WAIT, I THOUGHT CHAIN RESTAURANTS WERE SUPPOSED TO BE VULGAR AND BAD: But now their decline is bad. “It’s amazing to consider that, at least until the last couple of years, chain restaurants were considered by many foodies as the ultimate sign of American crassness and philistinism, the peppy, processed hell to which urban dwellers were exiled when they moved to the suburbs. In reality, they were one of America’s greatest achievements. They were places where any American could go to have a nice dining experience, with genial servers and attractive, relatively high-quality food, in big portions. And, best of all, patrons didn’t need to wait to go there on Friday night, or for a special occasion; miracle of miracles, they could go there on a Tuesday night, just because. More important, these restaurants provided decent jobs to thousands of Americans. But no more.”