4 ms·

Did a timeshare presentation offer a few years back that came with an extremely discounted 4-night stay in a nice resort in Orlando, plus a $100 gift card to Pl

Did a timeshare presentation offer a few years back that came with an extremely discounted 4-night stay in a nice resort in Orlando, plus a $100 gift card to Planet Hollywood in Disney Springs. At the time my kids were so young they usually split a kids meal, so I remember thinking "I don't think we'll even be able to use this whole thing in one sitting!" Yet somehow two burgers, two kids meals, and a couple beers ended up at just about $100. Food was mediocre at best, maybe competitive with Applebees. Had I been paying out of my own pocket that would have been among the worst quality:dollar ratio of any restaurant meal in memory.

cogman10 5y ago
Yeah, it's doom to fail. The problem a lot of chain restaurants are facing is the prevalence of the internet and online reviews. They are setup such that you can either go to a known ok place to eat vs some new experience that may or may not be good. However, finding a good place to eat is now easier than ever. I'll look for the type of food I want, then look at some restaurant reviews and I'm off. Chains like Olive garden or Applebees struggle because every city probably has an Italian or American restaurant that's better quality and price. At this point their main clientele are the internet illiterate. This is what has killed a place like Planet Hollywood. The entire appeal of it is to be sold to young people as a hip place to eat some good food... but young people are the most likely to read and leave reviews which doesn't bode well when you are serving terrible food. But also serving terrible food at a huge markup? That's a chain killer. In the next 10 years, I expect that the only mid->high price chains that survive are the ones that adapt. Even then, the outlook is bleak. You aren't going to eat at Chili's when there's a local steakhouse at a similar price and higher quality.
- hakfoo 5y ago
  I think there's a second market: familiarity. Think of the Cracker Barrels all across the country. Always right next to a major highway, look exactly the same, food's exactly the same. Always packed pre-pandemic. If you've just traveled 8 hours and don't want to fight with dueling blog reviews or having to decide "do I want 'the best Thai food in Provo' or 'the best cheesesteak I ever had'", a Cracker Barrel or Applebee's has a "basically fulfills purpose" charm. They can slide a bit downmarket and survive, but a place like Planet Hollywood can't go truly upmarket without actual work on the food.

cogman10 5y ago

Yeah, it's doom to fail. The problem a lot of chain restaurants are facing is the prevalence of the internet and online reviews. They are setup such that you can either go to a known ok place to eat vs some new experience that may or may not be good. However, finding a good place to eat is now easier than ever. I'll look for the type of food I want, then look at some restaurant reviews and I'm off. Chains like Olive garden or Applebees struggle because every city probably has an Italian or American restaurant that's better quality and price. At this point their main clientele are the internet illiterate. This is what has killed a place like Planet Hollywood. The entire appeal of it is to be sold to young people as a hip place to eat some good food... but young people are the most likely to read and leave reviews which doesn't bode well when you are serving terrible food. But also serving terrible food at a huge markup? That's a chain killer. In the next 10 years, I expect that the only mid->high price chains that survive are the ones that adapt. Even then, the outlook is bleak. You aren't going to eat at Chili's when there's a local steakhouse at a similar price and higher quality.

hakfoo 5y ago
I think there's a second market: familiarity. Think of the Cracker Barrels all across the country. Always right next to a major highway, look exactly the same, food's exactly the same. Always packed pre-pandemic. If you've just traveled 8 hours and don't want to fight with dueling blog reviews or having to decide "do I want 'the best Thai food in Provo' or 'the best cheesesteak I ever had'", a Cracker Barrel or Applebee's has a "basically fulfills purpose" charm. They can slide a bit downmarket and survive, but a place like Planet Hollywood can't go truly upmarket without actual work on the food.