TGI Fridays — Restaurant in Melbourne

TGI Fridays, the restaurant that dares to promise culinary delight but instead serves up a side of deep disappointment. To clarify, I approached my recent visit with tempered expectations, particularly in the realm of the entrées. I placed my order with a modicum of faith that at least the basic tenets of good service and cuisine would be upheld. Initially, the results were promising, only for my ultimate experience to devolve into a disaster of unimaginable proportions.

Let us begin with the positives: the mac and cheese. Now, being a connoisseur of this comfort food, I must admit that it was adequately prepared. I had requested no bacon and extra spicy sauce, and unlike most dining establishments that fail to comprehend simple requests, TGI Fridays did indeed accommodate this rather basic modification. Bravo. The mac and cheese arrived hot, rich in flavor, and suitably spicy—nothing to write home about, but certainly a commendable performance. It’s clear that TGI Fridays still possesses the capability to fulfill a customer’s needs when they are so blatantly reasonable.

However, before I get carried away with positive reinforcement, we need to discuss the catastrophic failure that was the strawberry cheesecake. I have had cheesecake from a variety of sources: reputable bakeries, generic grocery store chains, and even those peculiar homemade versions made by well-meaning relatives who think they understand the art of dessert. But this, this was a whole new level of atrocious. If you’ve ever taken fever tonic, that vile concoction of bitterness and despair, the one your parents forced you to endure while you lay in a feverish stupor then you’ll understand the sensation. The cheesecake tasted unmistakably of that very liquid. The flavor tasted like it was an amalgamation of chemicals, a strange and unnerving blend that bordered on a medicinal concoction, not a dessert meant for human consumption.

One would think that a restaurant as ostensibly reputable as TGI Fridays would recognize the delicate intricacies involved in crafting a dessert that is not only palatable but also elevates the dining experience. The cheesecake, however, failed on both accounts. There was no creaminess, no tangy balance of sweetness , no velvety smooth texture that could redeem this atrocity. Instead, I was greeted with a dense, yet somehow strangely astringent aftertaste that made me question my very existence. How had they managed to take a dessert so inherently simple and transformed it into a tragic failure?

But I digress. Let’s address the wider issue: how does a reputable restaurant like TGI Fridays, one known for decent desserts like their brownie and Malters offerings—allow such a catastrophic misstep to occur? Why, after so many years of serving people with varying levels of culinary expertise (and let’s be honest, the bar isn’t set very high for cheesecake), would they choose to inflict this monstrosity upon the innocent dessert lovers of the world? I suspect the cheesecake was not tested, and I suspect it was created by someone who lacks the basic understanding of taste and texture required to produce something that could even remotely be considered “edible.”

It’s almost as if the powers that be at TGI Fridays decided that, in a world where people already suffer from an overwhelming sense of dread and existential despair, they might as well add another layer by offering up a dessert that tastes like it was concocted in a pharmaceutical lab. Was this some cruel social experiment designed to see how far they could push the boundaries of acceptability before someone pointed out the obvious? If so, mission accomplished, I suppose.

In conclusion, I highly recommend avoiding the strawberry cheesecake at TGI Fridays at all costs. I would also encourage the establishment to revisit the recipe entirely, as it appears to be a far cry from the kind of dessert that could even remotely be...

NOT COMPENANT ENOUGH TO SEAT PATRONS. A HOST WHO TAKES HIMSELF FAR TOO SERIOUSLY! We arrived at TGI's and was met with a sign at the entrance that says wait to be seated. So we waited at that sign. About 5 minutes later,.a young lady saw us waiting and said 'the host will seat you shortly, stand over there' which was to the right of where we were standing. So we moved the few meters and stood where she motioned to stand. By the way, half the restaurant was empty and the whole outside seating area empty too. So it wasn't a busy afternoon for them. A few minutes later another wait staff came over and said the host would be there soon. This happened 3 times, and I kept thinking, why don't they just seat us? We were about to leave because we'd been standing there for a long time waiting when another wait staff saw us waiting, came over and said the host would be with us. I told him 3 people had already said that and the host was nowhere to be seen, I think he went to look for the host because he walked off in the other direction looking all about and when he came back straight over to us and said he'd seat us himself asks our preference, checks the area we wanted to be seated was available and tells us to follow him, which we start doing. Just then the host comes power walking over from the other side of the restaurant and I motioned to a gentleman who had been standing there waiting and told him to seat him because we were taken care of. I was literally following my family who was following the waiter and the host stopped us! He was agressve right of the mark and told us we had to wait in line, go stand at the sign we were originally standing at (and asked to move by his own staff) and wait to be seated after he seated the gentleman. His own waiter, who turned around and heard the host telling me off, told him he'd found a table for us outside so to seat the other guy and the host said no! We had to wait for him to serve the gentleman that I had motioned to first and we had to wait at the original sign we first encountered when we arrived. He refused to seat us even when his own waiter looked at him incredulously. It made no sense whatsoever. The host could have seated the gentleman and we would be seated by the waiter. We had already started going to the table when the host came over and essentially stopped us. We opted to leave because the host stopped his waiter from seating us and kept saying we had to wait 'in line' when there was no line, just us and the other gentleman to seat. The poor waiter just looked on in disbelief because he was literally just about to walk us to our table when the host lost it. We left and the host was still blathering on about us waiting in line and him having to serve the guy first. In the time it took for him to be outrageous, he'd have seated the other patron (who also stood the gobsmacked) and we would have been seated. Ridiculous conduct by the host. You lost a table of patrons for nothing. Literally a non issue. You have to wonder if he just takes his job far too seriously. So if you go there make sure to stand in the correct line at the front door, you never know if the host from hell is lurking to make sure you're on the left side of the welcome...

Where do I start....wanted to make a booking for 12 people and was told you don’t cater for groups that large. So I said I wanted to book two tables of 6 next to each other if there were no other options. Arrive for dinner to find the two tables are at opposite ends of the venue! Was then made to feel like the error was mine at time of booking. Asked to put the two tables together as there was plenty enough room by the window to do so. Was told that wasn’t possible as it would block the walkway. Interestingly enough, when we discussed leaving, staff began busily putting the tables together for us as per our original request which also left plenty of room to continue the service. Funnily enough, directly opposite our merged table was a large table which comfortably fit 12 people...ironic considering I was advised you don’t cater for groups larger than 8 people! It went downhill from there.

Ordered our meal and waited close to an hour and a half for our meals. There were people who were seated after us that got their meals before we did including the group of 12 which were seated and ordered after we did!! When asked why, we were advised that you were quite busy with lots of meals on order. The restaurant wasn’t even at full capacity. It was a Thursday night. If you are unable to cater for the patrons on a Thursday night, I would strongly suggest to your perspective patrons to find an alternative dining venue on a Friday or Saturday night.

When our meals eventually arrived, the baby ribs I paid almost $40 for were burnt and not at all enjoyable. Some of the meals were to an acceptable standard but majority not worth the price. There was also only one person serving at the bar which meant drinks took a long time to arrive at the table.

Upon finishing the meal and going to pay, the waitress appeared inconvenienced that we were splitting the bill. I have been to two other TGI Friday’s restaurants in the past and have always spoken highly of the quality of the food and service. Whilst I realize you have not been open long, hopefully you can lift the standard of service otherwise people will find an alternative restaurant to dine in.

The whole experience put a real dampener on the evening given I was there with my family celebrating...