The Rocket

Issue date: 10/26/07 Section: Focus

Media Credit: Kristen Baselj Garfield's, located inside the Clearview Mall in Butler, offers a variety of foods such as chicken tortilla soup and Grand Sirloin Steaks. [Click to enlarge]

Located inside the Clearview Mall in Butler, Garfield's Restaurant and Pub offers a family-friendly environment and a great meeting place after a day of shopping.

Typically located in a mall-based setting, this dinnerhouse chain offers standard American menu selections. You can find Garfield's located in 19 states on the eastern side of the country.

FOOD & BEVERAGE

I started out with a bowl of the chicken tortilla soup, which was a lot like a slightly thinned-out chili. Though it had less beans and replaced beef with chicken, it was just as spicy as chili and was still thick enough to scoop it with tortilla chips.

The artichoke and tortilla chips "Snacketizer" was an agreeable way to start the meal, as it was not so heavy that it would fill you up before your entrée. The loaded potato skins, however, left a lot to be desired, as they were average-tasting at best.

I would recommend trying one of the "Hot Off the Grill" steak meals because it was the best dish that my guests and I tried. The Grand Sirloin Steak was grilled to perfection and was accompanied by garlic bread and mashed potatoes loaded with cheese and bacon bits.

The chicken alfredo pasta was not the best I've had, but it certainly wasn't the worst. I probably wouldn't get it again, but it was OK for a one-time try.

A full service bar is available, and I would recommend trying one of their Monday-night specials of $2.99 on-the-rocks margaritas.

PRICE

Prices are right in line with rival chain restaurants like Applebee's and might even be a bit cheaper.

Garfield's "Great Steak Tuesday" offers $2 off any steak item, which would take the most expensive steak meal of Steak 'n' Ribs down to $13.99.

Portion size is right in line with the price, but don't expect to take much home for leftovers. Sizes were just large enough to fill you up, so if you are like me and enjoy getting your next day's lunch out of your meal, you might think the portions are a little small.

ENVIRONMENT

Garfield's offers a bright, fun, family-oriented environment. Booths and tables are very open, but some large arches and pillars cover a few of the tables. The bright yellow, red and green walls were decorated with sports memorabilia and black-and-white checkerboard tiles.

Tables are covered with a large piece of paper and come ready with crayons for coloring fun for the whole family.

The bar area was separate from the dining area, but the restaurant setting is very airy, so you can see into the bar from all over the restaurant.

From certain areas in the dining room you could also see parts of the kitchen and servers' station as well, and the large, brightly lit bar is accompanied by two flat-screen TVs.

There were a couple of areas with tables that could be moved together to accommodate larger parties, but I wouldn't recommend taking a party larger than 12.

SERVICE

The first thing our waitress did was to introduce herself and write her name in crayon on the paper that was covering the table to replace place mats or a tablecloth. I thought this added a charming personal touch to the dining experience.

However, my guests and I waited about 10 minutes to get our drinks from the bar, and the meal was rather slow in getting to the table as well. It wasn't horribly long, but long enough that I noticed it was taking a while for the meal to arrive.

Garfield's Restaurant and Pub
101 Clearview Drive
Butler, PA 16001
(724)283-4899

Kristen Baselj is a senior communication major and a regular contributor to The Rocket.

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