O'Charley's oh bother

I realized this week that I am missing a great opportunity to blog all about the (sometimes great) food I eat. Not because I am amazing cook (ask anyone, I am not!) but because I travel a good bit for work and being on the road allows me to eat at places I would not normally get to eat. This week I made a deliberate determination that I would try to venture to the non-franchise establishments.

Tonight was a complete fail…O’Charley’s. Give me a break, I didn’t get here until late, and I’ve been driving for five hours so I was just ready to be done with the day. I almost skipped dinner (and maybe I should have gone with that first instinct) but I figured I should eat something.

The O’Charley’s in Bristol, VA feels just like the O’Charley’s in Georgia…or any other state for that matter. The only difference is the mural of course; and this one makes me want to investigate the “Paramount” theater that apparently premiered A Chorus Line on Nov 24 of some year.

The couple sitting behind me is on what I assume is a second date. I’m guessing the girl “had a few” to calm her nerves before he picked her up because she is obnoxious and I can hear every word that comes out of her mouth! Her date smells amazing and I wish he were my date. OK, not really, but he does smell very nice.

The couple in front of me is sitting on the same side of the booth…FACING ME. Hello. You saw I was sitting here, facing this way, before you sat down. You could have put some effort into the minimal thought it would have taken to determine sitting on the other side of the table might have been a better idea. The best thing about sitting across from them is getting to watch them make-out through dinner. There is something about kissing a man that has just put a piece of food in his mouth. Not appealing.

This might be the lesson I learn when I eat at the everyday, run of the meal franchise restaurant. Eat boring food, blog about your dinner neighbors. (They keep kissing!)

I will say this for the food; O’Charley’s has always been a favorite for a number of reasons:

1. It makes me think of Char and I love that girl so much! I got to see she and Kelly (oh, and Justin too) this past weekend and it was a good thing. I was going through major withdrawals.
2. Rolls. Do I really need to say anything more? I didn’t think so.
3. California (whatever it’s called) Salad with strawberries and candied pecans. You don’t even need the dressing, that salad was dropped from the Heavens I am sure.
4. She is now laying her head on his shoulder. Good grief.
5. They serve Pepsi – which is not normally a plus in my book – but they are one of the only restaurants that serve DIET Mt. Dew. Sure, most have the regular Dew, but Diet is a treat indeed.

Tonight I guess it was just about finding a good meal close to the hotel. (There is a lot of action at the booth in front of me…so uncomfortable.) I did try something different tonight, 7oz steak, and it wasn’t horrible. The only thing O’Charley’s needs now is Wi-Fi. Maybe someone in the PR department will stumble on my blog and take my suggestion to the top. Come on guys…you can’t be next to every Marriott in the south and not have free Wi-Fi going on. Hop to it.

I’m headed back to Atlanta tomorrow after my meeting and although it is a five hour drive, I saw some pretty sad looking antique shops on the way up and they were screaming my name! I hope they are open tomorrow…I would love to find a $3 treasure.

This couple is making me want to vomit…I’m outta here.