Man...sometimes it's hard to get your point across within a specific number of words! Let me re-phrase the part about our competing to see who can "sell" the most specials. I meant to give the reader a peek behind the kitchen door. It's not that we're rewarded for making the most money for the restaurant from a certain special; it's that we compete to see who can conceive, execute and write an enticing enough description of our special (also an easy enough description to get the serving staff to repeat it without omissions) to get the most diners to
order it.
andrew mellman wrote:
I know that many chain "specials" are mandated, but also know that these chains look at what is fresh, and like to pick 'specials' utilizing the freshest produce of the season, fresh seafood, whatever, which doesn't lessen their impact. Many chains will also offer "specials" as a way to test market menu update items, but again these will be the freshest items (and sometimes you will see them on the following year's "regular" menu for the season). I will agree that chains offering local specials are few, but they also exist.
Andrew, Robert, and everyone that pointed out that chain restaurants have specials - I take your point. I think you're willfully not seeing mine, though: no line cook at Longhorn Steakhouse or Carraba's is coming up with a special all by themselves on the spur of the moment through sheer creativity. Not that they couldn't do so - it's just that the corporate structure where they work would never allow it. The executive chef at a chain restaurant might do so, but only after much planning and clearing it with corporate higher-ups. It's not the same thing I was talking about at all - and although I should have put the caveat in that sometimes chains have off-menu offerings they call "specials", they are rarely "special" in any way, other than not being published on the regular menu.
My column isn't intended to be an indie-versus-chain spotlight every week. It's an industry-perspective column to provide adventurous diners with tips and insider-ish info that will make them savvier restaurant patrons. Since I'm the one writing it, and I've never worked in a chain restaurant, naturally there will be more content from an independent restaurant employee perspective, but it's not the purpose of my column to keep people from eating at Buckhead's (I ate there Sunday - the cheese boulders are all they were cracked up to be and more!).
Frankly, the more people that eat at both chain and independent restaurants the better. That means a larger group of diners that has experienced the many differences between the two for themselves.
Last year around this time I was in West Virginia for my dad's wedding. On the way out of town heading back to Louisville, I picked up a bushel of ramps (if you've never had ramps,
here's the Wikipedia page about them) and had it sold to Shaun Ward at Jack Fry's and Mike Cuhna at Limestone by cell phone before I crossed the border into Kentucky (Todd Richards, I did try to call you, but it was a Sunday!). D'you think I would have gotten any love from TGI Fridays for making that call?
