TGI Friday’s

Like ebeth, I used to enjoy the Newbury St location in Boston, but that was at least 15 years and 30 lbs ago, and I didn’t know her then. I don’t know how many trays of those sloppy nachos we killed, but they sure hit the spot. Nowadays it’s just another incarnation of “the restaurant”, like all those other pseudo-fun American bar ’n grills out there — Bennigans, Ruby Tuesday, et al. At least they’re consistent.

Maybe it’s because I’m cursed at TGIF. When the Laurel location opened, I tried, honestly tried, to eat there a bunch of times, in part because a good friend of ours used to eat there constantly. Somehow, his order would always come out okay, and mine would always be lousy, incorrect, and late, no matter what I ordered. On another of those occasions we went with a small party of friends, and had what in this group remains the worst single dining experience ever that did not involve malice. From dirty flatware to botched orders, not a single person in our party (of 6? 8?) had a satisfactory meal. One person had to ask them at least 6 times for a glass of water, and when it finally arrived (the first time) the glass was broken and leaking. Really...I’m not making this shit up!

Now, I’m not saying that that was a typical meal at Friday’s, nor that misfortune will befall your meal if you should go. But just between you and me, I’d check first with the county to see if there’s an Indian burial ground nearby.

-dave

When I was in college, longer ago than I care to admit, the chemistry department’s godawful volleyball team (’worst in the intramural league!’) would go to the Newbury St (Boston) location once every two weeks or so, and it was a real treat. For one thing, you could get Sam Adams there (and that was when you could only get it in Boston — this was in the infancy of the microbrewery age). It was a really fun place. We’d get something called nine-layer dip, which is the sort of faux Tex-Mex swill up at which I turn my nose nowadays.

I ate at a DC area location a few times in the early nineties. It wasn’t as good as I remembered it, or maybe my palette was becoming more discerning.

Last time I ate at a TGI Friday’s was in an airport about three years ago. Hey, I was desperate. Granted that’s not a fair test of any restaurant’s abilities, but man it was bad. Really horribly gawdawfully bad. If it was a volleyball team, it would be worse than my un-named alma matter’s chem department team.

Then again, I despise corporate food, and given the choice, I’d rather eat here than at Ruby Tuesday’s. Or maybe given the choice, I’d starve to death.

I have had more chicken caesar salads here than I care to think about, and watched an ex of mine eat just as many chicken parmesan dinners. I suspect the reason we both stuck to these is that it’s hard to find more than a few things on the menu that even sound appetiziing, much less actually end up being so. Also, everything they prepare is out of some frozen-pak so they can’t alter anything, even if you’re deathly allergic. You’re better off just going for drinks (there are plenty) and the omnipresent tv-trivia game.

Loud, kitchy, faux-cheerful, loud. I don’t get it. Except maybe happy hour- I can understand the need for alcohol after working at a crappy job. I also got food poisoning from a hamburger at the Laurel TGIF, so I refuse to eat hamburgers there anymore- and frankly, that rules out most of what I’d be willing to eat at an establishment like this.