Comparisons of similar restaurants/retailers

[Takumi]

Sheetz for food, Wawa for coffee.

[Roadrunner75]

Lowe's = Home Depot

Pretty much.  They're interchangeable to me.

[RobbieL2415]

Lowe's = Home Depot

Pretty much.  They're interchangeable to me.

Except Lowe's doesn't have an automotive section.

[Roadrunner75]

Lowe's = Home Depot

Pretty much.  They're interchangeable to me.

Except Lowe's doesn't have an automotive section.

Home Depot has an automotive section?  The only thing I recall from either place is maybe a small section of an aisle with a few automotive things like oil and a few other car related products.  Much less than my local Walmart would have, and maybe about even with Target.  Maybe that differs elsewhere in the country.

[ilpt4u]

Lowe's = Home Depot

Pretty much.  They're interchangeable to me.

At least Menards usually has an actual, onsite lumber yard

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Menards has full-fledged grocery sections at some of its stores. I guess enough construction employees need the convenience of grabbing a frozen pizza or a milk jug since they're there already?

[roadman65]

Walgreens sells tobacco products, CVS does not.

Racetrac: Fresh Brewed Coffee   Wawa:  Brewed constantly but not per cup.

Walmart: Everywhere  Kmart:  No place anymore.

[CoreySamson]

Reviving this thread cause some of my tastes have changed. Here are my new comparisons (of all that I've tried):

Chicken Sandwich: Sonic > Popeye's > Chick-Fil-A > Cane's

Chicken Wings: WingStop >>> Buffalo Wild Wings

Chicken Tenders: Popeye's > Cane's > Chicken Express > Arby's

Chicken Nuggets/Popcorn Chicken: McDonald's > KFC > Wendy's > Burger King

Hamburgers: Whataburger > In-N-Out > Sonic > Five Guys > Jack In The Box = Carl's Jr. > McDonald's > Wendy's > Chili's > Burger King > Dairy Queen

Sub Sandwiches: Firehouse Subs > Subway

General Unique Drinks (Smoothies, Slushes, etc.): Sonic > Buc-ee's > Smoothie King

Breakfast: IHOP > McDonald's > Denny's

Mexican/Tex-Mex: Dairy Queen = Taco Bell > Taco Cabana

Megastores: HEB > Walmart = Kroger = Target

Other Sandwiches: Arby's > Dairy Queen > Sonic

Gas Stations: Buc-ee's >>> others

[Takumi]

Since this thread has been bumped, I'll update my opinions a bit.

Drugstores: all about the same

Tires: Bridgestone > everyone else. (Full disclosure: I work for Bridgestone)

Sandwiches: boring and overrated

General stores: Target > Walmart

[Scott5114]

Chicken Sandwich: Sonic > Popeye's > Chick-Fil-A > Cane's

Either your Sonic has something ours doesn't, or you're crazy. Sonic's chicken sandwich is unremarkably average. I rate it below even Burger King's.

Jack in the Box has a new chicken sandwich that is a clear attempt at aping the Popeye's. It's a perfectly serviceable replacement for me, because I rarely want to go all the way up to I-240 and Sooner for the real thing.

[Bruce]

In terms of outdoor gear: REI > all others

[Rothman]

In terms of outdoor gear: REI > all others

Eh, depends on what you're buying.  Heavy-duty backpacking, probably.  But, people over prepare for dinky dayhikes or simple overnighters all the time (well...yuppies, anyway).

[Flint1979]

Tony's > everyone.

[wanderer2575]

Like so much else in life, it's not just about the food but also the experience.  Example:  The first time I went to a Steak 'n Shake was some small city in Georgia maybe ten years ago when Mrs. wanderer and I road-tripped to Atlanta.  The food was good, but what really struck me was the vibe of the place:  Very alive and very engaged waitstaff.  We mentioned to our waitress that it was our first time at a SnS, and the next thing we knew the store manager was at our table and engaging in a long conversation with us.  Mind you, the place was packed at the time but he gave us his time and attention. 

We've dined a few times at a Steak 'n Shake near us in Livonia MI.  I suppose the food quality is the same but there's no vibe and they seem perpetually understaffed.  Last time we were there a couple years ago, we received the absolute minimum of attention and our food was all but thrown at us.  We're not going back there.  But I'll make a point of stopping at a Steak 'n Shake next time we are down South.

[Big John]

]Eh, depends on what you're buying.  Heavy-duty backpacking, probably.  But, people over prepare for dinky dayhikes or simple overnighters all the time (well...yuppies, anyway).

Haven't heard of yuppies since 1984.

[US 89]

Like so much else in life, it's not just about the food but also the experience.  Example:  The first time I went to a Steak 'n Shake was some small city in Georgia maybe ten years ago when Mrs. wanderer and I road-tripped to Atlanta.  The food was good, but what really struck me was the vibe of the place:  Very alive and very engaged waitstaff.  We mentioned to our waitress that it was our first time at a SnS, and the next thing we knew the store manager was at our table and engaging in a long conversation with us.  Mind you, the place was packed at the time but he gave us his time and attention. 

We've dined a few times at a Steak 'n Shake near us in Livonia MI.  I suppose the food quality is the same but there's no vibe and they seem perpetually understaffed.  Last time we were there a couple years ago, we received the absolute minimum of attention and our food was all but thrown at us.  We're not going back there.  But I'll make a point of stopping at a Steak 'n Shake next time we are down South.

Heh. I haven't been to a Steak 'n Shake in two years because I had such a bad experience with one in Atlanta. It took upwards of 20 minutes for the waiter to even come to our table, and then it took them probably 40 minutes to make our food. And we were the only ones in the whole restaurant.

Maybe I'll try them again at some point in the future, but I'm definitely not going to the one on Northside at Paces Ferry.

[Rothman]

I'm sad about the apparent decline of Steak 'n Shake.  It was a favorite stop of our family's when on vacation -- even up to just a few years ago.

[Flint1979]

Has Steak N Shake gone downhill that much? I haven't ate at one in awhile and thought they were pretty good and I'd stop at one if I saw one and was hungry.

[US71]

Has Steak N Shake gone downhill that much? I haven't ate at one in awhile and thought they were pretty good and I'd stop at one if I saw one and was hungry.

Varies location to location, but overall they're not a good as they used to be,

[SectorZ]

I know the former in my comparison is damn near extinct, but...

Bickford's > IHOP or Denny's

[Rothman]

I know the former in my comparison is damn near extinct, but...

Bickford's > IHOP or Denny's

I agree.

[Takumi]

I'm sad about the apparent decline of Steak 'n Shake.  It was a favorite stop of our family's when on vacation -- even up to just a few years ago.

When one opened up here a few years ago, the first few days there were extremely long lines to eat there. What awaited us was small portions of mediocre food. It closed within two years. At first it said "closed for renovation"  but one day all the signs had disappeared. It's now a Taco Bell.

[US71]

I know the former in my comparison is damn near extinct, but...

Bickford's > IHOP or Denny's

I agree.

Never heard of Bickfords

IHOP > Denny's (at least for breakfast)

Either one >> Waffle House /Huddle House

[CoreySamson]

Chicken Sandwich: Sonic > Popeye's > Chick-Fil-A > Cane's

Either your Sonic has something ours doesn't, or you're crazy. Sonic's chicken sandwich is unremarkably average. I rate it below even Burger King's.

Jack in the Box has a new chicken sandwich that is a clear attempt at aping the Popeye's. It's a perfectly serviceable replacement for me, because I rarely want to go all the way up to I-240 and Sooner for the real thing.

I am basing my ranking off the chicken slinger (which is a bit smaller than a normal chicken sandwich), but I see no reason that the normal one would be much different. I had it at two different local Sonics which indicates to me that it isn't just a fluke item that one restaurant happens to get down really well. The chicken both times had the right combination of crunch and meat, plus the ranch and pickles that come on it compliment it nicely.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Fast food joints usually have several different chicken patties depending on the type of sandwich (value, full-size, spicy, etc.). The chicken Wendy's uses for breakfast is completely inferior to the lunch/dinner one.