Chili's Grill & Bar — Restaurant in Bastrop

I guess I needed to be reminded why I choose small family owned restaurants when we decide to go out. So I guess it's my fault in a way. I decided to take the grandkids out for dinner a couple nights this week, and let them choose. Last night the choice was Chili's. Now in all fairness I haven't been to a Chili's is probably 15 yrs, but things are pretty much the way I remember. I will start by saying that we were greeted warmly by the host and shown to our table right away.  But honestly, that was probably the highlight of the visit. Our waitress was not very attentive and did not seem to know the menu very well. Both of the grandkids (10 &12 yo) asked for the Cheesy Chicken Pasta and were first told they didn't have that. What I'm picturing is a bowl of Mac & Cheese with chicken on top, how hard is that?  They both replied that it was on the kids menu (which we were not given). "Ok", then they were asked if they wanted the small or the large,  which should have been a clue for me I guess.  But they both replied that they wanted the large portion, so I didn't think much of it. When the plates arrived, both children looked down and almost in unison exclaimed "this isn't what we ordered". The waitress looked confused and very unsure as what to do.  I asked if she wanted to try it or send it back. She chose to send it back, reiterating that she wanted the Cheesy Chicken Pasta, the other said it was fine and that he would eat it anyway. Several minutes passed before the waitress reappeared telling us that she had spoken to the manager and that they would remake the dish and have it right out. What appeared next was a plate of penne pasta. When I tell you that it was a plate of pasta, THAT'S ALL IT WAS.  There was no chicken, no cheesyness, nothing. The waitress simply put it on the table and left.  The granddaughter and I looked at each other, she said it was fine and started. Asking for the check, I was left with the little game / trivia console, alright, that clever. But this is where the real shock came in. There were two bills on it.  The long and short of which is that I was being charged for not one, not two, but three Cajun Chicken Pasta dinners, one of which was simply bland bare penne pasta FOR FOURTEEN DOLLARS!

The Santa Fe Chicken salad I had was ok.

Suffice to say, Chili's is on the...

My daughter in law and grandchildren all 💓 Chili's so we eat there pretty often. On this visit we were in Bastrop for a graduation so my husband and I stopped there.

It took 15+ minutes for the young male server to greet us and take our order. We got a beer and ordered food. Someone else brought the beer after another 15+ minutes.and brought silverware to us. There was a runner who brought out the food after more time waiting. The food was lukewarm at best.

Watching the staff dart around it was easy to see that they were short staffed and everyone was trying to pick k up the slack. Being a restaurant person I was not going to add more pressure to the situation so we ate the food served as it was.

No refills on drinks and we didn't see the server until I had used the table tablet to pay our ticket.

It is one thing to be short staffed... but the biggest thing was the sticky and poor cleaning of tables, walls, restrooms, and big picture windows. They were the worst of items needing to just be fully cleaned. It looked like years of road grime was covering all outside glass.

The poor shift manager was actually bartending while she was trying to check kitchen and host areas. The store was not busy - but with the limited staff the team was overwhelmed. I felt for them. Been there - done that. My rule as GM is if there is not someone to serve them completely then we went on a short wait. Once you seat customers you have PROMISED service. Having to explain to waiting guests WHY they can't be seated when tables are open is no fun... but an appetizer offered always went a long way to keep them from leaving and busy until they are called.

Chili's is better than this meal showed. We will be back.... at next grandkids...

My family and I are regulars at this local Chili's. We normally do to go orders so my review/ rating will be of both dine in and to go. (TO GO) We really love the convenience of being able to do mobile orders, and normally our food comes out quick with no issues or hiccups. Occasionally we are waiting for our orders way too long(10-15 minutes past scheduled time). We've also had some really thrown together meals, or unfresh food doing to go. Be sure to check your food before you leave! My biggest complaint however would be the inconsistency of how my orders are plated! It seems that it depends on the time of day, staff member or maybe the weather, but I don't get the same quality or level of care even if its the exact same meal. Our dine in experience is a lot better. On our most recent visit we were told there was a 20 minute wait, no problem. However as we sat for 30 minutes waiting, we saw people who had come after us(we watched them park while we were waiting) be seated before us. We ordered a smokehouse combo and the burger bites kid's meal for our little one. The food was delicious and fresh, my only complaint is that it wasn't hot when it came to us. The corn on the cob that came out on our plate was very burnt. We politely asked for another one, and the manager himself came and brought the replacement. He is a very nice guy. Our waitress was very nice and attentive as well. Her positive attitude definitely set the tone for a nice time. I do recommend this establishment. My 4 star rating is based on my family being regulars and not a 1 time experience.

Update** Get the fajita trio if you don't know what to order, you can not go wrong...