To the east of Chinn Chinn in the same building, Main Street has three sections: a dining room with…read morebooths and tables (for groups up to 10), a room set aside for very large groups (greater than 10), and a bar with numerous TVs lined up high on the walls. This last is the largest of the three rooms. There is sufficient separation that bar noise doesn't seem to filter much into the other two rooms.
Five of us, all from the same work setting, and a couple of partners (including my girl) met tonight for our annual holiday meal. We had not called beforehand with a reservation, but the staff put together a couple of tables for us without complaint.
We were struck by how crazily huge the menu was. That is usually a giveaway that the bulk of what the kitchen puts out will be at best middle of the road, with few winners. And after we ate, that was the consensus of the group: that there were no disasters among the seven meals ordered, but there were also no outright screaming winners.
Among the things ordered tonight were a Reuben Sandwich, an open faced Tuna Melt, Grilled Salmon with rice pilaf and green beans, a Chicken Ranch Melt ("a grilled chicken breast topped with house made Ranch dressing, bacon, Monterey Jack cheese...on a toasted sourdough"), a Patty Melt ("topped with sautéed onions and Swiss cheese then sandwiched between two pieces of toasted pumpernickel"), and something called "The Bronco Burger" ("topped with BBQ sauce, crisp bacon, melted Cheddar cheese and finished with haystack onions"). We had several orders of Onion Rings as appetizers.
Of those, only the Chicken Ranch Melt, the fries that accompanied several of the sandwiches, and the White Chicken Chili (which came with the Grilled Salmon dinner) got thumbs up. The remainder of the food (with maybe two exceptions, see below) was deemed as inoffensively bland and forgettable.
My girl thought the onion rings, covered in an industrial coating of cornmeal and flour, were the most repulsive. I thought the supposedly home made Ranch dressing that accompanied the onion rings was an affront to ranches everywhere. Good Ranch dressing should have overtones of garlic paste, parsley, dill, chives, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, vinegar, paprika, cayenne, buttermilk, and the hot sauce of your choice (optional). Main Street's had none of this. Good Ranch dressing should convey a tang or a gentle bite. This was just a pearly white combo of toothless mayonnaise and sour cream and no more.
Service was perfectly acceptable. Our server, Alyssa, took good care of us. We ordered no alcohol so I cannot judge how well the bartender makes a drink.
In summary, it's a bar that makes and sends out bar food. Sometimes you might want to go to a bar to drink and eat anonymous food because the wait at the nearby Asian Fusion restaurant is too long. Maybe you want to watch from a dozen TV screens without being able to understand the content of any of them. Maybe the very phrase "Asian Fusion" is just too provocative relative to the food you stuff in your cheeks. Maybe you own a truck. In any of those cases, go the Main Street, order the Chicken Ranch Melt with fries, and get a bowl of the deliciously piquant White Chicken Chili.