Hacker News Reader

Yes, I suppose chains like Red Robin, Applebee's, Chili's, etc. do have pictures on their giant, laminated menus. My mistake on that.

But again, those are chain restaurants and not what I'd consider a favorite or desirable place to eat.

You and the parent may be referring to different tiers of restaurants.

Where do you live? In Vancouver, Earls and Joeys don't have pictures on their menus. Red Robins and BP do, but they're definitely a tier below the former two.

I'm in Edmonton, AB. Last time I went to those places I seemed to recall they had pictures on the menu, but I could be mistaken.

Red Robins and BP are definitely lower tier, but they still count as a "popular restaurant," at least in Edmonton they are very popular.