In your opinion, what is the worst corporate fast food or family style restaurant? Mine is Red Lobster, what's yours?

[Jeebo]

174. Bob Evans, Steak 'n' Shake

I tried a Bob Evans a few weeks ago. Yuck. I didn't eat much of it, took home the leftovers, they stayed in the refrigerator untouched for about a week until I finally threw them out.

Fifteen or 20 years ago I ate one night at one of the local Steak 'n' Shake restaurants. I had eaten there before and it was okay, merely okay, but this time, it was ... I don't know how to describe it, it was just, well, BLAH. It was just a bunch of glop in my mouth. I haven't eaten at a Steak 'n' Shake since.

Quite a few people have mentioned Olive Garden, which I don't understand. I just LOVE Olive Garden, it's one of my favorite restaurants. Are y'all talking about the same chain?

I'm surprised nobody in this long chain has mentioned Cracker Barrel. I like Cracker Barrel, but not so much because of the food as because of the homey ambience, and the consistency. If you're at a Cracker Barrel you can be anywhere. I can't think of any other restaurant chain about which that is more true. The food frankly is merely okay, but I can see somebody saying that it's bad enough to warrant mention in this thread.

Several people have mentioned Golden Corral, but I love Golden Corral, not because the food is all that great, but because it is so varied and plentiful that among all the many, many options, you can always find something good to eat. I like the salad bar because you can make your own salad, put all your favorite vegetables in it. I also like the baked potatoes because Golden Corral is one of the few restaurants I can find where they serve potatoes that have that wonderful potato-ey flavor in them. Almost everybody nowadays serves potatoes that during the preparation and cooking process somehow have all of that potato-ey flavor leached out of them. The baked potatoes at Golden Corral still have that wonderful potato-ey flavor in them.

-- Ron