Red House — Restaurant in Deep River

(When reading the reviews below, please note that most were written nearly a year ago.)

I give this place one star simply because it is a "nice idea" and has average food. But that is all it has going for it. I only order from this place because my wife wants their nacho's. But I have dealt with them about 9 times in total and I have had 8 unpleasant experiences with this restaurant.

For starters, the first time I called for a pick up of my order, they left me on hold for 15 minutes. I just hung up and called again. My fault being so stupid and just waiting on the phone. But then again, I could hear the hostess talking and fooling around flirting with one of the waiters(Or bartender??) and was thinking she would come back any time now.. Not the case! That same time, they hung up on me while I was giving an order. Still on that one occasion when I finally placed the order, they told me it would be 15 minutes to pick up some nachos. When I got there, I had to wait an additional 20 to 25 minutes. This was my second time going to them. My first time(year ago) was a magnificent experience. But from the second time on, it just is utterly pathetic. It needs either new ownership or management.

Every single time I went from this point on, the staff has been obnoxious. They screwed up our order every single time. I really don't understand how.. TWO Nachos and a salad. Every time I either am missing a salad or a nacho's or I have to clarify about 8 times what I want in order to get it right. The staff has also been rude to me and I really can not stand the bar tender who clearly defends the young girls and their mistakes simply because they are "Prettty".

I have never written a review about a restaurant or really anything other than Google Play Apps. I really do not like to answer negatively on surveys when it comes with dealing with customer service issues(EG: AT&T, a recent hospital visit, etc) as I realize this makes the company and some individuals look negatively on the business and impact their finances. But this place just irks me.

Tonight was the last straw. My wife calls the place up to place an order and before my wife can finish, in mid sentence, the idiot person that answered the phone just says "OK Got. Thank you for calling" and hangs up. Didn't even ask for a name or tell us when we can expect to pick up the food. Then we call back and we get an answering machine(This also happens very frequently when we call). We had to wait five minutes to call again and speak to someone else only to realize our order was not put in. When I got there, the waitress took my card, put it down by the register and held it hijacked for 9 minutes(Yes, I took note of the time) while I waited for her to wipe down the counter, pour a coke for no one to pick up and chat with when of the male waiters regarding some change to a menu item. Utter non-sense.

The real problem here is you have too many young people, very understaffed, no customer service skills(Which sadly, I guess, is disappearing all together in the world anyway), obnoxious/self righteous/self important personalities. When we ask the staff if they know what is in a certain menu item, they are clueless half the time.

You wanna make this a better place? Train your staff, teach them to be kind and understanding and to listen to your customers. Hire more staff! EDUCATE your staff on what's on the menu. Make sure they are out of high school. And for crying out loud, I get it's a restaurant business, but stop hiring people based on how attractive they are! People skills and careful attention to detail will earn you more clients than looks will! If someone wanted to go somewhere to have lunch with a view, then they have the option to go to Hooters.

Again, the idea of this place is a nice one. It really is! The environment is just right. The food is decent. The decoration and feel of the place is cool and it has outside seating which is a plus in the summer time for most places. But the things above have made it so I never return to this...

OK can we talk? How have I NOT BEEN to the Red House?! In business for years, I have drove past this popular place but never stopped... using the Red House's music themed decor as the song goes, "I once was lost but now I'm found - I was blind but now I see." First everyone was so nice and accommodating. Food and drink suggestions were spot on.

We started with a seasonal drink that included muddled fruit right from the garden. For apps their famous Mean Beans - fried green beans with chipotle sause. Add drinks to this addicting snack and you need nothing else, fried to perfection - no greasey no mushy. Next was Chili with Cheddar - in the best way possible this Chili was different than most, fresh ingredients cooked perfectly especially the diced peppers and onions (melt in your mouth), It was a perfect starter because it was light and flavorful.The Red House sweet chili wings were, well, sweet and moist with the right amount of crunch and flavor.

As I have stated before I travel extensively across N. America and I only order Brick Chicken in Chicago... NOT ANYMORE! Everything on the plate was cooked perfectly but of course the star was the deboned "Brick Pressed Chicken" with potatoes carrots and broccoli, just outrageously delicious.

Desert was heavenly - Sticky Toffee Cake served warmed (not easy to do right - House does it perfect) with vanilla bean ice cream and whipped cream. Out Of This World and one of the best deserts ever.

The Red House is the best example of flavor without excess. Each and every dish and even the drinks did not scream any one thing - all flavors were balanced and matched.

I have a lot of years to catch up on - I might just go down the menu. This is a once to twice a week place to go....

If you want to have a wonderful dining experience, this is the definition of it. Right from walking through the door, you just knew everything was going to be good. It was a well oiled machine. The gentleman who greeted us couldn't have been genuinely nicer and had a clear understanding of what was going on. Our server accommodated any question we had and was what you would describe as elite. Not once did we have to wait long for any kind of service and it showed that all of the servers were on their game without being overbearing. We opted for a special prefix menu and a Cobb salad. The app that came out were smoked salmon tacos. Everything about this dish was flawless. From the presentation, to the perfect balance of flavors, left me in anticipation for what was next to come. Well, it didn't disappoint. The burger came out with a house made English muffin and a battered onion ring. The cheese was melted perfectly and the sauce complimented the burger to a T. The most important part I noticed was the burger was cooked properly. The fries were good and hot as they should be. The Cobb salad was carefully put together with rows of ingredients. The vinegarette was great as well. The lava cake was presented nicely and you could tell passion went into it. Last but not least, the drinks were great. Everything about this place was a great experience. The restaurant looked inviting, it was clean, well put together and had the staff and food to back it up. This is going on my top 5 best experiences in CT. If you haven't been here, it is...