Popularity causing problems - poor service ended our visit before it began
Written: Mar 28 '06 (Updated Mar 28 '06)
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Pros: Good selection of steaks, large portion size
Cons: Poor service when crowded; some menu items may not be available
The Bottom Line: Too busy - quality of service is suffering.
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| jimdevlin's Full Review: Outback Steakhouse |
I've visited Outback Steakhouse on several business trips in the past. The restaurant is pricey for the casual dining niche, but the service was always friendly, the quality of the food good, and the portion sizes impressive. My family had never been there, though, so we decided to visit the Outback in Clay, New York recently to celebrate a family event. Unfortunately, our visit was very disappointing.
We chose to visit early on a Saturday evening, hoping to avoid the worst of the dinner rush. The Outback website advertises ‘call-ahead seating’ and we called the restaurant several hours before our arrival to ask about this. The gentleman we spoke to assured us that a call-ahead slot was available for 6:30 and that we would be seated shortly after arriving, so we submitted our name.
We arrived at the restaurant at about 6:25. The atmosphere was loud, the seating and bar areas were full, and there were about a dozen people waiting near the door. We went to the hostess to let her know we were there, and after checking our call-ahead booking she informed us that our wait would be approximately 40 to 50 minutes. Needless to say, this was not what we expected for ‘call-ahead seating’ and we let her know. She informed us that we were lucky, because those who walked in off the street had a 70 to 90 minute wait. My wife and I were unhappy, but we decided to stick it out.
After 25 minutes, the little buzzer device we were given went off, and we returned to the hostess. She took our device and took a moment to check her paperwork before instructing us to follow another hostess to our table. We followed her direction, but found ourselves behind another family who was with the designated hostess. My wife and I gave each other a ‘what the heck’ look, and sure enough the hostess informed us that the young woman up front sent us to her in error. That was embarrassing to us, to say the least. We then returned to the hostess at the podium, who asked us our names again and if we had handed in our buzzer. Finally, she let us know she had sent us in the wrong direction (no apology was given) and directed us to a waitress who was expecting us this time and seated us at a booth.
The booth was clean but the silverware was missing, and the check from the previous party was still sitting there. Our designated server showed up and took our drink and appetizer order. The server was the one really bright spot to our visit – she was attentive and stopped by periodically to check on us and refill our drinks. We looked at the menu but couldn’t help but overhear the complaints of the party in the next booth asking when their food would be served. Our blooming onion appetizer arrived a short while later (it was spicier than the ones I had enjoyed during past visits), but with it also arrived the news that the restaurant was completely out of ribs for the evening. With that, we decided to cut our losses and asked for the check. Our server was apologetic, but we made sure she understood it wasn’t her fault and gave her a decent tip for her trouble, and we left. We ended up visiting a new Tex-Mex restaurant that has only been opened for three months, and enjoyed a good meal in a far less hectic atmosphere.
Outback is a good restaurant, but I’m afraid it’s falling into the same trap that befalls too many establishments. Instead of ensuring that every paying customer has a great dining experience, they try to cram through as many people as possible. The end result is that too many customers suffer through spotty service, late orders and mediocre food quality. And customers truly are treated like a number – at any decent restaurant, the manager would be sure to stop by if a customer was dissatisfied to the point of leaving early. Had Outback’s manager bothered to see us, my wife and I might have decided to stay. But nobody other than our server really cared about our visit, so I doubt I’ll care to visit Outback Steakhouse again anytime soon.
Recommended:
No
Kid Friendliness: Yes
Best Suited For: Friends
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Epinions.com ID:
jimdevlin
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Reviews written: 1
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