Would you eat at a restaurant that is a franchise or branch of one you like, if it is in a bad part of town?

I did go to a restaurant like that in the past, but there was a shoot out there last year, so I’ll never go back.

Depends. Goodness knows I have eaten in bad areas before. I wouldn’t do it alone if I could avoid it. I might if I was with a group or with a man. Really depends on how bad is bad. Bullet marks on the side of the building I probably wouldn’t go.

I used to eat at La Guadalupana off of Sam Cooper, not a great area, but not the worst.

I once went with my mom to get a Coke at McDonalds and couldn’t get out of there fast enough. I felt like everyone around me probably had a gun. Too many young men and something about how they were acting. It was near a Goodwill or something similar, I don’t remember which part of town. My dad likes to go to those stores for his business and my mom and I usually take a walk while he does it. It’s often not a great neighborhood. I told my dad I would never take him to that location again.

In the Memphis metro area, which I assume is where you are talking about, I felt less safe in some pockets there than anywhere else I have lived.

“Bad part of town”, hmmm? Around here, “bad part” is used to politely get away with saying “non-white”.

Assuming the restaurant is clean and sanitary enough, why not? I can deal with dilapidated. I grew up in a region where it’s mostly dilapidated towns full of skeevy white trash.

I do already. There are some parts of Atlanta, both in the city and in the burbs, that I won’t go to at night. But during the day – great places to eat.

When I lived in Omaha, I was in the seedy neighborhood. Down the four blocks of the hill I lived on was a tiny little chicken place.they had three booths, so you pretty much went there expecting to carry out.

The chicken was top quality, OMG.
Then I discovered they also had pork tenderloin sandwiches!! They to were top notch.

Everytime I went there, it was lines, and people waiting. They stayed busy. I would go in the door, and all the waiting customers stared at me, like they didn’t know white people were allowed.
If there was one where I live now, I would have no hesitation about going into a declined neighborhood to each chicken like that again. Oh man. Now I’m hungry. I have an hour before my papadia is delivered. bbq chicken, xtra cheese

My favorite fast casual Italian restaurant is in an industrial area of the city and kind of a seedy area, but I still go there all the time. I don’t have a problem with the location

@_____ Don’t make it into something it isn’t. People don’t need to risk their life to try to prove they aren’t racist. The real crime is that poor urban areas tend to be more likely to be unsafe. In America being poor should not mean people have to live unsafely, it’s an embarrassment of our country that we don’t do more to counter it. Our system is set up that minorities are more likely to be poor, and so it is often minority areas that are less safe.

It’s a fact where the OP lives certain zip codes are much less safe, there is a lot of gun violence in his city and surrounding areas.

Even Black people and other minorities worry about going to bad parts of town if the crime rate is high enough. Their advantage is blending in if it’s the same race or ethnicity in the area.

I’ve been in that same situation as @Patty_Melt the only white person (and I’m female) and getting stares from people, or just my mom and me or just my husband and me, the only two white people, if you want to count my husband as white. Sometimes it’s fine and once in a while it feels like we are targets.

There are bad parts in the country that are white areas too, it’s not like minorities have a monopoly on that market.

If they have a good health code violation history, go for it. I certainly would!

Without hesitation

@JLeslie: “Don’t make it into something it isn’t.”

I have spent decades going into the “bad parts” of cities and never had a problem. Whether it was community organizing or just going out to eat. Around here, in the polite northeast, “bad part of town” is almost always racist. The people that use that term usually haven’t spent any time in these areas, but the complexion looks quite dark and it seems “bad” and terrifying.

That’s all I was saying.

@_____ Here it’s the west side, which is mostly ‘white trash’ (others term, not mine.)
And they’ll rob you or steal your car at gunpoint if you aren’t packing.

@_____ Yeah, no. You’re assuming wrong about the OP and in general. He lives in Memphis not Beverly Hills.

Depends on how bad the “bad part of town is”.
Streets filled with punks, no problem.
Streets filled with skinheads, hell no.

The food would have to be very good, with nothing comparable. The main issue for me would be the inconvenience of having to travel to the bad part of town. I rarely go out of my way for good food and will usually just accept “pretty good” food if it’s close to home or along my main routes.

That said, if I really loved the food I’d probably give it a try—at least once.

Yeah, depends on how bad the “part of town” is. I’m somewhat brave about such things but not foolish enough to want to risk actual danger. If it feels safe enough, sure…

I have tended to avoid towns that have parts that are so bad I wouldn’t go there, since leaving Chicago in the early 90’s.

Another consideration though, is that there aren’t many chain restaurants I actually like enough to eat at, regardless of where they are. The places I really like tend to all be unique restaurants.

Original Poster here.

Crime is definitely a deterrent, I definitely wouldn’t go at night. , but the seedier parts of town I’d mostly associate with code violations if they can’t even keep their property up, or are in an area where there is a lot of blight and decay.

There is nothing racist about this. rundown small towns with largely white populations are also untrustworthy—with food prep areas that literally look like old train wrecks and decay.

This is a local restaurant and I’m assuming some of the staff where I used to go now work at this one. I’ll try it once, if it reopens.

If I was going by it in the seedy part of town sure, BUT I would not seek it out other wise.

@Yellowdog Some dives have the best stuff. My favorite bbq is in the bad part, been there for 100 years I think, same building.
My mexican place some people think is gross. Also old and small but food is divine.
My favorite sub shop is smaller than my laundry room! Haha.
Go for it!

Lol, when I lived in Missouri, I was a teen living on the wrong side of the tracks. It was an all white town, so I totally know what @KNOWITALL is describing.
I rapidly proved myself 5’2” and 95 pounds and had to occasionally renew my proof. My best friend was scared witless of pissing me off.
When she actually did piss me off, over a guy, I didn’t kick her ass. I set up a situation, she walked right into it. I still laugh about it.

When I was younger, yes, no problem. Now that I’m older, I’m more careful and really big into my personal safety.

During the day, yes, no problem. At night, probably not.

I worry not only about my own personal safety, but about my car.

It depends on a variety of factors, parking in a safe area, safe for me, safe for my car are biggies. Time of day is a factor. Are there people loitering around? Is it an area where there are police around? It’s hard to answer “yes” or “no” because it all depends on a bunch of things. If it’s just me, no, I’d not choose to eat in a place where my safety is at risk. If I’m meeting people, I may be more flexible but if something irks me, I’d tell them this is the last time I’m coming here for dinner.

Nope. I am too lazy. When I go out the entire experience is part of it. Everything from worrying about where to park my car, or crowded tables, or the possibility of waiting in line all figure into the equation.
I want to go to a place that is easy to get to, clean, safe, has free parking, and serves good food. (Maybe in that order.)
The most important part of a night out is not the food. It is the person you are with.

I would stay clear of any parts of the city that reminds me of Crime Ally from the street where Bruce Waynes parents where robbed and killed. I won’t even go to the local convenience store after sun set. I am glad that I have Skip the Dishes.

I’m of the opinion that ‘seedy part of town’ and good food are one and the same. In Canada the nasty neighbourhoods are really not that nasty so why not? Vancouver’s Chinatown is a paradise for foodies, try the back alley places. A long time ago there was a place called ‘the red door’ tucked back in an alley off East Hastings. The food was not so great but you sat in the kitchen with patrons and staff. It was a working man’s cafe, apparently very much what you’d find in China. The food was weird, but very tasty. Since the East Asian, Chinese and Indian population has grown greatly in the past few years – it’s now 50–50 European/Asian mix and it’s wonderful. One day the evil Coved will piss off and Island dwellers will once again be back in Vancouver to taste all the great and weird food, and a few other pursuits.

Yes I would personally now that I have a permit to carry.