Dairy Queen Grill & Chill — Restaurant in Cathedral City

If i could give 0 stars I would. Stuck in the drive thru for a hour with no way out is not acceptable or safe.

Here's my message to DQ:

Dear Dairy Queen Customer Service,

I am writing to formally express my disappointment regarding the exceptionally poor service, inefficiency, and multiple issues with my order at your Dairy Queen location at 69050 Vista Chino, Cathedral City, CA 92234-4803 on March 9, 2025.

Timeline of Events:

6:15 PM: Arrived at Dairy Queen and entered the drive-thru line. There were only six cars ahead of us, which is not a large number.

6:40 PM: Reached the order window but were not greeted.

6:45 PM: Finally acknowledged by staff and instructed to order at the pickup window.

6:49 PM: Placed an online order in an attempt to speed up service.

7:11 PM: Arrived at the pickup window and informed staff of our online order.

7:14 PM: Left the drive-thru after receiving our order.

Issues Experienced:

Excessive Wait Time & Lack of Communication

Despite there being only six cars ahead of us, it took 25 minutes to reach the order window.

Once we arrived at 6:40 PM, we were not greeted for another 5 minutes.

When an employee finally addressed us, we were told to place our order at the pickup window, further delaying service.

With a toddler in the car, this extended wait time made the experience extremely frustrating, especially since we were trapped in the drive-thru with no way to exit and had to wait nearly an hour to feed her.

Online Order Delay & Disorganization

Hoping to expedite service, I placed an online order at 6:49 PM, with a pickup time of 7:05 PM.

Upon arriving at the window at 7:11 PM, I informed staff of our order, but they appeared confused.

After scrambling for a few minutes, they located our food sitting in the warming area, which means it had been prepared but left unattended instead of being served promptly.

Incorrect & Incomplete Order

The kids’ cone from the à la carte order was missing, and we had to request it separately.

After leaving, we realized the milk that was supposed to come with my daughter’s kids' meal was missing.

The food was cold, suggesting poor order management and a complete lack of urgency.

Lack of Urgency & Poor Staff Adaptability

At no point did the staff display any sense of urgency or importance in their mannerisms.

When we inquired about the delay, we were simply told it was due to "short staffing."

However, having worked in fast food at various levels and in management for school nutrition, what I observed was not a short staffing issue but rather a lack of training and an inability to adapt.

There was visible staff present who could have efficiently handled tasks, yet the operation remained disorganized.

It did not make sense why orders were not being taken at the order window when there were clearly enough employees to make the process run smoothly.

I strongly recommend a review of the staff on shift that evening, as this was not a case of understaffing but of ineffective leadership and workflow management.

Order Details: DQ® Cone (Kids) - $2.99 (Missing from order) DQ® Cone (Large) - $4.89 Side of Cheese Curds (Regular) - $5.99 Chicken Strips Kids Meal (with Milk, BBQ, Fries, Kids Cone) - $6.59 (Milk missing from order)

Subtotal: $20.46 Pickup Time: 7:15 PM Store Phone: (760) 325-9100

For a simple order, this experience was unacceptable. The disorganization, lack of customer service, and failure to ensure accuracy and efficiency were incredibly frustrating. This location clearly needs better training, management oversight, and improved adaptability among staff.

Given the excessive wait time, incomplete order, and overall poor experience, I kindly request a refund or a replacement meal. Additionally, I would appreciate knowing what corrective actions will be taken to improve operations at this location and prevent similar issues for...

This Dairy Queen is the WORST!!!! This is our second week in a row trying to come here and again get told they have no ice cream. Why open a business here in Cathedral City that you can't run efficiently. This location either has no ice cream, only chocolate ice cream, or its a 30 minute wait for ice cream or wait our system is down and we can't take any orders right now if you want to come back in 20 to 30 minutes as they are laughing on the drive thru speaker. You either don't know how to hire people to run you business or you don't care about the service you provide to the community. To make it worse I call to talk to the owner and the employee tells me we never see are you home he doesn't come here ever. I asked do you have a number or anything? He said contact Chandi Group USA he has a lot of businesses. Maybe you should spend time at your businesses to follow up on your staff equipment and how its...

Stopped here for some hot food while driving through CA. I will say I’m posting this as someone who worked at DQ as a teenager, so maybe I hold them to a higher standard, but it was disappointing. Our order via drive through was completely messed up, and it wasn’t repeated back to us to ensure accuracy. We waited for at least 3 minutes at the pick up window before we were greeted, and we were not given our entire order. We had to wave down the person at drive through to get our drinks. When we opened the bag, the order was wrong and again, disappointing. Cold, half filled containers fries (we ordered onion rings), and the sodas had no ice and were flat, as if they were poured awhile ago and was waiting on the counter, and wasn’t a Diet Coke as ordered. This place could definitely use some additional staff training, and when I take the route again, I will not be...