Yeah, that is a great recommendation for a restaurant: I didn't get sick from their food.

bad restaurant
 

We just returned from dinner at Tierra del sol. We went with 2 other couples. The food was TERRIBLE!!! They advertised a baked stuffed pork chop for $18.99. It was 1 porkchop about 5 oz and was slit open with 1/2 teaspoon of tasteless stuffing. It was accompanied by 1/4 cup of mashed potato and burnt, dried up tough carrots. My husband had "surf and turf". His steak was so thinly cut and full of grizzle. The turf was 5 shrimp that was adequate. The baked potato was alright.
It also came with burned carrots. The other couples dinners were the same. The bill was $50 a couple with only soft drinks and no second glass of anything. It was not crowded and this should have been our tipoff on Easter. I guesss the word had gone around but unfortunately, we didn't get it. One couple went to Mcdonalds after leaving as they were starving!
DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE THAT WE DID!

Went there once and never again, Prego makes a better sauce than they do, very disappointed.

Were you talking about Mom & Dad's or Tierra Del Sol????
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Bill,

Honestly - I am not so sure. Like the original poster, I would get input from others. Maybe it is because at this point I still work full time and how we spend our limited leisure time is important to us. Getting a free meal in a restaurant where the food isn't very good or where the atmosphere isn't conducive to relaxation is just not worth it. I also don't like to eat a restaurants where the wine is all cheap. I am not a wine snob, but it has to be drinkable. Some restaurants have only very cheap wine because so many Villagers want something at less than $5 a glass (and hopefully 2 for 1).

However, it sounds as if most posters think this restaurant is definitely worth the trip.

Just wanted to point out that as I read the posts in this thread, the poster didn't actually say that they GOT food poisoning at the restaurant that was mentioned; it was just (unless I misinterpreted the post) a general comment replying to a previous comment which had said that a 'free meal' couldn't be 'bad'.

I haven't been to Mom and Dad's restaurant, but just wanted to be fair to them and clear this up if my impression is correct; and I will try Mom and Dad's; I somehow hadn't heard about it, which is another good reason for TOTV. Sometimes a 'buzz phrase' (like 'food poisoning') sticks in our minds and leaves an unintended (I think ?) impression.

You are correct Freeda, I did not say that I got food poisoning from eating there and I have never eaten there. My response was to the statement that there is no such thing as a bad meal when it is free to which I have to disagree. If one did get food poisoning, it would most likely cost a lot more in medical bills than the meal would have cost.

You are so right about that! I ended up in the hospital with it once while I was in my 20s, the sickest I've ever been.

I stand corrected.

Bill :wave:

katezbox, I agree. One of the big disappointments of the local eating places is a lack of a decent wine selection. Palmer has a few good ones, and I can always find good wine at Garvino's. Even good beer is hard to find. Maybe a good thing as I drink less. But I would prefer no wine to poor wine. Most of the places have a very poor selection. I usually just have a glass at home before or after dinner because I know there is very few places I find wine I like.

Wine Selection
 

Are you kidding me?? We have been to Palmer several times - the wine list is HORRIBLE!!!!!
Here is what I want to know - is there a decent steakhouse around here?? And how about good Italian?? I am a retired Italian chef, who owned a restaurant & worked with some of the finest Italian chefs - and lived in Chicago my whole life (except for 2 years on Maui - THE WORST!!!) The steakhouses there were incredible( In Chicago) (well, not all - the best is Gene & Georgetti!). When people tell me Palmer or Longhorn, I just cannot believe it ( or REDSAUCE for Italian??) The best Italian I can find is in my house - but if I want a night off,I have to go to Orlando - Portabellos & The one in Epcot - Please let me know!

Wine
 

I agree - I understand you want to save some money - then buy decent wine & eat at home or get carryout - the wine selection in most places around here is horrible! I am not a wine snob, either, BUT... when we go to Italy, you can get great wines at tiny places for 25 for a whole bottle. Here you get the BAD California, overpriced reds & terrible artificial OAKY whites, which are UNDRINKABLE. But, I guess, if you can get 2 for 1 or pay 4 bucks a glass, it's okay??? I would rather not drink it! I still order cases of wine from a guy I know who owns a wine shop (small, but INCREDIBLE!!!) in Chicago - he can get pretty much anything you want!

AliceHelen,

If you post a reply, it helps if you click the quote button at the bottom right of each post, then others know what post you are responding to. I had a feeling that LV2RDHD would agree with me, but glad to find someone else who thinks that most wines here are better unopened!

k