for the rich sultans in Malaysia) that invests in hotel resorts, restaurants, and other real estate-related investments. One interesting sidenote that I observed was the relative success of Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in those two...

Lunch today at “Revival” in the Key Bridge Marriott where several weeks ago the newly refurbished dining room revived the Mighty Mo from Marriott’s Hot Shoppe days. Marriott Corporation literally began as a Hot...

I don’t think that anyone — much less everyone — is negative about second locations of successful indy restaurants. In fact, I think everyone in this conversation wants both enterprises to succeed. The...

There is a branch in Berkeley on San Pablo Ave near Gilman. It is close to where I work, so often try, usually without success, to have lunch there. Problem: at least half of the time I order crispy, spicy chicken (legs and...

is invariably good, and they have an excellent, American-led, wine list. The owners are incredibly hard-working and diligent and deserve success. And, truth be told, it’s always busy, so they don’t suffer from being...

the heck does that at all? They have a superior brand of ice cream, and they’ve managed to continue doing that, despite being sold off to a corporation, and they continue to do good work in the world. and no, I don’t...

. Can’t blame the restaurant for getting discouraged. The hyper-crappy place in front of the parking lot, Pho Bang (part of a James Bond evil corporation-type chain of bad Vietnamese eateries), has been mobbed since...

"Absolutely, if they introduced a McCurry they would definitely be infringing." But that’s why the law allows you to sue in the first place. McDonald’s, or any other large corporation works hard to achieve their...

describe is not a Charleston thing per se. It is more a reflection of the success of competition BBQ and the corporate franchising of BBQ chains where the idea is to appeal to all tastes. Charleston’s original BBQ...

serve dinner, but only do events. The space is terrific, the food is very good, and it has patios with outside access. We did a dinner for about 30 there with good success. You might also consider Todd’s in Henderson; I...

terrines. That model was broken 2 or 3 decades ago with the emergence of the Corporate Sponsored Event. Strategic Planning Meetings or Salesman Quota Acheivers Club for 200 to 400 guests became the standard of the day. All this...

with the Clark & Hilda Sobey’s, they’d be insane. I was always very impressed with the Parry Sound Sobey’s. A couple of years ago, corporate apparently bought out the very successful franchisee and systematically...

I hosted a bridal shower brunch for 20 people and used Occasions caterers about three weeks ago. Definitely a success. I’d use them again and recommend them to others. Here’s our menu: Potato and Artichoke Frittata,...

We’ve all been to the Americano restaurant bar at Hotel Vitale for drinks after work. Great outdoor spot for a tail on those perfect autumn San Francisco evenings. Given the success of the bar I’ve always thought that...

squeezed oj. buffets are usually huge duds. and this is DEFINTELY a corporate hotel. but they had alot of local stuff a la sheiners sausage, and good heirloom and organic fruit veg. i’d go to lost leaf instead, if it were...