Chain Reaction

 

Last month a tweet went viral about the late Anthony Bourdain acknowledging that he was too harsh towards a review of Olive Garden, conceding that piling on the popular Italian restaurant chain was a form of snobbery he realized he didn’t want to engage in. Being somewhat of a coastal elite, I often swim in similar circles, where the impression of chains ranges anywhere from disdain to vehement anger.

To be sure, chains deserve some pushback. It’s better for a community when you spend your dollar at an independent place, where more of that dollar circulates locally and there may be a closer tie to food sources and other restaurant inputs. Some chains have a less than sterling record on the environment and worker rights. And beyond following the food and the money, chains for some represent a soulless, faceless corporatization that they cannot help but rage against.

Yet for most of this country, chains are beloved or at least functional. I know folks for whom Red Lobster is a special treat to be spoken of in hallowed words. Others who have dietary restrictions or finicky palates find the predictability of chains a godsend, the crapshoot of independent places a risk they cannot easily bear.

 At any rate, if you don’t want to support a chain, just don’t go. No need to rain on other people’s parade. Outside my office window is a two-story Cheesecake Factory, and while it is admittedly an imperfect sample, when I look out onto the dining area I see a diverse mix of people and they’re usually having a good time. Seems fine to me.