I think chain restaurants thrived with the boomer generation. For them growing up dining out was strictly for special occasions, and typically the places were privately owned, the food was inconsistent and who knows how clean the kitchen was. In their eyes, places like Max & Erma's were predictable, affordable, and since they were corporate owned, they figured meals were created by corporate chefs and had quality control with food prep and cleanliness. I know a lot of people who travel a lot for work and seeing your favorite chain restaurant away from home was a sight for sore eyes. Back then there was no Yelp or Google to read reviews so who knows what that other place would be like, it would have been a crap shoot.

But that generation isn't dining out as much as they were. And as a millennial I can't think of the last time I sat down at a chain restaurant. They aren't bad, but there are a lot more unique options out there, just a click away to see other patrons feedback. It's not cheap to dine out anymore, if we're going it's going to be somewhere where I can support a local business.