ImStillMags > wrote in message
...
[snip]
> I'm interested to hear from you, fellow foodies, about your thoughts
> on what constitutes 'your favorite place'.
>
> What makes a restaurant most appealing to you.

Service is my first-and-foremost reason for returning to a restaurant. I
don't enjoy dining at restaurants that treat me indifferently or like a
mark.

> What is it that keeps you going back.

Again, service is key to my enjoying the whole experience. I've dined at
high-end restaurants and diners across America. Some were superior in food,
some funky in interior design, some rocked on pricing but those I returned
to provided superior service.

> What about the selection of dishes.

It depends on the type of restaurant. Some restaurants were ethnic, some
"American," some breakfast nooks, some dinner-only; it's depending on what
I'm interested in. I know from personal experience dinner restaurants have
better numbers than breakfast-onlys.

> Breakfast

For years, I hit two restaurants for my daily breakfasts; The Orgin'l
Pancake House and The Hick'ry Pit. I ordered the same breakfast every day at
each. Then both were sold. <sigh> Sad days...

> Lunch

Again, I am a creature of habit and found a local sandwich shop that
provided one of the best damned corned beef creations I'd ever had. She sold
out and the first thing the new owner did was change suppliers. Another
black flag draped day.

> Dinner

This is the most varied. I enjoy many ethnic cuisines (Italian, Japanese,
Chinese, Ethiopian, Mediterranean, and Korean), levels (diner, fast food,
sit-down-family, linens-on-the-table), or some combination of the above. I'm
very lucky where I live and what's available.

> Bar

This really doesn't appeal to me and mine anymore...

> Staff.....talk about the ideal restaurant staff, servers, bartenders,
> hostesses, etc.

I enjoy myself immensely when staff are professional, don't count their tips
during rush, are available without being pushy, and don't treat me as a
mark. I enjoy seeing a manager walk the dining area and hold conversations
with people. In a couple instances, the chef-owners did this; it rocked.
Host/esses should always be professional and greet any customer that walks
in immediately, rather than letting them flounder. The simple
acknowledgement of, "I'll be with you in a moment" has always been
acceptabe.

> Decor

This is WAY down on my list of importance though many restaurants strive to
provide it as a way of setting them away from their pack of competitors
(Chili's, Applebee's, et al.)

> Ambiance

See "service" commentary.

> Location

Being a PRC (People's [DemoKratic] Republic of California) serf has allowed
me the luxury of driving wherever I wish whenever I want to whatever I like.
Some places, like the above mentioned breakfast places were along my driving
routes to work or the sandwich shop within the same building so convenience
was key. Dinner restaurants, again, can have this but not reliably enough to
make it the driving reason to hit a restaurant.

> Surroundings

I dine wherever I like. I take my daughter-units into zones of cities where
SWMBO (and many of our friends) is often shocked. I've never had a problem
nor do I expect this. <shrug>

> Is it one particular cuisine or a selection of dishes?

I enjoy Mexican, from green mole on chicken to al pastor burritos.
Daughter-unit Alpha enjoys Italian, spaghetti and meatballs. Daughter-unit
Beta enjoys Chinese, Shanghai beef. Spawn enjoys corn dogs (and can sniff
them out on any child's menu in the area.) SWMBO is more eclectic but enjoys
Japanese sushi.

> Really think about why you like a particular place and consider it
> your go-to place when you want to go out to eat.

Reviewing our charge slips, there really isn't any place we hit more than
any other. We enjoy variety and, given our location (the 5th largest city in
the state), we have that within easy driving of Castle Ranger.

The Ranger

I > wrote in message
ndwidth...
[snip]
>> Ambiance
>
> See "service" commentary.

After reading Kalmia's response, I'll also add "music that doesn't pound me
physically or drown out conversation with my companions."

I no longer need to join the other lemmings at "hip" or forced vibe places
like I did in my 20s. If a restaurant puts their Musak at 11, like The Left
Bank in Menlo Park, I'll ask for it to be turned down. If it returns to that
level, I'll pay my bill to what we consumed and and leave.

The Ranger

The Ranger > wrote:
>After reading Kalmia's response, I'll also add "music that doesn't pound me
>physically or drown out conversation with my companions."
>I no longer need to join the other lemmings at "hip" or forced vibe places
>like I did in my 20s. If a restaurant puts their Musak at 11, like The Left
>Bank in Menlo Park, I'll ask for it to be turned down. If it returns to that
>level, I'll pay my bill to what we consumed and and leave.

Amen! Being a musician, I don't go to restaurants to get hip to new recorded
music dispensed by hipsters at high volumes. I'm there to eat and converse;
loud music makes that difficult. If I get a sense that a restaurant is more
about being seen than food, I probably won't return.

Orlando