I'm not the biggest fan of Red Robin. I'm a huge burger lover and would expect to like at least one burger at a "burger" place. It just hasn't happened yet. And..they make it hard to get a regular burger there, in my opinion.

For the same price or a dollar more I would much rather go to Blackies, Country House, Kuma's or the 100 other bars making a better burger in and around Chicago. There is really no good reason to go to Red Robin unless you like being ripped off.

KSeecs wrote:There is really no good reason to go to Red Robin unless you like being ripped off.

I'll go along with that if you'll agree to the insertion of "In Chicago" at the beginning of the sentence. Without that, I'll give you a reason to go to Red Robin. It's 9:45 PM. You've just checked into the Hilton Garden Inn in Owings Mills, MD. You haven't eaten. You're exhausted. Your brain is fried. A beer and something to eat will make it all better. There's a Red Robin across the street. You get there ten minutes before closing time. Mercifully, they take you in, you sit at the bar, the beer does its work, and solid sustenance is on the way. It arrives, and it's not half-bad. In fact, at this point, it's damned good. You live to see another day.

riddlemay wrote:

KSeecs wrote:There is really no good reason to go to Red Robin unless you like being ripped off.

I'll go along with that if you'll agree to the insertion of "In Chicago" at the beginning of the sentence. Without that, I'll give you a reason to go to Red Robin. It's 9:45 PM. You've just checked into the Hilton Garden Inn in Owings Mills, MD. You haven't eaten. You're exhausted. Your brain is fried. A beer and something to eat will make it all better. There's a Red Robin across the street. You get there ten minutes before closing time. Mercifully, they take you in, you sit at the bar, the beer does its work, and solid sustenance is on the way. It arrives, and it's not half-bad. In fact, at this point, it's damned good. You live to see another day.

I concur with your additional language. Funny that I was on the road staying at a Hilton Garden Inn when I first tried Red Robin! Can't for the life of me recall what town and/or state I was in though. It was either them or Subway and it was the infinitely better choice under those circumstances.

I agree, Red Robin is a better option than Subway in a case as mentioned above. Beer and a full bar makes even a bad burger or sandwich better.

riddlemay wrote:

KSeecs wrote:There is really no good reason to go to Red Robin unless you like being ripped off.

I'll go along with that if you'll agree to the insertion of "In Chicago" at the beginning of the sentence. Without that, I'll give you a reason to go to Red Robin. It's 9:45 PM. You've just checked into the Hilton Garden Inn in Owings Mills, MD. You haven't eaten. You're exhausted. Your brain is fried. A beer and something to eat will make it all better. There's a Red Robin across the street. You get there ten minutes before closing time. Mercifully, they take you in, you sit at the bar, the beer does its work, and solid sustenance is on the way. It arrives, and it's not half-bad. In fact, at this point, it's damned good. You live to see another day.

Actually this was a similar circumstance to my first visit.

Travelling cross country with the kids and pulling into some town late at night and thought we should get a bite to eat before hitting the hotel.

Met the need and was better than just grabbing a quick McD's. My Bride enjoyed the addition of avocado as a topping and the kids enjoyed the bottomless fries. The seasoning brought some life into my road weary tongue.

Could of been a lot worse.

JoelF wrote:Darn, for a brief moment I confused this with Cock Robin.
Red Robin is OK for chain food, but it's not Cock Robin.

Don't even mention Cock Robin. I might cry.

The (last) location in Brookfield is still for sale and waiting for new owners and still has all of the equipment and furniture inside.

Phil wrote:Coming soon to Orland Park, down the street from the new Fatburger.

http://www.redrobin.com/home/locate.aspx?id=478&dist=0

Happened to be driving by the other day and it looks like they are open.

I think I would try the very nearby Schoops first.

the Red Robin chain has continually utilized a troublesome array of infrared to keep the food warm - what this translates into is the inability to keep the meat warm/hot while awaiting service to the tables

as a consequence - these complicated burger buildouts arrive in a state of disrepair...i.e. what is supposed to be hot is cold and what is supposed to be cold is hot

Skokie would be better off with a SONICS

My extended family decided to have a movie day out today and ended up at the Marcus Cinema out in Orland. Of course with several youngsters in the group we needed to attend something "age appropriate". So, we ended up seeing The Pink Panther 2.

Of course the extended family also has plenty of less than adventurous eaters...so, how better to finish off a day after seeing an insipid movie, why with having an equally insipid burger at Red Robin of course!

The only thing positive I can say about the experience there was the service, the yound lady who took care of us was very good. However, everything else was pretty much was lacking...from the onion rings which tasted mostly of salt to the burgers (I had the bacon cheeseburger with monteray jack my choice) which also tasted mostly of salt. Actually I think it is their "secret spice blend" but the main component seems to be a sodium chloride blend of some sort. And their first attempt at my burger was not a positive either, asked for it without the mayo or shredded lettuce or tomato...and of course there they were staring at me...weeping at their fate. The server was very appologetic, took it away and returned quickly with a replacement. Sadly, though the burger was cooked to a requested medium, it somehow despite being freshly (I assume) cooked, it had become rather tepid in temperature and was dry as a wool sock. And throughout the rest of my day I could feel the moisture being drained from my lips from the excessive saltiness. All this for only around $10...I think I'll take 1 1/2 trips to Topnotch instead.

There was really no redeaming value to the visit, other than getting to spend a bit more time with my family...so there was that!

I remember eating at the Woodfield one probably when it first opened and I had a burger of some sort, but recently I went and had the cobb salad. It was really fantastic for the most part: perfectly cooked real bacon, extremely fresh tomatoes and green lettuce, hard-boiled egg, half an avacado, and lots of blue cheese. There was also a chicken breast, which was the only bad part - I'm not sure it was meat. I couldn't finish the salad so I brought it home for lunch the next day, and ate the "chicken" then. It tasted of nothing, and had this weird texture as though it was minced then pressed back together. It reminded me of what must have made up the menu at Hinsdale Hospital, which had entrée names like "Chicken-like Sandwich".

Hi,

I visited a Red Robin today largely to satisfy my curiosity of what constituted a "gourmet hamburger." I quickly learned this is a restaurant which likes to cook burgers their way.

"I'd like my hamburger medium rare."
"Is medium ok?"
"No. Why are you featuring hamburgers if you will not cook them to order?"
"We do it for health reasons."
"Would you inquire with the chef if he will make my burger medium rare. If he says no, I will order something else. I really don't like cooked through burgers."
"I don't blame you. I like my burgers medium rare, too."

Ultimately the chef agreed to a medium rare burger. Had he not, I was going for the fried clams. I did cut into the burger upon arrival to find it medium rare. I also understand their reluctance: they have a fairly thin burger which complicates making it medium rare.

I was pleased in their taking care of my order. I wish I didn't have to sound like a finicky customer to get it right. I was happy the waitress went to bat for me and the chef agreed to my request.

Now that my curiosity is satisfied, I have other places to try.

Regards,

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. plans to open a Red Robin's Burger Works restaurant at 328 N. Michigan Ave., according to construction information service BidClerk.com.

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/ ... restaurant

Dave148 wrote:

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. plans to open a Red Robin's Burger Works restaurant at 328 N. Michigan Ave., according to construction information service BidClerk.com.

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/ ... restaurant

Which is/was a Qdoba.

I think I went to Red Robin after I saw their onion rings served in a stack that formed a weird cone of fried onions. It seemed odd to buy them when the burger already came with unlimited fries but I did anyway.

Red Robin is average, but they do have one burger that I do like to get every 6 months or so - the A1 Peppercorn Burger. It's got a special A1 peppercorn spread/mayo that I not only love on the burger, but I get extra to dip the (bland) steak fries in. It's too bad they don't really know how to get the most out of the steak fries. Yes, they are frozen. But if they par cook them for a while and then throw them back in later and get them nice and crispy, they can be good. Texas Roadhouse does theirs like that. It also would be a nice thing since the fries are bottomless at Red Robin, but now I see why they are bottomless.

Now if I am lucky and my burger comes out hot and fresh, cooked medium rare to medium, I am thrilled. Sometimes it's medium well, not hot or fresh, and I am reminded why I don't go there much.