Front Street Grill — Restaurant in Dardanelle

BLUF: Another Front Street Failure, the Front Street Grill is one of those places you only need visit once to know you'll never go again.

When we went to FSG, we were among the first customers in the door for the day, but the food seemed to have been there much, much longer. I had a steak, and it was about as flavorless as what you'll find at any chain eatery, as well as cooked about as evenly as the rocky mountains. The cook must've been unsure how I wanted the steak, so he cooked it by one end only, so that I'd get everything from medium-rare to very well-done. The real stars of the show, however, were the green beans and potatoes! The green beans were greasy, mushy, kind of metallic tasting, and absolutely unpalatable. Think of the disgusting smell of a greasy, unkept kitchen, and you've got the taste of those green beans. The potatoes seemed to have been reheated leftovers from the previous evening, but they were at least palatable with a lot of added salt and pepper.

The waitstaff were friendly enough and were buzzing by often enough. Well, all except our waitress, who had to be located by her peers and sent to our table when we were longing for...

Tonight's dinner was what I should expect from a bar that has a menu. I went based on the rating of 4.1 and not being a local. Upon first appearance walking in I had 2nd thoughts, but not wanting to judge a book by it's cover.....we stayed. Luckily there was outdoor seating overlooking the Arkansas River. The service was polite and did the role for which the position called. The food on the other hand was bar food disguised as restaurant style food. The appetizers would be great, if I were drinking. The shrimp was nothing spectacular and the loaded fries were....horrible. It was cut potatoes with sizzlean bacon and melted pepper jack cheese slices. The main meal continued the trend with the Santa Fe Chicken which consisted of grilled chicken tenders covered with red and green peppers, sizzlean bacon and melted pepper jack cheese. The steamed vegetables were frozen mixed vegetables over cooked. The bright side was the chicken tenders were moist. If you are not a local and looking for dinner I would give another establishment a try. I blame myself for this one not trusting my gut...

I can see how this place might be good for groups of 4 or less, or just for grabbing drinks and hanging out. But they are definitely not prepared or capable of handling large parties. Our group called in advance and reserved a table for 25 and when we got there, we only had a table for 18. The servers were not friendly, some food took 20 minutes to arrive and some took an hour and a half, the food made me and others in our group sick, and I know for a fact my bill should've only been $35-$40, but the bill I got was for $50. If that included gratuity then that's fine, but there was no indication on the bill that it was included so I have no idea. Also, we arrived at 7 and were not charged a cover charge, but when the band started playing at 8:45, a group of workers came around demanding $5 each for a cover charge. Like seriously haggling us in the middle of us trying to eat. And who carries cash anymore? And why did you not charge us at the door? The band was good though, probably the best part of the whole ordeal. Will not be coming back,...