Applebee's Grill + Bar — Restaurant in Del Rio

I have been waitressing for about 10 years so trust me when I say I pay super extra attention to the service that’s provided to me. I got there with my in laws and the host greeted and sat us down in a booth where it was a little crowded (while the other side was almost empty with one table being used). Anyway, our server greeted us right away (i immediately knew she was new)where she took our drink order and I also let her know that it was my in laws first time at Applebees. Now when people say that to me, as a server, I always make sure to give the best service I can so new customers can come back! This was not the case. She went to the back to where I thought she was getting our drinks. 3 min passed and she came back with no drinks asking if we were ready to order (to which we weren’t but we did order an appetizer). She then came back a few minutes later with our drinks, and took our order. Our waitress was patient with us as we order our food, then headed to the back to put in our order. A few minutes passed and she brought out the appetizer with no plates or silverware or napkins. After that she didn’t go back to check on us for refills or if we needed anything else. After another few minutes she went back to us where I asked for a refill and it was brought to us right away. The food came out a few moments after where she finally gave us silverware. Our server left the food and didn’t come back at all. I had to call a busser who I’m sure was busy cleaning other tables but she still went to us and asks us if we were okay. I explained to her (the busser) that one of our orders was wrong where she then took the wrong plate and took it to the back. ( I really thought the order was going to be “on the fly” since it was the servers mistake, but it wasn’t) I kept checking my phone for the time and it took 17 min to get a quesadilla with only cheese (the correct order we initially ordered) Mind you the server did not come back at all, we made eye contact but she hid behind the wall of the bar (and no she wasn’t using the computer to put in orders or anything because from where i was sitting i could see the computer and no one was using it) it took her 14 min exact to come back and ask if everything was okay where I asked her for an update on the quesadilla. She then left quickly and the busser had to bring back the correct order and she apologized for the time and for giving us the incorrect order (which I think it was my servers responsibility to do so). After that my servers attitude was not the same. Now I don’t know how her giving us the incorrect order was our fault. Not once did i heard her apologize for our order being incorrect. I also added an order to go and she did not make eye contact with me when i was speaking to her(she kept staring at the wall the whole time) I then asked her if i could do the 2 for $20 with the free appetizer to where she said i was not allowed to do that (because it was too late). Not late as in the kitchen was closed, but late as is “i already put in the order a certain way”. Meaning she was not willing to change things around to make it better for us. I’ve worked at 4 different restaurants where I’ve deleted items to re-ring the order to better help my customers (or comp). Maybe Applebees is different but i have done this ONE other time where my server was more than happy to do that (At Applebees). Anyway, another server with blonde hair came to us and said she will go ahead and help us out this time but next time to let them know ahead of time when we wanted to do the 2 for $20 which I totally understood. I saw the look on my servers face and she looked upset, almost as if she didn’t want to help us out in the first place. We then asked for to go boxes which she forgot. She went back to us with our to-go order and asked if everything was okay which I said i still needed the to go boxes. She then asked how many as of i did not just asked for them. This is the worst service i have encountered here in Del Rio (yes the whole town) My servers name was “Rianna F” or so it said...

Whew, chile… Let me tell y’all something this was a poor excuse for customer service.

I recently visited this establishment hoping for a nice dining experience, but unfortunately, it was far from that. When we were first seated, our waiter seemed friendly and attentive. But that quickly changed. After taking our order, we barely saw him again. He didn’t check on me or my guest even once after the food arrived.

Here’s where things really went downhill: I ordered a steak and asked for steak sauce. Sounds simple, right? Well, I waited over 30 minutes for that steak sauce while my steak sat on the table getting cold. Not only was it frustrating, but it completely ruined the meal. We kept trying to get someone’s attention, but it felt like we were being ignored. No updates, no apologies, just radio silence.

Eventually, I had enough. I asked to speak to a manager. To their credit, they did offer a complimentary discount due to the poor service, but instead of truly taking accountability, the manager gave me a half-hearted excuse for the situation. Something about them being short-staffed which may be understandable, but the way it was handled was not.

Look, I understand things happen. But there’s a basic level of service that every customer deserves, especially when you’re spending your hard earned money. This experience was completely unacceptable for any restaurant, regardless of price point.

Needless to say, I won’t be returning and I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone looking for a pleasant or professional...

Applebee’s never fails to disappoint. Yes, that’s right, disappoint. First off, service was great and friendly. However, the food and cleanliness of serving plates were another matter. Utensils were brought to us without being wrapped with a napkin, leading me to question the sanitation of them. The plates brought for appetizers were dirty and had remnants of salad adhered to them. Notified the waitstaff that took them away as they were not needed. Food arrived in a timely manner, but my order of ribs were dry and over cooked. The best part of the ribs was the sauce. Side of fries were also over cooked and worst of all barely warm. A second side of garlic green beans had great taste, but were also luke warm. Sadly the best part of the meal was the iced tea. Even worse is that this has not been the first time that this particular Applebee’s has missed the mark with either service or quality of food when we have visited. I would have to recommend heading a little further down the road for a similar franchise with extremely better quality of food service other than what this particular Applebee’s...