January 31st, 2011
A room of a dozen three year old children is stressful in the first place but when you put a dozen three year old children in an extremely loud and crowded restaurant and throw a giant mouse, bad pizza, and a few video games in the middle of the chaos, you get a Chuck E. Cheese birthday. I do not know what I was thinking when I had my little girl’s birthday there. I was not sure where I was going to do the party until due to Tyler unreliable January weather. When we decided to have the party indoors we called the restaurant and tried to get the package deal and reserve a table for the party. They said that they can not allow us to reserve a table so close to the party time, but they said to just come in and try to find an open table. We tried to come into the restaurant after the lunch rush but it was still really crowded. I wanted Chuck E. Cheese to come out and sing to my little girl for her birthday but they said that he will not come out and sing happy birthday unless we bought a cake. I did not want to pay a lot of money for a cake with bad icing piled on top of the cake. I thought it was pretty ridiculous that they would not go sing to a toddler.
I really recommend not having a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese if you can not reserve the package deals. If you do reserve the package deals, be prepared to have an extremely loud party that you can not hear yourself think no less have any conversation with any of your guests. The waiter and waitresses come out and sing to about six or seven kids at the same time. You might end up sharing a table with another kid’s birthday party. The chaos is too much to handle. After your kids have danced with Chuck E. Cheese and ran around the table a few times, you can let them loose through the restaurant and allow them play video games to their heart content. The video game area can be so crowded, when I bring my children there I feel like I am watching them like a hawk. The rule of Chuck E. Cheese is that you are suppose to get your hand stamped when you walk through the door, the stamp on your hand is suppose to match the stamp on the hand of all the children that came with you. Last time I went there I walked in and they did not stamp my hand and my daughter did. When I walked out they asked to see my hand and I just said that I did not get my hand stamped and he just let us out. I was glad that I was able to leave with my child but I was thinking in the bad of my mind if they would of checked stamps if my kids were walking out with someone else.
It is true that children love this restaurant. It is like a gambling hall for kids. They spend the twenty five cent token to win three tickets that are worth a penny each. At the end of the day parents spend fifty dollars on tokens so that their kids can bring home a two dollar toy. Kids do not see the fact that they are getting ripped off. They have fun playing the games and running away from their overwhelmed parents. I really do not like Chuck E. Cheese and will never again throw a birthday party there. It was days before I got rid of the pounding headache. It s fine to eat there during the week and allow your children to get their energy out, and have a fun day; but going during the busy weekends it is not really worth it.
Tags: Birthday Party, Chaos, Chuck Cheese, Chuck E Cheese, Chuck E Cheese Tyler TX, Giant Mouse, Happy Birthday, Hawk, Heart Content, Little Girl, Loud Party, Lunch Rush, Money, Open Table, Party Time, pizza, Tyler Texas, Video Game Area, Video Games, Waiter, Waitresses, Weather
Posted in Pizza, Restaurants | No Comments »
December 5th, 2010
Texas Roadhouse is a steak restaurant in Tyler Texas and is most closely compared to Outback Steakhouse.
At the same time they are very different places. For one you have buckets of peanuts still in the shell to chuck and pop in your mouth.
You can then throw the shells anywhere you like. Be careful not to throw too closely to someones foot as you never know when you may be next to a Texas redneck. The redneck has been known to stomp on yer face if a peanut shell lands on their boot or girlfriend.
The weekends are crazy busy and much busier than Outback Steakhouse. The atmosphere is brighter inside and gives off a Texas ranch style charm.
The waitresses and waiters are all pretty young but almost all seem like seasoned wait staff that have worked in restaurants for years.
When you meet your waitress or waiter they often get right down to business and may not have time for lots of friendly banter which is ok because this means they move quick.
You get loads of rolls with cinammon butter and they always seem quick to notice refills in need.
Most of what’s on the menu is really good. I usually get the Fort Worth T-bone and my wife gets a small filet.
Regarding their vegetables stay away from the green beans. They taste like you’re eating a salty slimy grasshopper but other then that Texas Roadhouse is great!
Tags: Banter, Buckets, Charles Robinson, Christian Man, Court Trial, Dentist, Dentist Tx, Different Places, Dr Charles, Grasshopper, Green Beans, Hidden Cameras, Light Bulb, Neighbors, News Stations, News Stories, Nightmares, Old Girl, Old Woman, Outback Steakhouse, Passing Judgement, Peanut Shell, Peanuts, Peep, Peeping Tom, Ranch Style, Redneck, Renting, Steak Restaurant, Style Charm, Suspicious Behavior, T Bone, Texas Roadhouse, Tom Robinson, Tyler Texas, Tyler TX, Waiter, Waiters, Waitress, Waitresses, Weird
Posted in Tyler Businesses | No Comments »
January 24th, 2010
Casa Ole Mexican Restaurant is located at 5105 S Broadway Ave., Tyler, Texas. This is a restaurant that looks quaint inside and out and is similar to an old time restaurant building in Mexico. 
The waiters and waitresses are so friendly and congenial. When we have gone to eat there they have been very nice to make your order custom if you are needing to substitute different menu items. The menus are built to reflect the amount of food you want and what you want to pay for. An example is: “uno” would be one enchilada, with Spanish rice and refried beans…..”dos” would be two enchiladas, with Spanish rice and refried beans.
There is a small difference in the price but their prices are very economical. For two people you can have a nice meal and spend less than $20.00. The restaurant serves rainbow sherbet for dessert as a complimentary item.
Even if the time of day is noon which is customarily the busy part of the day they will get you seated and served in a fraction of the time that other places take. If you are looking for good Mexican food, wonderful service and economical price Casa Ole is the place to go.
Tags: Broadway Ave, Casa Ole, Casa Ole Mexican Restaurant, Dessert, Economical Price, Enchilada, Enchiladas, Food Service, Fraction, Menus, Mexican Food, Mexican Restaurant, Mexico, Old Time, Rainbow Sherbet, Refried Beans, Spanish Rice, Time Of Day, Tyler Texas, Waiters, Waitresses, Wonderful Service
Posted in Mexican | 1 Comment »
January 16th, 2010
Do you tip at Sonic? That’s a discussion I’ve had with several people recently after discovering that the workers who bring you your food actually expect tips. Should I feel like a jerk for my ignorance in not knowing this already? In my defense, I usually use the drive through, but when I don’t, I usually don’t tip.
I know, they don’t expect a lot but the thought of tipping at a fast food restaurant just seems weird to me. When you go through a drive through somewhere, and they ask you to pull up because your food isn’t ready yet, do you tip the person that finally does bring it?
If I have about 50 cents or so left, I may let them keep the change but I’m not going to go out of my way to give an extra something. No offense, but unless you’re coming by and refilling my drinks, I just don’t see it as being necessary. Not to mention, if you expect a tip, you need to make that an option for people paying with a debit card. One point that’s been made to me is the fact that the workers usually get paid minimum wage. They’re not actual waiters and waitresses here.
Almost every time I have this conversation with someone, I’m reminded of something that happened to me. A couple days or so after my cousin and I had gone to Sonic on the Loop and 64 in Tyler, I was cleaning out my car which required me to pick take out the Sonic bag from just nights before. In it, I found some ketchup packets. On one of those packets was written a girls name and phone number.
This had us puzzled. Was it intended for me, or him, which one? Or was it not intended for either of us. Perhaps someone had written a name and number on several packets and threw them in there and we happened to be one of the (not so) “lucky” ones. Regardless, the possibilities were endless.
That night at Sonic, there was no flirtatious Sonic employee. There was no drop dead gorgeous woman for whom either of us would consider buying a Rout 44 strawberry limeade. We simply came to the conclusion if the number actually belonged to a girl worth calling, we would have remembered it and therefore, we decided to let it remain a mystery. Who knows, maybe she was just trying to get a tip.
Tags: 50 Cents, Conversation With Someone, Couple Days, Cousin, Debit Card, Drinks, Drop Dead Gorgeous, Fast Food Restaurant, Girls Name, Gorgeous Woman, Jerk, Ketchup Packets, Lucky Ones, Minimum Wage, Possibilities, Rout, Sonic, Sonic Drive-In, Sonic Tyler Texas, Strawberry, Tyler Sonic Drive-In, Tyler Texas, Waiters, Waitresses
Posted in Fast Food | No Comments »
January 14th, 2010
The Texas Roadhouse
2101 Southeast Loop 323
Tyler
TX 75701
903 509 0053
Opening hours M-T 4pm-10pm
Friday 4-11pm
Sat and Sun 11am-11pm
If you’ve lived in Texas for long you will have tried the steaks at the Texas Roadhouse, in fact, you’re probably a regular customer. The Texas Roadhouse is known for it’s hand-cut steaks, cooked to your specifications and it’s delicious ribs – all priced very reasonably. The Tyler Roadhouse keeps up this reputation; in fact, it probably adds further credit to this chain of restaurants.
If you have visitors to Texas, an evening at the Texas Roadhouse is a must, part of the cultural experience. Our family from England LOVED it.
First, there is the whole shelling the peanuts and throwing them on the floor thing. Then there is the atmosphere –loud and fun, our waitresses even did a short line dance while waiting for the food to be ready for them to serve. And last but not least, there is the food. We tried a cactus blossom which sounded very Texan. It was! Deep fried, of course, it was a huge battered onion with a spicy dip. There was plenty to share. The salads were good, as was the baked potatoes ‘loaded’ literally with sour cream, bacon and spring onion shavings. We enjoyed our steaks – cutting into my fillet was like cutting butter – and the ribs were a hit too. One criticism – the fries were way too salty. Perhaps it is to encourage you to drink more ice cold beer or maybe a margarita. We did have to re-order fries for the children without seasoning.
There is more than enough food for every size of appetite – The Texas Roadhouse in Tyler must have to buy a lot of ‘take home’ boxes for it’s customers. I had the pleasure of eating steak two days in a row – the second time reheated in my microwave, but still very tasty! I can’t comment on the desserts – I have never been with anyone who has room to order one, but I know that they do have a selection of traditionally southern sweets.
One great thing about the Roadhouse is that it is family friendly. On Tuesdays children eat free and sometimes they have a visiting ‘Andy Armidillo’ or a balloon modeller. Consequently, the place is PACKED, so if you don’t have kids, Tuesday might be a night to avoid. It is certainly good for a family budget too as the food is great but inexpensive. You can make a further saving by eating between 4 and 6pm with their Early Dine menu.
On the downside – you cannot make reservations at this restaurant. ‘Call ahead seating’ is the best they will do and it often still involves quite a wait in the lobby before you are seated. I guess that’s just a symptom of it’s popularity. However, once inside, the service is speedy and the servers are efficient and friendly.
All in all I recommend an evening at the Texas Roadhouse and give it a thumbs up!
Tags: 4pm, Baked Potatoes, Cold Beer, Delicious Ribs, Fillet, Home Boxes, Line Dance, Margarita, Peanuts, Shavings, Sour Cream, Southeast Loop, Southern Sweets, Spicy Dip, Spring Onion, Steaks, Sun 11am, Texas Roadhouse, Texas Roadhouse Tyler TX, The Texas Roadhouse, Tyler TX, Waitresses
Posted in American Food | No Comments »
