Anonymous
12/18/2024 07:45
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:In all seriousness, OPs stellar experience at the OG and Hampton Inn is likely a function of being in the small town mid-west and not a large metro area. My suspicion is that had OP visited these establishments locally, she would have had a much different experience and witnessed dirty facilities, surly indifferent service, and rude patrons.
I’m not sure because I don’t stay in local hotels. But we stay in Hampton Inn’s (and our other fave Holiday Inn Express) in many other places and have routine success. There is an Olive Garden in Orlando where we eat at least once per trip and it’s always excellent. The one near our house here is okay, but the one in Florida is better.
I will say, for hotels, even the above brands, I ALWAYS check recent reviews especially before staying at a new location. You never know when one is poorly management or needs a renovation or whatever. Maybe that’s why we have very good luck with hotels. The only time I stay at a bad hotel is if someone else chose and I had no say (like for a sports tournament - those have been some doozies!)
Anonymous
12/18/2024 07:38
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
In all seriousness, OPs stellar experience at the OG and Hampton Inn is likely a function of being in the small town mid-west and not a large metro area. My suspicion is that had OP visited these establishments locally, she would have had a much different experience and witnessed dirty facilities, surly indifferent service, and rude patrons.
Anonymous
12/18/2024 07:33
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Hotel: Staybridge Suites or Residence Inn. Some are very nice
Food: McD breakfast sandwiches are amazing. Culver’s chicken tenders.
Sausage mcmuffin is so good. No one else's even begins to compare.
I have a Parisian friend who is mostly contemptuous of American food ("so few people know how to cook a good meal for themselves"). But he praises the American breakfast and will even enjoy a McD breakfast. Unfortunately, I believe that McD has stopped their all-day breakfast menu and so he has nothing suitable to eat there after 11am.
Luckily they have McD's in Paris.
McD's has good food abroad too. On one trip to Paris I had McD's Caprese Salad 3x. Last time we got real hardback books as Happy Meal prizes. Once in England, we enjoyed an Indian themed promo at McD's and learned that regular fries are delicious dusted with a curry spice blend.
The shrimp burger in Japan is to die for. Instead of fries I got a little salad with sesame dressing plus the mcdonalds coffee that is great even in the US. I could have eaten that for lunch every day.
Truly lowbrow: my family eats OnCor frozen chicken parmesan probably twice a month with pasta. When I first started buying it in 2012 it was sold at the dollar store!
You can eat quite well at 7 Eleven in Japan.
Never eat 7 Eleven sushi.
Anonymous
12/18/2024 06:42
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:As an antidote to DCUM derision, I am reflecting on my Thanksgiving trip to the Midwest with gratitude and awe.
My parents' house is beautiful, their neighbors are kind and generous, and my hometown is delightful.
To get there, it's a 10-hour drive. We drove straight there on the way, but on the way home, we broke the trip up with an overnight stay at a Hampton Inn (with a pool!) and ate dinner at the Olive Garden.
You know what? The Olive Garden treated us freaking RIGHT. Breadsticks and salad on point, and plentiful. All the entrees and kids meals were good. Glass of wine? Yes, please. It was pleasant and clean, the server was nice, the price was a downright bargain. Everyone had a good time. What a nice break after a long day of driving.
Hampton Inn, similarly great. Clean and nice rooms, nice breakfast area with edible-but-hey-free food, pleasant staff.
Here is your chance to say nice things about everything DCUM sneers at. Cracker Barrel, Embassy Suites, lazy rivers, buffets, Ann Taylor, Five Below, Aldi, Great Wolf Lodge, lay it on me. Tell me all about it. I want to hear all the NICE things you have to say about the not-finer things in life.
I do a lot of shopping at dollar tree - for gift bags, wrapping paper, helium balloons, seasonal decor, solar lights, and candles etc. often one tenth of prices in supermarkets.
Anonymous
12/18/2024 05:54
Subject: Re:In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:The vast majority of suggestions in this thread are vulgar.
Your mom.
Anonymous
12/18/2024 05:25
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
I like Carnival cruises
Anonymous
12/18/2024 05:10
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Hotel: Staybridge Suites or Residence Inn. Some are very nice
Food: McD breakfast sandwiches are amazing. Culver’s chicken tenders.
Sausage mcmuffin is so good. No one else's even begins to compare.
I have a Parisian friend who is mostly contemptuous of American food ("so few people know how to cook a good meal for themselves"). But he praises the American breakfast and will even enjoy a McD breakfast. Unfortunately, I believe that McD has stopped their all-day breakfast menu and so he has nothing suitable to eat there after 11am.
Luckily they have McD's in Paris.
McD's has good food abroad too. On one trip to Paris I had McD's Caprese Salad 3x. Last time we got real hardback books as Happy Meal prizes. Once in England, we enjoyed an Indian themed promo at McD's and learned that regular fries are delicious dusted with a curry spice blend.
The shrimp burger in Japan is to die for. Instead of fries I got a little salad with sesame dressing plus the mcdonalds coffee that is great even in the US. I could have eaten that for lunch every day.
Truly lowbrow: my family eats OnCor frozen chicken parmesan probably twice a month with pasta. When I first started buying it in 2012 it was sold at the dollar store!
You can eat quite well at 7 Eleven in Japan.
Anonymous
12/17/2024 18:55
Subject: Re:In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:Ledo pizza!!
My favorite pizza in the DMV area. And I always catch flak if I admit it.
Anonymous
12/17/2024 18:51
Subject: Re:In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Ledo pizza!!
Anonymous
12/17/2024 18:50
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:DCUM is my lowbrow favorite.
lol
Anonymous
12/17/2024 18:48
Subject: Re:In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:The vast majority of suggestions in this thread are vulgar.
What? That's the point. Are you desperate for attention?
Anonymous
12/17/2024 18:47
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:I am very excited chi chi's is returning!!
Really? When? Where?
My extremely wealthy grandmother loved going there for her birthday. Although, admittedly, this was in a midwestern town where there weren't a lot of choices.
Anonymous
12/17/2024 18:36
Subject: Re:In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:The vast majority of suggestions in this thread are vulgar.
I didn’t see anything about pasta salad
Anonymous
12/17/2024 17:53
Subject: Re:In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
The vast majority of suggestions in this thread are vulgar.
Anonymous
12/12/2024 05:58
Subject: In praise of Olive Garden and Hampton Inn; praise YOUR lowbrow favorites!
Anonymous wrote:I am very excited chi chi's is returning!!
same!