Burgers, Dogs, & Pizza, Oh My!

Posts Tagged ‘Denny’s’

I’ve had some pretty dreadful meals at Dennys; usually I have dined there as a matter of geographical convenience, and such was the case recently in downstate Illinois, waiting for a prescription to come through at WalMart.

They were incredibly busy, and while we were seated promptly, service fell apart after that, with the first meal coming to the table about 30 minutes after ordering, and the 2nd meal coming when the first diner was finished.

I went with their “new” hamburger, which is a hand formed patty on a choice of bun. I have to say, it is greatly improved, had a nice char-crust from the flattop, and had a really good flavor all on it’s own. I opted for the “cheddar bun,” which was nice and firm, and could have easily held any toppings I chose to pile on the sandwich.

One other disappointment, from a personal standpoint, I just don’t care for extruded french fries. To me, they are “potato-y” enough in texture or taste. For operators, they are probably less expensive and fry (or bake) quicker.

It’s a personal thing.  Give me a fresh cut fry, hot and crisp out of the oil, any day.

Would I recommend the Denny’s burger?  Yes. The Denny’s menu continues to have something to please almost every taste, including steaks, fish, and pasta to go along with their always available breakfast and sandwich menus. Menu. Locations.

Dennys Review Update

Once a year, I stop in at Denny’s to see how things are going; I’ve undoubtedly had at least two of the worst meals I’ve ever paid for at Denny’s, but I keep rooting for them for a couple reasons, one is that most of them are franchisees, and I try and cheer on entrepreneurs of all ilks, and secondly because a friend of mine just bought 75 of them, and he’s a lot smarter than me, so I figure he must see an upside.

At least two of the bad experiences I have had at Denny’s I have been accompanied by Mrs. Burgerdogboy, and this week I returned to the spot where we shared one of our very first meals eever.

The last time I was at this location the experience was tainted in a good way by thinking I was in love, so the restaurant experience didn’t matter; I was also hobbling around Portland with crutches and a cast, courtesy of Hurricane Katrina.

This time I was not so handicapped, in either regard.

I’m pleased that a lot of things have changed, the restaurant was cleaner, the service affable, and I ordered a cheeseburger and fries, thinking a straight-forward entree would be a good test of the menu and kitchen.

The burger menu has been greatly enhanced, with a host of specialty burgers as well as a “build your own” menu with a substantial number of toppings, including picking your patty and bun:

 Beef Patty, Grilled Seasoned Chicken Breast, Turkey Patty, Veggie Patty. Find Your Base: Sesame Seed Bun, Cheddar Bun, Whole Wheat Bun, Grilled Potato Bread. Say Cheese: American, Swiss , Cheddar, Pepper Jack. Choose Your Toppings: Grilled Onions, Spinach, Lettuce, Tomato, Red Onions, Pickles, Mayo, Chipotle Sauce, Bourbon Sauce, BBQ Sauce, Ranch, Jalapeños, Pico de Gallo. Premium Toppings (requires additional cost): Sautéed Mushrooms, Hash Browns, Bacon, Onion Tanglers™, Fried Egg, Chili, Fresh Avocado,  Jalapeño Bottle Caps.

It’s a list comparable to any of the current niche burger joints, and a worthy one.  Sandwiches and entrees are accompanied by a choice of sides, including Denny’s “odd” new fries, which they proclaim to be “Waffle cut,”  which I think actually means “waffle extruded,”  a fry made from a potato slurry mixture and forced out of a mold frying to freezing and frying.  But they were better than most extruded fries I have consumed.  Other side choices include hash browns, seasonal fruit or dippable vegetables.

The patty was clearly hand-formed and had a great beef taste.  A third pound, at least.  My one beef about the beef at Denny’s?  You have two choices of “doneness,” according to the server, medium well and well. Period.

Those two levels of cooking are not anywhere near my personal preference, but I have to say, it was OK.  Medium well didn’t mean completely dried out as it does at most restaurants.

Denny’s menu is full of ‘doneness’ cautionary statements, including about eggs.   They’ve added a couple of ‘premium’ steaks to the menu, not sure if they can only be cooked to the same levels as the burgers or not.

In any case, my conclusion is that Denny’s new burger menu is comparable to any fast casual competitor, and is every bit as good as Fuddrucker’s or Red Robin.

Full menu and restaurant locator online.

Burger & Fries

Dennys Review

(Imagine the comic book guy from the Simpsons uttering……..”worst…….food……..ever…….”)

My bride and I hit a Denny’s 5-6 years ago, and vowed never to return.  As vows don’t mean much to us, we ended up at this location, in the middle of nowhere the other night.

The gas station next door would have been a better choice for dinner.

He ordered fish and chips.  She ordered some appetizer, corn chips and three dips.

As to the fish and chips. “Icelandic (r) Haddock,” said the menu.  “Two wild caught fillets with wavy cut fries, tartar sauce, slaw, and dinner bread.”  Sidebar:  Icelandic is the largest importer of frozen fish  for the US restaurant industry.  Haddock is a popular cold-water food fish, they grow to about 3′ in length, and are caught in depths of 100-400 feet by various methods.

Traditional “fish and chips” has usually been cod.  True cod that is.  A lot of fish labeled “cod” these days, ain’t.

Anyhow, my plate (below) was one monster fillet, and that in itself was OK, except the fillet was literally dripping in oil.  After taking this picture and looking at my newly oiled camera, I thought it was ruined.  Apparently not.  Nor was it yelling “oil can!”

Wavy-cut fries….I wondered what that could be.  Turns out, it’s an extruded potato product (that means they take a mixture like mashed potatoes and puke it out of a mold to look like fries), and the result is what I would call “churro fries” (for the shape).

Of the three dips on Mrs. BDB’s plate, (some queso thing, a salsa, and a spinach), only the spinach was palatable by any measure.

We escaped with our lives and weren’t sick the next day.  More than I could have hoped for.

I have seen the signs for Denny’s that are tagged “diner” over the years, and was never sure what that meant.   This one was labeled like that, and I still have no idea what the difference is between a regular Denny’s and a Denny’s Diner.

And I will never find out.  Because I wasn’t interested enough to ask, and I won’t be back.