Bob Evans Restaurant Review

When I was younger, my family & I used to eat at Bob Evans restaurants a lot. Unfortunately, many BE in this area have closed, and eating there doesn't happen frequently as it used to.

Back in the day, the slow-roasted turkey dinner featured on BEs' menu was generally my favorite. I would order it and usually find myself unable to finish the whole thing it was so big. Or perhaps I just filled up on those hot rolls/biscuits that BE serves copious quantities of with near every entree.

Yesterday evening the opportunity presented itself to dine at BE, and I decided to have the turkey dinner. Since the last time I had it years ago, things have changed a bit. We're in a health-conscious, recessionary-minded age now. This means I got to see the calories, fat, and blood-pressure-boosting amount of sodium in this dinner, yet the portion size was much smaller than I remember it being.

So here's my review:

The meal comes with sides of mashed potatoes and glazed carrots. I opted to substitute (no charge) a salad in place of one side. I ditched the glazed carrots. The salad arrived pre-meal with a side of Italian dressing. It was a nice blend of iceberg, romaine, and a few sparse slices of red cabbage. There were also tomato slices and very crunchy, flavorful croutons. I have to say at this point, I like most things tomato. Ketchup. Cocktail sauce. Spaghetti sauce. Tomato soup. But raw tomoatos I cannot stand. They're slimy, seedy, and nasty. No amount of dressing can drown out the awfulness. But the tomatoes on this salad were so flavorless that even I could tolerate them—bad for those who expect tomatoes to be a salad fixture. The Italian dressing was tangy, yet surprisingly sweet. Anyway, the salad also came with two hot rolls, sans butter. An annoying oversight.

My dinner arrived so quickly that I hadn't even finished my salad yet. The presentation was lacking. The portion looked notably smaller, and the small plate it was served on didn't help either. The two slices of turkey were flavorful and juicy without a lot of extra seasoning, but were kind of skimpy. The signature bread-and-celery dressing looked and tasted like it came out of a box. I'm guessing it probably did—that's how BE maintains consistency from distribution center to dining room. The mashed potatoes were buttery and flavorful, and the gravy made a nice addition to everything expect the over-salted dressing. There was also cranberry-orange relish, served on a sprig of romaine and appearing more as a garnish, but one bite could've put a humming bird in a diabetic coma.

Overall, I was disappointed. I remember this dinner from when I was younger as being so good, an extra-special treat that I oft couldn't finish. It appears BE cut the portions of the good stuff, like the turkey, and loaded up on cheap fillers, like boxed dressing and rolls. And after finishing, I wasn't really full.

I still like Bob Evans and plan to eat there when the sparse opportunity arises. But I think from now on I may stick to the stir fry...that was excellent—last time I had it.