Review of Appetizers: Who Has the Most Appetizing Late-night Appetizers??
Photo by: Gary Wood
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December 26, 2019
A popular Friday or Saturday night for many high schoolers involves cheap late-night appetizers from a local Applebees. Though undiscovered by many, plenty of other restaurants offer these types of deals too. However, in the end, Applebees holds strong on having the best late-night snacks.
As cited by TLE Commercial Cooking Word Press, appetizers first appeared in the early 3 century B.C. created by the Athenians; however, they were not popular. In fact, appetizers did not catch on until the 19th century; the word appetizer came into use in the 1860s.
TGI Friday, Applebees and Perkins all offer scrumptious late-night bargains. But who has the best to offer? We all know that a night out for a bite matters more than the taste of the food; the restaurant atmosphere, type of deal and when it starts matters too. Two of the best and most popular appetizers include chicken strips/wings and mozzarella sticks, options that all three restaurants provide.
The Deal Offered
As listed on their Appleton location site, TGI Fridays offers $12 unlimited appetizers all-day, every day. According to the Perkins webpage and Insider, both Perkins and Applebees offer half-priced appetizers as their late-night deals. This is initially more appealing than the deal offered at TGI Fridays, as it may be pricy for many high schoolers.
When offering her input on the matter, senior Brooklyn Marion said, “The price is off-putting, but the quality of food and service makes it worth it.”
Clarified by the waitstaff, another downfall to the appetizer deal offered at TGI Fridays is sharing is not allowed. So while there are five different unlimited appetizer options, you may get your fill before you can try them all.
The price for chicken strips and mozzarella sticks at Perkins comes to a total of about $5.44 before tax. Marion commented, “The food is reminiscent of family-style dinners and the price reflects that.”
At Applebee’s for honey bbq boneless chicken wings and mozzarella sticks comes to a total of $9.25 before tax. Clearly, Perkins wins the contest for the cheapest late-night snack. But how does their food compare?
The Quality of Food and Presentation
TGI Friday’s is the clear winner for the quality of food between the three restaurants. Their Whiskey-Glazed Sesame chicken strips are evenly glazed, zesty, and original in flavor. Senior Foster Ludka described the strips as yummy. The presentation is also appetizing as they are rich and dark in color, plentiful in portion, and served in a cast-iron skillet.
“The taste of the food matches the overall presentation, in which all are fantastic,” Marion said reflecting on the experience. The mozzarella sticks are above satisfying as they come with a crisp breading filled with a good volume of melty cheese. The outsides are seasoned and garnished, unlike the other restaurants, and come in an original shape.
Applebees comes in a clean second in the quality of food. While their chicken wings are a bit dry, this was made up for by the surplus of tangy sauce covering the wings, which pares well with the ranch served on the side. The mozzarella sticks come in a classic cylindrical shape with a crispy exterior and satisfying cheese to breading ratio. Unfortunately, the cheese is not melty but rubbery. The presentation at Applebees is anything but pleasing; there is nothing special about it and the plates are much too large for the portion of food. While the food at Applebees is more expensive compared with Perkins, customers get more food for their buck.
Perkins came in last for the quality of food. Unlike the other two restaurants, the chicken does not come pre-coated in a sauce, but rather comes with a side of dipping sauce. While the strips do have a nice crunch, the amount of breading is overwhelming making them seem a bit dry. The mozzarella sticks are similar to Applebees in the sense that the cheese is more rubbery than melty. But unlike Applebees, there is almost more breading than cheese, making them unsatisfying. Fortunately, Perkins does have a better presentation compared with Applebees as the food takes up all the room on the plate and the plates are more attractive.
The Winner
All thing considered, the overall best late-night appetizers has to go to Applebees with TGI Friday’s coming in a close second. While the food at TGIF is better, the price is too big of a hill to easily bike over.
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