I like to eat. Make that, I

love to eat. It isn't hard to please me, either, being that I grew up

in South Carolina, eating the game we killed, like squirrel and rabbit.

It wasn't rare for us to have tripe or chicken gizzards for supper, either.

Given that, I am typically

in seventh heaven at the corner of Ga. highways 54 and 74 in Peachtree

City. Some call the area Restaurant Row, some call the area Restaurant

Glut. I call it delicious.

There are five eateries within

a biscuit's throw of each other and I'm going to tell which ones are good

and which ones are not so good. None of these are ever going to match

the cooking of my mother, but for sit-down victuals, there are some tasty

dishes to be had. I list these in no particular order.

Longhorn Steakhouse.

The oldest of these diners, Longhorn is best suited for the hearty appetite

and people of nocturnal nature. The steakhouse is plenty dark inside and

almost eerie in its "dead-animal" motif. Forget the food, come

here just to see a jackalope. They also have a buffalo head as big as

John Goodman's.

The service here is good, and

the food is great. I don't think it is on the menu any longer, but my

favorite is the fried shrimp. It sounds too simple but they batter the

shrimp like nothing I have ever tasted this side of the Palmetto State.

You may have to twist your waitress's arm to get the order, but it's worth

it.

VIBE: As cool as Neil Diamond

in sideburns. PRICE: Reasonable, like Madonna's looks at 43. SERVICE:

Mean, slick and as effective as a Texas rattlesnake.

Don Pablo's. Poor D.P.,

for some reason they have gotten a bad reputation. Like the pretty cheerleader's

reputation in high school, maybe it's deserved, maybe it's not. But it

sure is good conversation.

It has been no secret that

this is my favorite Peachtree City restaurant. And I don't even like Mexican

food. The Fajita Papita Steak Salad is incredible, though, and I have

ordered it probably 40 visits in a row. Service is good here, but you

have to be careful.

Unlike most cookie-cutter,

corporate-driven dives, the servers at Don Pablo's are allowed to let

their personalities show through. Thus, this can be the most friendly

place in the world, or, if you get the wrong person, you can sometimes

knit a sweater while waiting on a tea refill. Personally, I like to see

that kind of humanity; it makes tipping so much more of an art form. The

place is wide and spacious with all the vastness of a border patrol's

territory.

VIBE: As strange and wonderful

as Cosmo Kramer. PRICE: As neat and thin as Seinfeld. SERVICE: All thrilling

as being shoved by Elaine.

Chili's. I have eaten

the Chili's Frisco Chicken Salad since the early '80s. Their lettuce wraps,

though, are as interesting a meal as I have ever had. If you like hot,

this is the meal to get. It sneaks up on you while you are eating and

as your Democratic congressman on caffeine.

I don't like the service. From

the time you walk in, everyone seems grumpy. Please, Chili's waiters and

waitresses, show this article to your boss, because it is his or her fault,

not yours. For the whole service team to be this grumpy, he must be riding

you too hard.

VIBE: Think premolded-plastic.

PRICE: As unnoticeable as a good umpire. SERVICE: "Why don't you

like me?"

Macaroni Grill. The

new kid on the block, their prices are way too high, they include nothing

with meals, and allow very little in the way of substitutions, yet you

are going to go there anyway. I didn't realize they had opened yet, as

their stucco building is designed to look like imitation particle board

and I thought they were still under construction.

For some reason though, I like

this place. The aesthetics are great, the food is good and service seems

to be acceptable, even though I had my waitress so confused she had to

take four Advils.

VIBE: "The View"

on Valium. PRICE: Not for the faint of heart. SERVICE: Let your hair down

a little.

On the Border. Like

the last guest on "The Tonight Show," sorry, we are all out

of time (space).

VIBE: As safe a bet as Tiger

Woods on a good day. PRICE: The best of the bunch. SERVICE: Would make

Mr. French proud.

[Visit Billy Murphy on the

Internet at https://ebilly.net.]