Chili's! I want my baby-back, baby-back, baby-back... ...well you get the picture. It was harder than I thought whether to give "Chili's" a 3 or 4 star rating. And based on the food & prices (which I'll explain later), I am sticking with 4 stars. In this market where vast American "theme" restaurants are everywhere around the country (Applebee's, Sizzler, TGIF, etc.), Chili's to me has never stood out in the crowd.
The location that I am reviewing is at Sunrise Blvd/Madison Ave at the busy Quail Pointe Shopping Center (at the Sunrise Marketplace) in Fair Oaks. Surrounding this restaurant are a ton of businesses so on any given day, its usually always packed. On the day my lady and I decided to dine here was on a Sunday afternoon around 12:30pm.
It was busy which is what I expected. The interior of this place though, man it needs a serious update! At first, I thought I was stepping into a Chili's from the 1980's; especially with the old-style tables, lighting, and wall art. Not a big deal since the main purpose of dining here is their food. My lady and I were seated immediately at a booth.
There was lots going on around us though; one of the servers dropped and broke a couple of plates on the tiled floor while one of the neighboring tables had a very loud crying baby. And to make matters worse, an elderly male nearly tripped over a chair nearly missing us by a few inches! Yikes!
However, our server was very polite and attentive. The big promotion that Chili's was running (for 2018) was their 3-Course Meal for an astoundingly low $10. With that you get an appetizer, entree (with two sides), and a drink. This almost sounds too good to be true considering most restaurants can charge double (or even triple) of this price. I ended up choosing Fresco Salad (as my appetizer), a 6 oz. Sirloin Steak w/ Loaded Mashed Potatoes, and Asparagus & Garlic Roasted Tomatoes (as my entree/sides), and a Strawberry-Lemonade as my drink.
My Fresco Salad arrives first; this was just blah to me. First of all, they didn't add any dressing (after I requested Avocado Ranch). No biggie since it was very small and our waitress was busy. When my main entree came out, everything was presented very beautifully. My steak was absolutely on point, juicy, and delicious. The mashed potatoes had hints of garlic complete with bacon bits, chives, and shredded cheddar cheese. And my asparagus/tomato blend tasted fresh while being seasoned very well. Overall, for only $10, this was a real winner.
However, I must warn those that have high blood pressure that the sodium content is through the roof. After I cleaned my plate, I found out that my steak had 1,900 mg of sodium while my loaded mashed potatoes were an alarming 1,000 mg of sodium. This is common among many big restaurant chains so make sure to pay attention to those nutrition facts!
All in all, Chili's has surprisingly impressed me with my most recent experience. I think they are definitely trying to "rebrand" their image which is what they did by restructuring their menu back in late-2017. With that said and done, their baby-back ribs will always be what they're known for. But for me, the steak and mashed potatoes hit a home run in my book. My rating for the Fair Oaks, CA "Chili's", a solid four stars. read more