Americans are such gourmets - PF Changs, give me a break!

Chipotle was brilliant. "Keep it simple" seems to work and at least I and my US residing family members like it a lot. Next trip they promised to introduce me to Five Guys so after the FT stamp of approval looking forward to that.

Hongkong and Taiwan origin Chinese food chains also tend to be quite good and I sometimes feel safer to eat there than in "real" restaurants on the mainland.

Houstons is great!

I really try to avoid chain restaurants, but four that I find "acceptable" or even better:

- Houston's (definitely agree with the above)

- Seasons 52 (couldn't believe that Darden owned this)

- Mitchell's Fishhouse (good fresh fish and oyster selection daily)

- Longhorn Steakhouse (I'm going to get nailed for this one, but for a decent steak and side at a good price, I go here about once a month)

I like it that any city I go to usually has an Outback and I can order grilled salmon with green beans. Maybe add some scallops or a salad. It's difficult sometimes finding food that is somewhat healthy and Outback grills their salmon really well. I tell them no bread (even though their bread is yummy).

I also really like Carrabbas. Their Chicken Bryan and Pollo Rosa Maria are both very good and I order them with the vegetable of the day, which I always hope will be the zucchini, which is wonderful in a marinara sauce with some Parmesan. Again, they have lovely bread, but I have them hold it.

Obviously off topic of chains, but if there is a Wegmans or Whole Foods in town, its nice to be able to pick something up and take it to go. They've got lovely prepared foods, and if I'm lucky enough that my hotel room has a refrigerator, I can get something to bring in for lunch the next day, too.

I'll agree with Wegman's, but Whole Foods is a little too 'I'm Green and earth mothery' for me -- I guess I'm not really into bean sprouts and 'organic' .

I'm not either but I've found that Whole Foods has great sushi to go and will make you a good sandwich. Plus their meat is excellent, I routinely get steaks at the Durham, NC Whole Foods when I'm visiting my parents.

Two come to mind, and might I say that I am very picky about my food.

Elephant Bar (http://www.elephantbar.com/) has a few locations so I guess it would be considered a chain restaurant, and their food has a better all around quality than most high end restaurants. Nothing is ever frozen, and they have highly trained chefs not just 'kitchen personell'.

The other one is Texas Roadhouse (http://www.texasroadhouse.com/) where I have head the best steak in over a decade.

I am anti-chain but have to admit to having a really good meal at the PF Chang's at the Natick/Boston mall. I then took friends to the one on the Plaza in KC and it sucked, so go figure.

One of my last trips to the states was a ten day outing to NoVA where, out of convenience, I ate in mostly chain restaurants every day and couldn't find a one I liked. That bland spree included Macaroni Grill, Legal Seafood, Capitol Grille, and others too numerous to mention. My best meal was at Ichi Ban in Mclean.

One of my favorites is Carraba's. They have a great spiced oil for bread dipping, my favorite calamari and an off-menu Scotty Thompson bruschetta (at least in Las Vegas). The pizzas are fairly good but the quality drops off after the openers/appetizers.

Agree with both and are within 5 minute walk from each other in Boca.

My favorite chains are Ruth's Chris and Roy's. Since I've been on the West Coast, I've not really eaten at Legal Seafood, but when I was living in New England 20+ years ago, Legal would certainly have made the cut. But I can't speak for whether or not the quality remains the same as it was back then.

Good casual dining is the regional Rafferty's. Located in the mid-south.

Cracker Barrel is good if you want comfort food.

I ate at a Five Guys tonight and it may be the best fast hamburger I have had in some time. A bit greasy, but in a good way.

Don�t forget the gift shop filled with tasteful souvenirs.

If you were to cut me open, you'd probably find that I'm 50% Chipotle.