Originally Posted by dd992emo
What I do notice in BHM, as I wander around the Summit, are all the thin middle aged blondes with with their noses in the air and a pinched look on their faces as if they perpetually smell something bad. I'd rather dine with the chubbies in Oxford.
Now THAT's funny! The ones that migrated down here all live in Fairhope...my wife calls them The Mercedes Ladies.
Next time you're there, though, notice one other thing. They all have small mouths, and you know what they say...
My friend's family down on Ono Island call them the blue plates.
Now somewhere earlier someone suggested Bucca de Pepa as a place to get a good Italian meal from a chain. Bucca is good if you go with a group of 4 or more. It isn't really a good place to go if you are alone or with one other. The meals are just too big, and if I ate one whole "meal" there on a regular basis I would definately be a customer of size.
I don't have a problem with the chain restraunts or as I call them institutionalized slow food. The advantage they have is that I usually know what I am getting when I order the meal. It is the familiarity that makes them work. However, for a chain to work it is necessary to reduce the meals to the lowest common denominator. Thus you trade "authenticity" for consistency. Sure you can usually find a better local restraunt in almost any place, but sometimes when you are on the road in a strange place you don't want to risk it.