Restaurant are Ripoffs

OP you’re just cheap.

You are cheap, but I don't think you are incorrect.

I wish the word bespoke would go away.

Restaurants are weirdly anti-competitive. As more of them have multiplied, they do get more and more expensive. I live in New York City and the decent mid priced restaurant, while not extinct, is headed that way.

A fool and his money are soon parted. There are cheaper, good restaurants. If you are so weak-willed and lacking in judgement in this, how do you function professionally and make such a high salary?

What are you eating and how much are you drinking that your portion of the bill is $100 to $200?

Maybe you and your friends should plan on eating at 4:00 so you can take advantage of early bird special pricing.

Throw a dinner party OP.

What is a Restaurant?

Learn how to cook, you lazy git!

Seafood, fish and broiled meat entrees are 25-50 bucks. Cocktail 20. Drinkable wine 40-100 bucks a bottle. Appetizer. This and that. "Digestif" with the coffee. blah blah tax tip 100-200 bucks.

[quote] What is a Restaurant?—Darfur Orphan

It's that space directly below where the buzzards are circling.

It depends on what you are looking for,.....

Some people want fine dining, a real experience, something they cannot get at home. They are focused on really good materials, fine cuts of meat and produce, etc. That costs more than a Costco special cut.

My sister will not go to a nice restaurant with me (even if I offer to treat). She wants portions to be roughly the size of her head, which means we end up at slop houses. She expects restaurant food to be as cheap and as plentiful as food cooked at home. That is not an expectation I share.

I will concede that booze is expensive at restaurants, but (a) it's not like they're serving cheap swill there, and (b) the profit margins on food are often way tighter, so just like popcorn at a movie theater, drinks are the space where most restaurants eke out their profit.

Our two in northern NJ has very few liquor licences so most of the restaurants are byob. Much cheaper that way. You can buy a decent bottle for 15-20 (decent for me anyway) and have a nice meal for maybe another fifty bucks.

Well, you could skip the appetizer and order a glass of wine instead of a fucking bottle, for starters. Of course if you insist on going all out, your bill will reflect it. You have a lot of choices here - choosing a less posh restaurant, going out less often, just getting an entree and drinking less alcohol - but instead you just whine about the prices. Boo hoo.

^ town - R13

I still am shocked that you cannot figure out how to deal with this "problem."

Just go with the flow. Do you really think people figure out bills at foodie restaurants according to what each person eats and drinks? In my crowd, bill are divided evenly by number of diners. This stagey "casual" attitude actually makes bills go way up. I learned this my first year working out of college. A friend at work told me - eat and drink everything you want because everyone else will, as well, and nobody wants to look strapped for cash.

Foodie = polite word for fatty.

What I find saddest of all is when some mook comes to a chat board and starts a thread with the express, and not so subtle, purpose of trying to make himself look "rich" as compared to most of the people reading his silly post. This under the radar bragging is laughable, and frankly rather sick considering that he's bragging to people who wouldn't know him if they walked up to him on the street.

And of course we all know none of what the OP wrote is true.

OP next time you go out order an appetizer or a salad and nothing else. When the bill comes offer to cover your share and not a penny more. Chances are your dining companions won't know how to figure the bill that way and will just pay for you, since they will assume you have money troubles anyway.

That’s why every McDs has groups of seniors that socialize for hours drinking nothing but coffee refills for hours on end.

I am the OP and of course this an EST. Sheesh!

Cunt = polite word for r18.

I live somewhere where you can ask for separate checks. Try it, OP.

You know there are apps on your phone that you can use to have something warm in your belly at the end of the day ?

Plus it's free.

"Bespoke", hahaha

Instead of socializing at restaurants, have your friends over for an old fashioned piano party.

OP is correct. But it’s because the cost of everything has gone way up. The government’s been telling us that inflation is almost nonexistent.

Baloney.

The government limits what goes into the inflation measuring market basket and further “adjusts” (ie swaps out) its contents as prices rise - Choice beef becomes Safeway Lean.

Housing prices where I live went up 13% last year. The government’s calculations must just assume buyers will add another ten minutes to their commute instead; and so forth. Tiny appetizers are now routinely $16.

So yeah, restaurant prices especially are skyrocketing.

Invite your friends over for a couple of decent dinners. It won’t cost you any more than what you’re paying now for your own portion of a shared meal. The food will be as good; although the drinks just won’t have “bespoke” cocktail stirrers. And, if your friends have got any social manners at all, they’ll reciprocate.

What's a pianoparty? We're too young for a lemonparty. :(

Maybe your expectations are too high? I don't expect a "wow" experience every time I dine out but you can achieve that by entertaining friends and family at home.

OP, I plan on $100 for my share whenever going out for dinner these days. That's just what it costs to go to a nice restaurant, at least around the LA area.

I usually order things I can't or don't want to make at home. But if you don't enjoy it, follow some of the suggestions here.

[quote]We're all mostly middle class. I'm 43, single, and make 140K and my finances are in order.

I’m 45, 6’2, like long walks on the beach, and think you’re a twit.

OP, I had the same type of social life for many years. Great dinners at the best restaurants my city has... at least twice a week. By my mid 40's I was sick of those friends: the same shallow conversations, endless judging, and incessant me me me. I wondered why I wanted to fit in with that set but it did feel good to be instantly recognized and catered to each time I walked thru the door. I think it's as close to 'royalty/celebrity' an average person can have. Save your money and find a hobby/interest that doesn't ultimately go down the shitter.

R34, you obviously have poor taste in "friends".

Bespoke, betrothed, bejeweled (kneepads...g..)

The proper term is "called drinks", isn't it? It's always been that in my little circle of hicks. It's usually something ordered by someone with no expectation of paying, like friends with birthdays in proximity to yours that invite themselves along.. I'm almost always the DD, because I'm the only one who won't play the guessing game with BAC, having had the delightful experience of being popped for a DUI once..and that's all it took. So I nurse a Coke and half a glass of wine while you enjoy your "called" Bombay and oyster martini.

Lately, it's just me at the local OG. Foodie Kryptonite (an endorsement, in my book), but I enjoy it.

I live dinner parties for 4-6 people. Going to them as well as hosting. I don't care much that I don't eat the stunt dishes - which I enjoy when I do go out.

Have it catered if you don't like cooking OP.

Go to a Mexican restaurant and fill up on chips and salsa.

[quote]The proper term is "called drinks", isn't it?

"Call" drinks, in which you call for a specific brand of alcohol. As opposed to "well" drinks.

[quote]There are lots of "good restaurants" with bespoke cocktails and good wine, and not much else to do in our wealthy suburban area.

[quote]Every restaurant outing seems to cost me at least 100 and sometimes 150-200.

The sad part of OP's attempt at a humble brag is that he thinks that $100-200 is a lot of money for eating out in his "wealthy suburban area."

Wealthy suburban area - lol.

Of course, there's also the utter prole notion of "bespoke" drinks. Are the menus "curated" as well?

Reindeer at their reindeer games.

OP = Yuppie scum bemoaning his expensive “foodie” meals out.

Just fuck off and die.

I don't like that so many expensive drinks appear to contain very little alcohol. Give me a stiff drink or none at all.

I copped to the EST at R23 guys. Carry on!

I hear the Olive Garden makes a lovely bottomless salad and the house vino is cheap, cheap, cheap.

the perfect solution

I certainly can afford the expense of eating out but like the OP, I think the cost of the experience never meets expectations. I try to either go out for drinks - no dinner or go out to eat - no drinks. Never both.

r38, they charge for chips and salsa at the Mexican restaurant in my wealthy suburb. I don't mind paying because it is superior to anything you'd get elsewhere. Homemade chips are still hot when brought to the table and the salsa is made fresh, and in season, with home-grown ingredients (the restaurant grows most of its own produce).

Are you fat, OP? People who eat out are fat.

100-200 isn't expensive. Are you sure you live in a wealthy suburb OP? Or in an upscale trailer park close to a gourmet Olive Garden?

R48, no people who eat fast food and live in traler parks are fat.

Mary OP, please describe the bespoke cocktails available at these swanky establishments that you frequent.

I've never heard the word bespoke and cocktail before. Practically every cocktail is made to order.

Hitting 50 and looking to manage spending to increase savings, I realized eating out was my biggest optional expense. Amazing how much money went to restaurants. Agree with the above poster who said mid-range restaurants are dying. Everything now is high end expensive - probably because of the rent. The 2 diners near me closed. The Indian and Chinese restaurants closed. (And are still sitting empty).

By eating at home, I have saved $1,500 month AND lost 10 pounds without trying because I’m eating less and better. I still go out for cocktails - but try to do happy hour.

“Bespoke cocktails”? You deserve to be ripped off.

OP must be one of The Poors.

How sad.

Bless your heart, OP. No one cares how much you make.

Why can you no eat your die-moons?

[quote]What I find saddest of all is when some mook comes to a chat board and starts a thread with the express, and not so subtle, purpose of trying to make himself look "rich" as compared to most of the people reading his silly post. This under the radar bragging is laughable, and frankly rather sick considering that he's bragging to people who wouldn't know him if they walked up to him on the street.

Interesting take on OP's post. I feel exactly the same way when people who are "rich" with youth and good looks come to a chat board with their not-so-under the radar bragging about their fulfilling sex lives. It's laughable.

[quote]Restaurant are Ripoffs

Lovely SVA, OP.

R54... That is where they make the ice by hand; it is truly a labour intensive process. Artfully formed, hand-moulded, then chiseled and buffed to perfection! Each large handsome cube is then polished carefully by hand.

"Bespoke cocktails?"

It's an ice cube chipped away at, that you pay $15 for, then drink the drink and just leave it behind.

Another GREAT option for the OP. Cracker Barrel That have a CRAFTED coffee menu! unsure if they are bespoke. Per previous threads I hear there is plenty of breeder dick to suck if you need a digestif.

What does EST mean?

Elaborate Scenario Thread - a fake thread that mimics / satirizes other threads, and contains a few subtle giveaways for the cognoscenti. Such as "bespoke cocktail".

R65 thanks, makes sense now.

In theory, dining out at fine restaurants ought to be saved for rare and special occasions. The idea behind them was pampering yourself and maybe some loved ones to mark a special day. (A well-trained cook, nice ambience, someone to serve and clear, someone to do the dishes). All of that costs money - a lot of money. What an aristocratic notion, that people might want to work and serve you for free.

It's a very modern notion that people would eat out night after night after night. Historically, people ate in their own homes, unless they were visiting friends during meal time or traveling, or marking a special occasion. Higher income people tend to eat out more often, but there's no guarantee that they are eating higher quality food. I like the element of control that cooking gives me. I know exactly the freshness of each ingredient, I know how much I'm adding in the way of salt or sugar or spice, I can correct mistakes without making an embarrassing scene in a restaurant. Most of my friends are also good cooks, so we like to take turns entertaining one another at our homes.

Solutions to your problem have all been listed above: ask for separate checks, have an appetizer or a happy hour special, nurse one drink for a two-hour meal. You'll save thousands of dollars a year. Or better yet, do as some have suggested, and entertain in your own home, saving restaurant dining for special occasions.

I agree with the OP, which is why my dining experiences don't tend to involve the kind of "good"restaurants where dinner and a glass of wine costs three figures.

Explore the local ethnic restaurants or family-run independents instead of the high-end places, where you can get a fantastic and delicious meal for a few bucks why don't you, if you can convince your friends to give it a go. But some people just love the high-end restaurant experience, it's worth the money to them, but that doesn't mean you need to let yourself be dragged there repeatedly if it's not worth it to you.

Is OP the poster who goes on about "bespoke" suits and "crisp, white" shirts?

Hit the ignore button on his original post >> then click the ignore button on the banner, this will show at least some of his contributions to the DL

OP wears a bespoke suit to fly.

We call it "ignoredar," r70. I guess it's part of the level IV training.

I drink alone.

Who do I have to fuck to get a bespoke cocktail around here?

I agree with OP. I have been watching episodes of a local PBS televised review of local restaurants by average citizens. There are 2 blocs of episodes, one from 2009-2011 and a second one from 2017. They give the average price of a dinner for each restaurant. Meal prices have roughly doubled-plus in that 8 year period. Minimum wage has gone up only about 50% here. My bet is that obscene rents are the real reason for the increases.

I've noticed that restaurants where the building is owned by the operators have considerably lower prices than rented spaces. Down the street from me is a popular restaurant featured several times on national TV, where you can get dinner and a beer or wine for less than $15. It's not fancy, but the food is made well and the portions are generous. The building is owned by the restaurant owners.

According to the TV show, In 2010, a meal in a brewpub might have cost an average of $15. Now it's $25. A Japanese place might have cost $20 then, and now it's $50. There are a lot of $50 per head restaurants now, even mediocre ones. A friend begged out of a dinner out with friends last week because the restaurant reviews were mediocre and the menu Mexican/Latin, with an average tab of about $60 per person, $9 side salads, $12-$15 apps, $25-$40 entrees (seriously, they have $35 enchiladas), and $12 desserts, with glasses of wine starting at $11. So a full meal is going to cost at least $90 with tax and tip. That's nuts.

What I think will happen is that there will be a sort of renaissance of small dinner clubs where people pay to eat a well prepared meal in somebody's home.

Most restaurants are run by corporations now (even so-called independents) and they're only looking at profit not delivering a fantastic meal or experience. Because Millennials can't cook, there are lines out the door. But you see the quality in the cuts of meat, cheap starches and vegetables....yet people are happy to pay for this crap.

Here's my last night's night out with friends, at a local privately owned Japanese restaurant.

Bowl of chirashi don, $17. Pot of green tea, $1.50. Total cost for a good dinner made of fresh ingredients, $19.50 plus tip. For the friend who had the same thing with a jar of sake instead of tea, it was $21.00 plus tip. My finances are like the OP's, I can afford to eat out regularly, but why should I pay a hundred or more when I can have a lovely tasty dinner for so much less?

r77, I approve of you.

I find here in Sydney that dessert prices are just crazy. A scoop of ice cream, a bit of fondant and a toffee presented artfully can cost $18-25. I also worked in a kitchen when I studied and I find I can cook most meals better than many restaurants anyway.

That looks yummy R77. I just made a homemade spicy sausage cassoulet that was delicious and took no time at all. It cost around $8 and would easily feed four with fresh bread.

R77, fuck you.

If you don't want to pay, then stay home and eat hot water soup.

[quote]I usually order things I can't or don't want to make at home.

Exactly the way to tackle it. It is your time to explore, don't go simple.

But yes, sometimes these "nice" restaurants have disappointing food and you do feel as if the money wasn't worth it.

I like the midtier range. You can get some great meals in the 13-20 range. Add on a beer for 6-7. You are only spending 20-something plus tip.

R24 Foodies are the biggest food snobs because they are deflecting attention away from their fatness. I'm not the cunt. It's cunty when people who will make fun of my simple cooking because they are such a "sophisticated" bucket of lard.

[quote]I'm not the cunt.

r84, you may not be [italic]the[/italic] cunt, but you are most assuredly [italic]a[/italic] cunt.

Whoever said foodies are fatties seems like they live in flyoverland.

The "foodie" types in most cities are most definitely not fat. They like to complain and joke about how much they eat, but they make damn sure to stay slim.

Any famous examples R86?

[quote]Whoever said foodies are fatties seems like they live in flyoverland.

Ignoredar reveals him to be a resident of the Trolltown neighborhood in Cuntistan.

Oh how awful it must be for you! Just terrible! Why don't you set yourself on fire right now and get it over with--I mean you are gonna burn in Hell right? And while your burning I very well may look your husband up and fuck him hard. He seems like he has not had a great lay in years....

Marjorie from Fat Fighters is a foodie.

All restaurants are over hyped.

Ask for a separate check and sneak hard liquor in a flask in and dump it in your bottomless coke

R77 - And the parasitic worms were free. . .

For any true foodies on here, check out Food Talk Central. You can just lurk. It's primarily LA, but a very knowledgeable crowd. They know where to get the best $2 taco to a $130 rib eye. Posters manage to scoop most of the food sites with news.

I notice restaurants push starters, sides and drinks more aggressively than I remember in the past. It’s easy to run up a huge tab that way. I see the server’s face light up when a tablemate asks “are we ordering starters?” Also, bottled water adds to the tab. In NYC, speciality drinks and some wines by the glass can cost $24 each, and they push refills pretty steadily, “ready for another?”. I can’t really blame the servers. They’re doing their jobs.

My late uncle who had plenty of scratch would complain after he ate and get the entree removed form the check

I'm surprised that people are jumping all over the OP. He's right.

R80 is full of it. In the French, traditional recipe below, there are: Two kinds of sausage, pork belly, bacon, preserved duck legs, tomato paste, herbs and spices, and beans. You aren't getting that for $8.

Maybe OP made hers with hot dogs, Spam and ketchup ...

And don't forget to tip a minimum of 25%, because restaurants can't afford to pay their employees a living wage.

R98 the cassoulet kit on the website Dartagnan sells for $195.00 ($275 with a serving bowl). It looks to be on sale for $79.00.

ooo la la c'est trop cher

OMG I ate at the best diner recently. It's in a town I visit on occasion. It's a "waffle house" that's been there since 1927, only on the second owner and totally authentic. They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner but you can get breakfast all day long. I had french toast, scrambled eggs, and the best bacon I ever tasted. No bespoke cocktails in sight.

r99, how much do you tip your Wal-Mart clerk?

Tipping is not customary in a store, so nothing.

r104, there was a time when lynching was "customary" in certain areas. Does that make it right?

Comparing tipping to lynching? Take your meds and hit the hay, granny.

r106 doesn't get it and is very much a part of the problem.

Totally agree about it being a complete waste of money, but it's all about socializing. I went to middle range restaurant recently and we ordered Diet Coke, not even alcohol. The bottle was miniature and the cost was $4.50 each! A few days later I saw a case of the same bottles in the supermarket for $4. Diners don't even give free refills anymore.

Real foodies would not be going to restaurants in that price range.

I have a few foodie friends and price is irrelevant to them. So sometimes we go to expensive places, but usually we go to less expensive places. They only care about the quality of the food, not the price.

OP is the kind of person with no real knowledge or taste who gets led by the nose by marketing.

[quote]But I like socializing.

That's how they get ya.

I posted above about my fondness for low-priced ethnic restaurants, and agreed with the OP.

That said, I'm not immune to the appeal of fancy-ass high-end restaurants! The gently lit, tinkling ambiance, the handsome and attentive waiters, the food that's unlike anything you're going to get anywhere else and which is frankly pretty damn tasty, rubbing shoulders with the local rich bastards... it's one of the few ways a middle-class person can feel like a rich bastard for a few hours.

So maybe once or twice a year I go to these places. Why not, if I can afford it.

You could substitute a Big Mac and they'd never know the difference.

R112, either contribute or fuck yourself.

No, r107, you're just a simpleton.

My friends wouldn't ask me to join them at venues that are that pricey: I just can't afford that. My house is paid for, my investments and IRAs should allow me to retire soon, but the reason I've got a certain level of financial security is that I don't spend unnecessary money to keep up with other people. The friends that I do go out to eat with are perfectly happy with rather mundane, but pleasant places to eat. We have our favorite Chinese, Italian, Indian, Mexican and diner-style restaurants where we know the food is good and the servers are friendly.

Cheap with money, cheap with emotions. Enjoy that fancy assisted-living facility. I hear at the high end ones, there's a chance they'll wipe your ass.

Some, probably many restaurants are a rip-off if one is a great cook, and keeps a full bar and a cache of good French wine on hand. An older friend once said to me "no matter how tired I am, I don't really relish teen-agers cooking my dinner" This is sadly the truth in many establishments. I go out to the fancy places once in awhile for camaraderie, and to try new places, but many times I do indeed leave feeling I've been had. $5 Cokes, and $18-24 glasses of average wine are soul crushing to those who have saved and retired early. It very often seems like a very bad joke, especially when the steaks aren't prime, and the salads are not fresh.

r114 nothing wrong with that.

Teenagers aren't cooking at high end restaurants, you fucking retard. I'm sure your now dead friend left lots of money to a bunch of relatives that didn't give 2 shits about an old fag.

R119 Yes they most certainly are in kitchens aiding with preperation R119. Perhaps not in your city, but they do in Chicago and New York. BTW, my friend is very much alive, and is an old pouf. I'm fifty, he's roughly sixty. Stop assuming, and try to use better language! You're not impressing anyone with your bitchiness, nor your words. Worst of all you're none too funny either! The retort was a figure of speech, they may not be fully responsible or head Chef, but truth be told he could do better himself.

I don't mind the prices for good food but I've practically stopped buying alcohol in restaurants due the gouging. I feel like a chump paying as much for a glass of wine as the entire bottle would cost retail.

Mixed drinks are just as bad. Many places underpour, serving a 1 oz shot instead of the standard 1.5.

At least in my area, Uber and Lyft have made dining a lot cheaper. You can drink at home and then go out for great food, and have maybe one cocktail or glass of wine.

R120, I'm sure your friend is a genius at preparing food that doesn't require chewing.

I had to turn down an "eating tour" of Italy with friends, and it absolutely killed me at the time.

But those friends are all richer than I am, I just couldn't afford to eat at the kind of expensive restaurants they like twice a day, and I sure as fucking hell wasn't going to split the check when they drink fine wine and I'm sober.

R124 I’m a really light drinker, too, so splitting expensive bottles feels like a ripoff.

OP, I am also sick of the word bespoke and recommend that you stop using it in everyday conversation. I’m not even side it makes sense to use that word in this context. Not strictly incorrect, but it almost seems like you were looking for the opportunity to use it.

That said, we share a nearly identical profile and I agree with you that everything seems like a money grab these days, particularly when the establishment in question knows you can afford it.

Of course, they also know that no one will say a word amongst friends because no one wants to be seen as a person who even notices these sorts of everyday extravagances — “It’s a hundred bucks, big deal” is what everyone wants everyone else to believe he or she thinking — but the truth is, even high earners get tired of the shake down.

Money grab = Jewish World

$100 bucks for a good dinner is worth it, if you can afford it and know where to go. It's not a shake down.

As someone once said, how many things do you put in your mouth?

R123 I'm quite confident you are unable to discern the distinction between "High-End" restaurants (as you call them) and expensive restaurants. OP mentions suburban America... which is filled with chain-restaurants that can be quite costly. They are notorious for teens and you g twent-somethings playing "cook". You again assume too much and read in things not there: a sure sign you are mentally defective. And BTW, big YES to some of us really know how to cook, and it is a serious hobby for us... We can and often do better than many of these rip-off joynts.

I love how OP managed to work her salary and financial status into a discussion about restaurants. Neither detail was necessary.

R127 Enough already with your "Jewish this & Jewish that". It's about high time you get red-tagged you trollish little cunt.

OP did not appear to be talking about "chain restaurants". Yes, I do know how to cook and posted about going out for things I either can't or don't want to make at home. I also posted about Food Talk Central. That group forgot more than you know, hunty. Jonathan Gold, a member was the first and I believe only food critic to win a Pulitzer.

Enjoy your dinner at Golden Coral.

Yet another thread degenerates into a pissing match between two or more bitchy queens.

Jonathan Gold is dead

R133 ‘Pointless bitchery’ Is specifically mentioned in the description of the DL site, Dear.

I made-up this thread out of pure satiric snark because after reading the humble-bragging in the the semi-annual retirement money thread. But it was true enough to get interesting responses.

R136 No one was taking you seriously in their snarky replies, dear.

R133 Correction: One deranged bitchy know-it-all cunt who thinks his reality trumps everyone else's experiences dining out.

R132 Nor did the OP reference Michelin Five-Star restaurants or "high-end"...Only "Good" restaurants that are expensive and leave one disappointed and feeling ripped off. Please DO learn to read. How can you defend every bloody restaurant which you haven't dined at. FFS give it up already you tired little weasel cunt.

R139, please don't embarrass yourself further. Michelin awards 3 stars. There are no 5 you fucking hillbilly trailer trash.

I only dine at 5 Michelin star restaurants! Where are you R139? Loser, loser, loser!

Make your own slop!!

I went out to dinner tonight with my partner to a mid-level chain restaurant (think bar/pub food). It was nearly $90 (with tip) for 2 appetizers, one entrée and 4 drinks total (2 beers, 2 glasses of wine).

It was totally forgettable.

R140/R141 Yes, there are no categories for five stars dumbkopf, just like there exists no formal category for "High-End" restaurants. Again, you're not very clever. High-End is a foolish term bandied about by only idiots like you. More than likely, you are the trailer dwelling hillrod, as your posts here would surely evidence. You are probably fond of declaring many expensive things high-end because you know the true value of nothing, and merely fall prey to the marketing and endless hype.

Not at all surprising R143. Sorry to hear your experience tonight was less than thrilling. Thank you for using terms recognised by the restaurant industry though, as mid-level chain is a real term, unlike "High-End" and obviously Five-Star is a joke. There are Diners, Truckstops, cafeterias, fast food franchises and "corporate stores", fine dining, and mid-level chain restaurants.

Eat Ramen noodles.

R144, if there are no Michelin 5 stars, why would you post that? I think dementia has set in, and bad. Have a Marie Callendar's pot pie, and try not to shit yourself.