A Dinner Off-Campus: An Excursion Into the Wilds of Family Restaurants
Driving off Wittenberg’s campus, sister, brother-in-law, and nieces and nephews in tow, I realized I hadn’t dined off campus since move in. I had no idea where I was going! After some jeering, and a quick consultation of my GPS, the fam and I made it to an area of Springfield that seemed to be dedicated solely to super-stores and family taverns. With only marginal complaining, we landed on O’Charley’s. As is to be expected for 6:30 on a Saturday night, the place was packed, and, after a thirty minute wait, we were seated at our table.
The server took a noticeably long time making his way to our table, and wasn’t very friendly once he arrived. The food took longer than our sluggish waiter. Luckily, I ordered the baked-potato soup with my entrée, and it arrived about fifteen minutes before the rest of the dishes. The soup was lukewarm and a bit tasteless. It had a creamy white base with diced potatoes, and was topped with bacon-bits, and a shredded assortment of chesses. The potatoes had supposedly been cooked, but were a bit rubbery. Fortunately the sweet rolls arrived, saving the soup from my withering critiques. As always the rolls were delicious; piping hot and slathered in fatty buttery goodness. I had only made my way through five or six of these beauties before the entrées made their way through the haze.
I ordered the Tuscan Chicken, which consisted of a grilled chicken breast atop a mound of fettuccini and topped with melted mozzarella. The mozzarella was sprinkled with chives, garlic, and bread crumbs, and the pasta was soaked in olive oil. The chicken was quite tasty, but the lack of sauce was a bit of a turn off for me. The pasta was only slightly chewy and what it lacked in flavor it made up for in quantity. The “bread crumbs” turned out to be a mushy paste smeared over the melted mozzarella, probably soaked in the copious olive oil applied to the dish.
Overall, I wouldn’t say the meal was worth the sixteen or seventeen bucks I spent on it. The service was poor, the soup lukewarm, and the main course less than extraordinary. I will give O’Charley’s this: they fed a gluten-free family (my sister’s) near to the point of satisfaction. Their gluten-free menu was rather extensive and I didn’t hear any complaints from my family, so I’m assuming that they enjoyed their meals.
Simply because I enjoyed my dinner, although this is due mostly to the conversation rather than the food, I’ll give the Springfield O’Charley’s a 2.5/5.
The server took a noticeably long time making his way to our table, and wasn’t very friendly once he arrived. The food took longer than our sluggish waiter. Luckily, I ordered the baked-potato soup with my entrée, and it arrived about fifteen minutes before the rest of the dishes. The soup was lukewarm and a bit tasteless. It had a creamy white base with diced potatoes, and was topped with bacon-bits, and a shredded assortment of chesses. The potatoes had supposedly been cooked, but were a bit rubbery. Fortunately the sweet rolls arrived, saving the soup from my withering critiques. As always the rolls were delicious; piping hot and slathered in fatty buttery goodness. I had only made my way through five or six of these beauties before the entrées made their way through the haze.
I ordered the Tuscan Chicken, which consisted of a grilled chicken breast atop a mound of fettuccini and topped with melted mozzarella. The mozzarella was sprinkled with chives, garlic, and bread crumbs, and the pasta was soaked in olive oil. The chicken was quite tasty, but the lack of sauce was a bit of a turn off for me. The pasta was only slightly chewy and what it lacked in flavor it made up for in quantity. The “bread crumbs” turned out to be a mushy paste smeared over the melted mozzarella, probably soaked in the copious olive oil applied to the dish.
Overall, I wouldn’t say the meal was worth the sixteen or seventeen bucks I spent on it. The service was poor, the soup lukewarm, and the main course less than extraordinary. I will give O’Charley’s this: they fed a gluten-free family (my sister’s) near to the point of satisfaction. Their gluten-free menu was rather extensive and I didn’t hear any complaints from my family, so I’m assuming that they enjoyed their meals.
Simply because I enjoyed my dinner, although this is due mostly to the conversation rather than the food, I’ll give the Springfield O’Charley’s a 2.5/5.