Red Robin

It's a little hard to review chains, but I do have a few things to say about both Red Robin and Cheesecake Factory, so here goes another two entries.

I have a bizarre quirk about food... I tend to avoid messy food. I actually love the way all of these foods taste. However, I don't particularly like eating them often because it involves some amount of messiness. Things on the list include burritos, ribs, and chicken wings. Note that these foods are to be eaten with the hands and involve sauce and/or things falling out of a wrapper.

I committed a rather egregious error of being the closed-minded newbie when I asked for a fork at an Ethiopian restaurant. The server gave me a look that can only be described as an amused glare. I love Ethiopian food, but it involves unleavened flatbread (injera) used to scoop up stewed entrees. While I definitely try to subscribe to the "when in Rome" attitude, I didn't like eating with my hands when it involved "soupy" food.

Neurotic? Yes. I'd have to say this is probably the only major food hangup I have. When I do eat them, I wipe my hands often. Yes, I know it's weird. Very Monk-esque OCD, no?

Thus, gourmet burgers fall on that list. Red Robin, which specializes in burgers, isn't exactly a place I prefer to visit often. Don't get me wrong, I like their burgers. The fish burger and the 'Shroom burger are especially good.

We do go because it's one of D.'s favorite restaurants. I love their milkshakes, so I brave the lactose intolerance and the gads of calories and order a strawberry shake. I usually follow that with something light, like a bowl of soup or a salad. Hey, that's a 1000 calorie shake, easy, so I go the "girly" route and eat light. I usually don't do a burger unless I'm really in the mood.

This past Saturday, I had the chicken tortilla soup, which was pretty good. It's a little expensive ($4.99) for a rather small bowl. Other dishes I like are the BLTA croissant sandwich (not as messy as a burger... hehe), the soup/salad combo (French onion soup is good there), or the soup/sandwich combo. Their fish tacos are decent, but expensive.

Overall, a good chain, but a tad overpriced for the quality of food served.