Red Lobster — Restaurant in City of Yonkers

I visited Red Lobster in Cross County on Tuesday, April 1st with my daughter, friend, and her son. Although I’d never been to this location before, I was in the mood for salmon. From the start, service was chaotic and inattentive. Our server (whose name I don’t recall because she barely showed up) took our drink orders while we were still deciding on food. After bringing the drinks, we placed our order—but then waited nearly an hour for the food with no updates, check-ins, or refills.

When my salmon plate finally arrived, it looked like someone else’s leftovers. It had grains of rice scattered across it (I ordered mashed potatoes), and a portion of the salmon was missing. It looked like a plate that had been returned and reused. I was so shocked and upset, I didn’t even think to take a picture—I immediately flagged down the busboy (since the waitress had vanished), and he agreed it was unacceptable. He took it back and told me it would take time to get a new one. I agreed to wait.

Thirty minutes later, the second plate arrived. The presentation was slightly better, but once I cut into it, I saw the middle was raw. I was beyond frustrated. This time I took a photo and asked to speak to the supervisor. Again, the waitress was nowhere to be found and had not once checked on us during the entire meal. The supervisor was apologetic, confirmed the salmon was undercooked, and offered to bring something else. I declined. She kindly comped the salmon and gave me a $22 family discount for the inconvenience, which I appreciated—but the night was already ruined.

Oddly, the most professional staff were the busboys—a young Dominican man and woman—who noticed my frustration and checked in with genuine concern. Their kindness stood out in an otherwise terrible experience.

Even after all that, we waited another 25 minutes just to pay. I had to bring the check and my card to the counter myself because the waitress, supervisor, and manager had all disappeared. Then, out of nowhere, the waitress came back and said, “So, I charged you twice,” explaining she’d added the salmon to my bill—not knowing it had already been comped. I explained everything, and instead of apologizing, she huffed, crumpled the receipt, and walked off. She returned, said she fixed it, and handed me multiple receipts, telling me to “just sign any.” Then she pointed to the tip suggestions like she expected one.

If she genuinely believed she deserved a tip after all that, she needs to rethink her role in hospitality. Poor attitude, zero accountability, and an awful experience from start to finish. I left no tip—and I have no regrets.

Bottom line: this was one of the most frustrating and disappointing restaurant experiences I’ve had in years. Red Lobster management needs to take a hard look at who they’re hiring and how they’re training staff. The only thing that saved this from being a total disaster was the kindness of the busboys. Everything else? Completely...

I have to say that Red Lobster as a whole has really gone down hill, it's nothing like it used to be. I guess that's what chain restaurants are becoming lately. First, I have to say that I am a Fine Dining Executive Chef and the only time that I come to chain restaurants is because my youngest daughter loves trying them.

With that said, we have come to a point and time where just to be greeted with a smile is too much to ask for, you are greeted with a "how many?" And no eye contact whatsoever, then you are seated. This place was very dark inside, the lights were way too dim. It's come to the point that when I see that there aren't any utensils on the table, I wait to see if the waiter or waitress or busboy will realize it.

Before I go further, I have to say that our waitress was very pleasant.

Now, red lobster prices have gone up, but that is due to rent and the cost of food rising, but that cost increase doesn't come with attentiveness, focus on food at all.

Our food took a while to come, and when it finally did, the disappointment that was felt was incredible.

My Lobster past fish was $30 something and my daughter's fried shrimp and lobster was around the same price. The one thing I hate, and I know hate is a very strong word, but I hate when any food that I order is kept under a heating lamp for a long time, it discolors the pasta after 2 minutes, it completely destroys the sauce, and that's what happened, the fried food that my daughter received was over fried and then left under a heating lamp as well, three shrimps, and hard to chew lobster, once lobster is over cooked, you're better off eating a sponge, because that's the texture that the lobster becomes when over cooked

Now this red lobster is in a prime location, and I know it can get very busy, I know that employee turnover is high, and I know it's one of those things that you have to hire out of desperation. However, training must be done especially when dealing with chemicals. The busboy who cleaned the tables was spraying to far away from the table while people were eating, this chemical travels and will contaminate food even from a 20 foot distance.

Back to the utensils, we ended up getting our utensils when our food came because we had to ask for them.

It's a shame what chain restaurants are becoming, or shall I say forced to become. Prices go up, they spend so much money on these beautiful colorful menus, when they should focus on figuring out a proper training system, when they should have a manager constantly on the floor observing what is going on, or have a lead observe if the manager is forced to be in the office to do paperwork.

Let's just say that I will not come back to any red lobster as this seems to be a constant issue all around for them. Places like this that make money based on location and not great food and service will soon...

$49.99 “Feast”? More Like “Create Your Own Regret” — Cold Food, Raw Meat, and a Side of Neglect

I ordered the “Create Your Own Feast” for $49.99 — and what I got was less “dinner” and more a test of intestinal fortitude. If Gordon Ramsay had been there, he would've ripped the menu in half, slammed it on the table, and told the chef to shut it down before someone gets food poisoning — just like he’s done on Kitchen Nightmares.

The steak, ordered medium, came out cold and bloody — so undercooked, I’m pretty sure I heard the cow moo.

Ramsay would’ve screamed: “It’s so raw, it’s still got a tag on its ear!”

I asked the server to send it back — and he looked at me like I’d asked him to rebuild the restaurant from scratch. It took 10 minutes to return, while the rest of my food sat there like roadkill on a heat lamp vacation.

The lobster tail? Translucent, rubbery, and very much not cooked.

Ramsay would've howled: “It’s RAW! IT’S RAW!!!”

The shrimp and fries were both cold — like they’d been plated for someone else who walked out, and I got the leftovers rerouted to me.

“Cold, lifeless, and depressing — like the service.”

The tartar sauce tasted sour — not tangy, sour. Like it had its own expiration countdown actively ticking.

And then the water situation: I asked for a glass FOUR times. Nothing. At this point, I was about ready to lick condensation off the windows.

And just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse — someone in our party ordered the crab legs. No crab cracker provided. When we asked for one, they brought... another knife. Seriously.

Ramsay would’ve thrown his hands in the air and shouted: “You’re serving crab with no cracker?! What do you expect them to do — arm wrestle the shell open?!”

How does a national seafood chain serve hard-shell crab and then leave you to battle it with a butter knife like it’s a medieval escape room challenge? I honestly expected them to hand me a paperclip and wish me luck.

Then came the men’s room — and that might’ve been the most offensive course of the night. It smelled like seafood was being stored under the urinal. I nearly turned back and reported it to FEMA.

The service? Absolutely dreadful. The waiter barely came to the table — unless you count the one moment he showed up just long enough to look annoyed when I dared to return the mooing steak. After that, he vanished like a magician after bombing an open mic.

Red Lobster, just rename this special “Create Your Own Regret” — it comes with cold meat, raw seafood, zero hydration, a butter-knife battle with crab legs, and a bathroom that qualifies as a psychological thriller.

I’m genuinely shocked the Board of Health hasn’t roped this place off with...