Ms. P wrote:
>
> I live in a really small place. Just because it's a small town and all
> the restaurants are family owned does not mean they're good. They serve
> slop too. There's no competition, they can serve whatever the hell they
> want and still make a go of it.
>

There are plenty of greasy spoons around here that essentially serve slop...
but often in rural areas the bar is more important than the kitchen... even
in not so rural areas. Where I live the best local eaterys are at the golf
courses and ski lodges... but even though the settings and buildings and
furnishing/decor are magnificent the food is only so-so, and pricey. But
the drinks are superb, generous, and priced lower than at the typical big
city eaterys and stand alone gin mills. A lot of folks really don't go out
to eat food with their immediate family members (they can do that at home),
they go out for the comraderie, and so the bar is the main focal point, not
so much the private dining areas. In rural areas folks live far apart and
work hard and long hours, they don't get to interact with other folks often
so they consider "going out" a social event with friends and neighbors. And
don't get me wrong, the food at these places is good and plentiful, but
plain, it's not what one would expect at multi-star big city joints, not
that fancy schmancy presentation is any recommendation for quality... the
beer, wine, and spirits list is far longer than their menu.