You Want Fries With That? The Argument for Dining at Locally Owned Restaurants in Northern Kentucky.

I don’t eat at franchised restaurants. At least not by choice. If a client suggests a chain restaurant for lunch, I’m too polite to tell them I don’t want to go. But when given the chance, I’ll always pick a locally-owned restaurant to dine.

Reasons to eat at a locally owned restaurant in Northern Kentucky:

1. The food is better at locally owned and operated restaurants. I have heard, but can’t authenticate, that much of the food at franchised restaurants is prepared, frozen and shipped to satellite locations to be heated up and served to unknowing customers. That isn’t always true. It is true that the food, prepared on or off-premises, is based on test market-approved recipes that are designed to appeal to the masses.



2. There’s a distinct lack of ambience at franchised restaurants. Maybe I’m the only one who feels this way. I know that for me, this feeling is compounded by my previous life as a business traveler. Franchised restaurants feel the same to me, no matter what the style of food served. Perhaps some people feel a sense of comfort at seeing the same wagon wheel at every steak house they visit. For me, it feels more like I’m looking at the golden arches, a playground and straw wrappers on the floor.



3. I eat at locally owned restaurants to help support the small businessperson. I am a small businessperson. And I think we should all be helping each other to succeed.
   
   

I think the quality of the food, the ingenuity used to smarten up the dishes and the overall look and feel of locally owned restaurants are important reasons to choose them over their franchised competitors. I know I don’t want to go out to eat something I could make at home.

I want a night out to more closely resemble dining with my parents when I was a little kid. My parents, who also eschew franchises, always chose locally owned restaurants when I was growing up in Eugene, Oregon. When we relocated to the tri-state, they again sought out tiny supper clubs, local taverns and locally owned restaurants on a grander scale to dine.

We have a lot of great neighborhood bars and restaurants to go to in Northern Kentucky. Yes, we have our fair share of chain restaurants too, but there’s a good mix of places like the Loyal in Bellevue, York Street Café in Newport and many more great places to eat in the historic Mainstrasse district.

The next time you’re heading out to dinner, consider your options carefully- and make it a night to remember.