The Swamp

Red Lobster's biscuits are like the crack rock.

Sounds like AB was at Red Lobster last night

rass wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 9:09 am Sounds like AB was at Red Lobster last night

I'm all hopped up on mountain dew, old man!

Maybe this belongs in the confessions thread, but when I was a kid, I thought Red Lobster was fancy.

I think that's a very specific regional thing and I grew up inside that region.

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 9:21 am Maybe this belongs in the confessions thread, but when I was a kid, I thought Red Lobster was fancy.

100%. It was a destination dinner when we came to the big city.

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 9:21 am Maybe this belongs in the confessions thread, but when I was a kid, I thought Red Lobster was fancy.

It isn't? Red Lobster and Olive Garden.

I think we forget how unsophisticated dining was not all that long ago. Olive Garden and Red Lobster were absolutely considered nice in the 90s.

Giff wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 10:38 am I think we forget how unsophisticated dining was not all that long ago. Olive Garden and Red Lobster were absolutely considered nice in the 90s.

In my hometown, I think they still are.

I could go on and on about the dining in my hometown. It's really great and I'm just talking my suburb, not the actual city of Houston which is the most underrated food city in the US, easily.

In my little hometown we were all excited and thought we had arrived when we got a Wendy’s and an Arby’s! (A long time ago.)

Red Lobster, yes, because there weren't seafood places around me growing up. Olive Garden, no, because there were plenty of local and better italian places. I imagine areas where TGIFridays or Chili's thrive are filled with bars where you wouldn't eat and/or can't bring your kids.

mister d wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 11:25 am Red Lobster, yes, because there weren't seafood places around me growing up. Olive Garden, no, because there were plenty of local and better italian places. I imagine areas where TGIFridays or Chili's thrive are filled with bars where you wouldn't eat and/or can't bring your kids.

When I was 25, I got a good job in Texas, so I pulled up stakes and moved there, not knowing a soul. My apartment was next door to a Tgifridays. I ate dinner there almost all the time until I got settled in and made some friends. Got to know the bartender and got free beer in exchange for good tips.

A couple decades ago in LA, one of my friends who is originally from Baltimore decided he wanted to go to Red Lobster for his birthday just to go and the closest one was in Beverly Hills. Red Lobster in Beverly Hills.

DSafetyGuy wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:32 pm A couple decades ago in LA, one of my friends who is originally from Baltimore decided he wanted to go to Red Lobster for his birthday just to go and the closest one was in Beverly Hills. Red Lobster in Beverly Hills.

Full of locals, I'm sure. They must have the absolute worst waitstaff, because I'd imagine you could make serious tip money at non-touristy BH restaurants.

I've done Outback on the Strip for some cheese fries and a Wallaby Darned to-go.

Giff wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:46 pm Wallaby Darned

How do you order that with a straight face? That's worse than Denny's' Moons Over My Hammie.

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:36 pm

DSafetyGuy wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:32 pm A couple decades ago in LA, one of my friends who is originally from Baltimore decided he wanted to go to Red Lobster for his birthday just to go and the closest one was in Beverly Hills. Red Lobster in Beverly Hills.

Full of locals, I'm sure. They must have the absolute worst waitstaff, because I'd imagine you could make serious tip money at non-touristy BH restaurants.

It's long since closed. I missed that occasion due to work and it's so long ago, I don't recall the reaction. It was barely in Beverly Hills, as the other side of the street was across the corporation line.

The overwhelming majority of the chain restaurant geography is so weird out there, it's almost like it's zoned. If there was a coupon flyer for any of the big chains in the Sunday paper that listed the LA-area locations, they were all north of Ventura Blvd and south of LAX, leaving the Westside (Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Culver City, Marina del Rey) completely free of them.

Some Friday or Saturday night, we were hanging at a friend's place and saw a commercial for Chili's. The four of us started talking about their chips and queso and decided we had to have it. A 40-minute drive in no traffic from the Marina to Torrance later....

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:51 pm

Giff wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:46 pm Wallaby Darned

How do you order that with a straight face? That's worse than Denny's' Moons Over My Hammie.

The Rooty Tooty Fresh N' Fruity would like in on the dance.

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 9:21 am Maybe this belongs in the confessions thread, but when I was a kid, I thought Red Lobster was fancy.

I've heard a stand-up comedian (maybe Brooks Whelan?) do a bit about Red Lobster being fancy. The main punchline was something like 'You can't wear shorts to Red Lobster!'

BSF21 wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 2:12 pm

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:51 pm

Giff wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:46 pm Wallaby Darned

How do you order that with a straight face? That's worse than Denny's' Moons Over My Hammie.

The Rooty Tooty Fresh N' Fruity would like in on the dance.

I once ordered a Fruity Frenchman and now it's been an inside joke in my family for 18 years.

Even in a town with a kind of decent restaurant scene back in the day, going out to the Red Lobster in Ann Arbor was certainly "going out to a nice dinner" back in the day.

Context: We were poor as fuck when I was a kid.

Red lobster is pretty $$$

HaulCitgo wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 11:42 am Red lobster is pretty $$$

Oh it's still "fancy" for all those people that are growing up now the way a lot of us seem to have grown up. And to be perfectly honest, Lexington doesn't have a lot of good sit-down seafood. I'd say we go once a year or something like that.

Atlanta not much either. There were way way way too many crab shack places opening the years before the pandemic most not good. Juicy crab seems to have won the race to franchise expansion and it's the right combo of cheap and filling in a Red lobsterish model. The best here are the few and far between fresh fish on ice beneath the glass and they steam for you places. Somehow no fry there usually. The best fried places come and go in a year or two. Been two since I came to Georgia. I think both got their pricing wrong (way too cheap) cause they were packed and it was great.

Of all the 'fast casual' dining experiences (Applebee's, Chili's, TGIFridays..etc), Red Lobster is certainly the better of all them. And it was certainly a "treat" dinner growing up.

As far as what I'm drinking: Bumbu Rum. It's so damn good.

So herbs in the pic but no herbs in the recipe. Mmmhmm.

Eh, all equally bad. But those other three were subsitutes for bars and clubs.

mister d wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 12:54 pm So herbs in the pic but no herbs in the recipe. Mmmhmm.

All of the comments:



You put you HERB in it!

mister d wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 12:54 pm So herbs in the pic but no herbs in the recipe. Mmmhmm.

RIF

Cook's Note:
You can add about 1 teaspoon of garlic powder and/or 2 teaspoons dried parsley to the melted butter to then brush on top of the biscuits.

I’m not much of a drinker, I’m not even a smoker these days, but I’ll be enjoying some vodka and tonics around the Rosh Hashanah table tonight. Been that kind of 48 hours.

That’ll set you on your feet again

rass wrote: ↑Sat Sep 19, 2020 3:40 pm That’ll set you on your feet again

Wish there was a like button to show appreciation.

It’s a really nice night and it’s late September so there are a dwindling few left this year but I’ve cut myself off at one Old Fashioned because one of the wiener kids had XC practice and then was going to go to a diner near the HS to scarf down pasta with her teammates before a “scrimmage” meet tomorrow and someone has to pick her up afterwards and my wife got drunk before I had a chance to.

rass wrote: ↑Fri Sep 25, 2020 4:22 pm It’s a really nice night and it’s late September so there are a dwindling few left this year but I’ve cut myself off at one Old Fashioned because one of the wiener kids had XC practice and then was going to go to a diner near the HS to scarf down pasta with her teammates before a “scrimmage” meet tomorrow and someone has to pick her up afterwards and my wife got drunk before I had a chance to.

Damn. Life is rough in New Jersey.

when tf did y'all start drinking?

230. Scotch on ice.

Brontoburglar wrote: ↑Fri Sep 25, 2020 4:32 pm when tf did y'all start drinking?

Wednesday.

March