I lost another battle that I didn’t know I was in. You know the tune – Jody likes something, and the company that produces it decides to pull it from the market. We’ve talked about it here before, how food staples like Raspberry Kool-Aid and Primavera flavor Chicken Tonight simmer sauce left a hole in my heart that nothing can replace.
Last night we learned that Chili’s is not going to have the Caribbean Chicken Salad on the menu any more. Nor will they have Junior’s favorite dish, the basil pasta (which wasn’t on the menu under that name but you could order it as a vegetarian entree). The reason? They are cutting out menu items that require them to have an ingredient for just that one dish. (I’m probably explaining this wrong). So the salad is gone because they won’t be carrying mandarin oranges, pineapple chunks or honey-lime dressing (used only for that dish), and they are doing away with mozzarella sticks which means they won’t need to carry the marinara sauce, which is needed for the basil pasta. Oh, and the onion (blossom, or whatever they call it) will be gone too.
I know they offer pasta on the kids menu, so I’m having a hard time picturing them removing one of the few kid’s items, but someone made a decision somewhere. But how hard is it to keep a can/jar of sauce on hand for the kids? Or for the vegetarians, for that matter. Not much else on the menu that doesn’t involve meat.
No mozzarella sticks or onion blossoms? What’s next, no chips and salsa. Heck with you, Chili’s!!
Really. Once they don’t stock items that can be used for just one dish, they’ve cheapened their product and come closer to a fast-food conveyor belt approach. No sense hanging around then. It’s all downhill.
You might ask one of the employees if you could get the recipes for the items, since they’ll no longer be using them.
They are getting rid of the Awesome Blossom onion? What is this world coming to? Sounds like a stupid corporate decision to me.
No awesome blossom?? Well, geez. guess that’s more biz for Outback and their bloomin’ onion, then. They’re better anyway.
But what is with that, really?
I can’t tell you how many things I’ve loved that have gone the dino way–I used to think it was just me! I’m still smarting from when Olive Garden got rid of my fave tortellini years ago—on my freaking birthday, no less. So sad.
Chili’s has made a lot of questionable menu decisions over the years. When I was a kid, they had this “apple cinnamon sundae” that I (and my grandma) loved. They ditched that. They’ve been steadily getting rid of a lot of other good stuff, too. No wonder I keep going there less and less.
Time to look into Bertuccis or some other type place. I like TGIFidays but definitly NOT Applebees. Blech.
Sharon
With me it’s always been breakfast cereals – Buc*Wheats, Team Flakes, and C. W. Post were each at one time my favorite cereal, and each went the way of the dodo. Bastards!!
Wait! Ladies and gentlemen…we have found the one human being who ate Buc*Wheats! (Lordy, there’s a brand from the past, eh? Wasn’t that an old guy cereal?)
Sharon, we are die-hard “I should buy stock” Bertucci’s fanatics. We eat there, at times, weekly. But there isn’t one in Leominster, and with the whole gas thing, driving to our favorite one in Nashua (or even the one in Marlboro) is a little too pricey. The whole reason we spend so much time at Chilis: my step-son is a queso addict.
Not too long a wait there should be a Bertucci’s @ Wallyworld… Jerry
ps – and a Texas Steakhouse
Okay, I’ve heard about the Texas Steakhouse, but I heard it was over at Lowe’s. I talked to the guy who works at Bertucci’s corporate who said they couldn’t come to a deal with the developers in Leominster, so I’d be shocked if we were getting one.