Outback Steakhouse — Restaurant in Charleston

Although the food on Wednesday evening, April 12, 2023 was okay, I was really offended by someone thinking it was necessary to circle the section on the ticket to remind us of the need to tip (See copy of ticket included with review). I mentioned to the server-in-training that it was very disrespectful for someone to do that and that it could cause the party to not tip at all. I told her to make sure she mentioned this to someone since she was in training and it was obvious she was not the one who thought it was necessary to add the circling to the ticket. I ended up tipping my usual 25%+ only because of the young lady in training, but had it not been for her niceness, the notation on the ticket would have resulted in me giving much less because I was very upset over the gesture. Reminders like that are unwanted, offensive, pointless and not a good way to get people to tip. Also, more time could have been spent on getting our ticket correct because I got the 12oz sirloin combo with grilled shrimp on a barbie, a baked potato and broccoli, which were priced as a combo on the menu but based on the ticket, I was charged separately for the shrimp and broccoli which appears to be more than the combo price, but its a moot issue since I am back in NC. I will know what to look for the next time and I will make sure I tell the server before the ticket is brought to the table that we do not need any reminders of the tipping scale. Management could perhaps use this as a training opportunity since gestures like this (circling on ticket) does not drive business but discourages it.

The idea of posting this review may be petty to some, especially the person who found it necessary to make the notation on the ticket, but to others who patronize the business, I think they will find it very informative in knowing what to look for when tickets are delivered. Our only question aside from why was it necessary, was whether they do that to every ticket or was it just for our party? I hope management addresses this...

We just pulled over and dined here in the middle of an 8 hour road trip. The whole thing felt like some sort of fun house, circus, fever dream and I’m still trying to figure out what just happened to us. Our server repeatedly asked us how everything tasted before we ever even received our food. Also asked really confusing questions while we ordered. I ordered a caesar salad and she asked what dressing I would like when the name of the dressing that comes on the salad is in the name of the salad itself. My husband ordered a sandwich with fries and the server asked what side he would like, when he clearly just stated which one. I then went to the restroom and a server with pigtails was playing on her phone, and taking pictures of her butt. She didn’t seem startled or embarrassed when I entered the bathroom, just acted like that was normal. The first toilet I encountered was covered, literally COVERED in feces. The toilet bowl, the toilet seat, and the water tank of the toilet. I moved over to the clean stall, did my business, came out, washed my hands, and the server was still in there playing with her hair and staring at her butt in the mirror, striking poses and flipping her hair back like she was on the red carpet. There was almost no awareness that someone else was in the room with her. When our food arrived, it was wrong - surprise! -, and the server and the person who brought out the food seemed kind of shocked I was requesting the food I ordered be brought out instead. Our server asked us 14 times how everything tasted within a 40 minute period. Most of those times being before we ever even had food. We are back on the road now and I just felt the need to document my experience since I feel like I just stepped out of some sort of black hole or glitch in the matrix. The honey...

At 11am my friend called and thought she made reservations for 2pm for her vision impaired son's (traveled from Greenbrier County for this celebration) 21st birthday for a party of 9. Unfortunately we didn't get the female's name that took the call. We arrived to an expected birthday surprise, they don't TAKE reservations. We were told there would be a 45 minute wait, but because we called that eliminate 20 minutes off of our wait time. They said they would call when our table was ready without asking for her number, but no one would OWN taking the call of the misinformation given? Felicia, our waitress, was Great! The newly designed menus were not designed for the visually impaired nor was the lighting in the area that we were seated. Appetizers and drinks were delicious. The celebration was short lived once the food started arriving. Out of 9 guests, there were issues with 4 of the entrees upon arrival. Felicia and Dave, the manager in training from Huntington, were sympathetic and expressed their concerns with our unpleasant birthday celebration and took action to correct the shortcomings experienced during our visit. We were compensated with a discount and desserts for the children in the party and the birthday guest. My girlfriend went to assist her son and upon return to the table, the food that she wasn't able to enjoy because of the multiple issues, had been removed although the table hadn't been cleaned off. So after spending a substantial amount to ensure her son had a memorable 21st birthday, she didn't get to enjoy the meal that we all were so excited to...