Fast Food Restaurant Chains in the United States

Fast Food Chains

There are many fast food chains, starting with those that have already reached Israel, such as: McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut, and Kentucky Fried Chicken, but there are many other and varied chains, the recommended among them are:

Chipotle - Mexican grill restaurant, salads, chicken, tortillas, etc.

"Jack In The Box" - burgers, fish, and Mexican food (recommended dish: Chicken Fajita Pita), "Carl’s Jr." (the symbol of this restaurant is a smiling yellow star) - burgers, schnitzels, baked potatoes, fried vegetables, Mexican food, and a salad bar. "Wendy's" - burgers, filled pitas, baked potatoes, and a rich salad bar. Two large chains specializing only in fast Mexican food are: Rubio’s and Taco Bell. All the fast food restaurants mentioned above have children's meals consisting of a main course, side dish, drink, and most importantly: a surprise. Americans eat a hearty breakfast consisting of cereal, eggs, toast, fried potatoes, sausages, ham, fresh orange juice, and coffee. Many breakfast menus even include steak! In casual family restaurants, you can choose from the breakfast menu all day long. Even in fast food establishments (Burger King, etc.), they offer recommended and quite cheap breakfasts (unlike in Israel), but only until 10:00 or 11:00 in the morning. Until that hour, you cannot buy traditional burgers.

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Quality and Experiential Restaurant Chains

In the US, there are also high-quality restaurant chains with nationwide distribution. Details on them in the article: Ten most recommended restaurant chains in the United States

There are also special restaurants with atmosphere and decor. Details in the article: Ten restaurant chains in the United States where the meal is an experience

Lunch / Dinner

Americans tend to eat a light lunch between 12:00 and 13:00, and their main meal is dinner, between 17:00 and 18:30. These are the busiest hours in restaurants, and it is recommended to try to eat at other times, especially in busy and touristy areas. Lunch menus in many restaurants are significantly cheaper than the dinner menu, so you will save a lot of money if you eat your main meal during lunch hours.

"All-You-Can-Eat" Restaurants - Buffet

Another popular type of restaurant in the US is the Buffet, "all-you-can-eat" restaurants where there is a rich buffet from which everyone can take again and again. For a sum of just a few dollars (depending on the meal time: lunch or dinner) and the type of restaurant, you can eat until you burst. Try to avoid a common Israeli custom of taking "provisions for the road"; this is not acceptable in the US and Americans will not look kindly upon it.

Popular "All-You-Can-Eat" Chains:

Soup Exchange - more than 60 items in the salad bar, soups, pastries, vegetables, meat buffet (dinner only), and of course desserts and ice cream. Home Town Buffet - very similar to what was described in the previous chain. More emphasis on the meat buffet. Souplantation - a high-quality chain specializing in salads and pastries, not meat. Highly recommended. In many restaurants, alongside the regular menu, there is also an all-you-can-eat buffet, and you can choose or combine the two. Among the more famous chains: Ponderosa, Bonanza, and Sizzler, which specialize mainly in steaks and salad bars. Many ethnic restaurants (Chinese, Indian, etc.) also have all-you-can-eat buffets. In most of the buffets mentioned above, there is a significant discount for children according to their age. Children under five pay a ridiculous amount of about one dollar.

Drinks

In most restaurants, especially fast food and casual family ones, there is the "Free Refill" custom. This means that you can go back and fill the cup you received again and again (with the same drink) at no extra cost. This method applies to carbonated soft drinks and coffee, and usually not to juices or alcoholic beverages. If you are not sure if the restaurant where you are eating has this custom, don't be ashamed to ask. This method is very popular with Israelis who love to get things for free and is not really implemented in Israel. I have seen Israeli families all drinking from one cup which they refill each time, and even worse: in fast food eateries where the refill is self-service, the "smart" Israelis filled all their water bottles and flasks with drinks. Try not to act in a similar way! Even without misusing the method, the prices are significantly cheaper than in Israel. Still, you don't have to act like the Americans and order a large cup (at a more expensive price) in a place where the free refill exists.

Coffee

Regular American coffee is a weak and tasteless liquid, reminiscent in its texture and taste of brown water. If you want to drink good coffee (you will miss it), go into coffee shops that specialize in it. There are several small coffee chains with a large selection of excellent (and relatively expensive) coffee, the main one being: STARBUCKS, which has branches almost everywhere throughout the US.

Types of Eggs for Ordering

So that you can order eggs in the way you and your children prefer, here are the names of the types of eggs that can be ordered: Omelet, Scrambled Egg, Soft Boiled Egg, Hard Boiled Egg, Fried Egg, Fried and Over Egg (fried on both sides), and if you want a fried egg on both sides but not too hard - Over Medium Egg.

Salad

A "Salad" in the US means lots of lettuce leaves with a little cucumber and tomato, accompanied by a "Dressing" of your choice: Thousand Island, French, Ranch, ketchup, sweet and sour, etc. This salad is very far from the rich Israeli salad.

Deals and Half-Price Meals

Many restaurants have deals between 16:00 and 18:00, which are the quiet hours between Lunch and Dinner. These deals are called: "Early Bird Specials." It is worth asking and checking because the prices can be significantly cheaper. Additionally, look in the local newspapers distributed free in supermarkets for "buy one, get one free" coupons. The newspapers contain dozens of such ads. You need to look a bit, but the discount is real! Entertainment books also have 50% off coupons for many restaurant chains.

Tip

In any case, do not forget to give a "tip" according to the original amount of the meal, before the discount. In most restaurants, they will also write on your bill how many percent tip is recommended, usually giving three suggestions between 15% and 22%. Note that after they have charged your credit card, they bring you the receipt and then you add the tip and sign.

Dinner Show

Another type of special meal, which is also very suitable for children and can be found mainly in the heart of tourist areas (such as: Orlando, Los Angeles, Toronto, etc.), is a dinner that includes a show: Dinner Show. In these shows, in addition to dining, the guests are fairly active spectators.

There are different types of shows:

Knight shows taking place in large castles where the audience sits around an arena where a show of knights and their horses takes place. You eat a multi-course meal served in a medieval atmosphere. The most famous of the knight shows is Medieval Times, which has many branches across the US and Canada. In a similar style, there are dinners with shows of Arabian Nights, the Wild West (Wild Bill), pirate adventure, murder mysteries, etc. The shows are very colorful, with lots of costumes, scenery, music, and atmosphere.

Discounted tickets for meal + medieval style show in Orlando: Medieval Times Dinner Show

Discounted tickets for meal + pirate show in Orlando: Pirates Dinner Adventure - Save Over 45% on Tickets!

Light Meals You Can Prepare Yourself

For those staying in a hotel or apartment with a kitchenette and who prefer to eat a light meal in the morning and/or evening from groceries bought at the supermarket, here are the names of supermarket chains in the US.

Supermarket Chains

It is recommended to enter the food chains, the supermarkets, which are large and spacious, and shopping in them is a pleasant experience. The food is arranged attractively on the shelves, the aisles are wide, and the selection is immense. The most pleasant thing in them, which is very easy to get used to, is the checkout packing, where they quickly and efficiently pack your purchase for you and all you have to do is pay. Most products are sold at cheap prices compared to Israel. Especially cheap are meat and poultry. If you are going on a long trip, you will quickly miss Israeli dairy products, Israeli chocolate, and cucumbers... The variety of dairy products in the US is smaller than in Israel, especially the selection of white cheeses and dairy delicacies. Also the tastes of cheeses with an identical name (e.g., cottage cheese) are different for the worse. The selection of chocolates is large and the packaging is attractive, but the taste is not particularly exciting (to the Israeli palate anyway). American cucumbers are mostly giant green "pipes," watery and tasteless; it's really worth skipping buying them.

On the other hand, if you miss Israeli snacks (American snacks have a very different taste that not every Israeli is enthusiastic about), you can find Bamba, Bissli, etc., in large supermarkets in cities with a large Israeli concentration (like New York, Los Angeles, Silicon Valley, Miami, San Diego) in the kosher food section. In this section, you can find normal olives and pickles, chocolate from the Holy Land, soup croutons, etc.

Large supermarket chains are: Ralph’s, Safeway, Publix, Vons, Lucky, Albertson, Aldi. The department store chains Walmart and Target also have supermarkets at very good prices. There are also the Costco and Sam's Club chains intended for members with a subscription card.

There are also supermarket chains that exist only in some US states.

In these chains and many others scattered all over the continent, try to also buy snacks for the road: sweets, cereal, crackers, and more. Try to avoid doing serious food shopping in Delis (neighborhood groceries). They are expensive and the selection in them is limited. In large city centers like New York, you will find it difficult to find large supermarkets.

♦ Routes (free): Detailed travel itineraries in USA