Applebee's Grill + Bar — Restaurant in Ankeny

Applebee's might not be your go-to for culinary adventures, but sometimes, a familiar atmosphere and decent service can hit the spot especially at 10:30 when no one else is open! . That was my experience on a recent weeknight visit, where the evening unfolded as a tale of two dishes: the average and the awesome.

Let's start with the appetizer: the spinach artichoke dip. It arrived piping hot, visually appealing with a golden crust, but the first bite revealed a blandness that lingered. While the creamy texture was pleasant, the promised "bold flavors" of spinach and artichoke were noticeably absent. There was one chunk of artichoke that was huge and very woody...inedible. Overall, it wasn't bad, just forgettable – a dip that won't leave a lasting impression. The light and crispy chips were the highlight of this dish.

However, the drinks? They were on point! My Blood Orange Bourbon Sour and my wife's 'Perfect' Margarita were well balanced, refreshing, and hit the spot. The bartender clearly knew their stuff, and the presentation was a nice touch. This drinks alone elevated the experience from "meh" to "enjoyable."

And finally, the service throughout the night was fantastic. Our server was attentive, friendly, and genuinely seemed to enjoy their job. They were prompt with service, checked in regularly, and added a personal touch to the evening. This is always a win in my book, and it definitely helped compensate for the dip's lackluster performance.

So, in conclusion, my Applebee's visit was a mixed bag. The spinach artichoke dip was a almost a disappointment, but the stellar drinks and excellent service salvaged the evening. It was a decent night cap and getting good service at the end of the night is something to take notice of!

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars (mostly thanks to the drinks...

Friendly staff, nice food selection, gluten free friendly. Drink specials ( when first submitting this review). Usually very consistent in quality. Not sure what happened the last time, but had very bad experience. The food quality had taken an unfortunate slip. That surprised me since Applebees has long been a "consistent go to meal" for many years. The steak was rubbery, portions smaller, and drink (special) lousy Long Island ice tea from a pre-mix. It tasted like watered down ginger. Sent it back. Had a coupon to use from a concert ticket stub. They refused it at first. Waitress acted like i was trying to pull off a scandal. So i suggested that i just leave instead and they cancel my order. Clearly things not going right. She sent manager who agreed to take coupon, explaining they were not one of the of restaurants in that particuliar group within the chain. He said i'de be surprised how many people try to pull off scams. Really??? That seemed like a stretch. Also had to get the attention of server to request silverware to begin with after the meal was served. Then began eating sides, but started wondering where my steak had gone it took so long. Manager had suggested replacing it after removing it (the meat was visibly undercooked), but waitress brought back the same old steak, further cooked, but just as rubbery in texture. Yuck. Lost appetite. Hope this is not an indicator of short cuts in quality. Previousely satisfied customer. Hope...

We had not been to Applebee's in 6+years and tonight reminded me why. My dad had given me a gift card for Christmas and I feel like tonight it was totally wasted. My two kids and I went out after going to a Dr appointment. Our waiter only took my kids drink order but not mine and brought me lemonade like they ordered. They forgot to put in the appetizer order of mozzarella sticks. When they brought our food I asked if they were still coming and they said no they were not on the order. I said thats ok I don't want them. 5 minutes later they brought them out anyway and half of them were still frozen. They added them to my order for $9 and I asked to not have them after they forgot and already brought my food out. My son's Mac and cheese looked like it was yesterdays batch with as dry as it was. The burger I ordered half of it was pink and under cooked. I asked our waiter if it could be finished cooked and could if I could speak to the manager. He told me no manager was on duty and that I had already eaten about half of my food so it must not be too bad. Half of the food was not something that I would feed my dog. It was a waste of gift card. I gave the last $12 my gift card to someone else as I don't intend on visiting another Applebee's any time soon. Visit at...