscana! You're right, it's very tasty, and if you ever find that recipe be sure to post it.