Dessert in Action

This week my family selected Chili’s restaurant for our weekly take-out/drive-through/delivery dinner.
After a long day of work and school the family was interested in a casual dining experience at a restaurant with a wide variety of menu choices. We considered O’Charley’s, Romano’s Macaroni Grill, and Applebee’s; however travel time and best coupons went into the selection of Chili’s. I ultimately decided on Chili’s based on past dining experiences and knowing the food selections that my family enjoys eating.
We ordered an appetizer skillet Queso and bottomless Tostada Chips, for the main entrée I ordered the Fajita Trio Grilled steak, chicken, and spicy shrimp, cup of black beans and broccoli. For the dessert we ordered the Molten Chocolate Cake topped with vanilla ice cream under a hard chocolate shell. We thought about ordering the Brownie Sundae with warm, rich chocolate brownie topped with vanilla ice cream and hot fudge. If we order a beer and/or margarita, then dessert is usually not ordered. I like the dessert offerings at Chili’s and experience them every couple of visits.
The biggest considerations when making the dessert selections are something that appeals to everyone’s taste. My wife weighed in on the final decision. She really enjoys good desserts and the brownie and Molten Cake were our top two choices. Of course, the Molten Chocolate cake was a joint decision based on our love of the dessert. A chocolate flavored dessert with fudge and ice cream was in full view for my family post meal.

The other desserts available and why they were not chosen are listed below:
Brownie Sundae, was in our top 2; however, the Molten Cake was received the most votes and offered the largest portion size

The Oreo Toped Molten Cake was not selected because it’s a limited time offer, and it was not one of the favorite staples on Chili’s menu. The family was not interested in trying the cake because we were not interested in mixing the Oreo cookies with the cake.

The Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie, my wife is not a fan of coconut, so the family ruled this out.

Cheesecake was not in the running, we prefer ordering our cheesecake from the Cheesecake factory.

The Frosty Chocolate Shake was not considered as a family dessert. Only one of us could truly enjoy it.

The family was ready to eat! We ordered a double appetizer and everyone ate. Usually my wife, youngest son and I eat the appetizer. My oldest son usually does not try any of the appetizers, but he enjoyed it with the rest of us. The Queso and Chips kicked off our meal night and it was very good because everyone at the table was hungry. The orders were as followed: Hillary Crispy Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers, Lil Bryan ordered Chicken Club Quesadillas, Michael ordered Cheese Burger only Ketchup, and I ordered Fajita Trio. The restaurant was not busy, but it seemed like an extremely long wait for our main entrees to be delivered. Once we received our food everyone was satisfied. Our dessert was served post meal; the server cleared the table and brought over 2 servings of the Molten Chocolate Cake. The dessert in our family is mostly served post meal. The fudge was formed as a hard shell over the cake and the vanilla bean ice cream was on top. The cake was moist, warm, and chocolate was oozing down the sides and the cake was so good. My wife and I shared one and the kids shared the other serving and it was oh so good.
We thoroughly enjoyed the desert post meal.
The dessert was served on a separate plate and we all equally enjoy the treat.
We can better enjoy our dessert after we eat the main entrée. It allows you to focus on the dessert and only the dessert as we savor every bite to the end. The mood is great. Everyone is laughing and talking as we continue to savor every bite and compliment how really good the dessert makes us feel.
The best part of tonight’s meal and dessert was the fun time that my family experienced by eating together. The overall Chili’s restaurant in Duluth, GA service was average, but again, just being with the family, talking, laughing, enjoying our meal and savoring the taste of the awesome dessert selection all the way home. The best part of the dessert was the chocolate cake blended with the fudge and ice cream. I love when the ice cream melts with the fudge and it all becomes one moist treat. In the end the Molten Cake was good at Chili’s, but I still prefer the O’Charley’s overall. The ingredients are just a lot better. Don’t get me wrong, the dessert at Chili’s was very good, but it was not the best I ever had. The desert added extra time post meal to conversation with the family. Ordering only an appetizer and entree seems to speed the dining experience, but adding a dessert allows you to relax and enjoy being in the moment wit the people that means the most to you.