Daniel Boone's - everything I hate about theme restaurants

Daniel Boone's Grill and Tavern
http://www.danielboones.com/



Daniel Boone's is a chain restaurant located off of Troup and the loop in the Old Albertson's parking lot.  It isn't much to look at from the outside with very little decor or signage to indicate a restaurant.  On the inside, they really went all out decorating this place.  I was impressed with the decor, it is cheesy mountain man/Daniel Boone theme, but it is great for kids.  I was reluctant to try this place, mostly because the commercials seemed to be advertising for an older crowd, but my wife wanted to give it a try because she thought it would be family friendly.

The spread:  They offer your standard American cuisine with southern classics (fried pickles, frito pie, etc.), salads, nachos, chicken dishes, fish dishes, chicken fried steaks, burgers, etc.  They have a fairly large menu that is similar to Cracker Barrel (minus the breakfast items).  They also offer free beans and free ice cream.

The verdict:  Well I was pleasantly surprised by the decor, and it was definitely family friendly at first (loud enough so kids being a little loud just blended in).  I got two kinds of beans, their regular pinto beans were underseasoned (not salted properly) and their chili style beans tasted like the same beans plus a can of chili mixed in (again underseasoned).  But I figured, hey they are free who am I to complain.  The servers, the hosts and probably the kitchen as well all consisted of sweet, inexperienced, young kids.  We waited one full hour for our food to arrive.  Our waitress came to our table three times in one hour.  Once to take our order, once to refill drinks and once to tell us that the kitchen was a little backed up and our food would be right out (that was about 50 minutes in).  I don't know about you, but 50 minutes to get out food is more than a little 'backed up'.  We left, our kids were done, we were done.  It was one of the worst food experiences I have had in Tyler.  The food could be just fine, but I seriously doubt that a kitchen that takes more than an hour to get out an order of grilled cheese, a hamburger and chicken fried steak is going to put out anything but sub-par food.  We left, paying for our drinks and when I spoke to the hostess, she was obviously out of her league dealing with the situation.  Every aspect of this place that I experienced was amateurish - there is a clear lack of leadership in this establishment.

Edible Tyler Roses: 0 out of 5, they don't care about service or their customers.

Genghis Grill - ew...dat's gross

Genghis Grill
http://www.genghisgrill.com/



Genghis Grill is a chain restaurant that offers "mongolian stir fry".  The basic concept is that you choose your stir fry ingredients, then hand your bowl off to the cook, who cooks your food on a large grill.  There was a place in Webster, south of Houston called Hans Mongolian BBQ, that was a favorite of my wife and I, so we thought we'd give Genghis Grill a try.

The spread: They offer a variety of raw meats to choose from:  chicken, beef, pork and seafood.  They also have a large selection of different kinds of veggies to add in:  celery, onion, bamboo shoots, carrots, mushrooms, baby corn, tomatoes, cabbage, squash, garlic.  You can even throw in an egg.  They also offer many different kinds of sauces and seasonings to make your bowl your own creation.

The verdict:  I love the concept.  But Genghis didn't work for us for two reasons.  The first of which is that it is nearly impossible to do with younger children.  The second was that when I walked over to peruse the ingredients while we were getting settled in, there was a STRONG rotting fishy odor coming from the raw meat section.  There is no way that I am going to eat ANYTHING that smells like that.  We walked out, not willing to risk sickness.

Edible Tyler Roses: 0 out of 5.  Maybe they had a bad day, but if your ingredients smell rotten, you are failing.

Chili's, Applebees or TGI Friday's - are they all the same?

Chili's versus Applebees versus TGI Fridays - American Chain throwdown







We have a family tradition we are working on right now.  Every Sunday after church one of us gets to pick a place to eat.  I have to confess, I mainly made up this tradition so I could force the family to go to eat Indian food without as much complaining.  We rotate through me, my wife, my son and my oldest daughter (baby doesn't get a vote yet) - everyone gets a chance to go where they want to eat.  It actually works out well as there is much less arguing and it feels like a fair way to get some grub.  (We did have to outlaw Chuck E Cheese as a choice).  At any rate, our kids tended to chose Chili's or Applebees for reasons unbeknownst to me.  These three restaurants are basically the same place to me - bland, below average food from the freezer.  After going to all three multiple times, I thought I would offer my opinion on which one is best in Tyler as they are all pretty close to one another and the food is almost identical.

The spread:  I won't go into too much details, but they offer your standard American food:  burgers, sandwiches, fries etc.  Each one tries to have its own personality, but for me the menus and prices are interchangable.

The verdict:

Applebees - For some reason, my daughter loves Applebees.  I can't tell if it is because she like saying the name or there is some commercial that has imprinted the name on her mind.  She loves her some Applebees.  I can't stand the place.  My wife and I are trying to eat relatively healthy and both of our entrees were nearly inedible.  Neither of us finished our food.  The kids seemed to enjoy their food though.  Perhaps because we went with the healthier options we got the worse Applebees has to offer, so stick with hamburgers or something the kitchen can't screw up.  Applebees Edible Tyler Roses:  1 out of 5, tread carefully and don't venture out.

Chilis - This used to be a favorite of mine, particularly growing up.  The food was nothing to write home about, but it was palatable and decently priced.  I usually go with Chicken Fajitas, club sandwich or Oldtimer burger.  On our last two visits to Chili's the service was horrible (45+ minutes to receive food) and the food was nearly inedible when it arrived.  I'm not sure how you screw up microwaving or reheating frozen food, but they managed to do so.  The service was so bad on one trip I actually didn't leave a tip - I normally start at 20%, and have only not left a tip on maybe 1 or 2 other occasions in my life.  The food is so bad and service so poor, we have put Chili's on the banned list for choices on Sunday.  Chili's Edible Tyler Roses: 0 out of 5, we won't return until there is some change in management.

TGI Fridays -  We had always skipped TGI Fridays for a long time, but we gave them a try lately and we were impressed.  The service was friendly, the food came out fast and the food was uninspired, but decent enough. Of the three, this is the one I am happy to go to.  So the winner is TGI Fridays!! TGI Fridays Edible Tyler Roses: 3 out of 5, the winner of mediocre chain restaurants!!

Lago del Pino - location, location, location

Lago del Pino
http://www.lagodelpino.com/




Lago Del Pino is a beautiful restaurant overlooking Lost Pine "lake" a little west of Tyler.  The outside construction is beautiful brick and looks like a fancy ranch/resort.  The views from the bar are great.  They have live music on Friday and Saturday nights.  My wife and I have been interested in trying out this place for sometime, although, they have pretty terrible reviews online.

The spread:  I'm not sure exactly what cuisine they are trying to model their menu after, but there are various appetizers:  Chips and queso, bacon and blue cheese fries, crab cakes, hummus, etc.  A couple of salad and soup selections.  Their entrees range from Texican burgers, pretzel chicken sandwiches, chilaquiles, fish tacos, enchiladas, shrimp and grits and various steaks and seafood.  I tried the bacon and blue cheese fries and the chips and queso.

The verdict:  Well, did I mention the view?  That is basically all the place has going for it.  The dining portion of the restaurant felt loud and a little sterile.  The service was below average for the prices, not particularly horrible, but certainly not attentive or friendly.  My wife and I only go out occasionally by ourselves, so I promised that we would get a couple of drinks and appetizers and then see if we wanted to order entrees.  Well, the bacon and blue cheese fries came out and they were WAY overpowered by the blue cheese.  I love the idea, but the execution was lacking.  They were memorable in that the the amount of blue cheese made them nearly inedible (a little goes a long way guys!).  Then we got the chips and queso.  The chips were fine, crispy and well, chips.  The queso had a slightly off flavor, like liquid smoke or something like that - not horrible, but not inedible.  We decided to try to give the entrees a try seeing as we were already there, but right as I said that I took a bite of my chips and queso and got a mouthful of plastic bag.  Needless to say, we decided to skip the entrees and will not return.

Edible Tyler Roses: 2 out of 5  - I would recommend going for live music and drinks (the view is great), but just eat somewhere else beforehand.  I also don't see how they will stay in business for very long.  Their overhead has to be killing them.

Wasabi's

Wasabi Asian Bistro and Sushi Bar
http://www.wasabityler.com/

5617 S. Donnybrook

Tyler, TX 75703

Wasabi is a place tucked just off Broadway/69 behind Lowes/Circuit City.  When I walked into the place it looked great.  Modern design, cool looking bar, nice layout, looked clean.  I think they are trying really hard to be a sushi bar that attracts the young, hip crowd.

The spread:  They offer a nice selection of different kinds of sushi (rolls, nigiri, sashimi, etc).  They also offer more traditional Chinese style food as well: egg rolls, stir fry, noodles, fried rice etc.  I tried the wonton soup, egg rolls, lo mein, madarin kung pao, and pot stickers.  I picked up and the service was a little slow for the time of day and the crowd (I think there were 2 people at the bar).

The verdict:  Well, the entire meal was nearly inedible.  The egg rolls I ordered were actually spring rolls that were cold and underseasoned.  The lo mein was hot, but underseasoned and bland.  The pot stickers were luke-warm and underseasoned.  The Kung Pao tasted a little off, was luke warm and underseasoned/bland.  The wonton soup was STONE cold from the fridge, they must have forgot to put it in the microwave.  I am not sure if meal was just a bad night or if that is just what they will put out on their Chinese side of the menu.  Perhaps they do sushi better, but there is no way I am eating raw fish at a place that doesn't know how to cook.  I could not have been more displease with wasting my money on the food.

Edible Tyler Roses:  1 out of 5.  Only reason they get one is that their sushi might be edible.

El Mejicano - Please don't go here.

El Mejicano
678 West Southwest Loop 323
Tyler, TX 75701-9407
No website.



My wife and I went here when we first moved to Tyler, as we had heard about a good Mexican restuarant on the loop west of 69. We saw a colorful building that looked pretty decent on the outside.

The spread: Well this is an all you can eat Mexican buffet. There are fajitas, tacos, nachos, rice beans, and a few desserts.

The verdict: This place was just awful. I am a fan of Pancho's in Houston, which is an all you can eat Mexican place where you raise a flag to get more food (which isn't great, but makes up for being plentiful). I tried just about everything they had out there, not so much because I was to give a full and thorough review of the place, but rather because I was looking for something edible to justify spending money there. My wife was giving me the evil eye the whole time we were there and had maybe 2-3 bites of the food before she decided she didn't want the punishment. I am a glutton for punishment and kept trying. There was nothing redeeming about the food. I did have a very nice young girl who provided pretty good service for a buffet. One bonus is that, although I didn't feel well after eating here, I did not get violently ill.

Edible Tyler Roses: 0 of 5, please do not punish yourself.