Changing Tastes

For becca051, and others. Remember, a lot of folks read these posts. Spell check, spell check, and don't you wish we had grammar check.

we used to have a bennigan's near my home that closed. i remember one afternoon a friend and I went there for lunch. We were literally the ONLY two people in the restaurant, and it took a half-hour for our food to come. those restaurants are awful.

Bennigans pay checks bouncing? Go first thing monday morning to your local court house and file a lien on the local business. This will prevent any sales of the property, including that located inside, without first satisifying your lien. (The value of your paycheck)

I use to go to Bennigan's all the time and my brother worked at Bennigan's but that was almost 20 year when we were in high school. Back then Bennigan's only competition was Denny's but many different restaurants have opened since then and have become extremely popular. I went to the same Bennigan's about a year ago because I had a coupon and was amazed to see that it still looked the way it did 20 years ago and also smelled like nothing had been done in 20 years. There were only a few tourist in the restaurant as it is right across the street from Miami International Airport. The service was at minimal mediocre and the food was horrible. I have eaten much better food out of a can. Living in Miami I now have hundreds of restaurant options and I swore I would not come back to Bennigan's. I knew that they were in trouble a year ago so it does not surprise me that they have filed for bankrupcy.

I use to go to Bennigan's all the time and my brother worked at Bennigan's but that was almost 20 year when we were in high school. Back then Bennigan's only competition was Denny's but many different restaurants have opened since then and have become extremely popular. I went to the same Bennigan's about a year ago because I had a coupon and was amazed to see that it still looked the way it did 20 years ago and also smelled like nothing had been done in 20 years. There were only a few tourist in the restaurant as it is right across the street from Miami International Airport. The service was at minimal mediocre and the food was horrible. I have eaten much better food out of a can. Living in Miami I now have hundreds of restaurant options and I swore I would not come back to Bennigan's. I knew that they were in trouble a year ago so it does not surprise me that they have filed for bankrupcy.

Resturants that look like rabbit warrens, lousy service and limited over priced food items are what stopped my wife and I from going to this chain. They allow smoking in the Bennigan's where I formerly went and the stink of cigars, cigarettes and ash trays in the Webster, Tx. store was too much. Their after dinner menu was a joke, it had the name of another chain on it. I can spend my money else where and get better value.

Unfortunately I did not have the opportunity to dine at Bennigans. Granted a Monte Cristo Sandwhich is packed with calories, and any restaurant that abides it's menu to deep fried entrees will bear the brunt of ever increasing scrutiny by those keen to dictate what we should or should not eat. There was a measure passed in the state of California that has banned the use of Trans Fats in restaurants so perhaps this wis the way of things to come. Now as far as Olive Garden, according to Dave Zinczenko of "Eat This Not That",
APPLEBEE???S, OLIVE GARDEN, OUTBACK and RED LOBSTER don???t??? want you to know that they don???t??? provide full nutritional information for their products.
A plate of Chicken Marsala at Olive Garden has 1,315 calories and 86 grams of fat. They're sauce come frozen and premeasured along with pretty much everything else, and the microwave is still in use on a regular basis. I agree with the made by Anthony Bourdain, that to think Olive Garden is indicitive of true Italian Cuisine in ridiculous! Those frozen breadsticks heaped with some type of garlic/oil/margarine / who knows what may be tasty, but then again, so is the movie butter popcorn topping. Yuck! For real italian cuisine, I'll stick to my Mario Batali and Lidia Matticchio Bastianich cookbooks. Olive Garden..... Really?

The reason we don't eat at Bennigan's is simply because of the movie "Waiting". It was obviously based on Bennigan's. Even though I am smart enough to know that what happens at one restaurant does not neccesarily happen at all...it was enough to turn our stomachs for good. I just can't eat there without thinking about that horrible movie. And, we always preferred Bennigan's to Olive Garden. Olive Garden is plain and tasteless, not to mention highly over priced.

I love those damned Monte Cristos!!!

I've patronized Bennigans once in the last five years and it served as a reminder as to why I don't frequent that restaurant more often. While other casual dining restaurants have evolved (low carb, lo cal, smaller portions, etc) Bennigans menu has stayed the same (Turkey O' Toole anyone?). It's true, the food at similar style restaurants tastes no better, but they have evolved (think TGI Fridays) and changed with the times.

I'm not sorry to see Bennigans go...it's just another victim of a bad US economy. In this day and age, businesses cannot become complacent. I just feel bad for all those employees out of a job.

I personally always liked Bennigan's whenever I traveled, because we did not have them in my hometown. The Health Club Chicken Platter was very good, as was their selection of beer brands. The service was really no different than so many of the other restaurants that employ people almost exclusively under 25. TGIF and Ruby Tuesdays are horrible, and I hate it whenever someone gives me a gift certificate to one of those places - bogus menu selections and nothing really that good.

I personally always liked Bennigan's whenever traveling, because we did not have them in my hometown. The Health Club Chicken Platter was always really good, and their selection of beer brands was equally impressive. The service was about the same as you would expect at any restaurant that employs people almost exlusively under the age of 25. TGIF and Ruby Tuesdays are far worse, with a totally bogus meal selections - they will likely be the next ones.

In my opinion, Bennigan's simply did not evolve with the times. When they started to feel the squeeze of a tight economy, higher prices, and changing customer tastes they failed to respond. The result was failed menu choices and horrible service. I ate at a Bennigan's in Baton Rouge (LA) and was horrified at the condition of the restaurant and the service. Conversely, two weeks later I ate at the Benningan's in West Monroe (LA) and was greeted with great service, a clean restaurant, and food that was perfect! The Bennigan's in West Monroe is one that will remain open past th ebankruptcy.