The franchise ideology is one of standardization, addressing the sort of diner who never wavers from his/her favorite dishes and who doesn’t appreciate many surprises. As uniform as franchise restaurants can be, even the strictest make allowances for regional tastes. Here, for instance, Burger King and McDonald’s make the nod to our hunger for Spam. Elsewhere you’ll find the crispy, deep-fried McSpicy Paneer at McDonald’s India, McShawarma and McKebabs on flatbread in Israel, and Ebi Filet-O-Shrimp in Japan. So you’ll excuse Blazin Steaks Atkinson owner Keone Gaspar if he wanted to spice up the basic menu of grilled steak, broiled chicken, fish and rice. Only, like the Energizer Bunny, he didn’t stop at a handful of dishes, but kept going and going.

If you’re familiar with the stripped-down Blazin Steaks formula, you might be overwhelmed when confronted with Gaspar’s baby, with its whopping 115 options, plus another 12 or so daily specials. I sat there for the longest time, weighing the merits of kalua pork loco moco ($8.50 regular/$12.50 large), garlic-butter shrimp ($11.95/$15.95) or Angus burger ($6.75).

With all the variety, one has to ask if this is an entirely different creature that deserves its own identity, but Gaspar, whose background is in hotel restaurant management, said, "I liked the brand. It had strength to it and I stuck with it."

The new dishes, he said, help to keep the experience interesting for diners, who have the option of trying something different every time they drop in.

FOR ME the original steak is still the best, and you can get that in its basic nonsauced form with rice and a choice of tossed (iceberg lettuce) or macaroni salad at $7.50 for six ounces of meat and $10.50 for the large (eight ounces). Get it in garlicky splendor ($8.50/$11.50) or with mushrooms and onions ($8.50/$11.50). For those who are not big fans of the rice-and-steak combo, the Atkinson Special ($9.95/$13.95) puts a baked potato on the plate, along with a helping of canned corn. Gaspar says he’s working on adding a mashed potato option as well.

The Angus meatloaf ($7.95/$9.95) could use a little tweaking to make it less bready, but that might affect the price.

Sensing a need for more breakfast places in town, Gaspar decided to pay attention to early birds, opening at 7 a.m. daily to serve breakfast. "This way, I figured I could work 16 to 17 hours a day versus the previous 13 to 14," he said.

It’s worth getting up early for the adobo fried rice ($7.95/$10.95), accompanied by your choice of egg, whether sunny side up or with the rice wrapped up omelet style.

There are Portuguese sausage ($6.95 for two eggs, $7.95 for three), veggie and bacon-spinach-cheese ($7.50/$8.50) omelets. I had my heart set on an omelet, but when I saw I could get all these ingredients, less the eggs, in pasta form, I had to try it. Consider the BSA Pasta ($7.95/$10.95), an early lunch, with angel hair tossed with the aforementioned breakfast ingredients in a light cream sauce.

In the kitchen is Robert Dennis, formerly with Orson’s Bourbon House and Don Ho’s, putting a gourmet spin on plate lunch fare with dishes made from scratch and the likes of mild aioli on firecracker shrimp ($12.95/$15.95) or chicken ($7.95/$11.50), which is not as spicy as the name implies. I preferred the garlic chicken ($7.95/$11.50), which, like the steak, comes sliced into neat little pieces for you.

Lighter options include opakapaka or ahi ($7.95 to $13.50) simply grilled, Cajun-spiced or, in the case of the ahi, prepared with garlic or dusted with furikake. One special is ahi tacos ($9.95) wrapped with lettuce in two soft flour tortillas.

I also appreciate veggie sides that include a handful of fresh broccoli florettes ($1) that helps to alleviate dietary anxieties about eating too much meat.

———

Nadine Kam’s restaurant reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Advertiser. Reach her at nkam@staradvertiser.com.