The Growling Gator — Restaurant in Lambton Shores

We come here every summer, order the exact same meals each year, and this is usually our #1 choice of place to dine. We were very unhappy with the service this time, notably the girl Krista who sat us who was very unaccommodating and I had a nursing little one with us. We had asked to be placed in one of the booths, she proceeded to say that they were waiting for a larger party who reserved them.. however the other hostesses said that they do not take reservations. She sat us at a small 4-seater table for our family of 5 when we were asking for an area further from the door, sheltered from the cold with some privacy for nursing. Not too long after, another party of 5 arrived with a baby younger than ours and that family got one of the booths. When asked Krista lied saying they were awaiting for 2 more people (who never arrived). After leaving, that same family was in the parking lot near us, and they never said they had a larger party to Krista. The Hostess lied and favored that family over ours when we were there first. I asked to speak with the owner but the supervisor named Parker came to speak with me. While his mannerisms were soft spoken and rather polite when explaining that the owner does not allow them to seat a smaller party in any of those booths available, he said that he wasn't allowed to seat us over there or he would get into trouble with the owner. So the issue remained unresolved. He confirmed that the hostess Krista told him that the other family was expecting 8, but Krista lied to him and to us. She favored that family over ours. And the other booth areas where we could have sat comfortably remained empty until even 10+ minutes after my family left to wait in the car. The entire establishment was under 50% capacity, very slow evening due to the cold. They did take my husband's food off our bill that was virtually not touched, and our actual waitress, she was kind and understanding, showed compassion and empathy for our family. She understood that our family would have been more comfortable and I could have nursed my little guy with more privacy which would have made other customers more comfortable as well.That's the only positive is our waitress wholeheartedlyvalidating our feelings and experience and that she genuinely felt bad for our family. Lastly, while I was awaiting the name of the hostess who sat us and caused such strife, our waitress was trying to speak to her and Parker regarding how unhappy we were with our experience, while Parker listened to her, Krista just laughed and laughed, then looked at me and laughed again. No care whatsoever for customers to have a pleasant experience. Again, we eat dinner here every single year when we come to Grand Bend.. then normally we get a Beaver Tail for dessert and hit the road home. No Beaver Tail this time, we just left and are currently unhappy on the highway. Despite the cooler weather, we had a good experience in Grand Bend until our experience Growling Gator ruined the end to our summer. We live a couple hours away so we only come to Grand Bend...

Before we arrived to grand bend we planned to dine at this restaurant. The location and restaurant itself were really enjoyable.

The server was nice, but seemed kind of like a fake nice. She was a good server before we got our food. I let her know that the ketchup was spoiled. I don’t know for sure, but it almost seemed like she gave me the exact same container as it had the same wear and tear markings and was filled about the same. It was also spoiled. So I switched it myself.

I was really excited to try this restaurant, but upon looking at the menu and seeing the prices, there was nothing that I really wanted. My wife got that feta shrimp salad, which was very disappointing for the price. I got the chipotle pasta, which was pretty terrible. Something I could’ve made myself very easily. Our daughter had the chicken fingers and fries, which she absolutely always love. However, the fries were overcooked, and the chicken was very small and dry. She barely ate any.

The server also didn’t offer the ice cream that came with the kids meal.

We were done our meal and waited about 30 minutes to get our bill.

I still tipped 12% because I’m not a jerk.

Afterwards, I bumped into the owner/ manager and let him know about our experience He seemed very nice. He offered us a resolution after I already paid the bill, but we were not able to come back the next day as it was out of our way.

It’s too bad because the space itself is really nice. But the menu is very poor.

We went to industria Pizza down the street tonight. Our pasta was three dollars cheaper and was 100 times better. Our daughter also got chicken fingers and fries again (As it’s her only option due to allergies) She had five big juicy pieces of chicken and the fries were beautifully cooked.

Disappointing. You have a beautiful space. If you lack in returning customers...

Was spending the day at the beach with family and friends. My 36 weeks pregnant wife wanted some good takeout, fish and chips. The closest restaurant was The Growling Gator. I had a pomegranate juice in my hand and as I was just about to order takeout, a middle aged man came up to me and took the drink out of my hand and took it out of the restaurant. I asked the waiter what this was all about and even she was surprised. When he placed my drink outside and came back in, I told him it's not alcohol! It's only juice, and I'm ordering takeout to go! He said "no we can't allow that in here." He didn't even know what I was drinking and didn't even ask me to take it outside. He literally snatched the drink from me. I asked the waiter who this man was and she said that is their MANAGER. Snatching a customers drink out of their hand and taking it out of the restaurant is extremely rude. Some sort of communication is necessary. I still ordered takeout and was on my way. I noticed a couple other families that were dining in, that had Iced Cap drinks from Tim Hortons. I didn't see him take those drinks outside. Not sure why I was treated any different and I'm extremely disappointed in the way he handled this situation. You would think the Manager would know how to provide customer service and respect to their customers, but this guy clearly doesn't know anything about customer service. Even his own Waiters were surprised and were baffled by his rude behavior. I would never recommend this place to anyone!! I was very shocked myself and didn't expect to be humiliated and have my drink snatched from me. I would give this place negative stars if possible. The food was average. The waiters are polite but the Manager is trash!! Never felt so embarrassed and uncomfortable while ordering...