Ford's Garage Orlando Vineland Outlets — Restaurant in Dr. Phillips

To be honest, I used to really enjoy Ford’s Garage. The cars, mechanic/service themed environment; good food and a good time is what I looked forward to.It was fun eating there. Felt nostalgic. But now, you’re hit with a “sales pitch” right as you enter the door. That poor host, customer after customer she had to explain the 20% service fee, wait I’m sorry the “Team Based Compensation” fee. The drudgery of it all, over and over. And the same response from each party: first not quite understanding what’s going on, then to why am I being given a lecture when I enter the restaurant, and ending in shaking your head in agreement. All the while as a line builds, as if we are waiting for a ride. As I walked to the table with my family, I start replaying what just happened in my head. I had to ask the person who sat us to explain the whole thing again, which she did. I was still like, huh? Then come to find out, the service fee doesn’t go to the waiter, but to the entire team. That I would have to tip additionally on top of the 20%, which I did tip 20%. So, my food cost me 40% more than menu listing price. To be fair. 20% more because I would have tipped 20% anyways. The whole experience was off putting. And, with the “Team Compensation Fee” you would think service would be stellar. It was fine. I get better service at other restaurants who don’t charge 20% fee. To be honest, the service fee was all that customers were talking about and workers were explaining. How demoralizing to the staff? No wondering overall service and environment was cold.

In Summation, Ford’s Garage, lend me your ear:

1. Do you think it’s a good business model to have the first touch point for you customers to be a “sales pitch” on why they are pre-committing to being charged an additional fee?
2. If your goal is to improve guest service experience by charging 20% more, then deliver on your goal. Service must reflect the 20% fee. (Pro Tip: improve worker morale by focusing on team environment and management development- a team that believes in a common goal and the company they work for will not need monetary incentives to enjoy working, it will be the culture of the business)
3. If increasing your employees’ compensation is a priority for you and you can correlate it to the service experience of your guests, then just pay them more and pass that increase on in higher food prices. The current way feels like your “nickel and dimming “ the customer.
4. Get rid of the ridiculous and obnoxious sales pitch at the front door. It’s offputting and weird. Literally no other restaurant I’ve been to does it this way.
5. Bring Back The Fun! You used to do that so well, what happened?

Will I be back, maybe. Was it awful, no. There are many other choices to choose from, so not being awful isn’t...

This is the second Fords Garage in Orlando that has charged a 20% "service" fee and we will not be going back. The Greeter told us of the 20% charge and explained it was for the support staff to receive compensation for helping your server. Our server took our order, brought out drinks and our appetizer and asked if everything was fine. I had to call her back to our table because I felt our pretzel appetizer was burnt. I had never seen a pretzel that dark and crunchy. It was soft in the middle but the bottom had a burnt taste. She offered to replace them and did so bringing back another plate of almost as dark pretzels. Instead of sending them back, I cut off the underside. Our meals were delivered by a person we only saw once. I had asked for my burger to be medium cooked and my husband had asked for his to be well done. When our meal was delivered my husbands "well done" burger had as much pink in it as mine. He did not want to now make an issue out of this and did not request for his burger to be sent back. However, toward the end of our meal, the person who sat us at our table when we arrived came to our table and asked us how our meals were. My husband proceeded to show him his rare burger and said that he had wanted it well done. He told that person that he wasn't asking for anything in return but just wanted to bring it to his attention. The individual agreed that the burger was not "well done" and he would bring our concern to the kitchen manager. So, for a 20% service charge we had a server who did well, a second person that gave us our meal and we never saw him again, and a third person that sat us at our table and then came around later and asked us how our meal was. We have eaten at many restaurants and the type of service that was given by your FG team was no different than most any other restaurant we have eaten at and we paid an additional 20% for that? In your team service model description of your 20% program you say the pay ranges for the server support staff and kitchen staff are at the top of the casual dining industry average. If that is the case why does the customer have to pay the additional 20%? There wasn't anything above or beyond that we felt the additional 20% was justified for the support staff. For future customers reading this review, we contacted (2) other Ford Garage restaurants in the Orlando and Tampa area and they do not charge a 20% service fee for you to sit down and have a meal, only if you have 20 or more individuals in your party. The 23 Restaurant Service chain is currently testing this 20% program as a new service model in (4) Ford’s Garage locations. So maybe call your location before you go if this...

My niece and her dad came down to Disney this past summer, and we decided to meet for dinner one evening here at Ford's. Traffic getting there was terrible, as it is when you go anywhere in this area, but the parking lot was pretty large, and it was at the slow side of the outlets, so it wasn't an issue finding a spot. We parked, found the front door, and got seated.

The ambiance inside this building is really niche and well-themed. You are inside a car garage/workshop and there are car parts everywhere. There's a whole car over the bar. Their napkin rings are hose clamps. It's just everywhere and in your face and really cool.

Our server was a nice guy, and was very attentive. No issues there. We browsed their substantial menu and placed our order.

We started off with the Giant Funnel Tower of Jumbo Piston Onion Rings (Served with House-Made Chipotle Ketchup and Hidden Valley Ranch). The rings were served on an old school oil funnel thing, which was so comical and neat. Well-breaded, crispy, not oily, just lovely rings. Love the inclusion of the Hidden Valley brand. Very unnecessary, tasted like normal ranch.

My main meal was the Smoked Brisket Burnt Ends Melt (Smoked Brisket Burnt Ends Caramelized in Bourbon BBQ Sauce, Tillamook Sharp Cheddar, and Bacon Jam on Country White Toast). This was like a sandwich you make yourself at a backyard barbecue. Freaking amazing.

Basically an ooey, gooey mess of pulled brisket in a great sauce. On top of that is an ooey gooey mess of a particularly sharp cheddar, which was nice. And then the ultimately contrast, a sweet, umami bacon jam that really dances on your taste buds and gives you a little relief from all that oo and goo. Then, the country toast adds a nice texture and a nice char. What a good sandwich.

I also got to try a burger. I forget exactly which burger, but I remember that I liked that the patty was actually thick enough to be cooked a medium rare. Big fan. Just the right amount of toppings with a super fluffy bun. So good. Tots on the side were perfectly crispy. Pro-tip, keep the sauces from your onions rings in order to dip these sweet tots in.

I also ordered an Old-Fashioned Milkshake (Oreo), and it was delicious. I will say that they give you their standard straw, and that is a bad move on their part. It collapses under the pressure of sucking that thicc shake through it. Definitely need a bigger straw. I ended up just drinking from the glass, no biggie.

Overall, this was a great little meal with a great little atmosphere. Everything was delicious, and there is so much on the menu, I'll have to come back to try...