The Swamp

Just noticed the tomato soup add on. I bet that’s pretty good!

Shake Shack fries are bad.

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:32 pm Shake Shack fries are bad.

I like them, especially compared to most burger joints. As good as In-N-Out's burgers are, their fries are almost always undercooked and gross.

In a related story, I discovered there's a Whataburger in the DFW international terminal so that was my lunch yesterday. (Another place with great burgers and shitty fries.)

brian wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:39 pm

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:32 pm Shake Shack fries are bad.

I like them, especially compared to most burger joints. As good as In-N-Out's burgers are, their fries are almost always undercooked and gross.

Oh hell yeah!

In a related story, I discovered there's a Whataburger in the DFW international terminal so that was my lunch yesterday. (Another place with great burgers and shitty fries.)

Oh hell no!

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:32 pm Shake Shack fries are bad.

WHOA. WHOA. SLOW DOWN THERE PAL.

tennbengal wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:57 pm

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:32 pm Shake Shack fries are bad.

WHOA. WHOA. SLOW DOWN THERE PAL.

Unpopular opinion coming...















Shake Shack is bad

tennbengal wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:57 pm

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:32 pm Shake Shack fries are bad.

WHOA. WHOA. SLOW DOWN THERE PAL.

No different than any crinkle cut you could get in the freezer section.

I was so excited for one to finally open in Tampa after having been to ones in NYC and Orlando, but I have been disappointed nearly every time I've gone.

The McRib is the same exact same god awful 'pork rib sandwich' I remember from grade school lunch. Why are people always happy it's back?

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 4:06 pm

tennbengal wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:57 pm

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:32 pm Shake Shack fries are bad.

WHOA. WHOA. SLOW DOWN THERE PAL.

No different than any crinkle cut you could get in the freezer section.

I don't much care for shake shack and the fries are probably the biggest reason.

Krystal all in with the side chik campaign. Funny stuff. Not every company would go for that. There's a trap Krystal location here also. Guess they know their market.

Don’t tempt me Arby’s!!

"I'm putting this whole fahkin' town in my cawfee regulah."

govmentchedda wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 4:05 pm

tennbengal wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:57 pm

mister d wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:32 pm Shake Shack fries are bad.

WHOA. WHOA. SLOW DOWN THERE PAL.

Unpopular opinion coming...















Shake Shack is bad

I just got back into town after a long drive back from FL so we ordered in tonight. Shake Shack was it. The burger and the shack sauce were decent. The fries aren't particularly good. Maybe they're not even average. Sorta dry. Overall score is a "meh."

mister d wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 1:51 pm I think its a semi-new trend? Like I don't recall one in Boston until after we moved unless you count Quincy Market.

Nonlinear FC wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 1:56 pm It is a rapidly growing trend. Hell, Rockville has 2 of 'em. (One is Asian focused, the other is more general fare. Both quite good.)

We loved the one in Boston. And it's right next to Trillium, so that was an added bonus.

Didn't want to continue the threadjacking...

I mean, I think Quincy Market can be considered an OG variation of a food hall. It has always been there, but slicker food halls uptrended (not a word) once people from our generations became adults and we turned the nostalgia of a mall's food court (minus the mall) into an easy way to decide on a place to eat. (My working theory.) Add in some gentrification, and there you have it.

What's considered semi-new? Green Jeans, in ABQ, opened in 2016. That happens to coincide with when I came back stateside. (Also, I include food truck rallies into this trend. Or at least a cousin of it.)

Tucson has American Eats Co, the Boxyard, and the recently opened Comida Park. (The latter is for food trucks to park next to the Swap Meet.) San Antonio has one in the Pearl District. Columbus, OH has one called Short North. ABQ also has Sawmill, Tin Can Alley, and 505 Central. Shoot, I was recently in Salem, OR and they have The Yard. 16 food trucks parked around a brewery.

Typically the food is always good at these places too which is great.

On another note, Portillo's opens in Tucson next week. I'm excited to try it finally.

I consider Quincy Market to fit the Food Hall bill. In law school I had an internship a couple blocks away from QM and we ate there regularly. The newer trend is more fancy and trendier foods. Bourdain was supposed to open a food hall to match the markets of Singapore and Hong Kong. I recently read that they are still moving forward with that project. Hitting those markets is a life goal, and I love travel shows that visit places like that. Also obsessed with street food from India, Thailand, Vietnam...

I absolutely agree that they are great for groups meeting up, who often have pretty widely divergent tastes in food.

Hell, they are perfect for my family, where the wife and I will try just about everything, my daughter is coming around but still kind of picky, and my son still only eats some variation of chicken tenders/sandwiches.

We hit up Avanti in Denver... Pretty good, but difficult finding seating. (Outdoors was too hot that day.) I know there are at least 3 more popular ones, we just having gotten around to them. (Paging GoodKarma.)

Oh, and D.C. joined this fray with the fairly large Union Market right down by Galludet. Pretty great venue.

Nonlinear FC wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 2:51 pm I absolutely agree that they are great for groups meeting up, who often have pretty widely divergent tastes in food.

Hell, they are perfect for my family, where the wife and I will try just about everything, my daughter is coming around but still kind of picky, and my son still only eats some variation of chicken tenders/sandwiches.

We hit up Avanti in Denver... Pretty good, but difficult finding seating. (Outdoors was too hot that day.) I know there are at least 3 more popular ones, we just having gotten around to them. (Paging GoodKarma.)

Denver Central Market, The Source and Milk Market in Denver/downtown-ish. Stanley Marketplace, Edgewater Public Market & Junction in the immediate area.

GoodKarma wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 2:58 pm

Nonlinear FC wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 2:51 pm I absolutely agree that they are great for groups meeting up, who often have pretty widely divergent tastes in food.

Hell, they are perfect for my family, where the wife and I will try just about everything, my daughter is coming around but still kind of picky, and my son still only eats some variation of chicken tenders/sandwiches.

We hit up Avanti in Denver... Pretty good, but difficult finding seating. (Outdoors was too hot that day.) I know there are at least 3 more popular ones, we just having gotten around to them. (Paging GoodKarma.)

Denver Central Market, The Source and Milk Market in Denver/downtown-ish. Stanley Marketplace, Edgewater Public Market & Junction in the immediate area.

F'in A.

How's that for info on demand.

I'm sure a lot of it is mental, but whenever there's a real food hall (versus one where ownership creates the various stalls or they do a best of known chefs), I always assume everything is going to be great. Like real actual concepts that maybe can't afford a full restaurant but get more space to work than a food truck.

Just happened to be online an I go out a lot. Have not been to Junction yet but the rest are good spots.

This place at this food hall in Pittsburgh has the best fried chicken sandwiches (and tenders!) I've ever had.

Our town has a weekly food truck gathering (farmer's market summer through fall, a parking lot for trucks only this time of year) so that's the closest we have to the food hall concept. Syb's town is just far enough away to be unreasonable.

Wait, its in BH? I assumed Syb was in the city today.

Aw shit don't know.

Though I'd probably be more likely to eventually try it in NYC than BH...

mister d wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 3:17 pm Wait, its in BH? I assumed Syb was in the city today.

Ha, I'm in the City today. Food hall is a block East of Union Square on 14th. I've been to the one on Vanderbilt, by Grand Central a bunch of times. I highly recommend the stall serving bings (chinese sandwiches in a crepe-like dough). There was an incredible fried chicken sandwich place, too.

Rass, I've debated driving to your taco truck numerous times when you'd post it on Facebook... just a little too far.

GoodKarma, I was planning on hitting Milk Market if my Denver work trip didn't fall through a couple years ago. Was supposed to go to a conference in Denver, hotel was a couple blocks away. Stupid company wouldn't subsidize travel post-COVID.

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 3:31 pmThere was an incredible fried chicken sandwich place, too.

If you're talking about ~4-5 years ago, it was Delaney Chicken and its gone.

mister d wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 3:43 pm

The Sybian wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 3:31 pmThere was an incredible fried chicken sandwich place, too.

If you're talking about ~4-5 years ago, it was Delaney Chicken and its gone.

I was, and NOOOOOO!!! Now that you mention it, you might have recommended it.

Johnnie wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 2:33 pm On another note, Portillo's opens in Tucson next week. I'm excited to try it finally.

The lines in Dallas were hours long when it opened, so get ready for that. It's good, but not THAT good.

Unless I can chill at a bar, I'm not waiting longer the 40 minutes for food of any kind.

Used to be a 2 hour wait for the Cheesecake Factory and I was always like... nope. Waiting over an hour for a fast food sandwich is just dumb. I got stuff to do. (I will say, though, if the restaurant is in a mall, I can kill an hour or so, no problem... Because I'm getting something accomplished, not just literally sitting and staring at a wall/steering wheel.)

Brenham!

DUNKIN' and Baskin Robbins is nuts in South Korea

Johnnie wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2023 7:50 pm DUNKIN' and Baskin Robbins is nuts in South Korea

Fascinating! I'd never think to go to those chains if I was in Korea, but I think you can get a legit cultural experience tasting how they alter a ubiquitous American franchise. Eggs benedict donut looked good, but I'll pass on the corn and cheese donut.

The only appealing thing I saw was the sausage roll.

I'm not a big fan of smashing sweet and savory like that.

Nonlinear FC wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 8:41 am The only appealing thing I saw was the sausage roll.

I'm not a big fan of smashing sweet and savory like that.

Now that you mention it.. I was thinking of it as a roll or croissant, sweet and fried donut would probably be gross. Interesting, but not good. I'd still try it once.

They catered in Shake Shack for the VGK game tonight and you’ll never convince me there aren’t like at least 3 or 4 chicken sandwiches at least as good as Chick-Fil-A.

I don’t like shake shack chicken but I agree with your overall point.

I did have a chicken biscuit from chick fil a today that was good but not out of this world.