HOME	INTRO	SAMPLER	REVIEWS	VIEWER	TROPHY	FEEDBACK

[ Previous | Index | Next ]

Denny's #6273 Huron, Ohio 27-Nov-96, 4:15pm EST 2109 Cleveland Rd. W (419) 433-6267

• Attendees: P7A77
• Wait-person(s): Shelby
• What we ate: P7A77 - Coffee
• Over Thanksgiving weekend, I went to Washington, DC, to meet up with some friends and eat some turkeys (or was it the other way around?). Unfortunately, the easiest and quickest way to DC from Toledo, Ohio, is via the turnpikes, and anyone who knows the Ohio and Penna Pikes knows that they're Big Boy territory. So, to increase my chances of hiting some Denny's, I took Rt. 2 from Toledo to Cleveland. Plus, that way I was able to see more nuclear power plants.
  The first Denny's I got to was in lovely Huron, Ohio. I cannot even hope to be able to accurately express the pure concentrated bliss that coarsed through my veins as I spotted the Denny's sign from the highway. There it was. The sign on the highway was brand-spankin'-sparklin'-new, too. But, when I spotted the actual restaurant, I saw that the logo on the store was the old style, which excited me even more.
  When I entered the restaurant, there was only one other customer there, and she was off in a booth reading a book or something. I sat down at the counter, ordered my black coffee (which arrived in a mug sporting the old logo), and proceded to chat with Shelby, my waitress. She told me that she had been there for an hour and that I was her first customer, indicating that the person in the booth had been there even longer. It must've been a good book.
  Shelby was not one who was in love with Denny's. In fact, I doubt she even liked Denny's. She told me that she had been working there for three years. At first, I thought she then told me that she was fifteen years old (meaning that she started working there when she was twelve), but after a few confusing comments, it was revealed that she started working there when she was fifteen. I still think she had been violating some sort of child labor law, though. No matter, she was perfectly legal when I was there, in every sense of the word. That is, she was legal in every sense of the word; I wasn't "there" in every sense of the word. Get your minds out of the gutter, you damn sex-starved cradle-robbers.
  Even though there was only one person in the restaurant when I arrived, there were thirteen other people when I left, including a cook named Jason who was sitting at the counter with me.
  All in all, a fairly positive Denny's experience, and some damn fine coffee to boot.
• WAY: No (not for at least 3 years)
• Free Stuff: Senior's Discount Card

Denny's #6548 Amherst, OH 27-Nov-96, 5:20pm EST 900 N. Leavitt Rd. (216) 984-2426

• Attendees: P7A77
• Wait-person(s): a whole bunch
• What we ate: P7A77 - Coffee
• Throughout my stay at this Denny's there were at least four or five employees in my general area. At one time, I think I counted ten. Fairly high concentration for the counter and register, I think. They all seemed fairly amused by me, though. At first I think they thought I was some official Denny's person (I was wearing one of my Denny's tshirts), but once they realized I was just some random freak, they calmed down a bit. I should mention that the photo for this entry only has about half of the employees in it.
  What makes this visit notable (other than the gaggle of employees hovering over me like so many buzzards) is that, after receiving many email complaints about the commercial involving the pig, I was finally able to get someone to describe it to me, as I've never seen the commercial myself. From what I've heard, it sounds fairly amusing. I don't see what all the fuss is about. Well, I understand why the fuss, but I think it's fairly silly and misdirected. Or maybe I'm just dark and cynical that way.
  The sign outside had the old logo, as did the coffee mugs. Also, as I was sitting at the counter, a cook named Jason sat next to me. That's twice in a row in two different restaurants. Freaky.
• WAY: Undetermined
• Free Stuff: OJ Carafe, RB Float Glass

Denny's #6892 Hagerstown, Maryland 27-Nov-96, 11:15pm EST 1630 Dual Hwy. (301) 797-3700

• Attendees: P7A77
• Wait-person(s): Undetermined
• What we ate: P7A77 - Coffee
• As soon as I walked in to this Denny's, I knew something was wrong. The attitude of those inside was somehow off, and it smelled a bit different than usual. A quick perusal of the premises revealed why: there were no ashtrays. Yes, that's right, apparently there's no smoking in restaurants in Maryland. After six hours on the road, I couldn't have a cigarette with my coffee.
  Speaking of the coffee, it was rather sub-standard. It was way too hot (indicating it had been sitting on the burner for a while) and tasted quite bitter. In addition, the mug had the new logo (tho' to their credit, the restaurant had the old logo on their sign outside).
  Practically every employee who walked past my spot at the counter asked if I needed to see a menu. At first I thought they were being helpful, but then the same employees kept asking me. Then they kept trying to refill my coffee even after I asked them not to. Trust me when I say that it was lousy coffee.
  As I was leaving, I happened to notice a table full of the local counter-culture youth. They were quiet and well behaved. A gripping reminder of the horror of a non-smoking Denny's.
• WAY: Undetermined
• Free Stuff: Nothing

Denny's #1846 Farifax, Virginia 30-Nov-96, 3:20pm EST 10473 Lee Hwy., junction of Rt. 123 & Rt. 50 (703) 273-8133

• Attendees: P7A77, Corpse, Amie
• Wait-person(s): Undetermined
• What we ate: P7A77 - Ultimate Omelet, Hashbrowns, Coffee; Corpse - Fries, Coke; Amie - Moons Over My Hammy, Hashbrowns, Lemonade
• At first we were somewhat impressed by this restaurant because the waitress didn't need to write anything down, yet got our orders exactly right. However, that was eventually countered by the fact that she didn't check up on us once, and we were getting thirsty for refills.
  Luckily, though, that was made up for by the quality of the food. Corpse said that his fries were very good and that he even had to replenish his catsup many times. Amie noted that her Hammy was less greasy than usual. As to my Omelet... well, how can you go wrong with an Ultimate?
  Something interesting about this Denny's was that they had "special" menu items. The "Feature of the Day" when we were there was Eggs Benedict.
  Oh, by the way, the street sign and mugs had the new logo, but the sign on the side of the restaurant had the old logo.
• WAY: Undetermined
• Free Stuff: Nothing

Denny's #1155 Fairfax, Virginia 30-Nov-96, 4:00pm EST 9940 Lee Hwy., across from Hardee's (703) 273-8133

• Attendees: P7A77, Corpse, Amie
• Wait-person(s): Undetermined
• What we ate: Nothing
• The sign outside had the new logo, the sign on the wall had the old logo, and the frosted glass partitians inside had the old logo.
  Much as in the other store in Fairfax, nobody in here seemed to speak English terribly well. I couldn't seem to get across the concept that I was just passing through and that I wanted something for free. The gentleman behind the counter kept telling me that he would call the head office and for me to come back in a week. Finally I just took a toothpick and left.
• WAY: No
• Free Stuff: Toothpick

Denny's #1823 Manassas, Virginia 30-Nov-96, 4:35pm EST 8201 Sudley Rd. (703) 369-2259

• Attendees: P7A77, Corpse, Amie
• Wait-person(s): Silvia and Mike
• What we ate: Nothing
• Finally an English-speaking Denny's! The special of the day at this Denny's was "Manager Mike's Saturday Delight Steak & Eggs". We were even lucky enough to not only meet Manager Mike, but get a photo with him.
• WAY: No
• Free Stuff: Thanksgiving Feast Menu

Denny's #2066 Dale City, Virginia 30-Nov-96, 5:30pm EST 2861 Dale Blvd (Woodbridge) (703) 680-3089

• Attendees: P7A77, Corpse, Amie
• Wait-person(s): Melissa
• What we ate: P7A77 - Water; Corpse - Water; Amie - Coke
• On the map we had, Dale City wasn't listed, so this was a "found" Denny's for us, so we were happy. The Denny's in question did not share our attitude, though. Melissa (our waitress) was not amused by us, and by the end of our stay was even getting sarcastic - an attitude not at all becoming to her since she was also slow as all git-out.
• WAY: No
• Free Stuff: Dessert Table Menu, two Flavored Coffee Menu Inserts, Silverware Set (all stolen)

Denny's #1822 Woodbridge, Virginia 30-Nov-96, 6:30pm EST 13775 Jeffrey Davis Hwy. (703) 494-7788

• Attendees: P7A77, Corpse, Amie
• Wait-person(s): Wanda
• What we ate: P7A77 - Strawberry Shake; Corpse - Blueberry Shake; Amie - Vanilla Shake
• This is actually the Denny's we were aiming for on this little trip, and boy was it worth it! We originally set out for Woodbridge because a fan of the Project:Denny's pages knew I would be in the area and asked me to stop in and say hello to his mother and sister, both of whom work there. Unfortunately, neither of them were there when we were, but we still enjoyed our visit.
  First off, the waitress was there asking if we knew what we wanted as soon as we sat down, and was extremely friendly. We chatted during most of our stay.
  In addition to the serivce being superb, our shakes were excellent. Amie: "Thick and Rich." Corpse: "Full of Flavor." P7A77: "They have chunks of stuff in 'em!" I don't know if they'd have been worth five dollars, but they were damn good milkshakes.
  Not only were the employees helpful to us, but we ended up being helpful to them. One of the sinks that are used to store counter utensils started to overflow, so we quickly alerted the employees to the problem and they got right on it. The "Weird Al" lookalike almost burned himself, even. That's dedication.
• WAY: Richard (host/server)
• Free Stuff: Denny's Travel Guide, Take-Out Menu

Denny's #6040 La Vale, Maryland 1-Dec-96, 3:50pm EST 1239 National Hwy., Rt. 40 exit 39 (301) 729-6600

• Attendees: P7A77
• Wait-person(s): Kendra
• What we ate: P7A77 - Rye Toast, Coffee
• This was another strange-feeling Denny's. I think it might be a Maryland thing. There was no counter to sit at! At first I thought I would be forced to not only refrain from smoking, but sit at a booth as well; but the waitress asked me what my smoking preference was. I told her, and she took me off to a little room in the back of the restaurant. It was pretty much just a closed-off atrium. It was noisy and cold in there but at least I was able to enjoy a good nicotine fix with my cancer-ridden brethren. Fight the power!
• WAY: Undetermined
• Free Stuff: Customer Feedback Card

Denny's #1838 Washington, Pennsylvania 1-Dec-96, 3:50pm EST 1395 W. Chestnut St., I-70 exit 4 (412) 222-5555

• Attendees: P7A77
• Wait-person(s): Mary
• What we ate: Nothing
• Mary was very friendly to me, but she said she had only been there for two months, so maybe she just hadn't been broken yet.
• WAY: No
• Free Stuff: Dessert Pin

Denny's #1584 St. Clairsville, Ohio 1-Dec-96, 4:30pm EST 68296 Red Roof Lane, I-70 exit Mall Rd. (614) 695-2036

• Attendees: P7A77
• Wait-person(s): Noelle
• What we ate: Nothing
• The only thing notable about this Denny's is that I didn't realize it was the last sign of life for about 40 miles, and almost ran out of gas looking for an ATM a bit further down the road.
• WAY: Yes (cook)
• Free Stuff: Santa Pin

Denny's #1432 Westerville, Ohio 1-Dec-96, 7:00pm EST 23 Huber Village Blvd., I-270 exti Rt. 3 N. (614) 882-5599

• Attendees: P7A77, Jern Scudiere, Josh (formerly "The Bear") Wyen
• Wait-person(s): Michelle
• What we ate: P7A77 - Moons Over My Hammy, Hashbrowns, Coffee; Jern - Super Bird w/American Cheese (no Swiss), Fries, Lemonade; Josh - Farmer's Omelet Special, Hashbrowns, Biscuit, Coffee
• Josh and Jern had spent Thanksgiving in Cleveland, and were planning on going through Columbus on their way back to Cincinnati at the same time that I was going through on my way back to Toledo. They got there an hour early. I got there an hour late. I was able to phone ahead, though, and the friendly Denny's staff relayed my message so that they'd wait for me. And they did. They're so sweet that way.
  As to the food... Josh: "Damn tasty. I had to shit twice." Jern: "The Super Bird was, indeed, a super bird." P7A77: "This coffee has a strange film on it."
  I should note that this Denny's is located in one of the cities that the movie Heathers was based on. I felt like doing something nasty to some high school prep kids as I was leaving, but I think that's due more to the fact that I usually feel that way than to the location of the Denny's.
• WAY: No
• Free Stuff: Melts & Malts Menu

Denny's #6219 Delaware, Ohio 1-Dec-96, 8:00pm EST 1003 Us. Hwy 23 N. (614) 369-4425

• Attendees: P7A77
• Wait-person(s): Gilbert (manager)
• What we ate: Nothing
• The person I originally spoke to pawned me off to the manager (Gilbert) shortly after I told her what I was doing. Gilbert was generally unamused until I asked for free stuff, at which point he chuckled. I think it was because he then fully understood my little scam. At first I thought he was going to give me a chef's baseball Denny's cap, but he gave me a cook tie clip and a Minute Maid pin. Ah, well. Maybe next time.
• WAY: Undetermined
• Free Stuff: Cook Tie Clip, Minute Maid Pin

[ Previous | Index | Next ]

HOME	INTRO	SAMPLER	REVIEWS	VIEWER	TROPHY	FEEDBACK