Dinner -- 2/16/08

Red Lobster
5925 W. Waco Dr.
(at Richland Mall)
Waco, TX 76710-6356
254.741.1766

http://www.redlobster.com/

5:30 - 6:30 PM

Ramona: Caesar Salad, Lobster & Shrimp on linguini with white wine sauce, strawberry daiquiri

Jim: Caesar Salad, Ultimate Feast (Lobster tail, snow crab, fried shrimp), french fries, iced tea

Shared: New England Sampler (seafood stuffed mushrooms, clam strips, bacon-wrapped scallops) & key-lime pie

Growing up in Philadelphia, I was surrounded by great seafood restaurants: Bookbinder's, Kelly's, Fishers, Gallo's. Summers at the Jersey shore always meant great seafood: Wida's on Long Beach Island, Smithville Inn, and countless others. So Red Lobster was always a last choice -- after all, who would want to eat at a chain when first class seafood eateries were always nearby. Then, when I came to Waco, I found it to be the only seafood restaurant (before I discovered El Siete Mares), and to make matters worse, we had a couple of unacceptable meals there. But, a gift certificate took us back for another try.

It is still a chain, but the food has improved greatly. We have had four or five super meals in a row. As in most chains, the service seems rushed, even when it was not crowded. The place was about 2/3s empty when we got there, but it was full when we left, with a few people waiting.

Both our dinners were first rate, and the New England sampler was hot, although I could swear the menu said something about shrimp. I guess they were in the stuffed mushrooms.

Still, I can't help comparing RL to my old haunts in Philly and New Jersey. Something keeps whispering, "a little too expensive."

-Jim