Applebee's Grill + Bar — Restaurant in Crawfordsville

The Day Leia Turned Applebee’s Into Le Bernardin (Sort Of)

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I walked into Applebee’s expecting the usual experience: decent-ish food, decent-ish service, and that signature “microwave symphony” echoing from the kitchen. What I got instead was Leia – a server so phenomenally good that I’m pretty sure she accidentally wandered out of a Michelin-starred restaurant and got lost in suburban dining hell.

Let me paint you a picture: The restaurant was approximately the temperature of Satan’s armpit. I’m talking sauna-level heat that made me wonder if they were trying to slow-cook the customers along with the food. If it was that toasty in the dining room, I can only imagine the kitchen staff was basically working in Mordor. But Leia? This absolute legend was gliding between tables like a graceful swan in a convection oven, somehow maintaining the composure of someone serving $200 tasting menus instead of $12.99 riblets.

The food was… well, it was Applebee’s. Aggressively mediocre. The kind of meal that makes you think, “Yep, that sure was food that I put in my mouth.” But here’s the thing – Leia presented that perfectly average chicken tender platter like she was unveiling the crown jewels. Her enthusiasm was so infectious that for a brief moment, I almost believed those frozen mozzarella sticks were handcrafted by Italian noonas.

Speaking of spectacles, the gentleman at the table behind us had apparently decided to single-handedly corner the market on Applebee’s shrimp. I’m not exaggerating when I say this man had enough crustaceans piled on his table to make Bubba Gump himself weep with joy. It looked like he’d challenged the entire Atlantic Ocean to a duel and won. Leia was somehow keeping up with his endless shrimp demands while simultaneously managing the rest of her section – a logistical feat that would make Amazon warehouse managers jealous.

This woman was hustling harder than a Wall Street trader during market closing. She was refilling drinks before they hit half-empty, checking on tables with the precision of a Swiss timepiece, and somehow managing to make each interaction feel personal despite clearly operating at superhuman speed. I watched her for the entire meal in pure amazement – it was like witnessing a master class in hospitality happening in the most unlikely venue possible.

In a world where good service feels increasingly rare, Leia was out here treating every table like they were food critics from the New York Times. She turned what should have been a forgettable Tuesday night dinner into an experience worth writing home about.

Sure, my chicken was probably nuked in a microwave, and yes, the ambiance had all the charm of a strip mall DMV office, but Leia’s service was so extraordinary that I left feeling like I’d just dined at Per Se.

To Leia: You’re a treasure, and whoever trained you deserves a Nobel Prize in hospitality. To Applebee’s corporate: Give this woman a raise, better air conditioning, and maybe consider cloning her.

Would I go back? Absolutely – but only if Leia’s working. She’s proof that exceptional people can make even the most ordinary places feel special.

P.S. – Shrimp guy, if you’re reading this, I salute your commitment to crustacean consumption. That was truly a...

When this place first opened they had a manager who would walk around from table to table and talk with you and ensured that you had a good experience. The food was excellent and on Friday or Saturday you had to get there early to get in at a decent time. Today 11-18-2018 the signature Bourbon Street Steak wasn't spiced at all, my plate only had onions, no mushrooms and the plate was not sizzling like it should be and the entire food including the garlic mashed potatoes were cold. It seemed as if everything was pre cooked and then a lousy attempt to warm it up took place. I informed our waitress and a lady who appeared to be a manager about it. We got offered more mashed potatoes that again were cold and we got offered another round of food...thanks but no thanks-- in my opinion if you couldn't serve it correctly the first time and if I have already eaten some of the first plate along with some appetizers then we are just wasting time and food. The opening manager back in the day would have gave us a free meal next time we dined with them. It is sad that the attention to quality of food has diminished. This used to be an excellent place all around. Also the quality of the steaks...

The food is usually pretty good. It was a little upsetting when your silverware is looking pretty scummy and ask for some new and they're just as bad. We received our appetizer before our drinks. Drinks were a Watermelon Margarita "smokey"and Bud Light. When the waitress brought the drinks she said, sorry the bartender forgot the recipe and had to look it up. I was curious and asked her what makes it Smokey there is no sugar or anything around the rim, she wasn't for sure.🤷🏻‍♀️ When the food came out we did get sizzling plates but it was REALLY sizzling and popping us and the waitress basically just tossed it on the table and just walked away!! We had to push our plates to the side because they were popping us on our arms and face 🤷🏻‍♀️ when the bill came the "Smoky" for the drink is an extra dollar so I asked her again what was the Smokey if you have it on the bill, she didn't know but she said oh I can go get the manager, I said okay I'm curious I would like to know. So the manager comes and he wasn't even for sure he just knew it was a flavor in the drink but didn't know what it was called🤦🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️ it wasn't a very friendly night AND NOT...