What are your top five favorite popular restaurant chains?

[. . .]

Mine, in order, would probably have to be:

1. Subway
2. Pizza Hut
3. A&W
4. KFC
5. McDonalds

 

[Geordie]

For me, it'd be

1. Subway
2. Long Johns Silvers (for its good service)
3. Domino's Pizza
4. Pizza Hut
5. A&W

 

[. . .]

For me, it'd be

1. Subway
2. Long Johns Silvers (for its good service)
3. Domino's Pizza
4. Pizza Hui
5. A&W

I'm surprised that you have A&W there. I don't think that Americans even have A&W.

I could've sworn that Canada was the only country that had A&W.

 

[Geordie]

When A&W was in Singapore, I loved everything A&W offered. Yep it closed, along with perhaps Taco Bell, but these two will always rank above MCDonalds' and KFC

 

[kasmanaft08]

I'm surprised that you have A&W there. I don't think that Americans even have A&W.

I could've sworn that Canada was the only country that had A&W.

Yes, I remember seeing one or two in Texas.
But I've never been.

 

[kasmanaft08]

Mine,

Honestly I hate most food chains and will usually opt for some cheap (get awesome) hole in the wall place with ****** decor yet awesome food.
But I do like some:

1. McDonalds
2. Whataburger
3. Taco Bell
4. Sonic
5. I have a tough time deciding on #5, because beyond those four I never really ate anywhere else.
Oh Wait- IHOP/****** diners at midnight. That's my number 5 if it counts!

 

[IContainMultitudes]

Yes, I remember seeing one or two in Texas.
But I've never been.

There's an A&W where I live. I think I only went there once or twice a long time ago. Don't remember it being anything really spectacular. Maybe they're better in Canada; I think the quality of some chain restaurants/fast food places sometimes varies by country.

My favorite chain restaurant is probably Schlotzsky's Deli, which I think is a mainly Texas-based one (the first one was in Austin). You can get both deli sandwiches on sourdough bread and little personal pizzas. I tend to get the latter, which is what I had for dinner last night (it was a "Mediterranean" pizza with pesto sauce and olives and a few other vegetables). I used to also really like Popeye's Chicken, but unfortunately the two locations where I live closed even though they always seemed to be getting plenty of business. I haven't actually eaten at one in years, but I have a little bit of a nostalgic attachment to Luby's Cafeterias since that's where I always went for lunch with my grandparents (the ones on my mom's side who I liked more) when I was a kid during the summer or whenever I was out of school (the regular thing I got was the fried fish filet even though I'm not normally a big fish/seafood person). Don't have one of those here anymore either. If I needed two more to make it a top five list, I'd say...Quizno's and Rosa's Cafe (a Mexican place that I think is another mainly Texas-based chain).

Of course, being a little on the overweight side (I have managed to drop some weight in the past few years through getting better with diet and exercise, thankfully), I try not to make any of that stuff too big a part of my diet (I really need to learn how to actually cook for myself one of these days; my occasional experiments in that area tend to be on the edible-but-not-very-good side of things).

Kasmanaft08, what are some good Netherlands/Europe-based places? (And how often do people over there actually eat their fries with mayonnaise like John Travolta describes in Pulp Fiction? I have sort of the same reaction to that as Samuel L. Jackson. Maybe they have better mayonnaise over there though.)

BTW, here's an article I came across the other day about how a few restaurant chains that either shut down or are barely still in business in the US manage to still be popular in places like China and the Philippines. I thought it was kind of interesting (Geordie, how many of these places are there in Singapore?).

The Secret Second Life of Kenny Rogers Roasters ... in Asia - TIME

 

[. . .]

Mine,

Honestly I hate most food chains and will usually opt for some cheap (get awesome) hole in the wall place with ****** decor yet awesome food.
But I do like some:

1. McDonalds
2. Whataburger
3. Taco Bell
4. Sonic
5. I have a tough time deciding on #5, because beyond those four I never really ate anywhere else.
Oh Wait- IHOP/****** diners at midnight. That's my number 5 if it counts!

McDonald's is #1 on your list? :shocked:

I've never disliked McDonald's, but I've always found it to be not much better than mediocre. Their Big Macs are good, but their plain cheeseburgers are beyond plain; there's barely anything on them. Their fries are also plain, although they're rather good. I dunno - McDonald's is just vastly overrated IMO. I'd go to Subway any day over McDonald's. I think that McDonald's is better than it used to be though. Seems like you can get a wider variety of stuff there now.

 

[kasmanaft08]

@Aillas:
Hahaha, everyone has something to say about my McDonalds consumption! For the most part I have a pretty cultured and decent taste, but I do contradict it with a lot of bland ass food.

My McDonalds thing has spread so much that every time I go to a different country I do make it a point to visit their McDonalds. And I will say, I've found some interesting differences. A lot of people think the food tastes different, but I can't find any differences in the meat like everyone says. It's more about what they offer. Here in the Netherlands, instead of ketchup there's frietsaus...which is like a little tub of green sauce that tastes like a mixture of mayonnaise and pickles. It sounds disgusting, but it's actually awesome in my opinion.

But I think it's extra funny that you mentioned Subway, because how you feel about McDonalds is exactly how I feel about Subway. If you even mentioning taking me to a Subway, be prepared for the lecture and general pissyness. Or, well, that's another thing I've been told about myself anyhow.

@ICM:
I have yet to find an actual fast-food chain recognizable by name here, although I'm sure there are some. Here the common fast food is the infamous mayonnaise soaked fries and a few other deep fried random meat/cheese items [which reminds of me deep fried hot pockets or pigs in a blanket]. The fries and mayonnaise is something that I've come to appreciate and love, except be aware- that in some forms, it really does come how John Travolta says it does (something I originally thought was an exaggeration until I learned otherwise). So a little tip, always order them in a tray where possible- or a cone big enough to rip open and used the soaked layer as a dipping area. I also will point out I think the mayonnaise does certainly taste different, which is hard to explain. I don't think I could eat American mayonnaise straight like that.

They do have something that's really popular with fries as an alternative, which is peanut sauce...basically (to me) it tastes like warmed up salty peanut butter smeared all over fries, which, as you may have guessed, is disgusting as hell.

 

[Droopy]

Here is my list:

1. Hooters. Love the wing sauce and if they ever sold it at the supermarket then I would buy a bucket load. My favourite food is also chicken.
2. Sonic. I got introduced to Sonic a number of years ago on my first visit to the US, my uncle was an award wining manager for Arkansas and then Kansas. Cherry Limeades FTW!
3. Ruby Tuesday. Loved this place all round but particularly their ribs.
4. The Outback. If I recall correctly, this place had a thing called either "The Bloomin Onion" or was it "Texas Rose" which was awesome.
5. TGI Fridays & Chili's. Again, liked both of these places all round.

My second list, based on mainly fast food places that we have in the UK:

1. Dominos Pizza. My favourite pizza place and much better then Pizza Hut.
2. Burger King. Love their burger called "Steakhouse Angus".
3. KFC. Again, chicken is my favourite food.
4. Subway, I'll choose this place when I'm in the mood for a sandwich.
5. McDonalds. My main gripe with McDonalds is that the food never seems to fill.

 

[juffur]

I'm surprised that you have A&W there. I don't think that Americans even have A&W.

I could've sworn that Canada was the only country that had A&W.

A&W is an American restaurant chain. A very famous one at that.



My top five:
1. Wienerschnitzel
2. Jack in the box
3. Casper's Hot dogs
4. A&W
5. Pizzaguys

 

[NeverEnder]

@Aillas:
Hahaha, everyone has something to say about my McDonalds consumption! For the most part I have a pretty cultured and decent taste, but I do contradict it with a lot of bland ass food.

My McDonalds thing has spread so much that every time I go to a different country I do make it a point to visit their McDonalds. And I will say, I've found some interesting differences. A lot of people think the food tastes different, but I can't find any differences in the meat like everyone says. It's more about what they offer. Here in the Netherlands, instead of ketchup there's frietsaus...which is like a little tub of green sauce that tastes like a mixture of mayonnaise and pickles. It sounds disgusting, but it's actually awesome in my opinion.

But I think it's extra funny that you mentioned Subway, because how you feel about McDonalds is exactly how I feel about Subway. If you even mentioning taking me to a Subway, be prepared for the lecture and general pissyness. Or, well, that's another thing I've been told about myself anyhow.

@ICM:
I have yet to find an actual fast-food chain recognizable by name here, although I'm sure there are some. Here the common fast food is the infamous mayonnaise soaked fries and a few other deep fried random meat/cheese items [which reminds of me deep fried hot pockets or pigs in a blanket]. The fries and mayonnaise is something that I've come to appreciate and love, except be aware- that in some forms, it really does come how John Travolta says it does (something I originally thought was an exaggeration until I learned otherwise). So a little tip, always order them in a tray where possible- or a cone big enough to rip open and used the soaked layer as a dipping area. I also will point out I think the mayonnaise does certainly taste different, which is hard to explain. I don't think I could eat American mayonnaise straight like that.

They do have something that's really popular with fries as an alternative, which is peanut sauce...basically (to me) it tastes like warmed up salty peanut butter smeared all over fries, which, as you may have guessed, is disgusting as hell.

Fries and mayonnaise - I ate them everyday in Amsterdam.

The funny thing is, I despise mayonnaise, generally, and would never eat it. Still don't.

But I LOVE it on fries! View attachment 1319

 

[Droopy]

Oh Wait- IHOP/****** diners at midnight. That's my number 5 if it counts!

I was at an IHOP once the last time I was in America. A couple were having their wedding reception in IHOP as that was where they first met.

Are you sure that's all you love about the place? :coolM:

I also love the curly fries... and the chicken wings.

 

[Geordie]

I also love the curly fries... and the chicken wings.

Now I wish I can have Hooters

 

[GhettoButterFly]

Hm... everyone's top five is awesome, but here are mine.

Fast Food/Pizza
1. Burger King (All right for local fast food chains! <3)
2. Taco Bell (Mmm Hadn't ate there in a long time, but it's good)
3. KFC (Gotta <3 the Colonel)
4. Wendy's (Sea salt fries are awesome!)
5. Pizza Hut (I love their stuffed crust!)

I'll list a 6 and a 7 just for the fun of it.

6. McDonalds (Only because they have Cafe Con Leche now, and I like their desserts)
7. Domino's Pizza (I get to track my food!)

Now for Restaurants
1. Chili's (I want my baby back and fish...)
2. TGI Fridays (Their real food is just as good as their frozen foods)
3. Flanagan's (I know I might not had spelled it right, but they are an awesome Local chain! !)
4. Denny's (Mmm breakfast!)
5. Steak and Shake (STEAK AND SHAKE! That's what you should eat for breakfast! No seriously though, their shakes are good.)

That's my extreme list everyone. Did you know Burger King is a Fast Food chain based in Florida? It started in Jacksonville and moved to Miami to start the rest of the business. ^_^;

 

[Geordie]

An offer in my local BK:

View attachment 1325

 

[. . .]

An offer in my local BK:

View attachment 1325

Looks good. Send me one in the mail, OK?

 

[. . .]

. . . And how often do people over there actually eat their fries with mayonnaise like John Travolta describes in Pulp Fiction? I have sort of the same reaction to that as Samuel L. Jackson. Maybe they have better mayonnaise over there though.

Mayonnaise on fries is great, but I usually just use ketchup.

 

[kasmanaft08]

Mayonnaise on fries is great, but I usually just use ketchup.

In Texas, I've seen a lot of people mix the two (or alternatively use ranch dressing).
But that could be a Texas thing.

 

[Droopy]

In Texas, I've seen a lot of people mix the two (or alternatively use ranch dressing).
But that could be a Texas thing.

I love both but I'm not sure I would mix them. I might try it sometime though.