March 25, 2017
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Looking at Damages
Sparky and I usually eat out once a week. Generally it isn't any place fancy unless you count Taco Bell or Chick-fil-a as fancy restaurants. However we do on occasion eat at a more upscale establishment - Cheddar's Scratch Kitchens. This is one of our favorite places. They have a variety of tasty menu selections. My favorite has always been their barbecue ribs. This week after a particularly grueling day, I suggested we eat out. We ended up at Cheddar's. I ordered the ribs. Sparky ordered the veggie plate which comes with a soup or salad and 4 side dishes. I gave him half my ribs and he gave me one of his sides. Usually the ribs are "fall off the bone" tender but not this time. They were tough. The kind of tough that results in gnawing the bones in an attempt to get some meat loosened. I realize that eating out is a business transaction. They give me food and I give them money. But I felt like they had broken a promise. They promised me tender ribs and I promised to keep coming back - even when they raised the price by $2.00. But now I'm not so sure we can remain friends. We did eat and we did pay the bill. We even gave the server a nice tip. Yet I've got a lingering feeling that the trust is gone. I suppose I can overlook this breach of contract and betrayal of expectations, the broken promise, this once. But if this happens again the friendship is over. The damage has been done. The pictures of our plates don't really tell the story. Sparky took 5 of his 7 ribs home and I added 4 of my portion. We will have a nice 2nd meal if you count the baked potato and the black beans... That's why the plates look so empty!
This post satisfies the Winter Scavenger Hunt 2017 prompt #25 - Include a broken promise. Sadly the meal didn't satisfy...
Comments (14)
I'm betting some where I blogged about ribs and my giving up on going back. The difference between us, I let the manager know.
I'm hoping it was just a blip. If it happens again I'll be much more vocal...
There was a great tapas bar that opened in our area. The food was so good, and the passion fruit sangria was to die for. Then they apparently lost their chef and hired a new one who had no idea how to cook the Mediterranean dishes on their menu. We had to quit going there and it closed not long afterward. I'm not sure it even last a year. There's hope for you, though, since Cheddars is a chain.
There is always hope. There aren't too many good rib places in town... There have been a couple but they either close or switch to only doing catering. If the experience is the same next time I'll have to start learning the art of BBQ ribs.
My first encounter with ribs was at girls out camp eons ago. I still laugh that I didn't know how to eat them, and using my father's rule of always using a fork and knife for any moist or sticky food, I attempted them, having half the young girls at the table try to copy me.
"Copy Her, not me!" I exclaimed when I saw another counselor knowingly eating them with her fingers.
I think the idea of a salad plate sounds good. Four sides plus soup sounds like a Lot of food.
I can relate - I use a fork and knife whenever possible - mostly because I don't like sticky fingers. The veggie plate is filling but the sides (except for the baked potato) are kind of skimpy so 4 of them are a good thing. That is why Sparky and I split the ribs and he gives me one side... we each end up with 3 sides and he can have soup or salad as his mood dictates.
Some meals failed like this one and it is like that a restaurant may lose its renown and may collapse quickly.
Love
Michel
They are always busy. I'm hoping they just had so much demand that they took them out of the oven before they got really tender... Otherwise they will soon lose my business.
RYC :I Don’t remember the state where you live, Val, but you are probably in a latitude higher than ours towards the North. Forsythia and daffodils here in Amiens ( Picardy )are in their glory. This being said there always is a kind of chilliness .
Love
Michel
We had thunderstorms today and all evening - the rain was ice cold but just this side of freezing. We have had days of mild temps followed by snow and freezing rains. I'm hoping that since the calendar says it is Spring that the weather is shamed into complying! We are a little farther north than you! (your longitude is 49.8941 and ours is 41.6764).
It sounds to me as if the ribs weren't cooked long enough, or they were cooked dry, without enough added liquid. If you'd had them before and they were good, I would definitely say something, perhaps even before eating many of them. At least they would know that something was wrong, and you might get a redo that was better. I have endeared myself to a favored restaurant when they served a salad with salmon pieces that were either chewy or like french fried salmon -- I complained till they got it right, and they have treated me nicely ever since!
I'm glad that worked out for you - too few places are really concerned about getting it right. Sounds like they have a chef that wants to make the best food and impression possible. I will give them another try and hopefully they will get it right...
We love to eat at Cheddar's!
I do too! I'm hoping this last visit was just someone in the kitchen having a bad day (maybe a new cook?? At least that's my hope. I almost bought ribs at the store to give making them a try - They couldn't be any worse than what I had at Cheddars. Sadly they were on sale and were sold out...