Big Bob's Pizza — Restaurant in East Grand Rapids

When in the GR area I always like to try new places especially when having dinner with friends. So we checked out several places and chose Big Bob's based on reviews.

When we arrived we discovered that the app that we used referred to this place as "Big Bob's Gas lamp Village". So when we found out it was a pizza join - well, we didn't care because we love pizza!

There is a parking lot in front of the building, but it is small and services other businesses as well so the parking situation can be tricky. To the left of the building is a huge outdoor patio. We chose to dine inside the building. They were pretty busy for 7:45pm on a Sunday. A guy who appeared to be rushed came up, asked how many, then told us that he would clear off a table for us. He did that - but then put us at a different table in the corner by the windows.

We were waiting on a 3rd person to join us and our server did not come over until they arrived. She took our drink order and then disappeared. We sat there for what felt like 10+ minutes before she returned. She did go to another table twice but never came to ours. It wasn't until I made a loud comment about our server being MIA to another employee that she returned. There wasn't even an apology or anything.

We asked her about the "Briazzo" - which from the picture looked amazing. We asked her how long it would take to cook as some deep dish pizzas can take 45+ minutes before of how "deep" they area. She told us that it would be a little longer than usual. We asked what that meant and she was just like "uh, well the kitchen is really busy so it will take longer". Again, we asked what longer meant and could not get an answer. Then we asked "by longer do you mean 10 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes"? And her answer was "more like 40 minutes". Ok, finally an answer - and 45 minutes is not a little longer...that's almost an hour.

Myself and my friend got the lasagna. My partner got the calzone as well as the cheesy bacon fries (appetizer). Now, they were busy so I don't expect my food to come out immediately. But because it took so long I actually forgot that we ordered the fries. They were really good though. Covered in bacon and cheese. There was even ranch for dipping.

When the main course came out I was amazed at the size. Wow, you really get your moneys worth here. The portions are huge! My lasagna was great. Huge, great flavor, tons of cheese! Even the garlic bread was really good. The calzone was almost bigger than the plate they brought it out on.

At this point the place had slown down so the service started to get better - but still not what it should be. Maybe it was an off night for her - or maybe she was overwhelmed. Either way, the service was not impressive - but the food was. If you don't care about good service but care about good food at a great price give them a try. Maybe you'll get lucky and have better service than I did. I honestly would give them another shot though because the food...

I've been a loyal customer for awhile and have overlooked multiple order mistakes on past orders, choosing to handle privately in one instance as the company can see in their DM's. But today was the final straw, I ordered a 16" pizza and received a 14". It looked small when I got home so decided to measure it, measured 14". I called to express the frustration of paying for something I didn't receive. In that conversation they said could remake, I didn't really want to drive there again but decided to just do it and asked if I should bring back the pizza - they said no. But when I showed up, the person at the counter argued with me and insisted I had received a 16" and if I checked the bottom of my box it would say 16". On a whim I had taken a picture of the measurement before I left thinking I doubt I'd need it but maybe! I explained how I couldn't comprehend it being a 16" box since the max measurement was 14.5". She then went on to explain how I was wrong. As I stood there, I just thought this is the weirdest thing to argue and such an unnecessary debate. I decided to be done and left without my remake, the pizza and company isn't worth it. Customer service could take into account my history, determine if being right is worth my business. How many times have they messed up? more times than I've ever let them know. My husband was already wanting to be done here a long time ago which is why our order history lowered, and this is now my final straw, I...

My husband (Ecuadorean/Filipino) and I (white) went for lunch the day after their anniversary party. My husband asked for No Rules (which was on tap the night before). Our waitress and "owner" stated they were tapped out. Not a problem for us...we ordered other beer. 15 minutes later a couple guys walked in (obviously regulars) and ordered No Rules and we're both served glasses. Befuddled, I ordered No Rules myself...and you know what?!?? All the sudden they had it on tap. Assuming goodness in intentions I believed our waitress didn't hear us. Two weeks later my husband and I went for dinner. I went to the bathroom upon arrival and he stood at front waiting for a table. 15 minutes later no one had helped us...three open tables available. The only person to reach out to us was a woman of color sitting at a nearby table. She offered her table to us ( she was leaving). We sat down. Another 10 minutes went by and we were rudely greeted by our waiter...'we sat down too soon'. 10 minutes went by and a White family walked in...greeted immediately and sat right away. I'm not stating there is racial issues, just stating my own...