In the Obama era of angry political correctness, the Twin Peaks restaurant chain is a perfect media target.
The corporate headquarters of Twin Peaks chain of restaurants is in the Dallas suburb of Addison. On Sunday, a the parking lot of a franchised location in Waco became the bloody scene of biker gang warfare and police were quick to blame the restaurant.
As The Daily Beast reported in an article titled Cops Rip Hooters Knockoff Twin Peaks After Waco Biker Gang Shootout
Cops were already monitoring Twin Peaks, which was reportedly hosting a biker recruiting event, and they came prepared. The gang members in leather vests moved into the parking lot and shot and stabbed at each other. Then they fired on police and SWAT team members.
“What happened today could have been avoided if…a local establishment listened to their police department,” Waco Police Department Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton said in the shooting’s aftermath. “This is one of the worst gun fights we’ve ever had in the city limits.”
Based on the bile in their headline, the Daily Beast has apparently found something they agree with the police on.
Why the hate for Twin Peaks? Simple, really.
You could fill an entire semester at any Ivy League grad school detailing everything the selectively prudish left would despise about Twin Peaks. It’s a successful American business that combines pretty girls, beer, sports, meat, fun, friendly service, a nice atmosphere and more pretty girls.
Twin Peaks is aimed at delivering PG-13 good times in a world that’s increasingly either Rated X or censored completely. While entertainers like Miley Cyrus or Beyoncé get more accolades for the less clothing they wear, a place like Twin Peaks barely rates a ‘naughty.’
The restaurant’s interiors are a Disney-fied take on a Great Woods lodge, with plenty of wood, stone and antlers galore. The whole concept is brought to you with a grin and a wink.
It’s Twin Peaks lack of bitterness and angst that probably guiles the haters most. Even the people who really seem to want to hate on the chain have a hard time doing it once they show up. Here’s an article from alt-weekly The Dallas Observer with the slightly foreboding title A Woman’s View of Twin Peaks:
It’s a Wednesday evening, happy hour, when I make my voyage. Immediately I notice a petite waitress casually lounging around with a group of male customers at their table, giggling and smiling. Then I notice another petite waitress. Casually lounging around with a group of her male customers at their table. Giggling and smiling. Lots of sitting, giggling and smiling — so friendly here!
Sure, Observer writer Teresa Lensch says that like it’s a BAD thing but in the end, she gives in…
Service is top-notch. Our glasses stay filled, the bartender checks on us without shamelessly flirting with my date, and the check comes quickly when we are ready to go. We have a smoke on the welcoming patio, which has fans and a fireplace for cold nights. The bathrooms are clean and roomy.
If you’re comfortable taking your date to a Cowboys game, you’ll be just fine here. The uniforms are similar to those of our beloved city’s cheerleaders, only flannel and khaki in place of polyester (so much more breathable!). You won’t get boobs in your face unless you want them. This is a nice spot.
The formula is working. Twin Peaks was the fastest growing restaurant chain in the country last year, with sales up 45%, according to CNBC. Yes, they built that.
Maybe Twin Peak’s success is actually partially due to the current climate of hectoring, lecturing hate that’s spilling out of the universities and into the streets. Maybe in an overly politicized age, there’s something especially refreshing about the simple pleasures a plate of steak slider, a cold beer and a waitress who gives you a smile instead of a treatise on white male privilege.
And just maybe the shooting location says something about the contorted state of masculinity in 21st century America.
Twin Peaks isn’t a sleazy, off the track biker bar at the end of a lonesome dirt road. It’s in the same plaza as the local Best Buy, Ross Dress for Less and Bed, Bath & Beyond.
Ultimately, the nine thugs who died and the eighteen thugs who were injured all went down on a Sunday afternoon in a shopping center right off the main highway.
That’s not exactly Sons of Anarchy.
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