BD's Mongolian Grill — Restaurant in Columbus

I used to love going to Mongolian barbecue but unfortunately my latest visit left much to be desired. When I arrived my nephew and I were seated in the room next to the bar and we were the only ones in that room. I commented on this and the house just suggested that we would have more privacy. However the room was filthy. There was food all over the floor at most of the tables and pulled on the tables that hadn't been bussed. They had just come off a dinner rush though (it was about 7pm). We spend an hour at the restaurant and during that entire time the room remained dirty. The table that we sat at was sticky and remained sticky even after the waiter re-cleaned it. My silverware was dirty and I literally went through two different sets before just taking the fork to the bathroom in washing it myself? I don't think I've ever complained about a dirty table or dirty utensils in my 35 years of life but my night at Mongolian BBQ was the exception. I felt terrible because my generation believes in treating waiters and waitresses with respect and not having them run around for arbitrary reasons. As a result of not wanting to aggravate my waiter, when I found my food less than satisfactory I just paid and left. The bar no longer has oil on it, so any recipe you make is skewed now because the mongo cooks do not add enough oil to the food. I found my noodles had been burned and they were crunchy. Without the oil barrier the soy sauce in my sauce cup soaked into the noodles making the entire dish too salty to eat yet I use this exact amount of seasoning and soy sauce at home but then again I know how to use olive oil to ensure the proper saturation. I assumed that because it wasn't available to put in a soft cup, the cooks would be adding it but they just have spray bottles with mystery liquid in it and they use it very sparingly. It just wasn't a good time at all. I will likely not be back. If I have a hankering for something cooked in front of me I will go to a Japanese steakhouse and forgo BDs. If you're reading this review, I think...

Oh mother of chaos bless this child for it dwells within your domain as it is entropy incarnate. I went here with my wife and mother in law on a Columbus trip because it sounded like something that could fit the spectrum of dietary needs represented in our group, and to that end it did, but it was a small reward for a taxing journey. Just being blunt, there is no order here. You get in line to fill up your bowl with what you want, hope the buffet line will actually have what you want (there was something different missing both times I went up). Then you get to the grill where they actually cook up everything you picked out, make your best guess at where to wait, which is unconditionally wrong and you will be moved to a different place at the waiting counter. Now if this sounds inconvenient already, may God have mercy on your soul if you want seconds. You have to wait for the waiter, who will be the only waiter in the entire restaurant because why have more than one waiter on a Sunday afternoon, to actually show up long enough for you to ask for a second bowl, and he might get back to you with that second bowl later that day. Should you want to take advantage of a quiet time at the buffet line, too bad. You must deal with crowds in waves as everyone is given their bowls, because otherwise the place would have to be better organized. Speaking of buffets... There is a small salad bar, and for $2 you can add it to your meal. I enjoy salad, so I thought I would try it out. I knew I wasn't going to get the epic sprawl if salady goodness I like ay Ruby Tuesday, but I think I hoped for more than a minimal effort. Overall, the food in this place wasn't actually bad at all. It was good and if anything the redeeming feature. But having been to the Cleveland location and seeing how much smoother it operates, I'll be saving future BD's trips for when...

1st of all it was my son's birthday & this is where he wanted to go. 2nd I am that weird person that doesn't like my food touching or everything cooked together. But I tried something new & it's just not for me. Like my shrimp, chicken, beef, and crab all tasted the same. I like to enjoy the flavors of each meat separately from one another. Everything was burnt looking and tasting once cooked on that giant flat grill. I tried using the tortillas to "hide" the food. Nope. The burntness made it all taste the same with no flavor even though I added many sauces/condiments. All the food tables were messy & food items were everywhere not in its own containers. Everything is labeled at the top of the glass but if you're short you're not gonna be able to read what each item is. There are 3 different types of "pasta" that were all basically empty. Then many choices of meats. Many choices of veggies and sauces/condiments. But again everything was messy. Our waitress was very forgetful. I always give people 3 strikes and she just didn't do her job very well. Forgot straws with our drinks, forgot to bring rice & tortillas...had to remind her. Refills. Then as she handed me my check I reminded her again which I told her at the very beginning before placing an order that it was my son's birthday... She said "oh well I should have brought him out a piece of our cake but u probably don't want it now since you're leaving" I said well can he just take it to go? "unfortunately no she said I'm sorry"....Again! I understand it was a busy evening & I tried so very hard to give her the benefit of the doubt but remembering stuff is a part of waitressing. As for me, I will not be a returning customer just cause of my food...