There's nothing worse than pining for a single dish all day, sitting down at a restaurant, ordering the thing and being miserably disappointed. We'd love to blame this on someone else. We'd love to feel terribly unlucky about the whole thing, but really, we should have known better.
While we're pretty sure we're all capable of making an amazing version of any one of these things (especially at home, where you can make them however you damn well please), a large percentage of the time, the foods you'll find below are categorically disappointing. We always think they'll be delicious, but in the end these disappointing foods are a mere shadow of what we were expecting.
1
Mac & Cheese
Paul Poplis via Getty Images
When It's Good: Probably one of the most sacred foods on this earth, with a perfect mix of creaminess and cheesiness.
When It's Bad: Not enough cheese, too much flour, depressingly overcooked pasta.
% of Times It's Bad: 50%
When It's Bad: Not enough cheese, too much flour, depressingly overcooked pasta.
% of Times It's Bad: 50%
2
Red Velvet Cake
Debbi Smirnoff via Getty Images
When It's Good: Tender, fluffy, slightly tangy cake with perfectly light cream cheese frosting.
When It's Bad: Heavy, claggy cake, cloyingly sweet icing and the unmistakeable feeling that you've just eaten far too much food coloring.
% of Times It's Bad: 64%
When It's Bad: Heavy, claggy cake, cloyingly sweet icing and the unmistakeable feeling that you've just eaten far too much food coloring.
% of Times It's Bad: 64%
3
Club Sandwiches
John A. Rizzo via Getty Images
When They're Good: One of the most satisfying sandwiches of all time, perfectly layered and structurally sound.
When They're Bad: Stale bread, more lettuce than meat, dangerous bits of toothpick that have broken off inside, accompanied by STEAK FRIES.
% of Times They're Bad: 68%
When They're Bad: Stale bread, more lettuce than meat, dangerous bits of toothpick that have broken off inside, accompanied by STEAK FRIES.
% of Times They're Bad: 68%
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4
Diner Nachos
DarkShadow via Getty Images
When They're Good: Heavy on the cheese, heavy on the toppings, heavy on the portion.
When They're Bad: As pictured.
% of Times They're Bad: 77%
When They're Bad: As pictured.
% of Times They're Bad: 77%
5
Biscuits & Gravy
Annabelle Breakey via Getty Images
When They're Good: Fluffy, buttery biscuits, hearty gravy, feeling that someone loves you.
When They're Bad: Soggy biscuits, gluey gravy, horrible feeling in the pit of your stomach for the rest of the day.
% of Times They're Bad: 79%
When They're Bad: Soggy biscuits, gluey gravy, horrible feeling in the pit of your stomach for the rest of the day.
% of Times They're Bad: 79%
6
Gnocchi
GMVozd via Getty Images
When They're Good: Tender potato pillows so fluffy you could nap on them.
When They're Bad: Insidious, gluey little dough balls that sink to the bottom of your stomach like depth charges.
% of Times They're Bad: 80%
When They're Bad: Insidious, gluey little dough balls that sink to the bottom of your stomach like depth charges.
% of Times They're Bad: 80%
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7
Pad Thai
Geoff Peters - photosvancouver.com via Getty Images
When It's Good: A tart, tangy Americanized riff on Thai food, served with plenty of limes.
When It's Bad: A sweet, sticky, rude insult to Thai cuisine served with a slimy, old lemon wedge.
% of Times It's Bad: 81%
When It's Bad: A sweet, sticky, rude insult to Thai cuisine served with a slimy, old lemon wedge.
% of Times It's Bad: 81%
8
Pancakes
CSA Images via Getty Images
When They're Good: Light, fluffy remembrances of childhood.
When They're Bad: Dry, flabby nightmares about showing up to school naked.
% of Times They're Bad: 82%
When They're Bad: Dry, flabby nightmares about showing up to school naked.
% of Times They're Bad: 82%
9
Calamari
Michael & Jennifer Lewis via Getty Images
When It's Good: Briny, springy, lightly battered, liberally salted.
When It's Bad: Rubbery, greasy, possibly pig rectums.
% of Times It's Bad: 86%
When It's Bad: Rubbery, greasy, possibly pig rectums.
% of Times It's Bad: 86%
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10
Cheesecake
Annabelle Breakey via Getty Images
When It's Good: Almost like magically-suspended melted ice cream, with a lightness and fluffiness that belies its butterfat content.
When It's Bad: Basically cement with sugar in it.
% of Times It's Bad: 87%
When It's Bad: Basically cement with sugar in it.
% of Times It's Bad: 87%
11
Cobb Salads
Stacy Able via Getty Images
When They're Good: A whole meal in a bowl, filled with differing textures and flavors.
When They're Bad: Dry chicken, stale blue cheese, terrible bacon, smelly eggs and awful dressing. Also no avocado.
% of Times They're Bad: 96%
When They're Bad: Dry chicken, stale blue cheese, terrible bacon, smelly eggs and awful dressing. Also no avocado.
% of Times They're Bad: 96%
12
Jell-O Shots
DoNotLick/Flickr
When They're Good: A fun reminder of college.
When They're Bad: A really depressing reminder of college.
% of Times They're Bad: 97.5%
When They're Bad: A really depressing reminder of college.
% of Times They're Bad: 97.5%
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13
Birthday Cake
Fabrice LEROUGE via Getty Images
When It's Good: It's pie instead.
When It's Bad: Cloyingly sweet frosting, flavorless cake, bits of wax stuck in your teeth, unavoidable feeling that you're another year closer to the abyss.
% of Times It's Bad: 98%
When It's Bad: Cloyingly sweet frosting, flavorless cake, bits of wax stuck in your teeth, unavoidable feeling that you're another year closer to the abyss.
% of Times It's Bad: 98%
14
NYC Diner Omelettes
ShashiBellamkonda/Flickr
When They're Good: No, they are seriously never good.
When They're Bad: Dry, brown, overcooked eggs, not nearly enough cheese, overpowering, oily taste of regret.
% of Times They're Bad: 100%
When They're Bad: Dry, brown, overcooked eggs, not nearly enough cheese, overpowering, oily taste of regret.
% of Times They're Bad: 100%
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