Champions Restaurant – Philadelphia

Champions Of Philadelphia

After running the Philadelphia Museum Of Art steps ala Rocky Balboa, "Rocky Steps" we were hungry and stopped at Champions Restaurant, inside the Marriott Hotel in downtown Philadelphia for dinner.

My order was very simple. A bowl of chicken noodle soup and an order of chicken strips.

Champions Chicken Noodle Soup

After an almost 30 minute wait, (And there was no excuse for the restaurant was not crowded at all) my chicken soup came. It looked delicious and it was good. I was concerned for the restaurant was not busy, and as most restaurants, the soup of the day is prepared early and readily available in a minutes notice. Yet, it took almost 30 minutes for it to arrive. I wonder how long i would I have to wait for the main entree.

Chicken Strips

Before the chicken strips arrived, the server brought out fried fish and macaroni and cheese. I told him that wasn't what I ordered and he actually argued with me. I asked to speak to my waitress. She came over and saw the mistake and said she would put a rush on my order. No apology, no batting of the eyes, nothing. I wasn't holding out much hope on the rush part.

My wife ordered a Philly steak and cheese. It came without cheese! WTF! It also went back.

Finally, after another 20 minutes, our correct dinners arrived. I will admit the chicken strips tasted great, but i just can't get past the rude and lousy service we received.

Taking into account the shoddy service, the arguing, and the incorrect meals, the Grassy Knoll Diner awards 1.75 shots out of 5 and does not recommend Champions Restaurant inside the Downtown Marriott Marquis Philadelphia hotel.

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Philadelphia Hard Rock Cafe - Twisted Mac Chicken

Philly Hard Rock Cafe

Running the "Rocky" steps works up a powerful appetite. Luckily the Philadelphia Hard Rock Cafe was right around the corner. And I was hungry. It was crowded but we got a seat. The waitress took our drink order and few minutes later our dinner order. I ordered Twisted Mac Chicken and cheese.

Twisted Mac And Cheese

It took about 20 minutes for our entree's to reach the table. This is not what  thought I was ordering. It was chicken, and there were some twizzly noodles with melted cheese at the bottom of the plate. Anyway, as I said, I was hungry.

You are looking at $18 dollars of food. Yes, 18 bucks. The chicken was well cooked, hot, tender, and tasted good. The macaroni and cheese was also hot and adequate. The bread however, well, you could pound nails with it.

The service was adequate, it was busy, the waiter did his job, but nothing exceptional. A refill on the water and soda would have been nice.

The walls and tables were lined with pictures of rock legends giving the restaurant a nice feel. I snapped some pictures of the Beatles, the greatest rock band in the history of rock.

The Grassy Knoll Diner scores 3 out of 5 shots and recommends the Philadelphia Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. for dinner.

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1. 
   

   PeterW.A. said

   April 24, 2009 at 1:44 pm e
   The hard Rock is k not known for its food but the atmosphere surrounding it. As long as its edible the Hard Rock considers it a win win.
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     April 24, 2009 at 3:47 pm e
     A win win. Not entirely sure. Although I recommend the Hard Rock, if the service and food slip, then the customers will as well.
     Reply
2. 
   

   G Clock M said

   April 24, 2009 at 2:36 pm e
   That looks horrible. And you gave it kudos and recommend people to go and eat there. No way.
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     April 24, 2009 at 3:50 pm e
     Looks are sometimes deceiving. I’ll agree on the bread, it was pretty bad. The atmosphere was cool, good music, adequate service on a busy evening, the food OK.
     Reply
3. 
   

   Contessa Confessa said

   April 25, 2009 at 4:02 pm e
   you know, this is probably one of the first blue plate specials that hasn’t made my mouth water… (i’m blaming it on the bread!).
   Reply
4. 
   

   Bitzky said

   April 26, 2009 at 12:15 pm e
   I’d totally eat it but for around 12 bucks (converted to Swedish price levels, of course).
   Reply
   • 
     

     LOTGK said

     April 27, 2009 at 11:28 pm e
     Yea, don’t get me wrong, the chicken was good, the mac and cheese OK, but the presentation, all thrown together in a bowl with stale bread, well, it lost some points for that.
     Reply
   • 
     

Waffles For Breakfast - Philadelphia Style

Liberty Bell Waffles

In August, we spent a couple of days in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We stayed at the Downtown Philadelphia Marriott hotel. we had a very busy evening seeing the sites of the city and turned in for bed late. The next morning, we decided to eat at the hotel restaurant. (Mistake!)

We were seated quickly and soon the waitress took our order. I ordered a waffle with maple syrup and turkey sausages. After about 10 minutes wait, my waffle arrived, and as you can see, was as big as the plate. And being in Philly, it had the Liberty Bell icon embedded in the waffle. A nice touch.

The waffle was as waffles go, but it was good, cooked well, and filling. The turkey sausage was surprisingly good as well.

The cost however was where the good feelings ended. What you see here, a waffle, and several links of turkey sausage,  cost 18 bucks. Even for Manhattan, 18 bucks would be extremely high.

For the cost reason alone, the Grassy Knoll Institute does not recommend the downtown Philadelphia Marriott hotel restaurant for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and awards 1.5 shots out of 5.

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Philadelphia Museum Of Art Logo

Right across the street of the Philadelphia Museum Of Art is a quaint little landing and gazebo overlooking the river. An old wooden fence guards against the danger of falling over the ledge and down the side of the ravine.As with almost all public places, etchings and carvings adorn the fence.

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