I will say, that experience varies wildly by branch, and even chow hall to chow hall within a branch. I was in the Marines, and the "new" chow hall on Pendleton mainside (they opened it about a year after I got there, but that was 15 years ago now) was really pretty good. Solid breakfast burrito line, an omelet station where you could get real eggs, etc. Lunch and dinner had a few options, and a panini bar.

The chow hall we had before that one opened was a dump.

But then, I went TDY to an Air Force base. And let me tell you, that was better than most restaurants I've been to.