Quote :

"I agree that compared to non-chain restaurants, this is a deal, but their price inflation over the last few years has been ridiculous."

Even at $14, what's comparable at any other restaurant in Raleigh?

1/8/2012 11:35:04 PM

Charles Firth rules

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

1/9/2012 1:24:54 AM

I like it. But, the GF hates it. If I want a steak, I go elsewhere. If I want a blooming onion, I'll go.

1/9/2012 4:13:12 AM

can't believe how butt hurt some of you people get over outback

1/9/2012 7:16:37 AM

I'm about as local and anti-chain as you can get...but I love me some Outback.

If you want a good steak and you don't want to

a) cook it yourself

b) play $25-40 for one at a nice restaurant,

then you go to Outback. That's why I go.

1/9/2012 7:30:56 AM

my husband loves their bloomin onion, and I like one of their specialty cocktails (wallabe darned), so we'll go there once in a while.

Also, up here, their prices are stupidly cheap. We went to our usual (very casual) local bar/grill last night, and spent about $75 on dinner (really just wings, sandwich, and drinks) - that's par for the course. So I won't complain about Outback's value so long as we're living here.

1/9/2012 7:52:49 AM

Good place to go for a reliably tasty and not too expensive steak. Hence I find myself there a couple of times each year, usually. There are far more interesting options for the money in other types of food, but as has been noted by many posters here, a decent <$20 steak can be hard to find.

1/9/2012 9:26:25 AM

The food isn't good. Not my preferred steak house.

1/9/2012 10:28:01 AM

Quote :

"Five years ago, you could get a 9 oz. outback special (sirloin) for $9.99. Now they have a 6-oz. special for $9.99 and the 9 oz. is $13.99. I agree that compared to non-chain restaurants, this is a deal, but their price inflation over the last few years has been ridiculous. Outback hit its peak a few years ago, and now they are just looking for ways to increase profits and be greedy. "

yeah, it couldn't possibly have anything to do with the dramatic increases in beef prices and transportation costs over the last five years.

You can thank Oprah Winfrey for the cheap steaks you were buying a decade ago due to her stupid comments on Mad Cow Disease, but people have finally forgotten about that.

1/9/2012 10:31:06 AM

I used to work at Outback Steakhouse and I used to consider it an incredibly high-class little joint.

...but man has Outback become just your regular run-of-the-mill place. All Outbacks used to cut their steaks in-house and punch their Aussie Chips (fries) in house too fresh. Now there steaks are delivered vacuum sealed and their chips arrive frozen. I've even heard some have gone to a pre-prepared salad mix instead of cutting the stuff up at the restaurant.

This cuts down on overhead because you don't have to pay a bunch of prep-cooks to come in and cook all day to prepare for the evening's meal, but the quality sucks.

Also, if you notice, Outback used to have four or five cuts of steaks, a couple burger choices, and like three chicken dishes. They did few things, but they did them EXTREMELY well. There are too many choices now which spreads the kitchen way too thin.

Now I see Outback almost on par with Applebee's.

1/9/2012 10:54:57 AM

used to work at an outback.

wont eat at an outback.

1/9/2012 10:58:15 AM

I find their lack of rules to be wrong.

1/9/2012 11:00:15 AM

Quote :

"Now I see Outback almost on par with Applebee's."

That's not a fair association imo. I went to an Applebee's last week for the first time in years (had a gift card to get rid of), and it was disgusting. I got some pasta dish recommended by the waitress, and my +1 got a steak...and everything but the mashed potatoes (which were ok) tasted like crap.

And to compare Outback's steak (even their sirloin) to Applebee's steak would be silly. It's not even a fair fight. The quality of pretty much everything, especially the steak, is so much better at Outback.

1/9/2012 11:00:54 AM

how many times have i walked into the wrong bathroom there!

1/9/2012 11:01:47 AM

I personally like Outback as an option.

Not my favorite, but it is a great place to take a group, and I think the food is always good.

1/9/2012 11:51:20 AM

Prefer Logan's...

and there's a Texas Roadhouse in Concord that rocks my socks.


But I like outback.

1/9/2012 12:07:31 PM

I think it's pretty damn good as far as chains go. Never had a bad experience there.

1/9/2012 12:10:48 PM

If I ever got gift certificates to shitty restaurants like Applebees, I would just go to the bar and spend it on alcohol.

1/9/2012 12:14:22 PM

I refuse to eat at any chain restaurant. I just can't support these big establishments that supports the subpar living standards found in many of the countries they source their vegetables from. It's organized poverty by the big corporations to keep the working man down. I only eat at places nobody has ever heard of.

But I do love Walmart's sammiches. The price is just awesome!!! /ironic

1/9/2012 12:21:38 PM

I have a hunch that the same people that hate on Outback also hate on Olive Garden.

You gotta just enjoy it for what it is.

1/9/2012 12:22:05 PM

Yup. Love Outback, and love Olive Garden. They are what they are. I don't expect more than that. It's not like you don't know what you're getting when you go there.

1/9/2012 12:25:03 PM

see but the difference is in what morphine boy posted

at the time i worked at outback, they had a lot of prep cooks and made shit fresh.

what you get at olive garden comes shipped frozen in 5 gallon buckets of "sauce".

there's a big difference.

olive garden is swill. outback is a little better, but seems to be going downhill.

i just can't step foot in there due to smelling those fucking onions everyday frying.

you'd go home and couldn't get that smell of your skin no matter how many times you washed.

1/9/2012 12:25:25 PM

my sister used to work at lonestar and they cut their own steaks and whatnot back in the day. I used to go there every year for my birthday and the steak was good. (i mean for the price)

flash forward to the past few years... we tried the lonestar in knightdale several times, and every time the steak was just bad. I'm not sure why, but it just didn't taste good. The sides were terrible as well. Outback is at least consistently good (not great, but good).

1/9/2012 12:26:25 PM

Quote :

"If I ever got gift certificates to shitty restaurants like Applebees, I would just go to the bar and spend it on alcohol."

Lesson learned.

Quote :

"I have a hunch that the same people that hate on Outback also hate on Olive Garden. You gotta just enjoy it for what it is."

In my mind Outback >> Olive Garden. There aren't any other good steak entrees in town in the <$20 range, while there are tons of Italian restaurants in town that have <$20 entrees that are way better than the reheated crap at OG.

1/9/2012 1:05:43 PM

we go to olive garden very rarely... usually for the bottomless pasta bowl. (I don't go there anymore though because it's terribly unhealthy)

1/9/2012 1:16:15 PM

I like the soup and salad at Olive Garden, but I haven't been there in years

1/9/2012 1:20:48 PM

Quote :

"and there's a Texas Roadhouse in Concord that rocks my socks."

I've gone to that texas roadhouse a couple of times.

I like the food but the 5 minute waitress dance can get pretty obnoxious. Especially if you're trying to be seated and the row of dancing waitresses are blocking the aisle to your seat.

1/9/2012 1:51:37 PM

Goddamnit, there's nothing wrong with Outback.

1/9/2012 2:40:56 PM

last time i went there i had the ribs with garlic mashed potatoes and it was delicious!!

1/9/2012 2:42:06 PM

I stopped at one in Florence, SC and tried to order a burger medium rare. They informed me that all burgers are cooked medium.

I was puzzled because that sounded an awful lot like a rule at a place that clearly advertises not having any rules.

1/9/2012 3:03:00 PM

Quote :

"I refuse to eat at any chain restaurant. I just can't support these big establishments that supports the subpar living standards found in many of the countries they source their vegetables from. It's organized poverty by the big corporations to keep the working man down. I only eat at places nobody has ever heard of."

haha I can't tell if this is sarcasm or not.

On that note I typically do feel better eating at restaurants supplied by local farms.

1/9/2012 3:12:32 PM

Quote :

"Eesh have you never heard of Call Ahead Seating? I've used that most whenever I've went, and can't remember ever waiting more than 5 mins."

if i have the forethought to make use of call ahead seating then i probably have the time to think of a better place to eat.

in general i like to go out to eat to have a meal i can't easily make just as good or better at home. this is also why i don't like olive garden, though OB > OG, imo. i can make pretty much any combination of meat/pasta/sauce better in my own kitchen. i could throw red sauce on dog food and it would taste better than the crap that comes out of that place.

1/9/2012 4:15:54 PM

Quote :

"I think when people are like RAWR RAWR RAWR CHAINS ARE SHITTY they should be referring to the Applebees, Friday's, Olive Gardens (a few may argue that one) and Chili's of the world, not Outback, Bonefish, Sullivan's, Alladin's Eatery (place near my house), Chipotles etc of the world. They're not all the same."

I agree Outback is better thano Applebees, Olive Garden, etc

But Sullivan's, while being extremely overrated (no ranch dressing? gtfo), is >>> Outback

and Chipotle? I mean, its like Gourmet Taco Bell, I got the point you were going for but then you mention Chipotle?

1/9/2012 4:25:50 PM

I go here a lot when traveling since its a consistent product, which you don't always get with the local places, especially in an area you haven't been before.


But mainly because we don't need receipts for expenses under $30, so I can have a steak and three beers with no paperwork.

1/9/2012 4:31:42 PM

Quote :

"Sullivan's...is >>> Outback"

obviously.

you say you got the point i was going for, but i don't think you did. the point is some people say all chains suck, but then they say Sullivans has great steak (without acknowledging that it too is a chain). There are plenty of "good" chains out there, and imo Outback is one of them.

Quote :

"I mean, its like Gourmet Taco Bell, I got the point you were going for but then you mention Chipotle?"

haha you wanna compare taco bell with it's 30% beef "ground beef product" and chipotle? in terms of quality of food, they're not even playing the same sport.

1/9/2012 4:34:10 PM

^^In that case...skip the mediocre steak and get more beers

1/9/2012 4:35:57 PM

bloomin onion + beers = win!

[Edited on January 9, 2012 at 4:37 PM. Reason : ]

1/9/2012 4:37:21 PM

Bloomins are for fatties

1/9/2012 4:40:50 PM

taco bell is pure ass, i'm sure we all agree

Chipotle, Qdoba, etc are all much better quality than taco bell (which isn't saying much)

but you're putting a fast food restaurant in the same category as "real restaurants"

why not throw Chick-Fil-A in your comparison

1/9/2012 4:45:50 PM

^ You're really not getting it. And sure, he probably could use Chic-fil-a in his argument.

And yes...Bloomin Onion is one of the unhealthiest things you could ever eat.

1/9/2012 4:47:16 PM

i'm not the one saying ALL CHAIN RESTAURANTS SUCK

i'm saying ONE OF THESE THINGS IS NOT LIKE THE OTHER

1/9/2012 4:48:33 PM

TT only eats hungry man frozen entrees. He considers everything else sub par.

1/9/2012 4:50:56 PM

Hell, they ain't even got an Outback Steakhouse down here, am I right?

1/9/2012 4:55:11 PM

:facepalm

1/9/2012 4:55:56 PM

Quote :

"And sure, he probably could use Chic-fil-a in his argument."

Yep. It too is a chain that is good.

1/9/2012 4:57:18 PM

bullshit.


have you gotten a chickfila spicy filet biscuit in the last 6 months?

it's withered down to a ~1oz pounded thin sliver of chicken.

the last three i've had have tasted like nothing but deep fried batter.

it's a shame. and a trend. kept going back thinking, surely this was a fluke. three is a pattern, at three different locations in two states.

1/9/2012 5:03:19 PM

getting spicy anything at Chick-fil-A is your first mistake

1/9/2012 5:10:10 PM

I just moved in next door to a CFA, and disagree with pshoes assessment. However, I live in a very nice area, which may skew the data.

1/9/2012 5:10:58 PM

Chipotle >>>> Qdoba.

Screw TT for mentioning these establishments in the same sentence.

1/9/2012 5:11:04 PM

Spicy CFA sandwich is the most disappointing fast food item of all time.

1/9/2012 5:15:05 PM