Why eat at a chain Wednesday: Hickory Park

Well, since Zach opened the door to feature a well known Ames businesses yesterday, I figured I could stretch our normal theme a little today to also feature an iconic Ames restaurant as well. That iconic Ames restaurant has over 30,000 Facebook fans that reach all across the nation. That last statement of reach is really not unexpected since this restaurant is in a college town and most students had at least 4 years to fall in love with their favorite food.

So, have I kept you on the hook long enough? The restaurant, if you haven’t already guessed, is Hickory Park. I have heard about Hickory Park for years, but never had the chance to go and try it out. Luckily for me my wife made the suggestion a few weeks ago so we made the trip up to Ames with her parents for a Friday night meal. We were pleased to find the restaurant with only a 5 minute wait as I understand they are well known for long wait times, which just goes to show how much the locals like their food. Hickory Park is a huge restaurant that really can pack in the crowds. I was amazed at the sheer size of the restaurant and how many people they had working to ensure our dining experience was top notch. I really reverted back to my restaurant manager days when I just looked around because they have the staff very well trained, everyone seemed to have a purpose and all executed very well.

I know, you are probably wondering about the food. Well, the food is fantastic! I had the Hickory Park Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich that included grilled strips of marinated steak topped with grilled onions and mozzarella cheese. I was mildly hungry when we got there but I destroyed the sandwich, looked up and noticed my in-laws and my wife were only about half way through their meals. It was by far the best sandwich I have had in quite some time. The bread was surprisingly moist and the meat was just really tasty.

I was really trying to eat healthy for this meal, but obviously I failed. But, the place settings at Hickory Park were no help since they feature all sorts of ice cream and dessert items, which made my effort to eat healthy that much harder. I just perused the menu, I wasn’t really paying that close of attention until I got to the Chocolate Chip Sundae, which included Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream with marshmallow and hot fudge, and sprinkled with chocolate chips whipped cream and nuts AND a Chocolate Chip Cookie. I HAD to order that once I read over the menu and started drooling. Ok, the drooling really didn’t happen but the anticipation for digging into that ice cream sure did. Yep, it was amazing.

All I have to say, after all of the above, is make the trip to Ames to try Hickory Park if you haven’t already tried it out. You will not be disappointed.

After all, why would you want to eat at a chain restaurant when you can eat at Hickory Park?