What is your favorite resteraunt in your town that isn't a big chain?

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spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
This sounds really good: Carpaccio
Beef tenderloin is lightly dusted with Cajun spices, blackened over a white hot skillet and shaved into paper thin slices. Chilled and ultra rare, slices are drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, garnished with capers, lemon wedge, crostini and topped with freshly grated parmesan reggiano.

You've never had carpaccio? You should try it for sure.
 

GuitarDaddy

Lifer
Nov 9, 2004
11,465
1
0
That a tough one, there are soooo many here in DFW, being the 4th largest metropolitan area in the US definately has its bennies.

Just a few of my favorites

Trail Dust
Sammy's
Rudolfo's
Angelos
Arlington Steak house
Joe T Garcias
Fishmongers
Rick's on the Brick's
Cattlemans
Fiesta mexican
Paris coffee shop
Dixie cafe
Kincade's hamburgers
Old Warsaw
Bobs steak and chops
Mike Andersons BBQ
Capital grill

Thats just the tip of the iceberg, truly too many to name
 
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L

Lola

I am going to generalize with "town" and say in Metro Detroit: Beverly Hills Grill.
It is a very small restaurant that continuously gets awarded "Best Breakfast" every year by every local paper, TV sation, magazine.
Hands down, they have the most inventive, delicious breakfast dishes I have ever tasted anywhere.

The best part is they use seasonal fare to make sure everything is as fresh and tasty as possible.

My "staple" breakfast dish is the lump crab omlette. Comes with jumbo lump crab, gouda cheese, fresh spinach and tomatoes.
Also the specials each day are amazing... the include ice cream sundae pancakes (sugar cone crushed into the pancake batter) with a dollop of local gourmet ice cream and a choclate ganache sauce on top with sprinkles.
 

meltdown75

Lifer
Nov 17, 2004
37,558
7
81
Hmm... I have a few... and I'm really not a fine diner...

I'm gonna go with Gilligan's. It's a burger joint. You can get any kind of burger imaginable. I've had emu burgers there, quite delicious. They also have a "monster mac" which is their own awesome take on a Big Mac :)
 

Platypus

Lifer
Apr 26, 2001
31,053
321
136
Quite a few in Chitown, here's my absolute favorite:

Kuma's Corner... a whiskey metal bar with the best hamburgers I've ever had.
http://www.kumascorner.com/

I usually rock the Mastodon, High on Fire of Plaguebringer.
 

anxi80

Lifer
Jul 7, 2002
12,295
2
0
phil's bbq. we even had the san diego atot meet there. and with a 4.5/5 score with 1082 reviews on yelp; it seems im not the only one in town who gives it a big thumbs up.

edit: phils!
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,606
166
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com
Chains suck - I'd never list a chain even in my top 50 favorite restaurants.

Pizza: Tasta Pizza (Olean)

Lobster: Allegany Grill, (Angelica, NY) (home of the 1 pound lobster tail) Word of the mouth has to be the only way they gain new customers - and the place is always packed when we go there. Driving by, it isn't the type of place you'd think to yourself, "hey, let's go there." And yes, the extended dining room is one of those car port things.

Italian Food - used to be Tarantellas in South New Jersey; I can't remember the town. Apparently they've gone downhill. I haven't replaced it with a new favorite
yet. Favorite meal there: Stuffed prawns.

Steak: Century Manor (Olean, NY) very over-priced for what's provided, but occasionally they have specials that make it worth going to.

Beef on Weck: Beef 'n Barrel (Olean, NY) - one of the best known restaurants in Olean. Excellent decor. And, the food couldn't be any better, for what it is: very thinly sliced, hand carved beef. Not the great cuts of beef from the back, but rather the lesser expensive cuts from the hind quarter. Incredibly over-rated restaurant. Their most famous dishes are closer to hamburgers than to ribeye or filet mignon, but no one fills that niche any better than they do. They do have NY strip steaks & delmonicos, etc., but meh, the quality isn't worth their price.
 

HendrixFan

Diamond Member
Oct 18, 2001
4,648
0
71
Austin, Texas

When it comes to food, Polvo's has the best fajitas I have ever eaten. The use guajillo peppers when they grill the meat and it is amazing. The salsa an queso is pretty good too.

When it comes to atmosphere nothing beats Magnolia Cafe, but only the one on South Congress. The one up on Lake Austin Blvd blows.
 

thegimp03

Diamond Member
Jul 5, 2004
7,426
2
81
First one that came to my mind is Sundance Steakhouse in Palo Alto. Way better than most other steakhouses I've been to and it's not a la carte - meaning your steak or prime rib will come with a potato fixed to your liking and vegetables. It's nice not to have to pay an extra $5-10 for basic sides.
 

chr6

Platinum Member
Oct 1, 2002
2,304
1
76
honda ya in tustin, ca. i order the beef roll, which is a spicy tuna roll topped with raw beef.
 
Feb 19, 2001
20,158
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81

F1N3ST

Diamond Member
Nov 9, 2006
3,803
0
76
Michigan Bar & Grill has a good prime rib :3.

Carrabbas is a semi-chain, they have restaurants in FL and MI, not sure if anywhere else, their pasta is good, Pasta Carrabba to be specific :p
 

xanis

Lifer
Sep 11, 2005
17,571
8
0
Michigan Bar & Grill has a good prime rib :3.

Carrabbas is a semi-chain, they have restaurants in FL and MI, not sure if anywhere else, their pasta is good, Pasta Carrabba to be specific :p

Semi-chain? Try large chain. IIRC they have restaurants in ~32 states.
 

greentea456

Junior Member
Aug 14, 2007
9
0
0
Location :Torrance, CA

El Pollo Inka (Peruvian Restaurant) - Lomo Soltado is the bomb.
Wahoos Fish Taco
 

thegimp03

Diamond Member
Jul 5, 2004
7,426
2
81
Semi-chain? Try large chain. IIRC they have restaurants in ~32 states.

Carrabbas is owned by the same company that owns Outback Steakhouse...had a decent meal there the time I went in South Bend, IN though.
 

Gunslinger08

Lifer
Nov 18, 2001
13,234
2
81
Old Town Cafe in the city I work in. I like it for several reasons:
- Cheap
- Quick
- Owned by 1 very nice local guy and staffed by his family
- Delicious pastrami
 

marincounty

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2005
3,227
5
76
Las Camelias in San Rafael, CA. Some of the best mexican food north of the border.
Also, Phyllis' Giant Burgers, delicious Niman Ranch beef.
 

Cerpin Taxt

Lifer
Feb 23, 2005
11,943
541
126
Seattle:

Nijo's & Rain for sushi

Thai Bistro for Thai

Mandarin Gate for Chinese

Pagliacci's for pizza

Even though it is a chain, I like Pho Hoa better than pretty much every Pho place I've been around here.

In search of a good non-chain Italian place.

Ivar's (the restaurant at Mukilteo, not the fast food joints) is pretty good for general seafood. Anthony's might be a chain, not sure and too lazy to google.