Outback Steakhouse — Restaurant in Blackman Charter Township

ADDENDUM: I was very much pleased that the Outback management followed up on this. I received a call from what what likely the store manager and a second call from someone in Detroit who said that he is the store owner. Because of this I am elevating my star record to four (4) from three. They really did try to satisfy me.

On August 8, 2021 my wife and I dined at the Outback Restaurant in Jackson, Michigan at about 5:30 PM. The staff ushered us in with courtesy. The food was cooked with the finest excellence as I expected from a dining establishment such as the Outback. However, our dining experience was a disappointment.

We recognize that the last twelve months has been a hardship on the dine-in restaurant industry nationwide. The obvious solution for any struggling business is to cut expenses. We have noticed this solution being pursued at a couple of local dining establishments. The most memorable experience was at the Chelsea Big Boy Restaurant (now closed for business). As a regular patron of the Big Boy I saw a new entry on the menu earlier this year which looked worth trying. When it arrived, t looked like something I would make for myself at home. Needless to say, that was our last visit to the “home of the big boy.”

However, a raw cutting of expenses can in some cases become that organization’s downfall as it appears we are witnessing with the Outback. Both my wife and I on August 8th ordered dishes that included asparagus sides. Can you imagine our shock when the dishes were served, each with three (3) spears of asparagus! That’s right…three spears. Our first thought was that the asparagus was a garnishment until we remembered that asparagus was one of our sides each. We could have ordered salads instead of asparagus as a side dish.

I asked the waitress to send over the store manager. The “store manager” was clearly an underling tasked with “taking the s--t.” She offered me “a discount” as a solution. I told her that, “…we didn’t come here for discounts. We came for fine dining.” I then gave the “store manager” our bill with some cash and asked to be cashed out. Amazingly, she declined saying the waitress would pick that up. I told her, “No, take it now, we have a concert to get to.”

I made sure to leave a hefty tip well above 20% to emphasize that we are not complainers, just fine diners. From this point going forward we are likely to decline dining at the Outback.

Can you imagine that...3 spears of asparagus! Response from the staff: "We can offer you...

I am a single man. I just made a post about two weeks ago my experience with Taking a lunch break and having a steak over at the Jackson Crossing location. If you look at my previous reviews about not just this location, but how I had ordered the Outback special in many states, North Carolina, Ohio, West Virginia and now here in Michigan. And this is my always go to steak place as a single man, but over the last three or four years the sirloin Outback special has just been very tough and gritty tough to get through order at medium.. however, I decided to try something different. On the right of me I have Texas roadhouse and on the left of me I have outback steakhouse literally 100 steps between both. I decided to try the buttermilk ranch chicken sandwich, crispy, and a sweet potato. First of all the sandwich and the chicken was freaking awesome and everything I ordered online was perfect with the greeting smile from the curbside lady.. The reason I’m posting, this is more importantly than I’m a single man and I’m trying to find a value in the restaurants around me. It doesn’t necessarily always have to be a meal. I ordered from Texas roadhouse a large mashed potato with gravy and butter and a sweet potato cost me 10 bucks.. being a single man, it’s not worth buying groceries. Sometimes is everything gets expired. So I looked at the sides and got this chicken sandwich with a sweet potato for 17 bucks and it was a great value for me. I looked at Outback‘s menu for a side salad, but found a wedge salad that I will order in the next time because I love blue cheese for me as a single man a salad, a baked potato or some mashed potatoes are good enough and you guys do the bread with the butter just like Texas roadhouse. You guys are about $.50 more than they are, but it’s OK. I’m OK with paying that. Had a great experience today. The only thing I would suggest is I understand sirloin is a lower cut of meat but years ago maybe five or six you could order the Outback special and that sirloin was way more tender than it has been in the last few years I still love you guys just wanted to give honest feedback because there’s a lot of people out here like us. They’re looking for values and And don’t mind spending money, especially for single people, but I could go to Subway and get a sub cost me 12 or 13 bucks for a foot-long but the sides in an appetizer or a little bit more and I’d be willing to pay that so thank you Outback. Great...

This was the first time at this Outback location, and it will be our last. There were six of us. Service was very slow, we were there two hours. They weren't busy and it was 2:30pm when we arrived. The soup was good, and that was about it. My steak was ordered medium-well and was overcooked (no pink, whatsoever), dry, and burned. My mom ordered hers medium, but it was medium-rare, and her baked potato looked like it had been baked the day before and reheated in the microwave. Four people at our table said the french fries had far too much seasoning, as did the chicken tenders, and grilled chicken. My husband ordered a chicken sandwich that came with fries, and soup could be added on for $3, according to the menu. He got his soup, and was surprised when the sandwich came without fries. When the server was told he didn't get his fries, the server said, "You ordered soup instead of fries." No, fries automatically come with it, the soup was extra. So I asked how long until he could get fries and we were told 3 minutes. They never came, and were never given an explanation. We always get a cookie skillet for dessert. We had three at our table and we all agreed they weren't good. First, they weren't served in the skillet, but in a regular bowl. When asked, we were told they were all dirty. The skillet is what makes that dessert delicious- the cookie comes hot, moist, and chewy. These cookies were cold and rock hard, as if they were stale. The server took them back to get new ones and we were told the manager was making them fresh. They were hardly any better. We didn't say anything, because we were tired of complaining. We are assuming they were short staffed, yet no one said they were. We will continue going to the Ann Arbor location, where, even when short staffed ( apologetically told so) the service and food are fantastic.The server never came to our table to say anything, such as, " I'm sorry, your soups and salads aren't ready yet, even though you ordered them 25 minutes ago, we are really short staffed." Instead we had to call him over to ask him when we could expect them. It's truly disappointing to spend over $100 for four people, and the food is awful, and the...