We have a family tradition when we travel. Everyone gets one night when they are in charge of picking where we eat. The kids count as one unit, but they always take this chore very seriously.
Now from an adult's standpoint, I can tell you that 8 times out of 10, we are in for a not-so-great meal. The kids have a very different criterion for picking than we adults. They look for glitz and gimmick. So when we took a walk down Main Street, I knew in heartbeat we would be spending one night at the Hungry Moose. It had all the hooks that needed to draw in kids. It had a silly mascot and a name like Hungry Moose, and it was bright and had TVs going. Who cares about the food when you have a cartoon mascot looking over the place!
Sure enough, this was their pick. We headed downtown. The Moose has a great location, front and center on Main Street. When you walk in, it's very brightly lit and the entire atmosphere is anything moose related. None of it matters as long as it's moosey. There are TVs hanging down, all on but with no sound. They all were turned to a news channel. So unless you read lips, I can't imagine the purpose.
Our waiter came and was a winter ski bum from Peru. He was great, had a big warm smile, and was very helpful and even a bit chatty. The service may have been the only high point of the meal.
I had the open-faced turkey sandwich and a bowl of chili, and the kids had a pizza and chicken fingers. The chili came and it was good, not great but decent. However, when the entrées came, they were awful. My turkey was processed and the mash potatoes were instant. The pizza looked like it was right out of the microwave, as did the chicken fingers. It was just like mom used to make, if mom cooked from her microwave and only used frozen foods. Even the kids recognized that this pick was not their best effort.
The prices were fairly typical ski-town prices. My processed turkey dinner with a few fixings was $12, my chili, $5. These were not outrageous prices but certainly not bargains.
I noticed the entire restaurant was full of families and kids. Very few tables were just adults. The moose mascot is a draw for the more naive diner.
When we left the front part the Hungry Moose was full of families waiting for tables. Maybe other families must have the same custom we do, allowing the kids to pick the dinner spot, because I sure wouldn't understand an adult picking this place when there were dozens of more interesting places just a few feet away.