I live in the northern part of San Jose, between Milpitas and Santa Clara, near Alviso. Kind of far from the action, so my local dining options are limited. During the week, I don't like to drive far to get food. A regular reliable dining spot is Red Robin - Rivermark Shopping Center (http://www.redrobin.com/home/locate.aspx?id=102&dist=1.36)
Just a national chain burger place really, so why do I go there regularly? First, its good, its cheap, there is NEVER a wait to get a table, 5 minutes at most on weekends. I know what your thinking: "How could any self respecting food blogger promote a place like that?" Folks, this is not your usual hoidy-toidy-you-have-to-spend-$100-or-more-to-have-a-decent-meal food blog. I seriously recommend this local branch is you are in the area and don't have a lot of time.
From a health perspective, it's not the best place if you are counting calories, unless you haven't eaten all day and you need 2,000 calories in one sitting. I get a side salad instead of french fries (no extra charge), no appetizer, and a water to drink. That makes me feel better about having a Bleu Ribbon Burger (#1), a Whiskey River BBQ Burger (#2), or a Jamaican Jerk'd Chicken Burger (#3). For the health freaks who choose to dine at a burger chain, such as my wife and frequent eating partner, they have Boca/veggie burger patties, turkey burgers, and fish burgers. You can check out all the rest of their grub on their website (and also pre-calculate your calorie intake before you go!)
The atmosphere is typical, but not over the top. There is a lot of familys with small kids bouncing about, but not so much that it disrupts your meal. The hosts and waiters are kids themselves, but always conduct themselves professionally and with prompt service, kudos to the management/HR staff for their screening process. As parking is usually a pain in the a*# at Rivermark Plaza, walking around there is kind of cool anyway.
My wife and I can ususally get out of there for around $20, which is not much more that you would pay for 2 at the Baja Fresh or Yo-Yo Sushi nearby.
-Tom W. Tell
Red Robin is amazing...I love the burgers and the fries are out of this world. Make sure when you eat the fries to ask for campfire sauce which is like a bbq ranch and ask for any other sauces they have, they are all great.
ReplyDeleteOn another note...I as well as 1000+ people on yelp would really recomend you try Ike's place in SF. They have the most delicious sandwiches known to man. I mean they seriously have a cult following. Be sure to check it out, they have the wildest sandwiches with even wilder names. You will want to try every single one. The bread is amazing and they have tons of vegetarian and vegan options as well. I would love to read your review.