The Adventures of Krystal Kid: Jason takes Chattanooga (part 1)

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Jason takes Chattanooga (part 1)

With a week of planning I was eager to hit the road on Friday morning. I had a few phone calls and some business to take care of, but managed to roll out of here about noon. I purposely ate a very light breakfast, knowing I would need plenty of room for the next 2 or 3 meals once I got to the new Krystal in Chattanooga.
I had chosen a hotel based on price, distance, and amenities. In that order of priority. My first difficulty was in the realization that the new Krystal is not yet listed in the Krystal.com store locator. A little more digging on the web and I found the correct address: 5401 Brainerd Rd. I centered my hotel search on that and found a cheap hotel 4 miles away with a fridge and microwave. I felt I'd probably be taking leftovers home and those would be essential.
In hindsight, I chose poorly. I never used the fridge or microwave. In addition I was across the interstate from one Krystal and had to drive past another Krystal en route to the Brainerd Rd store. Click here My hotel was right across the interstate from location F. I had to drive past the krystal at location C. Koincidentally enough, that's where Linda showed me the Krystal Kruiser last April. The new Krystal is obviously at location A on the map.
I tried to check into my hotel upon arrival. I stress the word "tried." The lobby was locked and a sign on one door in the entry way said to "ring the bell for service." There was no bell but there was a buzzer. That didn't work. Then I noticed another sign on the other locked door saying "dial 0 for service." There was a rather beat up phone on the wall so I picked it up and dialed 0. I heard a phone inside the office, 3 feet away, ring, and then I was greeted with a busy signal. I am unsure why I would need to call someone 3 feet away from me, but then again, I have never managed a hotel.
After waiting 5 minutes, I started getting creative. I noticed the phone would allow me to call an outside number, so I dialed the full 7 digit number for the hotel. essentially calling the front desk from the entry way. It rang for 5 minutes. I was preparing to use the phone to call the national chain's 800 number when someone finally arrived. She said she was "in the back." How far "back" you can go in a hotel office I don't know. She then told me my room would be ready in 15 minutes. I decided it was a good time to head to the Krystal for lunch, and I was on my way.
Four miles and a lot of traffic later and I see it:Click the pictures for larger views)

Now you might notice one side of the drive in has no cars. Basically that side was shut down for "repairs." Tiffany had remarked earlier that the tech guys were having problems with all the new equipment at this store. Apparently they didn't have it worked out yet. (More on that later!)
Taking advantage of the situation, I pulled my truck right up to one of the "closed" spots to take some photos:

I know you can't really read the menu. Don't worry, though, because I took the time to write it all down. I needed to plan my attack. So here's what is on the menu, organized by how I planned to approach them:
Friday late lunch:
The toasters: BLT, Grilled Cheese and bacon, Philly. (I passed on the reuben and corned beef and swiss), Mac and Cheese bites (bottom of the middle section), and a Chocolate Milkquake. They had Saurkraut listed in a way it appeared you added it to the Mac and Cheese bites. I discovered later it was to add to your chili pups.
Friday dinner (aka the chicken meal):
Grilled Chik, Chik'n Stick'ns, Chicken Wings. Three flavors of slushie (Lemon, Grape and Cherry) I tried Lemon at this meal.
Saturday early lunch:
Rockslides (with oreos, reeses, M&Ms or butterfingers), I went with Butterfinger, two Saucy Chiks (simply because I'd run out of new non-dessert items), and a grape Slushie.
Also on the menu were several things I never got around to because my lactose intolerant stomach veto'd them:
Smoothies (orange, berry, citrus, mango) Ice cream cups and cones (with toppings) Orange Sherbet freeze, Coke or Rootbeer float. Apple pie or brownie bites Sunday.
You can aslo get "favor shots" added to your soft drink.
All this in addition to the regular Krystal menu. I did notice a lack of new breakfast items, and an amazing abundance of dessert items. Since I was unable to try everything on the menu, I suppose another trip will be in order in the future.
For those who wish to have their very own "Krystal experience" please Email me and I can give you advice. For example, there is a Quality Inn at 5505 Brainerd Rd. that is walking distance from the Krystal. There is a CVS between the Krystal and Quality Inn, just in case you need Tums. My next trip up, I will probably be staying there. The Quality Inn, not the CVS.
So the next few days will feature a meal by meal recap, along with pictures. Then the special follow up of odd and interesting things seen along the way. Let me assure you the Krystal Koincidences abound! Krystal Lovers get more in the sack!.