At our neighborhood Mexican joint, I tend to get the same thing every time. But the exception is if we go on Sunday evening and they have breakfast tacos as special then I get those instead
@abasket I do like to cook, and I like to eat adventurously within reason. I drive my waiters crazy because I am always asking what is in the stuff we were served. Usually I’m pretty good at guessing ingredients, but sometimes I get stumped. I recently had some latke like pancakes made from grated celeriac and kimchee, they were so good!
In some restaurants, the waiters are trained to explain the ingredients and their prep method. I love hearing all of that, but Mr. just wants to dig in. 
If I have something exceptional (in my opinion) at a well-known place, I look up the dish to see if it has been deconstructed or if the chef has shared the recipe. The Nordstrom cafe’s cilantro lime chicken salad is one of those creations I make at home when I have all ingredients on hand.
@abasket I like to cook and I think I’m pretty good at it. We don’t eat out as much now as I find we enjoy my cooking. We rarely try new places and when we do go out we like to order our favorites. I live in a tourist location and for the most part our restaurants are okay to good not great. H and I go to lunch each Friday and 80% of the time we go to the same place and order the same thing. The other 20% of the time we vary between three other spots.
I am mixed. At certain places, I have my “go to” dish, but will try other things at times. I love to share, as it gives me the opporunity to have my familiar dish and try somthing new. Unfortunately, some food allergies and senstivities can limit that. I always get curry at my favorite thai and indian places for example.
Indian requires family style. We order more dishes than people and put in the middle. My technique is rice in the middle with scoops around the plate so I can have some of everything. Kashmiri paneer, chicken vindaloo, tikka masala, butter chicken are constants and we rotate in a new one.
@greenwitch , thanks for that link! I really enjoyed reading it and so true in many ways.
@abasket , interesting theory. I don’t like to cook at all. We eat out almost every weekend.
Indian H and we prefer lunch buffets for Indian food. We both can choose dishes we like without needing to order a whole serving and needing too many dishes to get the protein, vegetables and starches.
I avoid the Italian chains because too often you get served too much pasta and too little sauce without much protein or veggies.
Wish we would eat out more often but H is not into food at all, sigh.
I’m pretty adventurous, I don’t usually order the same thing. Unless it’s a restaurant I don’t go to often and they have a signature dish that I really like.
My husband on the other hand orders the same thing. When he goes to a new restaurant, he will often order the same 3 or 4 dishes. He doesn’t like change.
My mom says that my husband won’t ever divorce me because it would upset his orderly life!
Thanks to this thread, when we went to lunch today I ordered something different than my usual. It was delicious. It may be my new dish that I always order.
I think I must be the only one that dislikes small plates. Everyone takes a bite or two and, in the end, I have no idea how much I ate and usually end up hungry with a big bill. I much prefer each ordering their own and then sharing bites.
I am an excellent cook and do incorporate new ideas from restaurants. We go out about once month and carry in 1-2 times. I was a vegetarian for 35 yrs and still prefer that or ordering fish. I think our steaks at home are better than a restaurant’s. But I do not bake at all so H gets to have something more than chocolate bars or grocery store cake.
@oregon101 , I don’t like small plates, either. I’ve done it twice and I leave hungry and it was expensive.
When we’re at home there are 3 places we go to on a regular basis–Italian, Korean, and Chinese. In the last year, two new restaurants opened near us–Mexican and a farm-to-table place. We have added them to our go-tos.
I tend to order the same things. That being said, the Italian restaurant changes its menu seasonally so I will always try the new dish of the season. The farm-to-table place does that too.
Our company has been here three days. We have taken them to our favorite places. I haven’t ordered a single new dish - totally stayed with my favorites! Lol ! The reality is that we tend to take guests to higher end places that we only frequent when we have guests. We honestly have had out-of-town company about once every six weeks since moving to Florida!
Perhaps I am boring, but I am happy sticking with what I like!