dPR Through April 5



Lunch at the Family Table Restaurant in Pocahontas, IA

KEOKUK, IA - The end of Lent brought with it the return of french fries and potato chips to my diet. I haven't gone nuts with potato chips yet - I find that I probably prefer Chex Mix to potato chips by now - but I haven't lost my taste for good french fries. Pictured above is my first post-Lent helping of french fries, which was at the Family Table Restaurant (6.86 dPR) in Pocahontas. There will be a special prize for anybody who can correctly identify what's on the plate in the upper left-hand corner of the picture.

Those with sharp eyes may recognize the burger pictured above as being visually reminiscent of a McDonald's Big Mac. Family Table calls this offering the "Jumbo Burger," and I'm certain that its resemblance to the Big Mac is completely intentional. As far as taste is concerned, it was probably a step up from McDonald's. Though the Family Table is a chain of diners, it still exists on a higher level than typical fast food. The fries were fine - your basic mass-produced crinkle-cuts. They did a good job of not making them too greasy, thus keeping them crispy. Other members of the troupe sampled their salads, which looked fairly decent. Again, I repeat: whoever can identify correctly what's on the plate in the upper-left corner will earn a special recognition.

Ratings for this week are basically identical to last week's. Panera and Subway both enjoyed slight upward ticks in their scores, but not enough to move up an entire slot in the Counter Division. With less than two weeks to go on the tour, chances are slim that the standings will change significantly.

GLOBAL DIVISION
1. Sage - Windsor Heights (9.70 dPR)
2. Bob's Drive-Inn - Le Mars (9.30)
3. Danish Inn - Elk Horn (9.24)
4. Blue Bunny - Le Mars (9.20)
5. Iowa Machine Shed - West Des Moines and Davenport (9.13)

CHAIN DIVISION
1. Iowa Machine Shed - West Des Moines and Davenport (9.13 dPR)
2. Tony Roma's - Sioux City (8.40 dPR)
3. Cheesecake Factory - West Des Moines (8.30)
4. Bravo! Cucina - West Des Moines (8.20)
5. Carlos O'Kelly's - Dubuque (7.90)

COUNTER DIVISION
1. Whitey's - Davenport (8.20 dPR)
2. Panera - Cedar Rapids (7.96)
3. A&W - Indianola (7.70)
4. Culver's - Sioux City (7.60)
5. Subway - Various (6.91)

Posted: Tue - April 5, 2005 at 11:52 PM      

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