Portillo's Allen — Restaurant in Allen

Food is phenomenal but the management needs to be trained properly on Customer Service.

Went through the drive through and ordered (2) #1’s from the Portillo’s FAMOUS FIVE which are listed, detailed and pictured as Combo’s on the menu. Paid, get to the window and we are handed sandwiches and drinks, no fries. Explain to the “runner” that fries are missing. He goes and grabs Dreshaun who identifies himself as a manager.

Rather than apologize for the confusion, offer a solution he proceeds to argue with my wife about the fact that the menu is A-la-carte. After going back and forth with her multiple times, I tell him that we don’t want anything that we didn’t pay for, charge us for the fries and lets go.

Again, rather than resolving the issue himself he sends the runner out with a tablet, he rings in the fries but can’t tell me how much I’m being charged…frustrated, we tap our card. Runner goes inside, comes back out with no fries. Dreshaun comes back out with the tablet asking for my card AGAIN, and with no explanation. My wife explains that we just paid for ‘the fries’ and he proceeds to argue further.

Come to find out, after grabbing a 2nd manager and wasting 10 minutes of our time sitting at the window, they are having hardware issues. Not my fault, nor my problem as the consumer however the next manager sends Dreshaun to get ANOTHER employee with a functioning tablet. Once he realized how incredibly crazy this whole situation was, he handed us the fries and said “as a one time courtesy we’re going to do you this favor”

I have NEVER in my life been more disrespected or insulted for $6 worth of French fries. My wife and I own a Food Service business and we would never allow any of our team members to argue with a customer about something so minute, nor would we sweat a $6 option that will not affect our bottom line however the interaction can definitely negatively impact the customers experience.

Portillo’s is new to North Texas however not new to business or Customer Service. My personal opinion is that there needs to be some training with management in order to ensure that the customer experience is much better than what my wife and I dealt with on a Sunday afternoon.

In addition, the company may need to consider adjusting their menu to explain that the FAMOUS FIVE is not actually a combo and if you would like to order it as described, then you need to...

During my first lunch time weekday visit (11/15) to this restaurant, I was promptly greeted by a friendly cashier. I ordered the Italian Beef & Sausage sandwich. for $8.79 that was described as a combo , but was surprised to find that the items were à la carte per the cashier. The $2.89 fries were described as frozen crinkle fries, which sounded unimpressive but I decided to give them a try. While viewing my order on the screen I noticed that the cashier added a drink that wasnt requested and asked that he remove the item. Although the cashier seemed friendly, that concerned me but I made no issue of it, just confused. Also, because he was busy discussing the menu and his recommendations I missed certain features such as extra gravy or a side of gravy and that the peppers were customary and cost extra.

The restaurant’s interior was spacious and clean, with a Texas country modern feel. There was plenty of staff in the kitchen. The restaurant was half full with patrons. I appreciated the open kitchen layout, allowing customers to see the cleanliness of the food preparation area.

My order was ready in less than 5 minutes. The sandwich tasted fresh and the quality of the meat was excellent. The bread, although thick, was soft. However, the gravy was sparse yet complimented the sandwich well. I just wished the cashier had suggested ordering extra and or I had noticed it on the menu. The fries were basic and overpriced, but served hot.

In conclusion, while the restaurant offers a good quality sandwich and a pleasant dining experience, it falls short in delivering an upfront authentic Chicago-style culinary experience due to the à la carte feature. As someone not familiar I wasn't aware what came on a Chicago sandwich as such . The cost, approximately $15 for a sandwich and fries, makes it a less feasible option for frequent dining. Despite this, it’s worth a visit for the experience and I recommend the Italian Beef & Sausage sandwich as a...

The first time I ever had Portillo’s was back in 2006. I had lost contact with my best friend from high school. I found him in Chicago. So I flew up there from Texas to visit for a week. He asked me to make him a list to what I wanted to do. I had never been to Chicago prior to that. So I told him I wanted to everything that Chicago is known for. Being of Italian descent, we hit multiple Italian Beef stands. To mom and pop locations to chain locations. And I loved them all. One of the places we stopped at was Portillo’s. It was at the location on Ontario Street. From the awesome food to the wonderful employees. It just made a great trip even greater. Fast forward to 2021, I find one during a vacation to Florida. It was good and so missed. Then one day, BOOOM. They are now in Texas. I have since visited a handful of locations around the Dallas area. This last time was the location in Allen, TX. I usually go all out and get the beef and hot dog. I regret it later, but it’s so good. This time I just settle on the beef. Sweet peppers, giardiniera, moz, and dipped. My wife tried something different, she got the Chicago combo bowl. My seven year old picky eater just got a dog and fries. Everything was so amazing. If I had to nitpick one thing (two actually) wrong. : My sandwich, it was not dipped ( as requested). It appeared as maybe a little of the gravy might have been ladled on it. And that’s a maybe. It was dry and I had to ask for more gravy. Once that was poured on it, aces. 2: Almost the same with my wife’s bowl. Though she had no bread, it was still dry and needed gravy. But after that it was still so good and I ate every darn bite. But Portillo’s is more than just a sandwich shop for me. Every time I go, I always remember my friend Jason. Jason has since passed, but his memory will last forever. And the new memories I make with my family with every visit. Thank...