• I dined at Chili's and Applebee's to see which American chain restaurant had the tastiest food.
• Chili's impressed me with its choices of customizations, baby-back ribs, and delicious appetizers.
• I preferred Applebee's margarita, but Chili's won this meal comparison for me.

I recently dined at Chili's and Applebee's to compare the chains' drinks, appetizers, baby back ribs, and desserts.

I grew up going to Applebee's, but I only tried Chili's for the first time a month ago. Still, I went into this comparison ready to give each restaurant a fair shot and see which one would be my favorite. 

Here's how the same meal at Chili's and Applebee's compared.

First, I visited Chili's on a busy Friday night in Queens, New York.

Chili's specializes in burgers but is also well-known for its baby back ribs, Southwestern-inspired appetizers, and drinks.

Chili's has over 1,600 restaurants across 31 countries, the company said in September.

My friend and I were immediately seated at a booth in the restaurant's dining room.

We both live in Brooklyn, New York, and it was a quick car ride to the Chili's at The Shops at Atlas Park outdoor shopping mall in Queens.

As we walked into the restaurant, we saw rows of booths, tables, and decor that paid homage to the chain's signature offerings, including a large mural across the back of the restaurant that said "Baby Back Ribs."

It was already busy with diners, from families to couples, but we were seated right away at a booth in the center of the restaurant. The decor was simple but welcoming, and the high-backed booth was comfortable and made it feel like we were the only people there. 

Our waitress was attentive throughout the meal, consistently ensuring everything was going well.

At Chili's, I started with a classic Presidente Margarita.

Chili's had a large selection of margaritas, plus classic cocktails, wine, and beer. I opted for a classic margarita since it's my go-to drink at most bars, and I wanted to see how it would compare. 

The margarita came with a personal shaker, and I ended up getting about five servings of the drink, even though the glass and shaker were both small. I felt like I was getting a great value for the price.

I thought my margarita, which cost $9, went down easy, but it could have used more salt and lime to add a little more sourness.

We ordered two appetizers at Chili's. The first one we received was the dip trio.

We were given a choice of any three dips from white or skillet queso, guacamole, and salsa. We ordered the skillet queso, guacamole, and salsa trio for $10.49. 

The guacamole was fresh and flavorful, and the salsa was just spicy enough. But our favorite dip of the three was the skillet queso. The queso had a delicious smoky flavor and a creamy texture that coated each tortilla chip.

We also ordered the Triple Dipper appetizer sampler.

There were more than a dozen appetizers to choose from, but we decided on the Triple Dipper, which allowed us to choose a sampling of three appetizers from the entire menu. We decided on Southwestern egg rolls, Big Mouth Bites, and bone-in Buffalo wings.

The platter, which also came with three sides of ranch for dipping, cost $15.99, plus an additional $1.50 to upgrade to the bone-in wings. 

We both thought this was great value for the price. The platter could have easily been split among three people. This could have been our entire dinner for just two of us, especially given the filling choices we made. If you're the kind of diner who likes to just do drinks and apps when eating out, the Triple Dipper is right up your alley.

We loved the Southwestern-inspired filling for the egg rolls, and the Buffalo wings were really juicy.

My favorite item from the sampler was the Big Mouth slider. The sliders came with a beef patty, bacon, American cheese, and sautéed onions. They reminded me a little of White Castle's iconic sliders, and the bacon and sautéed onions added a lot of flavor.

Ordering these sliders as part of the sampler was the perfect way to try Chili's burgers without making one my entrée. 

I chose the half-order of baby back ribs and two sides for my main. I was really impressed by the chain's signature dish.

I was given the choice of three different rubs for the ribs: Texas dry rub, honey-chipotle, or house barbecue. I decided to try the house barbecue with mac and cheese and street corn as my two sides.

The platter came to $18.79, plus an additional $2 to upgrade to my choice of sides. 

The baby-back ribs had a crispy char on the outside, but the meat was fall-off-the-bone tender.

I liked my choice of the house barbecue sauce, which added a delicious sweetness to the tender meat.

Right away, I could see why Chili's is so famous for its baby back ribs — I could have easily polished off the full rack.

I liked both of the sides that came with the ribs.

The white-cheddar mac and cheese was indulgent and creamy, but I thought it could have used a touch more seasoning.

The street corn, which came coated in mayonnaise, chili powder, and fresh cilantro, also blew me away. The corn itself was roasted and super tender, while the toppings added a ton of flavor to my meal.

For dessert, we opted for the chocolate lava cake.

The chocolate cake cost $9.79 and came with a molten chocolate lava center topped with vanilla ice cream and a chocolate shell with caramel drizzle.

The dessert was sweet and the perfect finishing touch to our meal. While I've had many chocolate lava cakes with vanilla ice cream, I loved the addition of the chocolate shell and caramel sauce. It was also the perfect size for two people to share.

A few weeks later, I ate at an Applebee's in Massachusetts with my brother on a Thursday night.

Like Chili's, the chain specializes in American food, with offerings such as burgers, ribs, and pasta dishes. 

According to the company's website, Applebee's has over 1,650 locations in 14 countries and territories.

The dining room was clean and well-decorated, but our table was less private than the one at Chili's.

The parking lot and restaurant were both packed, but we were seated right away in a booth by a window. While my brother is a frequent diner at Applebee's, I haven't been in years, so I took a moment to survey my surroundings.

The dining room was clean and cozy, with murals dedicated to the town on the walls. The decor was simple, perhaps dated, but welcoming and comfortable. 

While the restaurant area we were dining in initially had a few tables open, they quickly filled up, making for a lively atmosphere. From our booth, I kept making eye contact with other patrons.

On the night we visited, the dining room had three different birthdays. The employees singing at different tables frequently interrupted our conversations.

We both ordered the "perfect margarita" in the classic flavor.

The "perfect margarita" is made with 1800 Reposado, Cointreau, Grand Marnier, and lime juice and comes with a salt-rimmed glass and a stainless-steel shaker that pours about three drinks. 

We also received a large shaker with each margarita for easy refills. For $11, it seemed like an amazing deal, and I felt like I got more drink for the price than I did at Chili's.

The drink was smooth and tart and certainly went down easy. I liked the sourness of the Applebee's drink more than the margarita from Chili's.

To compare the two chains, I tried out Applebee's queso, my favorite dip at Chili's.

It was a generous serving for $6.29, but we weren't blown away.

Unlike the Chili's skillet queso, which had a rich, smoky flavor, we thought this queso was a little watery and bland. 

We also ordered the classic combo appetizer platter with four different appetizers.

The classic combo comes with mozzarella sticks, chicken quesadillas, boneless wings, chips, and a bowl of spinach-and-artichoke dip.

The platter, which also came with sides of ranch, marinara sauce, and salsa, cost $15.59.

Unlike other chains similar to Chili's, there weren't many ways to customize our appetizer platter, but I would've preferred a wider selection to choose from. The only customization we were asked about was what sauce we'd like on our boneless wings.

While there was definitely enough food for the two of us, I didn't think any of the appetizers were particularly mind-blowing or filling. While we technically got more appetizers in the sampler at Applebee's, the ones at Chili's felt heartier.

Our favorite of the platter's four appetizers was the boneless Buffalo wings, which had a delicious, tempura-like coating and the right level of heat. The inside of the chicken was moist and juicy, and the ranch dipping sauce perfectly complemented the flavors. I could have eaten an entire basket of just the wings.

However, if I were to choose between the appetizer samplers at Chili's or Applebee's, I'd give the win to Chili's. I liked the ability to customize the sampler, and I preferred the overall quality and taste of the food.

For my entrée, I ordered the half-rack of baby back ribs and a side of the four-cheese mac and cheese.

The ribs automatically come with fries, but I decided to swap them out for mac and cheese to more closely compare the two entrées.

The half-rack of ribs with fries cost $19.79. It cost $1.99 to upgrade my side, bringing the total cost of my entrée to $21.78.

Applebee's offered two sauces — honey barbecue, which I picked, or sweet Asian chile — compared to Chili's three options. 

The ribs were hot to the touch and coated in the sticky barbecue sauce.

The ribs had a nice char on the outside. But they were a little difficult to pull apart with my fingers, like I was able to do with the tender Chili's ribs. Instead, I ended up slicing them apart with a knife. 

Overall, I really enjoyed these ribs, which had a delicious honey flavor thanks to the barbecue sauce. However, I wish there had been more meat on each rib.

The ribs also weren't fall-off-the-bone tender like the ones at Chili's. Regarding ribs, I didn't even want to touch my knife and fork, but I had to separate these bad boys.

I really enjoyed the side of four-cheese mac and cheese with bacon.

I received what I thought was an extremely generous portion for just $1.99.

The sauce was creamy, cheesy, and just the right amount of savory. I also liked the addition of the crispy bacon bits on top, which added a touch of saltiness to the dish. Overall, I preferred this mac and cheese to the one from Chili's, which had slightly less flavor.

We also ordered Applebee's version of a chocolate lava cake.

The cake was everything a chocolate lava dessert should be, but it wasn't quite as unique as the one from Chili's.

The cake was extremely moist, while the chocolate sauce was rich and coated every bite. The lava center was decadent, and the scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side perfectly offset the flavor. It was also the right size for two people to share. Despite filling up throughout the meal, we both cleaned the plate.

It was probably my favorite thing we ate during the entire meal. However, I thought the chocolate shell and caramel drizzle on the Chili's dessert made that one stand out a little bit more.

The rich chocolate dessert cost $7.99, however, making it less expensive than the Chili's cake.

From the food to the service and the private-feeling atmosphere, Chili's was my clear winner.

The margaritas, ribs, boneless wings, and chocolate lava cake were all stand-outs and dishes I would definitely order again on my next trip to Applebee's. However, besides our drinks, I preferred every course at Chili's.

From the tasty, customizable appetizers to the tender ribs, Chili's really blew me away. The total cost of the meal at Chili's was $102, compared to $93 at Applebee's.

But I still felt like Chili's was the better value. While we left behind most of the appetizers from Applebee's, we cleaned our plates at Chili's. 

It was a busy night in the restaurant, but we also had a few service issues throughout our meal at Applebee's. My brother wasn't asked how he wanted his entrée, the chain's Neighborhood burger, cooked. That said, he called the medium-rare burger "delicious."

Servers also didn't pick up our dirty plates between courses, so they remained on the table throughout the meal. Insider reached out to Applebee's for a comment about the service we experienced. We were gracious about it, but I felt the service was more professional at Chili's on the night we went. 

After eating at Chili's and Applebee's, I'll definitely be back at both, but I am a little more excited to return to the Southwestern-inspired chain.

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