My family of 4 went to Bahama Breeze for the first time, and our $160 meal at the chain felt like an incredible value

My family tried the chain Bahama Breeze for the first time and left feeling impressed.Terri Peters

• My family tried Bahama Breeze, a chain specializing in Caribbean-inspired food, for the first time.
• Dinner for my family of 4, including appetizers and multiple alcoholic drinks, was $160 before tip.

In the days when I could say my family never ate at chain restaurants, I'd drive past Bahama Breeze locations and feel curious.

With its sweeping, open-air patios and tropical signage, I'd imagine diners inside sipping mai tais and feasting on jerk chicken. It turns out, my perception of the chain was pretty close to the truth, though it's in a strip-mall parking lot instead of a tropical cruise port.

Since my two teenagers started asking to try the chain restaurants they'd heard about from friends or TikTok, my husband and I have reneged on our "no chain restaurants" rule and started visiting some of the classics, like LongHorn Steakhouse.

Recently, we went to a Bahama Breeze restaurant in Orlando, Florida, for dinner as a family.