General Discussion

Xithras

(16,191 posts)

73. Last time I ate at a Red Lobster...

Mon Aug 4, 2014, 03:20 PM

Aug 2014

...there were only four or five "healthy" options on the menu (all bland and uninteresting), we waited 15 minutes to be seated, and we had to wait over 20 minutes for our food. 35 minutes just to START eating.

That's the real problem with Red Lobster. Dining habits and expectations have changed, but they're still running it like it's 1992. They don't meet modern expectations when it comes to casual dining, and they're food and atmosphere isn't nearly good enough to make them a destination when someone wants to treat themselves to something a bit finer. They either need to retool to become much faster and offer healthier fare, or try to go in the other direction and become more Cheesecake Factory-ish (not literally, but to generally orient themselves as a mass-market "destination restaurant&quot . With proper planning, Red Lobster could have OWNED the market that is being taken over by Joes Crab Shack and its ilk. They could still do well in that market if they'd get off their arse and do the work.

It's not the economy that's hurting them, it's the stupid company leadership.

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The Decline of Red Lobster Is the Decline of the Middle Class [View all] brooklynite Aug 2014 OP

Crappy food and crappy politics is the reason for Darden's decline. FSogol Aug 2014 #1

Bingo randr Aug 2014 #16

5 guys make a helluva burger, don't they? i've heard chipoltes is good but there's a authentic dionysus Aug 2014 #87

I don't know about 5 guys. They opened one here about a year ago. It's already gone notadmblnd Aug 2014 #128

hmmm. not the case here... the burger were well done, yet not dry, fries, hit or miss. i wonder what dionysus Aug 2014 #129

We have a decent labor pool in my community, so only thing notadmblnd Aug 2014 #131

could be.. we have a guy in the thread whose bun disintegrated in his hand, while me and others dionysus Aug 2014 #134

it sounds like a lack of consistency among franchises ohnoyoudidnt Aug 2014 #162

i think you're onto something. 5 guys here, the bun fits the burger... we have two other small local dionysus Aug 2014 #168

I'm with you MurrayDelph Aug 2014 #189

The best burgers that I've ever had have come from bowling alleys and bars notadmblnd Aug 2014 #190

Same here. ohnoyoudidnt Aug 2014 #200

Red Lobster microwaves a lot of it's fish! TheNutcracker Aug 2014 #122

And crappy restaurant management BlueStreak Aug 2014 #135

Fresh ingredients and paying better wages ... 1StrongBlackMan Aug 2014 #142

Where is the typical "red lobster is low grade dog food" comments? nt Logical Aug 2014 #2

How dare you? Iggo Aug 2014 #6

The food snobs are out in force down thread LordGlenconner Aug 2014 #18

why does one have to be a "food snob" just because he or she hates crappy, overpriced CatWoman Aug 2014 #36

+1 LondonReign2 Aug 2014 #38

Eating healthy is so hateful lunasun Aug 2014 #55

This message was self-deleted by its author Skittles Aug 2014 #201

You can hate whatever you want LordGlenconner Aug 2014 #39

The last sit-down dining experience my wife and I had was at a Red Lobster derby378 Aug 2014 #42

That's a nice story LordGlenconner Aug 2014 #44

Thank you - and I remember dining at Olive Garden when they still served cannoli for desert derby378 Aug 2014 #49

Thank-you for sharing vankuria Aug 2014 #74

I'm with ya. blueamy66 Aug 2014 #80

what a heartwarming story, thank you for sharing. i wish you the best. i lost my mom, and dad and i dionysus Aug 2014 #89

Bonanza is one of the first restaurants I remember eating at as a child derby378 Aug 2014 #91

the one in my old home town is a fixture... i don't think it will ever go anywhere. twice i year i dionysus Aug 2014 #94

Oh, my - that DOES sound good derby378 Aug 2014 #97

our pizza hut back home is still sit down, but it's not as good as it used to be... i used to love dionysus Aug 2014 #101

in addendum... you get an entree and the salad bar also has fried chicken, as well as salad, pudding dionysus Aug 2014 #169

Heart warming rememberance ... 1StrongBlackMan Aug 2014 #143

Thank you for sharing your story Spacemom Aug 2014 #150

Sorry about the loss of your Ginny. Enthusiast Aug 2014 #199

I agree with you, and, by the way, whathehell Aug 2014 #105

But there are much better places for the same money alarimer Aug 2014 #111

Or they have special memories and wish to continue traditions. blueamy66 Aug 2014 #112

I wanted to smack writer Joe Queenan for taking that attitude in the piece he wrote about the place Tom Ripley Aug 2014 #175

Lol, you made it! I love this place! nt Logical Aug 2014 #68

..... CatWoman Aug 2014 #70

Food snobs??? The salads at Red Lobster have brown edges, onecent Aug 2014 #202

I don't go to RL as I'm not big on cooked seafood. Nuclear Unicorn Aug 2014 #22

I'd rather eat the low-grade dog food. Iron Man Aug 2014 #32

you are IRON MAN! Lets put you to the TEST! snooper2 Aug 2014 #83

Woah. Iron Man Aug 2014 #125

Because maybe some people like the food at Red Lobster. blueamy66 Aug 2014 #132

And some people don't like it. Iron Man Aug 2014 #144

You said you preferred dog food. blueamy66 Aug 2014 #152

Figure of speech. Iron Man Aug 2014 #161

no figure of speech, you are IRON MAN! You must do the challenge! snooper2 Aug 2014 #204

I quit dogfood. Makes me fart. Eleanors38 Aug 2014 #163

Maybe people are finding better food out there NightWatcher Aug 2014 #3

There are places where Red Lobster is it exboyfil Aug 2014 #60

I live in a place like that laundry_queen Aug 2014 #88

You like those biscuits? Make them at home!!!! MADem Aug 2014 #96

They sell Red Lobster branded mix at Sam's Club Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #100

We make 'em every once in a blue moon when we're having a craving. MADem Aug 2014 #180

Oh yeah, I have! laundry_queen Aug 2014 #102

Hot outta the oven...mmmm good! nt MADem Aug 2014 #181

I never could eat that stuff, it's all oversalted Warpy Aug 2014 #76

And as a native of one of the world's largest fishing ports... MANative Aug 2014 #4

This may surprise you LordGlenconner Aug 2014 #40

No, it doesn't at all, of course. I know how fortunate I was to eat seafood that was... MANative Aug 2014 #57

when i was a little kid... our neighbor worked for the highway in some kind of capacity. a large dionysus Aug 2014 #99

I remember my grandfather telling me stories about how lobster used to be... MANative Aug 2014 #106

my dad comes from "Down East" Maine... lobster was so readily available it was often used as dionysus Aug 2014 #113

I learned to cook seafood from the time I was a tween and... MANative Aug 2014 #116

i can do a pretty decent chowder, lobster is easy, and i am proficient in pan searing cuts of fish dionysus Aug 2014 #127

I've done a version with salmon, shrimp and scallops... MANative Aug 2014 #141

i'm home office now too. tried making crusts a few times.. got too bored to perfect the technique... dionysus Aug 2014 #155

Easiest pie crust ever - 4 ingredients mixed in pie pan Tsiyu Aug 2014 #173

copied and pasted to .txt file, lol dionysus Aug 2014 #174

"And there was much rejoicing" Tsiyu Aug 2014 #191

That is genius BrotherIvan Aug 2014 #198

no problem Tsiyu Aug 2014 #206

do you eat the green stuff that comes out of it? notadmblnd Aug 2014 #139

the tomale(sp)? hell no, but dad does.. i think the green stuff is gross... but there's some dionysus Aug 2014 #156

I ordered a whole lobster once and that's what turned me off about it notadmblnd Aug 2014 #157

ewww. i've never gotten more than a tail in a restaurant.. i prefer to cook my own at home... dionysus Aug 2014 #158

I have to agree pipi_k Aug 2014 #77

No doubt about it. I'm in Fairfield County now... MANative Aug 2014 #104

i feel you, in regards to seafood; i'm from Maine. but i've been on the road for work in shitty dionysus Aug 2014 #90

Definitely true. MANative Aug 2014 #108

Similar for me. Grew up in an area with readily-available "off the boat" fish... JHB Aug 2014 #145

You can say the same for chicken and pork and tomatoes and apples and cucumbers and on and on. progressoid Aug 2014 #178

we've found red lobster to be great when travelling and/or meeting with family unblock Aug 2014 #5

It could be that their food is too expensive and not that good RockaFowler Aug 2014 #7

Good question. Laelth Aug 2014 #8

Five Guys != high-quality IDemo Aug 2014 #9

You ain't kiddin'. Iggo Aug 2014 #12

Agreed. I don't get the hype at all. It's an OK bar burger -- but if I'm paying bar burger prices, Brickbat Aug 2014 #13

That one cracked me up. enlightenment Aug 2014 #17

I'll tell you why I love Five Guys Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #21

Oh, I like them. enlightenment Aug 2014 #56

yeah, the peanut shells on the floor is old timey and pretty cool.... dionysus Aug 2014 #170

Actually, I think they encourage you to put the shells in the paper Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #171

i personally, try to be tidy, but... there's so much traffic going through there, the shells dionysus Aug 2014 #172

I walked out of a Five Guys without ordering because it was quite noisy. Manifestor_of_Light Aug 2014 #154

All fresh ingredients. Nothing is canned. They don't even have a freezer FSogol Aug 2014 #24

Good for them IDemo Aug 2014 #27

What were you doing with the bun - playing volleyball? Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #62

No, softball IDemo Aug 2014 #71

Quality of burgers is subjective, and if there are burgers you like better, that's cool. Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #92

Get it without tomato jmowreader Aug 2014 #130

Then you haven't been to Crack in the Box lately. Major Hogwash Aug 2014 #140

I think people are going local MindPilot Aug 2014 #10

We avoid chain restaurants when we eat out. Arugula Latte Aug 2014 #59

I went to Chipotle for my birthday this year, CEO Lopdrup. tridim Aug 2014 #11

Panera and Five Guys offer a high-quality dining experience? oberliner Aug 2014 #14

I sorta agree Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #15

I go to RL for the Skidmore Aug 2014 #19

They now sell Red Lobster cheddar bay biscuit mix at Sam's Club Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #23

You don't need a mix spinbaby Aug 2014 #64

I think the mix is essentially Bisquick Algernon Moncrieff Aug 2014 #103

I found a recipe online years ago for those biscuits, very close indeed. niyad Aug 2014 #165

Red Lobster is too pricey for the crappy food. You can go to much better places and Pisces Aug 2014 #20

So do people think the middle class has less money to spend on eating out? el_bryanto Aug 2014 #25

If people have less money, they make their choices more carefully. RL just isn't FSogol Aug 2014 #26

+1. They're more likely to buy ingredients for a "special" meal and cook it themselves winter is coming Aug 2014 #30

Probably both. RedCappedBandit Aug 2014 #183

I think people are, more or less, assholes. Dreamer Tatum Aug 2014 #28

So, someone who disagrees with you about a restaurant chain is an asshole? FSogol Aug 2014 #31

No, someone who says 'they should do X' and then ignores when X is done Dreamer Tatum Aug 2014 #33

You need a better list CBGLuthier Aug 2014 #81

No, you miss the point, merely to get falsely upset at something I said. nt Dreamer Tatum Aug 2014 #82

Trust me, what you said was not important enough to me to get upset, falsely or otherwise. CBGLuthier Aug 2014 #84

Yet you're still here. Odd. Go play, buddy. Dreamer Tatum Aug 2014 #86

Need to change the business model... DAMANgoldberg Aug 2014 #166

OH MY GOD someone gets it. Dreamer Tatum Aug 2014 #188

Gimmicks only work for so long... DAMANgoldberg Aug 2014 #194

Crappy food. Seafood depletion no fun. roody Aug 2014 #29

The food at Red Lobster is just as bad as Old Country Buffet. Iron Man Aug 2014 #34

Actually those restaurants were okay 20 years ago. But Red Lobster has gone down in a big way. Zen Democrat Aug 2014 #35

People are eating better than they used to, also drinking less booze KurtNYC Aug 2014 #37

Out: drinking and driving leftstreet Aug 2014 #46

I Wish I Knew RobinA Aug 2014 #48

a guide by zip code KurtNYC Aug 2014 #61

Thanks RobinA Aug 2014 #107

Just checked their website.... KurtNYC Aug 2014 #123

Have you tried the one in Times Square? KamaAina Aug 2014 #41

ate at Red Lobster 1 time, ordered lobster: yuck! eShirl Aug 2014 #43

Dirty tables, seats and carpet ...and cold or shitty cock roach of the sea. L0oniX Aug 2014 #45

You can BYOB here Go Vols Aug 2014 #47

I actually like Red Lobster but it's just one of those ecstatic Aug 2014 #50

I used to enjoy their biscuits, but the last couple of times we tried to eat there MerryBlooms Aug 2014 #51

Yep, they changed the biscuits laundry_queen Aug 2014 #93

I can't speak to red lobster because I almost never go there, but Olive Garden is Sheldon Cooper Aug 2014 #52

Eh, I've gone to crappy Mom & Pop Italian restaurants so that's no guarantee. Gormy Cuss Aug 2014 #58

If you get some of the restaurant industry supply catalogs... SeattleVet Aug 2014 #63

Yup, some independents do this too Gormy Cuss Aug 2014 #69

This! hedgehog Aug 2014 #75

And you can tell. laundry_queen Aug 2014 #98

There is no doubt that there is a declining middle class DefenseLawyer Aug 2014 #53

I avoid Darden restaurants because of the way they treat their employees . Not their crappy food lunasun Aug 2014 #54

We are fortunate to have fantastic, local non-chain family owned restaurants Zorra Aug 2014 #65

I think men are cooking more ... sunnystarr Aug 2014 #66

Eww! Garthem Aug 2014 #67

Resturant business is a cyclical business. Stores come and go. Fla Dem Aug 2014 #72

Last time I ate at a Red Lobster... Xithras Aug 2014 #73

We loved Red Lobster. When my son was little, it was one of the few places that woodsprite Aug 2014 #78

Money has put the crimp on me Politicalboi Aug 2014 #79

I wouldn't worry about the oil spill madville Aug 2014 #185

i know people love to beat them up, but as a broke college student, the unlimited salad and dionysus Aug 2014 #85

The decline in Red Lobster is directly proportional to the increase of more palatable food. MohRokTah Aug 2014 #95

Maybe I've been spoiled by living near the coasts, but I thought Red Lobster was crap. alarimer Aug 2014 #109

i'm from Maine, and i know good seafood. sadly, there are some towns out there where red lobster is dionysus Aug 2014 #114

Cheyenne, Wyoming, for one. Major Hogwash Aug 2014 #146

crappy chain restaurants are always in high traffic convenient locations pstokely Aug 2014 #195

Aren't there some good nonchain steakhouses in Cheyenne, Wyoming? pstokely Aug 2014 #196

They tried putting a Red Lobster down on Cape Cod.... Little Star Aug 2014 #110

now THAT is funny! dionysus Aug 2014 #115

crappy food at high prices is a deadly combination Vattel Aug 2014 #117

Here is where the writer of this piece and a whole lot of DU are out of touch... ScreamingMeemie Aug 2014 #118

All depends on where you live. dilby Aug 2014 #119

My opinion does not depend on where I live. ScreamingMeemie Aug 2014 #120

You're talking about working class restaurants leftstreet Aug 2014 #124

They are not. ScreamingMeemie Aug 2014 #147

I have to say, I agree with the previous poster that I have trouble seeing your price range alcibiades_mystery Aug 2014 #176

yeah, 7 or 8 bucks or whatever for a burger isn't cheap. Two real good, local, almost identical dionysus Aug 2014 #133

That looks yummy! ScreamingMeemie Aug 2014 #148

Middle Class and Working Class are not the same thing Xithras Aug 2014 #138

Denny's is "middle class"? pstokely Aug 2014 #197

it's the Internet, especially smartphones , people can now look up restaurants and reviews JI7 Aug 2014 #121

Went recently against my best intuition, food was crappy, never again randys1 Aug 2014 #126

I still went to Skippers for several years after our Red Lobster opened. They had better fish and brewens Aug 2014 #136

The decline of Red Lobster is the rise of restaurant oversaturation jmowreader Aug 2014 #137

Red Lobster was never the hip joint was it? BootinUp Aug 2014 #149

I'd make it myself...before I'd eat their crap. Historic NY Aug 2014 #151

I love Red Lobster's garlic rolls and their fish sandwich is awesome! B Calm Aug 2014 #153

I think Kim Lopdrup underestimates the Cha Aug 2014 #159

Chipotle, Panera, and Five Guys are not Fine Dining liberal N proud Aug 2014 #160

ROFL...I laughed at that: if you "order" at a counter, it's not even dining alcibiades_mystery Aug 2014 #177

Who said they where fine dining? SpartanDem Aug 2014 #187

I will never understand how companies can pay crap wages Tsiyu Aug 2014 #164

+A million RedCappedBandit Aug 2014 #184

I was just thinking Tsiyu Aug 2014 #192

Over priced, crappy food n/t jen63 Aug 2014 #167

Not everything is associated with the dying Middle Class. Drunken Irishman Aug 2014 #179

I'd choose Chipotle over RL every time.. RedCappedBandit Aug 2014 #186

Red Lobster is more expensive than plenty of vastly superior restaurants... RedCappedBandit Aug 2014 #182

I like to take the kids to The Habit for a good burger and they have the best mackerel Aug 2014 #193

I personally hate their food anymore. ebbie15644 Aug 2014 #203

"fast-casual dining is red-hot" MinM Aug 2014 #205