I regularly eat at a J. Alexanders in Cleveland and agree that it's pretty good. I've never had a steak there, but the seafood I've ordered has been well prepared.

I have no complaints with the food at Logan's, but the atmosphere gives me heartburn: too bright, too noisy, too many servers running willy-nilly, too focused on table turnover, I hate them having a server go table to table selling gift cards all December-long.

There is something specifically wrong about each chain restaurant. By definition, they're run by people who are more concerned about things like food cost and adhering to whatever their regional manager says than they are in your overall experience. I've never been impressed by franchise restaurant I've been in (high end steak houses included). Personally, I would rank Burger King/Wendy's above the chains everyone has talked about here. At least they help me when I'm hungover.

If more of the business travel set actively sought out independent restaurants, then we wouldn't be faced with the generic mass manufactured crap that chains sell.

Houlihan's! Yes, we're 2 San Francisco foodie snobs and were a bit peeved that Houlihan's was the only restaurant in the Buffalo Marriott. We were there to see family and decided to bite the bullet, since it would be too difficult to coordinate anything else. Very, very pleasantly surprised w/the quality of all of the food, especially the grilled Ahi salad and other seafood choices (yes, in Buffalo!!!) You learn something new every day...

Miller's Ale House in Florida ^

Yea! In post #332 someone finally got the point of the thread. I started this thread in hopes of finding a decent chain restaurant that bucked the supposition you made that they are more about business than providing a good meal. There are clearly a few such restaurants that do well, but the vast majority is quite poor.

This business traveler does NOT eat at chain restaurants. Unless I'm hung over in a place like Japan and faced with raw squid or a cheeseburger for breakfast.

Of all the chains I know about, the only one I actually seek out in any city is P. F. Changs. In the case of Asian food, I prefer knowing what I'm going to get without surprise.

Thanks for the recommendation on The Smokehouse...I'll check them out.

I love the beef-n-cheddar croissant at Portillo's too...and another Chicago-area joint called Brooster's Chicken...my god, I can't get enough of their chicken.

When visiting my parents who now live in Canada, Earl's and Montana's are the two places we usually go out for a nicer meal.

Unlike most people, I just don't have much of a problem with Chili's and TGI Friday's. I rather like Friday's, to be honest.

P.F. Chang's and In 'N Out are reliably good, but I've eaten a couple times at Applebee's and never liked the food there.
We've eaten there twice recently and at both locations, the food and service were very good.

I think P.F. Changs is delicious. Their lemon scallops is one of my very favorite things, snobby or not. They don't have one here in San Francisco, but they are in the suburbs all around us, so we make the odd pilgrimage just to go there on ocassion. And being from Dallas we know our chain restaurants. The entire Papas line is good, from burger to seafood to barbeque.

Great American Restaurants, group of about 6 in Northern Virginia. Best crabcakes at a chain restaurant, all food/service is great, prices very reasonable.

Noodles, Inc.!

Here in NC, the 4-restaurant (chain?) Lucky32 in Greensboro, Cary, Raleigh and Winston-Salem is excellent. http://www.lucky32.com/
and the five Rocky Top Hospitality Restaurants (I've enjoyed Michael Deans) http://www.rockytophospitality.com/facilities.asp
are a nice change of pace from the Ruth Chris, Angus Barn or 42nd St. Oyster Bar that business travelers frequent in the triangle area. My favorite local chain were the restaurants run by Giorgios Bakatsias, til he got busted for tax problems. When he is not womanizing, he is one fantastic cook. His George's Garage http://www.ghgrestaurants.com/garage/garage.html and Cafe Parizade http://www.ghgrestaurants.com/pariza...estaurant.html in Durham are the remaining restaurants and are both outstanding.

-outoftown

cheap filling food:
in and out
del taco (esp. the one in barstow, ca)

sit down ordering:
p.f. changs (decent and less chance of bichi bichi)
cpk (consistent and great with a good local/season beer)

PERHAPS the China Grill NYC or Vegas locations, the Chicago China Grill restaurant is terrible, just went last night

Crappy Service and WAY too much $$ for the quality:

Mid 30's waitress calling my wife (mid 40's) "baby" as in "Oh I'm sorry baby, I'll bring the drink you asked for", didn't listen well to our questions about the menu, brought out wrong entrees, poor & incorrect pacing of items ordered. Acoustics in the restaurant stink, not easy to hear your partner.

Lamb Ribs - could have been a stellar item but they put the plum sauce on way too early so it burnt rather than caramelized.
Lobster pancakes - very good item.
Drunken Chicken - so f'in dry, not good at all.
Duck Fried Rice - decent fried rice with good amounts of duck in it.

For the above & 3 drinks, I can think of MUCH better places to spend $150. Won't be back.

Stimpy, for shame! There are Flunch, Melodine (both same owner), the lunchstands in Lafayette Gourment (great!), the Crespi restaurants (La Pizza) and dozens more. France also has excellent Routiers, most of which are parts of chains. Just because they're chains does not mean one must accept US prefabricated food. We do not want to talk of Quick and the other French McDonds imitations because there are so many McDo with decent beer to be had in France, all with the genuine US stale grease smells.