Well the other day we went out to use a gift certificate we had received for
Christmas.

We both started with their wedge lettuce salad - with blue cheese - and
someone had said the word Bacon over the top. About the same way a good
bartender says vermouth over an extra dry martini.

For the entre I ordered the 14 ounce rib eye. Not wanting their teriyaki
slathered over the steak the waiter suggested their Tuscan marinated steak.
Never had it thought I would try it.

Before I go farther I need to mention I have been put on a medication that
prevents me from drinking alcohol. So my pre-dinner drink was 1/2 OJ and 1/2
club soda.

Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.

Complain NO
Send the food back - nope
It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
again.

What a rip-off.

Dimitri

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
...
> Well the other day we went out to use a gift certificate we had received
> for Christmas.
>
> We both started with their wedge lettuce salad - with blue cheese - and
> someone had said the word Bacon over the top. About the same way a good
> bartender says vermouth over an extra dry martini.
>
> For the entre I ordered the 14 ounce rib eye. Not wanting their teriyaki
> slathered over the steak the waiter suggested their Tuscan marinated
> steak. Never had it thought I would try it.
>
> Before I go farther I need to mention I have been put on a medication that
> prevents me from drinking alcohol. So my pre-dinner drink was 1/2 OJ and
> 1/2 club soda.
>
> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>
> Complain NO
> Send the food back - nope
> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
> again.
>
> What a rip-off.

Who marinates a rib-eye? That is a very fine cut of beef and requires no
marinating. A little salt and pepper and then a dab of butter on top when
done - that's all you need.

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
...
> Well the other day we went out to use a gift certificate we had received
> for Christmas.
>
> We both started with their wedge lettuce salad - with blue cheese - and
> someone had said the word Bacon over the top. About the same way a good
> bartender says vermouth over an extra dry martini.
>
> For the entre I ordered the 14 ounce rib eye. Not wanting their teriyaki
> slathered over the steak the waiter suggested their Tuscan marinated
> steak. Never had it thought I would try it.
>
> Before I go farther I need to mention I have been put on a medication that
> prevents me from drinking alcohol. So my pre-dinner drink was 1/2 OJ and
> 1/2 club soda.
>
> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>
> Complain NO
> Send the food back - nope
> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
> again.
>
> What a rip-off.
>
> Dimitri

Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved away
to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there and
for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read anything good
about the place. And mostly it's not complaints about the food itself but
the high prices and the lack of service. And now that I've been there, I
very much agree on that.

But we finally agreed to go because he was pulling and attitude and saying
that he felt slighted. This because we combined his birthday celebration
with my dad's (they're less than two weeks apart) and didn't give him a
choice of restaurant.

Of course when we said that we all wanted to try Outback, he began to balk
and didn't seem to want to go there. Sometimes I think it's just a power
struggle thing with him. But we went. I think he had some sort of ribs
which he loved. My parents and I all had burgers, mine with no bun. I had
no real complaints about how the food tasted although I wasn't too thrilled
with the fries but I can't remember now what the problem was there. Just
felt that the amount of food I got was not much for the price I paid.
Parents seemed to like their food. Normally when we dine out, we would have
salads but we didn't get those because the price seemed outrageous.
Daughter had some sort of chicken that she wound up not liking because it
had stuff like sauce and cheese and mushrooms on it. Really it looked very
greasy and gloppy. So I can't blame her.

There was for sure a lack of service. Very slow to wait on us and
eventually did refill our drinks but only after we waited, parched for a
very long time. And slower still to bring the bill. Some of us even stood
up and in the narrow aisle hoping to gain some attention. But due to the
layout of the one we were in, nobody could see us there because nobody was
around.

I also didn't care for the design of the place. It had a dark, dirty, dingy
feel to it. Not my cup of tea to be sure but then chain places rarely are.

"sf" > wrote in message
...
> On Sun, 27 Jan 2013 21:56:50 -0800, "Dimitri" >
> wrote:
>
>> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
>> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
>> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>>
>> Complain NO
>> Send the food back - nope
>> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>> again.
>>
>> What a rip-off.
>
> The good news is: It wasn't your dime. However, whoever gave you the
> gift certificate sure got ripped off. Sorry. IMO, there are fewer
> things worse (of the non-life changing sort) than a disappointing meal
> in a restaurant.

I really wish people would not give gift certificates unless they know that
the person likes the place. Otherwise they may well be wasting their money.

Dimitri wrote:
>
> Well the other day we went out to use a gift certificate we had received for
> Christmas.
>
> We both started with their wedge lettuce salad - with blue cheese - and
> someone had said the word Bacon over the top. About the same way a good
> bartender says vermouth over an extra dry martini.
>
> For the entre I ordered the 14 ounce rib eye. Not wanting their teriyaki
> slathered over the steak the waiter suggested their Tuscan marinated steak.
> Never had it thought I would try it.
>
> Before I go farther I need to mention I have been put on a medication that
> prevents me from drinking alcohol. So my pre-dinner drink was 1/2 OJ and 1/2
> club soda.
>
> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>
> Complain NO
> Send the food back - nope
> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
> again.
>
> What a rip-off.
>
> Dimitri

Like most chain places, there are some items on the menu that are decent
and a good number that are uninspired crap. Any sort of marinated or
slathered steak would fall under the pure crap category. One of their
filets with just the basic seasoning is a much more reliable selection.
They aren't my first choice for a chain restaurant, but if that's what's
in the area or others in the group want to go there I don't have a
problem finding something reasonable on their menu.

On Sun, 27 Jan 2013 23:09:14 -0800, "Paul M. Cook" >
wrote:



>
>Who marinates a rib-eye? That is a very fine cut of beef and requires no
>marinating. A little salt and pepper and then a dab of butter on top when
>done - that's all you need.
>

Sure, when you buy a good grade of beef. They probably buy from the
lot that also goes to the dog food factory.

On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 00:03:00 -0800, "Julie Bove"
> wrote:



>
>I really wish people would not give gift certificates unless they know that
>the person likes the place. Otherwise they may well be wasting their money.
>

But evidently Dimitri has never been there so he did not know if he
liked the place or not. It was a good opportunity to find out though.

"Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 00:03:00 -0800, "Julie Bove"
> > wrote:
>
>
>
>>
>>I really wish people would not give gift certificates unless they know
>>that
>>the person likes the place. Otherwise they may well be wasting their
>>money.
>>
>
> But evidently Dimitri has never been there so he did not know if he
> liked the place or not. It was a good opportunity to find out though.

Well that could be. I hadn't been there either and was given a gift card.
I gave it away.

"Dimitri" > wrote:

>Well the other day we went out to use a gift certificate we had received for
>Christmas.
-snip-
>
>Before I go farther I need to mention I have been put on a medication that
>prevents me from drinking alcohol. So my pre-dinner drink was 1/2 OJ and 1/2
>club soda.

Don't know why you had to mention that-- but since you did, let me
pick your brain. If I made a pot of spaghetti sauce- say a couple
quarts- and I put a generous splash of wine in there- then simmered it
for an hour or two-- Would it affect you adversely?

I always try to be sure none of my guest have alcohol restrictions--
but I have caught myself a few times putting alcohol into things when
folks who don't partake are eating.

>
>Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
>IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
>smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>
>Complain NO
>Send the food back - nope
>It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>again.

I'm with you there-- I went to one 3-4 years ago. We waited 3
hours in line-- and then got a lousy meal. I can't remember what
it was the kids thought was really good. Fries? Is that the
blooming onion place?

>
>What a rip-off.

Amen-- hope the gift certificate wasn't from your sister-in-law who
*has* to hear that you had a lovely time-- so she'll give you another
one next year.<g>

Jim

On 2013-01-28, Ed Pawlowski > wrote:
>
> But evidently Dimitri has never been there so he did not know if he
> liked the place or not. It was a good opportunity to find out though.

I was treated to a dinner at OS, the first in our area. I was
favorably impressed. Enough so, a couple weeks later I treated a
friend to dinner. Same place, same day of week, say time of day, same
order. HUGE difference. My first experience was great, my second
--and last!-- was horrible. Cold veggies, tough overcooked steak,
greasy bread. Hard to believe it was the same place. I've never been
back.

This is in direct conflict with Anderson's Black Angus. Back in the
early 90s, you could go to any ABA in CA and get the identical meal.
I usta crave their lobster dinners. Broiled lobster tail for $17 and
it was cooked perfectly, every time, even at another ABA 200 miles
from home. Later, the golden goose died and ABA doubled the price on
lobster dinners overnight and QC went down the drain.

Two places, differnt beginnings, same end. Such is the reality of
chains.

nb

Jim Elbrecht wrote:
>
> Amen-- hope the gift certificate wasn't from your sister-in-law who
> *has* to hear that you had a lovely time-- so she'll give you another
> one next year.<g>

I used to think that giving money as a gift was cold and uncaring. A gift
certificate seems more thoughtful. I think differently now. If I'm not
sure what someone would like, I send them a check and call it a "universal
gift certificate." Use it where ever you want to and buy something that you
will enjoy.

Gary

On 1/27/2013 11:56 PM, Dimitri wrote:
> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>
> Complain NO
> Send the food back - nope
> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
> again.
>
> What a rip-off.


We have been going to Texas Roadhouse recently and we really like it.
http://www.texasroadhouse.com/ Steaks are good, but oddly, one of their
best dishes is the pulled pork.

The local location had a special before Christmas... for every $100 gift
card you bought, they gave you a $30 voucher... good towards any dinner
check. I think that is a significant savings so we bought a few.

George L

George wrote:

> We have been going to Texas Roadhouse recently and we really like it.
> http://www.texasroadhouse.com/ Steaks are good, but oddly, one of their
> best dishes is the pulled pork.

Speaking of roadhouses, I recently ran across this one online, but I haven't
been there yet. It looks like fun, regardless of whether the food is any
good: http://www.dingusmcgees.com/

Bob

Jim Elbrecht wrote:
>
> >Complain NO
> >Send the food back - nope
> >It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
> >again.

I used to like Outback well enough and so did my daughter.
Almost 17 years ago is the last time I went there.
It was my daughter's 16th birthday and she wanted to go there.

Well, she dressed up very nice for her birthday dinner.
Cute black dress and makeup, etc.
The waitress saw her all dressed up and old me and she immediately assumed
that I was some old guy on a date with a young girl. All during the meal,
she was very nice to my daughter and seemed really cold to me. I soon
figured out what she was (wrongly) thinking.

At the end of the meal, we asked for doggie bags for the leftover steaks.
She asked me in a very cold tone, "Will that be 2 bags, SIR, or one bag for
the same house?"

I looked at her and said, "One bag will be fine. I'm the Dad and she's my
daughter. This is her 16th birthday dinner."

Immediately she apologized to me and said that she works as a counselor and
"sees this all the time....old guys after young girls." Geez!

I told her to never assume things but I remained polite and let it go. I
could have complained to the manager and probably gotten a free meal plus
probably got the stupid waitress fired but I didn't. It still left a very
bad taste about the restaurant to me. I've never been back there since and
I will never go there again. Bad memories.


> Is that the blooming onion place?

Outback does sell the blooming onions. They are good but beware....if two
people eat one as an appetizer, you won't be very hungry for the entree
later. They are very filling.

Gary

On 1/28/2013 2:49 AM, Julie Bove wrote:
> "Dimitri" > wrote in message

>> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
>> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
>> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>>
>> Complain NO
>> Send the food back - nope
>> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>> again.
>>
>> What a rip-off.

I'm really sorry you had such an awful dinner. I like the place
well enough that I've gone there a few times. I don't rave about
it, but the one nearest to me serves decent food.

> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved away
> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there and
> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read anything good
> about the place.

"He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.

Maybe if it was my child.

nancy

On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 03:29:36 -0800, "Julie Bove"
> wrote:

>
> "Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
> ...
> > On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 00:03:00 -0800, "Julie Bove"
> > > wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >>
> >>I really wish people would not give gift certificates unless they know
> >>that
> >>the person likes the place. Otherwise they may well be wasting their
> >>money.
> >>
> >
> > But evidently Dimitri has never been there so he did not know if he
> > liked the place or not. It was a good opportunity to find out though.
>
> Well that could be. I hadn't been there either and was given a gift card.
> I gave it away.
>
Some people take a chance and try something new every now and then in
the hope they might like it; others stick to the same ole boring same
ole.

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 1/28/2013 8:22 AM, Nancy Young wrote:
>> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved
>> away
>> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there
>> and
>> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read
>> anything good
>> about the place.
>
> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.
>
> Maybe if it was my child.
>
> nancy

Okay, I wasn't going to do this but you hit the nail on the head.

If I had to beg to go to dinner somewhere, for my birthday no less!, and
was told NO by my spouse and kid I'd have taken a job miles away in NY, too.

Jill

"Nancy Young" wrote in message
...

On 1/28/2013 2:49 AM, Julie Bove wrote:
> "Dimitri" > wrote in message

>> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
>> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
>> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>>
>> Complain NO
>> Send the food back - nope
>> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>> again.
>>
>> What a rip-off.

I'm really sorry you had such an awful dinner. I like the place
well enough that I've gone there a few times. I don't rave about
it, but the one nearest to me serves decent food.

> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved away
> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there and
> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read anything
> good
> about the place.

"He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.

Maybe if it was my child.

nancy

~~~~~~~~~~~
I had the same reaction. If *anyone* in our family showed a strong desire
(and "begging" surely fits that category) to go to a restaurant, the rest of
us would have gone along with it at least once until we could all judge it
for ourselves. In particular, I would not consider it much of a birthday
gift if I had to beg to go to a particular restaurant. My view always has
been that I try to gifts that I think the recipient wants, not what I want.

MaryL

On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 07:04:41 -0600, George Leppla
> wrote:

> We have been going to Texas Roadhouse recently and we really like it.
> http://www.texasroadhouse.com/ Steaks are good, but oddly, one of their
> best dishes is the pulled pork.

We found Texas Roadhouse on our recent trip back East and it's pretty
good. Those people really know how to cook a steak and they don't
mess around with terms like rare and medium rare. They tell you the
color and the temperature. I really appreciate that attitude. What I
liked best about it was that bucket of peanuts. Nice touch! There
are none out here, but we have a near equivalent: Cattlemen's.
http://www.beststeakinthewest.com/menu.htm I like their Pete's
Special. It's the right size of meat for me and comes with a beverage
(beer, wine, soft drink, tea or coffee).

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 05:12:10 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

> George wrote:
>
> > We have been going to Texas Roadhouse recently and we really like it.
> > http://www.texasroadhouse.com/ Steaks are good, but oddly, one of their
> > best dishes is the pulled pork.
>
> Speaking of roadhouses, I recently ran across this one online, but I haven't
> been there yet. It looks like fun, regardless of whether the food is any
> good: http://www.dingusmcgees.com/
>
Check out their calamari. If it's served barely battered, we might
stop by sometime and give it a try. Thanks for mentioning it.


--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 11:21:57 -0500, jmcquown >
wrote:

>On 1/28/2013 8:22 AM, Nancy Young wrote:
>>> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved
>>> away
>>> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there
>>> and
>>> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read
>>> anything good
>>> about the place.
>>
>> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
>> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
>> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.
>>
>> Maybe if it was my child.
>>
>> nancy
>
>Okay, I wasn't going to do this but you hit the nail on the head.
>
>If I had to beg to go to dinner somewhere, for my birthday no less!, and
>was told NO by my spouse and kid I'd have taken a job miles away in NY, too.
>
>Jill

You caved before I did.
Janet US

On 1/28/2013 11:28 AM, MaryL wrote:
>
>
> "Nancy Young" wrote

>> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
>> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
>> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.


> I had the same reaction. If *anyone* in our family showed a strong
> desire (and "begging" surely fits that category) to go to a restaurant,
> the rest of us would have gone along with it at least once until we
> could all judge it for ourselves.

Really. Even if it was just a matter of them saying I really
want to try this place ... just go. I'm pretty sure sometimes
we go places he'd rather not, but neither of us thinks we are the
final decision maker around here.

It just rubbed me the wrong way.

> In particular, I would not consider
> it much of a birthday gift if I had to beg to go to a particular
> restaurant. My view always has been that I try to gifts that I think
> the recipient wants, not what I want.

Exactly. Especially you'd think the birthday person would get
to choose without having to beg. Then if it's a bad experience,
you delight in See? Told you it sucked, but you just HAD to GO!
Geez.

nancy

"Nancy Young" <replyto@inemail> wrote in message
...
> On 1/28/2013 11:28 AM, MaryL wrote:
>>
>>
>> "Nancy Young" wrote
>
>>> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
>>> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
>>> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.
>
>
>> I had the same reaction. If *anyone* in our family showed a strong
>> desire (and "begging" surely fits that category) to go to a restaurant,
>> the rest of us would have gone along with it at least once until we
>> could all judge it for ourselves.
>
> Really. Even if it was just a matter of them saying I really
> want to try this place ... just go. I'm pretty sure sometimes
> we go places he'd rather not, but neither of us thinks we are the
> final decision maker around here.
>
> It just rubbed me the wrong way.
>
>> In particular, I would not consider
>> it much of a birthday gift if I had to beg to go to a particular
>> restaurant. My view always has been that I try to gifts that I think
>> the recipient wants, not what I want.
>
> Exactly. Especially you'd think the birthday person would get
> to choose without having to beg. Then if it's a bad experience,
> you delight in See? Told you it sucked, but you just HAD to GO!
> Geez.

Semantics maybe? Each to his/her own eh?

--
--
http://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/

On 1/28/2013 11:45 AM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
> On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 11:21:57 -0500, jmcquown >
> wrote:
>
>> On 1/28/2013 8:22 AM, Nancy Young wrote:
>>>> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved
>>>> away
>>>> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there
>>>> and
>>>> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read
>>>> anything good
>>>> about the place.
>>>
>>> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
>>> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
>>> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.
>>>
>>> Maybe if it was my child.
>>>
>>> nancy
>>
>> Okay, I wasn't going to do this but you hit the nail on the head.
>>
>> If I had to beg to go to dinner somewhere, for my birthday no less!, and
>> was told NO by my spouse and kid I'd have taken a job miles away in NY, too.
>>
>> Jill
>
> You caved before I did.
> Janet US
>
LOL I did. But how selfish is that? It was *his* birthday.

Jill

Susan wrote:
>
> Outback took a very serious turn for the worse, including the
> quality/grade of their steaks some years back, after starting off strong
> as a good value. They also shrunk portions of salads and plating and
> service got sloppy.

This appears to vary by location. So far the ones near Chicago remain
good. Probably because of the competition with local places this being
a slaughterhouse city from way back.

At some point all of the Lone Star locations anywhere nearby have
closed. To me that failed to compete with the local places. The
nearest Texas Roadhouse is over an hour away and the last time we were
there it was okay.

On 1/28/2013 5:12 PM, Susan wrote:

> I live in a village with about 37 restaurants I can walk to or drive to
> in a few minutes... all sorts of price points and ethnicity, and an
> ethnic food mecca about 15 minutes away, so no chains for us as a rule.
>
Sounds like Montclair.

Hearty thanks for the candid review. I knew there was some reason I have never darkened the door of that place..and now I know why. I even won a nice Outback fifty buck gift card one time and wound up giving it to some of the kin as a Christmas present seems like. I figgered fifty bucks prob need another coupla hundred to go with..lol.

"Gary" > wrote in message ...
> Jim Elbrecht wrote:
>>
>> Amen-- hope the gift certificate wasn't from your sister-in-law who
>> *has* to hear that you had a lovely time-- so she'll give you another
>> one next year.<g>
>
> I used to think that giving money as a gift was cold and uncaring. A gift
> certificate seems more thoughtful. I think differently now. If I'm not
> sure what someone would like, I send them a check and call it a "universal
> gift certificate." Use it where ever you want to and buy something that
> you
> will enjoy.
>
> Gary

"Gary" > wrote in message ...
> Jim Elbrecht wrote:
>>
>> Amen-- hope the gift certificate wasn't from your sister-in-law who
>> *has* to hear that you had a lovely time-- so she'll give you another
>> one next year.<g>
>
> I used to think that giving money as a gift was cold and uncaring. A gift
> certificate seems more thoughtful. I think differently now. If I'm not
> sure what someone would like, I send them a check and call it a "universal
> gift certificate." Use it where ever you want to and buy something that
> you
> will enjoy.

I send personalized Visa cards to the kids and teens in my life. Costs
$5.95 extra for this but you get to pick the design on the card and add
their name. Plus it comes in a nice greeting card of your choice, again
personalized inside and they don't charge postage.

"Gary" > wrote in message ...
> Jim Elbrecht wrote:
>>
>> >Complain NO
>> >Send the food back - nope
>> >It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>> >again.
>
> I used to like Outback well enough and so did my daughter.
> Almost 17 years ago is the last time I went there.
> It was my daughter's 16th birthday and she wanted to go there.
>
> Well, she dressed up very nice for her birthday dinner.
> Cute black dress and makeup, etc.
> The waitress saw her all dressed up and old me and she immediately assumed
> that I was some old guy on a date with a young girl. All during the meal,
> she was very nice to my daughter and seemed really cold to me. I soon
> figured out what she was (wrongly) thinking.
>
> At the end of the meal, we asked for doggie bags for the leftover steaks.
> She asked me in a very cold tone, "Will that be 2 bags, SIR, or one bag
> for
> the same house?"
>
> I looked at her and said, "One bag will be fine. I'm the Dad and she's my
> daughter. This is her 16th birthday dinner."
>
> Immediately she apologized to me and said that she works as a counselor
> and
> "sees this all the time....old guys after young girls." Geez!
>
> I told her to never assume things but I remained polite and let it go. I
> could have complained to the manager and probably gotten a free meal plus
> probably got the stupid waitress fired but I didn't. It still left a very
> bad taste about the restaurant to me. I've never been back there since
> and
> I will never go there again. Bad memories.

Had an experience like that myself. My mom had gone out of town and my dad
called and asked if I wanted to go to lunch at Sea Galley. That was a local
seafood chain. I don't eat seafood but they had this HUGE salad bar and it
was all really good stuff so I loved the place for that reason. I can't
remember my age now but I was a young adult. Maybe 19 to very early 20's.

At the table next to us were two of those nosy little old ladies who talk
really loudly but think they are whispering. They were saying the most
horrible things about us and how he had robbed the cradle and stuff. My dad
was seated in such a way that he couldn't see them and he is hard of hearing
so he couldn't hear any of it. But I was seething. And to make matters
worse, in those days we didn't really look anything alike except perhaps for
our hair color but he has been nearly totally bald since I was young so what
little hair he does have isn't really noticable, plus he keeps it very
short. Now that I'm older you can see a bit of a family resemblance, but I
digress.

The thing that ticked me off was that we were just eating lunch. Neither of
us were doing anything that might have suggested in any way that there was
anything romantic going on.
>
>
>> Is that the blooming onion place?
>
> Outback does sell the blooming onions. They are good but beware....if two
> people eat one as an appetizer, you won't be very hungry for the entree
> later. They are very filling.

I never had theirs but I ordered whatever kind of onion thing Chilis has.
It was so greasy I couldn't eat it.

"notbob" > wrote in message
...
> On 2013-01-28, Ed Pawlowski > wrote:
>>
>> But evidently Dimitri has never been there so he did not know if he
>> liked the place or not. It was a good opportunity to find out though.
>
> I was treated to a dinner at OS, the first in our area. I was
> favorably impressed. Enough so, a couple weeks later I treated a
> friend to dinner. Same place, same day of week, say time of day, same
> order. HUGE difference. My first experience was great, my second
> --and last!-- was horrible. Cold veggies, tough overcooked steak,
> greasy bread. Hard to believe it was the same place. I've never been
> back.
>
> This is in direct conflict with Anderson's Black Angus. Back in the
> early 90s, you could go to any ABA in CA and get the identical meal.
> I usta crave their lobster dinners. Broiled lobster tail for $17 and
> it was cooked perfectly, every time, even at another ABA 200 miles
> from home. Later, the golden goose died and ABA doubled the price on
> lobster dinners overnight and QC went down the drain.
>
> Two places, differnt beginnings, same end. Such is the reality of
> chains.
>
> nb

I've never understood the appeal of Black Angus. Always seemed very
overpriced to me. Plus I'm not a big meat eater and they have limited
options for people like me. Yes, I know they're a steak plus but you'd
think they'd at least give a few nice salad or soup options.

We have a place here called The Keg. Husband and I used to love it. He
could get a huge nice steak, some sort of apps and I could have their lovely
salad bar. But some years ago they got rid of the salad bar, scaled back
their portions and cranked up the prices. We haven't been back. My mom and
her friend still eat there and my mom says the food is good but very
overpriced.

"sf" > wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 07:04:41 -0600, George Leppla
> > wrote:
>
>> We have been going to Texas Roadhouse recently and we really like it.
>> http://www.texasroadhouse.com/ Steaks are good, but oddly, one of their
>> best dishes is the pulled pork.
>
> We found Texas Roadhouse on our recent trip back East and it's pretty
> good. Those people really know how to cook a steak and they don't
> mess around with terms like rare and medium rare. They tell you the
> color and the temperature. I really appreciate that attitude. What I
> liked best about it was that bucket of peanuts. Nice touch! There
> are none out here, but we have a near equivalent: Cattlemen's.
> http://www.beststeakinthewest.com/menu.htm I like their Pete's
> Special. It's the right size of meat for me and comes with a beverage
> (beer, wine, soft drink, tea or coffee).
>
> --
> Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

Cattlemens is my husband's favorite restaurant. I've never been there
though because their food doesn't appeal to me.

On Monday, January 28, 2013 6:13:02 PM UTC-5, Julie Bove wrote:
> "Gary" > wrote in message ...
>
> > Jim Elbrecht wrote:
>
> >>
>
> >> >Complain NO
>
> >> >Send the food back - nope
>
> >> >It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>
> >> >again.
>
> >
>
> > I used to like Outback well enough and so did my daughter.
>
> > Almost 17 years ago is the last time I went there.
>
> > It was my daughter's 16th birthday and she wanted to go there.
>
> >
>
> > Well, she dressed up very nice for her birthday dinner.
>
> > Cute black dress and makeup, etc.
>
> > The waitress saw her all dressed up and old me and she immediately assumed
>
> > that I was some old guy on a date with a young girl. All during the meal,
>
> > she was very nice to my daughter and seemed really cold to me. I soon
>
> > figured out what she was (wrongly) thinking.
>
> >
>
> > At the end of the meal, we asked for doggie bags for the leftover steaks.
>
> > She asked me in a very cold tone, "Will that be 2 bags, SIR, or one bag
>
> > for
>
> > the same house?"
>
> >
>
> > I looked at her and said, "One bag will be fine. I'm the Dad and she's my
>
> > daughter. This is her 16th birthday dinner."
>
> >
>
> > Immediately she apologized to me and said that she works as a counselor
>
> > and
>
> > "sees this all the time....old guys after young girls." Geez!
>
> >
>
> > I told her to never assume things but I remained polite and let it go. I
>
> > could have complained to the manager and probably gotten a free meal plus
>
> > probably got the stupid waitress fired but I didn't. It still left a very
>
> > bad taste about the restaurant to me. I've never been back there since
>
> > and
>
> > I will never go there again. Bad memories.
>
>
>
> Had an experience like that myself. My mom had gone out of town and my dad
>
> called and asked if I wanted to go to lunch at Sea Galley. That was a local
>
> seafood chain. I don't eat seafood but they had this HUGE salad bar and it
>
> was all really good stuff so I loved the place for that reason. I can't
>
> remember my age now but I was a young adult. Maybe 19 to very early 20's.
>
>
>
> At the table next to us were two of those nosy little old ladies who talk
>
> really loudly but think they are whispering. They were saying the most
>
> horrible things about us and how he had robbed the cradle and stuff. My dad
>
> was seated in such a way that he couldn't see them and he is hard of hearing
>
> so he couldn't hear any of it. But I was seething. And to make matters
>
> worse, in those days we didn't really look anything alike except perhaps for
>
> our hair color but he has been nearly totally bald since I was young so what
>
> little hair he does have isn't really noticable, plus he keeps it very
>
> short. Now that I'm older you can see a bit of a family resemblance, but I
>
> digress.
>
>
>
> The thing that ticked me off was that we were just eating lunch. Neither of
>
> us were doing anything that might have suggested in any way that there was
>
> anything romantic going on.
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >> Is that the blooming onion place?
>
> >
>
> > Outback does sell the blooming onions. They are good but beware....if two
>
> > people eat one as an appetizer, you won't be very hungry for the entree
>
> > later. They are very filling.
>
>
>
> I never had theirs but I ordered whatever kind of onion thing Chilis has.
>
> It was so greasy I couldn't eat it.

Are you sure they weren't making fun of your dad for taking his pet pig to lunch?

"Nancy Young" <replyto@inemail> wrote in message
...
> On 1/28/2013 2:49 AM, Julie Bove wrote:
>> "Dimitri" > wrote in message
>
>>> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
>>> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
>>> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>>>
>>> Complain NO
>>> Send the food back - nope
>>> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>>> again.
>>>
>>> What a rip-off.
>
> I'm really sorry you had such an awful dinner. I like the place
> well enough that I've gone there a few times. I don't rave about
> it, but the one nearest to me serves decent food.
>
>> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved
>> away
>> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there
>> and
>> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read anything
>> good
>> about the place.
>
> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him Nope,
> we are not going there, quit begging.
>
> Maybe if it was my child.

So you would go to a place that had nothing that you wanted to eat? Or
could eat? And had nothing your child could eat? For years, literally the
only thing they had that my daughter could eat was a hamburger patty and a
salad. And when she was younger, she didn't like salad. They had no kind
of starch dish she could eat. The baked potatoes have margarine on the
outside and the fries contain wheat. It was only after she outgrew her
wheat intolerance that I finally agreed to do it. And it was just as I
suspected. He didn't *really* want to go there. He just knew that we
*didn't* want to go there so he made a big stink about it.

He does the same thing with Azteca which for some reason my family loves.
But then they seem to love really bland, tasteless food. My brother and my
mom dislike the Mexican restaurant that *we* love because they don't like
their sauces. And that's the exact reason why we like it! We also like
that they don't give overly huge portions, unless of course you order one of
the few dishes they offer that do come in huge portions. They usually do
have a special that is quite large.

The reason we don't like Azteca is that it seems that much of the food comes
frozen and is reheated. We got the fajitas once. The meat was tough and
the vegetables were cooked to mush. The only part we could eat was the
beans and rice. And now rice in Mexican places is often off limits to me
because it contains chicken broth. I didn't even ask in this place because
the wait staff is clueless as to what is in their food. And they tend to
bring the wrong food time and time again. But now they offer "white" rice
on their menu. I foolishly assumed this would be plain white rice. But
when it came, it had the taste to me of Minute Rice and they had thrown in
some frozen mixed vegetables. It was a gummy, bad tasting mess. The Rancho
or Ranchero or whatever they called them beans were pretty good though. So
I ordered those the next time and the white rice and this time it was as
though they just threw some random frozen veggies in. Still inedible. But
my husband just raves about their food and always wants to go there because
he knows we don't. And he garners sympathy from people by telling them
about how oppressed he is because we won't go where he wants. And it's not
as if he never goes there because we often have to go there for family
dinners.

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
...
> On 1/28/2013 8:22 AM, Nancy Young wrote:
>>> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved
>>> away
>>> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there
>>> and
>>> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read
>>> anything good
>>> about the place.
>>
>> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
>> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
>> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.
>>
>> Maybe if it was my child.
>>
>> nancy
>
> Okay, I wasn't going to do this but you hit the nail on the head.
>
> If I had to beg to go to dinner somewhere, for my birthday no less!, and
> was told NO by my spouse and kid I'd have taken a job miles away in NY,
> too.
>
> Jill

But he really *didn't* want to go there. He just heard me comment that I
*didn't* want to go there. That's the only reason he said he did. When I
finally agreed to go there, he *didn't* want to go. It's a sick little
power trip thing that he plays. And I'm not playing into it.

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
...
> On 1/28/2013 11:45 AM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>> On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 11:21:57 -0500, jmcquown >
>> wrote:
>>
>>> On 1/28/2013 8:22 AM, Nancy Young wrote:
>>>>> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved
>>>>> away
>>>>> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there
>>>>> and
>>>>> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read
>>>>> anything good
>>>>> about the place.
>>>>
>>>> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
>>>> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
>>>> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.
>>>>
>>>> Maybe if it was my child.
>>>>
>>>> nancy
>>>
>>> Okay, I wasn't going to do this but you hit the nail on the head.
>>>
>>> If I had to beg to go to dinner somewhere, for my birthday no less!, and
>>> was told NO by my spouse and kid I'd have taken a job miles away in NY,
>>> too.
>>>
>>> Jill
>>
>> You caved before I did.
>> Janet US
>>
> LOL I did. But how selfish is that? It was *his* birthday.

For your birthday would you pick a place where you knew other people didn't
want to go? I don't. I try to pick a place where everyone in the family
can eat, even if they don't have something that I particularly like. I
often have to just make do with a hamburger patty and fries or a baked
potato just because these are safe foods for me to eat. I eat at my
favorite Mexican restaurant almost once a week. I won't pick that for my
birthday choice any more because I know that my brother hates the place.

It was not just me who did not allow him to pick the place. Because he was
deliberately picking places where he knew the rest of my family did not want
to go. What good is it for us to sit there picking at a green salad while
he eats a meal? That would just give him the satisfaction of ticking us all
off which is what he wanted to do. Plus it wasn't just *his* birthday we
were celebrating. There are two other birthdays that fall during that two
week period. So my mom tried to pick a place where everyone could get
something they could eat. His beef was that we had combined the birthdays.
But... We had to do that for a reason. We all have differing schedules and
there would be no way we could all get together three times during that two
week period. Each birthday person did get their choice of cake and ice
cream.

"MaryL" > wrote in message
...
>
>
> "Nancy Young" wrote in message
> ...
>
> On 1/28/2013 2:49 AM, Julie Bove wrote:
>> "Dimitri" > wrote in message
>
>>> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
>>> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
>>> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>>>
>>> Complain NO
>>> Send the food back - nope
>>> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>>> again.
>>>
>>> What a rip-off.
>
> I'm really sorry you had such an awful dinner. I like the place
> well enough that I've gone there a few times. I don't rave about
> it, but the one nearest to me serves decent food.
>
>> Agreed. We only went there once and that was before my husband moved
>> away
>> to go to his job in NY. For years he has been begging us to eat there
>> and
>> for years we've said we wouldn't do it because I've never read anything
>> good
>> about the place.
>
> "He's" been begging but then "we" wouldn't go? Anyway, if my husband
> really wanted to go, we would just go. I can't imagine telling him
> Nope, we are not going there, quit begging.
>
> Maybe if it was my child.
>
> nancy
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~
> I had the same reaction. If *anyone* in our family showed a strong desire
> (and "begging" surely fits that category) to go to a restaurant, the rest
> of us would have gone along with it at least once until we could all judge
> it for ourselves. In particular, I would not consider it much of a
> birthday gift if I had to beg to go to a particular restaurant. My view
> always has been that I try to gifts that I think the recipient wants, not
> what I want.
>
> MaryL

Seriously? So if you knew that a person only wanted to go to a place
because they knew that the rest of the family did not, you would just go
there, sit there and not eat and let them have their meal? Okay then.

"sf" > wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 03:29:36 -0800, "Julie Bove"
> > wrote:
>
>>
>> "Ed Pawlowski" > wrote in message
>> ...
>> > On Mon, 28 Jan 2013 00:03:00 -0800, "Julie Bove"
>> > > wrote:
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >>
>> >>I really wish people would not give gift certificates unless they know
>> >>that
>> >>the person likes the place. Otherwise they may well be wasting their
>> >>money.
>> >>
>> >
>> > But evidently Dimitri has never been there so he did not know if he
>> > liked the place or not. It was a good opportunity to find out though.
>>
>> Well that could be. I hadn't been there either and was given a gift
>> card.
>> I gave it away.
>>
> Some people take a chance and try something new every now and then in
> the hope they might like it; others stick to the same ole boring same
> ole.

Yes but I had seen the menu and already knew there was nothing I wanted to
eat. The person who gave it to me was from my dentist's office. They were
trying to appease me after having screwed up my crown for yet the third
time. They had either that or a Starbucks card. Which I didn't want
either. I was like... No. Just please let me go home and forget about
this nightmare! I was so ticked off at their insistence that I take the
Outback card and maybe just go there for a drink (I don't drink) that I
could not wait to get rid of it. And then wouldn't you know I had a hard
time getting rid of it! Nobody wanted the thing because they couldn't stand
the place either! I finally had one of the receptionists at the dance
studio say that her college aged son would probably take it. And he did. I
didn't even know him! I just wanted to get rid of the thing.

I didn't know it at the time but our local food bank takes restaurant gift
cards. So if something like this ever happens again, I'll just put it in
the donation bin.

On 2013-01-29, jay > wrote:

> customer. We should have just gone to McDonalds.

Yikes! Now, that's harsh. 8|

nb

On Sunday, January 27, 2013 11:56:50 PM UTC-6, Dimitri wrote:
> Well the other day we went out to use a gift certificate we had received for
>
> Christmas.
>
>
>
> We both started with their wedge lettuce salad - with blue cheese - and
>
> someone had said the word Bacon over the top. About the same way a good
>
> bartender says vermouth over an extra dry martini.
>
>
>
> For the entre I ordered the 14 ounce rib eye. Not wanting their teriyaki
>
> slathered over the steak the waiter suggested their Tuscan marinated steak.
>
> Never had it thought I would try it.
>
>
>
> Before I go farther I need to mention I have been put on a medication that
>
> prevents me from drinking alcohol. So my pre-dinner drink was 1/2 OJ and 1/2
>
> club soda.
>
>
>
> Well the steak and the garlic smashed potatoes came. The marinated steak
>
> IMHO was uneatable. It was so salty it actually burned my tongue. The
>
> smashed potatoes were runny with little or no flavor.
>
>
>
> Complain NO
>
> Send the food back - nope
>
> It will however be a cold day in Hell if I ever set foot in an outback
>
> again.
>
>
>
> What a rip-off.
>
I've never eaten at an Outback, but 22 years ago, I used to run a crew that cleaned restaurants in the middle of the night. Some of the kitchens were gross. One seafood restaurant made one of my crew vomit. The one place whose kitchen was the cleanest was an Outback.
>
> Dimitri

--Bryan