Friday Five

By: Mr. Wilson on May 26, 2006
Five chain restaurants Lincolnites clamor for:
  1. P.F. Chang's
  2. T.G.I. Friday's
  3. Carrabba's
  4. White Castle
  5. The Cheesecake Factory
These are just five I've heard chatter about lately. From all the talk P.F. Chang's must be the bestest thing ever when it comes to Chinese food. That's probably not true, but that doesn't really matter, now does it? I've heard a surprising amount of mourning for the loss of T.G.I. Friday's after its one Lincoln location closed recently. Carrabba's is a nice Italian restaurant with a location in Omaha. White Castle ... well, in reality Mr. T is the only person I know who wants WC to come to town, but he's so passionate about it I figured I'd throw it on the list. And finally, The Cheesecake Factory is just pretty darn tasty. They make a mean Long Island Iced Tea, too.

Comments

See what your friends and neighbors have to say about this.

Sarah
May 26, 2006 at 1:25PM

I noticed that too—if a PF Changs came to town, the middle-aged women of Lincoln would collectively wet themselves with joy. 

I ate there once.  It was mediocre.  You can get a much better meal at the China Inn, sans the overly friendly servers and corporate ambiance (and at about half the price).

Steve
May 26, 2006 at 1:40PM

Steak ‘n’ Shake!!!

White Castle would be useful for 3 a.m. slider urges though.

laura
May 26, 2006 at 2:29PM

In ‘n Out Burger!!

I heard a rumor they’re going to start franchising out of California…I’ve been craving a grilled cheese and that awesome pink lemonade ever since. *sigh*

Michael
May 26, 2006 at 3:42PM

Two words: Udipi Cafe

It’s the best chain restaurant no one’s ever heard of.

Joshua Wiltshire
May 26, 2006 at 9:51PM

Laura beat me to In ‘n’ Out, but I would like to add Fatburger to the list as well as would it kill us to have a Carl’s Jr/Hardee’s around here?  (Answer, probably yes.  But still, I could totally dominate a western thickburger right now.)

D.M.B.
May 27, 2006 at 1:35AM

My vote would be for fast food chain chick-fil-a.  I love that stuff.

In-n-out would be good as well.  I’ve had it once before and it was fantastic.  Anything would have tasted great after the 5.5 mile rose bowl parade…but…it was still darn tasty.

Barbara
May 27, 2006 at 5:42AM

PF Chang’s—bleah. I’ve eaten there 3 times, at the request of others. Once, my steamed broccoli and tofu dish came out of the kitchen with completely raw broccoli. I couldn’t flag down a waitron for about 10 minutes, the place was so busy. The replacement was fine, but took 20 minutes to get to me. The second time, my food was so salty I couldn’t eat it, and I’m a salt fiend. The third time, the wait for a table was soooo not worth it. And the prices - gag.

China Inn and Yang’s Cafe are much better, and authentic, choices for those wanting good Chinese or Korean. Yum!

Barbara
May 27, 2006 at 5:46AM

Oh, I forgot to include my choice for a chain! Rush’s Hamburgers, a small local chain in Columbia, SC. How I miss their iced tea, chocolate shakes, and fries.

Check it out—but watch out for the music when you open the link: http://www.rushs.net/index.html

Mr. T
May 27, 2006 at 12:03PM

Wow funny comments here about PF Chang’s. I have never been there. Barbara - I share your fondness for China Inn. The complimentary seaweed and kimchi is a nice touch and its good too. I have never been to Yang’s either. I’ll have to give that a try the next time I’m willing to navigate through that mess out there.

Karin
May 27, 2006 at 3:40PM

I recently ate at the California Pizza Kitchen that just opened up in Omaha, and I wouldn’t mind one of those here.

There’s also a fabulous Chinese Buffet in Omaha that I would LOVE to have here. It beats PF Phangs and the Mongolian Graill, and it’s cheaper. (It has some generic name like “China Buffet”)

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