I think that many restaurants can have a bad night, and although I don't specifically remember from when we were at Red Lobster, my wife tells me that the service was good. I can though remember our visits to the Olive Garden and I have to say the service was excellent without exception each and every time we ate there.

Latest in the Orlando Sentinel is reported that Darden was not cutting any fulltime employees hours.

Skyguy: You are so wise.

I had given Bonefish two tries and thankfully the portion were small because the quality was low and the prices ...well ridiculous. Red Lobster out competes Bonefish.

Actually, I go to restaurants for the good food and service, and not for the politics that surround the business. If the foods good, and reasonable, I'll be back!!!

My wife and I like Red Lobster and Bonefish. Bonefish is more expensive but We found the food good. Atmosphere and ambiance? Neither are all that great---Bonefish especially crowds too many tables and people too close together IMHO. But "chain" restaurants tend to use up every square foot. In October we had dinner at TV'S Red Lobster and it was a pleasant evening with good food and service. We will return probably sometime in January.

Bonefish
 

:agree::agree::agree::bigbow:

Thanks to everyone for the comments, they are much appreciated.

Yesterday, I went online (RedLobster.com) to see their menu. But I couldn't figure out why they didn't offer "lunch deals" on Saturday. So I went to the restaurant and they gave me a few (3) menus to take home. In the middle of the night (couldn't sleep) I got up and started reading the menus. And I couldn't find anything on the weekend menu that I liked. Well, they have broiled flounder that I think comes with one side dish (not sure because the menu is not to clear in my opinion) for $12.75

So I called my friend and told her about it. She said she called Sam St. John's Sea Food Restaurant and they have all-you-can-eat broiled flounder with two side dishes for (are you ready for this?) $9.49 We have both eaten there before but it was several years ago.

So that's where we are going: Sam St. John's Seafood Restaurant

My first choice was Golden Corral, of course, but she says she's tired of Golden Corral. Grrr! :)

Buggy, It's not just Darden. I know workers at Bob Evans who have received the same news. No restaurant chain aimed at family business will be able to keep more than a few employees on 40 hour per week jobs. It's simply not economically possible.

If you want to go to a chain that is not cutting hours may I suggest Ruth's Chris, Capital Grill or Morton's.

Now you've done it! You got my mouth watering. Seriously, this is the first I've heard of this restaurant, but it looks like an interesting place to dine. Take a look at these two links:

Sam St. John's Seafood Restaurant
Sam St. John's Seafood Restaurant - TripAdvisor Reviews

Theres a big difference from eating Fresh Fish compared to Frozen Fish!!!

The one we're going to is on 441 in Summerfield....across from Walmart.
Your link reminded me that I had better get there early because there's usually a long line. :)

How would we know if a restaurant uses fresh or frozen? By the price? If that's important, Red Lobster should put it in bold print on their menu: We do not use frozen fish, only fresh! But I don't recall seeing it. I'll check and see if it does.

I'll be back here on Saturday or Sunday to let everyone know how it went.

I love Red Lobster's Shrimp Scampi dish. hope it is just as wonderful in TV as it is here in CA.

You wouldn't know, because they don't tell you!!! If you eat fish a lot, you can tell when chewing, and eating it. It's like buying fish at super market. If you see fish labeled "FAS" (which they must tell you) then thats fish caught at sea and frozen at sea. FAS= Frozen at Sea. Sweetbay labels there fish correct. Restaurants don't tell you, unless you ask, and even then, they are not truthful. At the same time, you can't expect restaurants to have fresh fish, especially if they don't sell that much etc. Again, some people don't mind frozen fish.

Here is the result!
 

I ate lunch at Sam St. John's Seafood Restaurant this afternoon. I had the broiled flounder, all-you-can-eat, for $9.49. It came with plenty of extras like two sides, rice and hush-puppies(?). I don't know if it was frozen or fresh but it was delicious. The whole meal was fantastic and the restaurant was much quieter than usual, so I enjoyed the quiet atmosphere. It couldn't have been better.