Center Square Grill — Restaurant in East Longmeadow

I have mixed feelings about this place. I live very close by yet it's the kind of place you only go once or twice a year. Let me get this out up front, I've never had any issues with the service, staff is always friendly. The first time I went there shortly after they opened, it was nice, the mac 'n cheese was amazing! A few other times I have gone, nothing outstanding, just an average dining experience. We had a few issues with lunch take out orders, which can be very frustrating while on a time crunch. They were nice about it and replaced the meals etc., can't really argue with that. As for more recent visits, the appearance was not great, the floor was very dirty, the tables look old and scratched up even though they recently had to remodel. The booth seat was very uncomfortable. Overall the appearance is average, visually not a terrible vibe, cozy color and lighting scheme. A small outside patio with lighting and heaters that is pleasant. The food presentation is nice but some of the dishes are not that great for what they are charging. The General TSO's Cauliflower is pretty amazing, they can definitely toot their own horns for that one! The Mac 'n Cheese is not as good as it used to be. I've had it dining in and take out. It's lacking a bit of flavor and is a bit too soaked in sauce. On that note, the menu is very confusing, it says add crispy buffalo chicken, which a few years ago meant you got the Mac 'n Cheese with crispy buffalo chicken on top...now apparently it's buffalo Mac 'n Cheese with crispy chicken on top. It was not good. As for the pizza, this is not a place you get pizza. I think the pizza here is too dry, overbaked, toppings too few and not visually appealing. As for the rest of the menu, it is a mix of Italian style dishes, a bit of steak house and seafood restaurants. Choices may not be ideal for family dinners with kids, unless your kids have adult taste. They seem to focus on foods with 'unique' flavors; brussels sprouts, truffles, lobster, gorgonzola, goat cheese, and such. Overall not a bad place to eat but also not anything to brag about, if you look at the menu and say oh boy I love these foods, then you may like it here, only know to adjust your expectaions to avoid disappointment, especially with the prices, which I feel do not reflect the value you recieve. They seem to want to appear fancier than they really are. Peronally I like a couple things they have and get them once in a while when I'm craving them, that explains why I only dine here once in a great while. I do feel they have potential to be...

This was my second and last visit to this restaurant. The first time I came with my sister over a year ago and we both agreed that the service and food were both fine but nothing we’d come back to. I decided to give Center Square Grill another chance and planned a date with my partner to have brunch. We showed up around 12:20pm and the place was fairly busy since we had to wait about 35 min for a table inside or out. The host was very nice and welcoming. We waited and were seated outside around 12:45. At the same time another couple who entered with us who also waited, was sat at the same time next to our table. Within 10 min of arriving we ordered a beverage and our meals right after the couple next to us at around 12:55. After about 20 min the couple received their food and we continued to wait. After another 20 min the couple next to us ate, paid their bill, and left and we were still waiting. Two other women next to our table who were sat 20 min after us received their food before us and we continued to wait. Another 15 min went by and we still had not received our food, it had now been 50 min since placing our order. By the way we ordered a breakfast sandwich and lobster Benedict. Our food finally comes out 5 min later at about 1:50pm and we were less than impressed. My food was stuffed on a small square plate instead of the long rectangular plates for my meal that others had, the plate was messy and looked put together poorly and the food was room temp not even warm which was the same for my partner. We both took one bite and said, no. The waitress asked how everything was and I had to be honest. I have NEVER been one to complain about service or food but this was just simply awful that I could not get over it like I have before. I told her everything that was wrong and the extended wait time. She apologized and asked if she could take it back to be fixed to which I said, for what?, to wait another hour for it to be made again or for it to be heated up in the oven. She told us she’d take the meals off our bill and we paid for our beverages and left. After all of the waiting we were not even hungry and this definitely put a damper on our date since we now had to go somewhere else to eat. I understand being busy which is why we waited and had the food at least come out the way it should have I wouldn’t be writing this review. After an okay experience the first time and a bad experience this time I would not recommend this restaurant. You are better off going...

We've been here three times and I can't believe I forgot to write reviews for this great spot!

We celebrated my Mom's 60th birthday here on 3/11. Michael was so helpful when I contacted him to arrange our reservation and dining options for our party of 7. Their private room was booked for the evenings we wanted, so he offered us alternative plans. He also let us have access to our table 30 minutes before our party arrived to decorate the table and set up. They also allowed us to bring in our own birthday cake from a bakery, which was nice.

Appetizers & Salads: A+ We ordered the gorgonzola tower (garlic bread and gorgonzola sauce), short rib nachos, and Rhode Island style calamari. All three were delicious. The mixed green salad that came with our meals had a delicious gorgonzola dressing.

Cocktails / Wine: A+ They have a nice selection of seasonal cocktails, beer, and wine. We ordered my Mom a blueberry lemonade cocktail, my sister had a French Martini, and I had a few glasses of wine. I loved their wine selection and wished I had more wine drinkers in our party to split some bottles.

Entrees: A Everyone in our party was happy with their entrees, which doesn't seem to happen very often when going out with a large group. My hubby had a mushroom truffle burger and I had the fish & chips. My only recommendation would be to have the fish batter a little more crispy. The batter was a little soggy and separated from the fish when cutting it. However, it was nicely seasoned.

Service: A++ We had Adam as our server and he was nothing short of exceptional! We've dined with him twice and he is top notch!! He is very attentive, friendly, and fun. When we first got there to set up / decorate the table, he offered us drinks and even offered to rearrange the tables if we needed to accommodate our party. Our glasses were never empty, he made great recommendations, and overall he just made the dining experience light & fun! We would ask to be seated in his section at every future visit. He was also great with my 2-year old niece.

Atmosphere: A They find a way to make the atmosphere classy yet comfortable. You will see the owners on the floor, who are super personable and truly care about their customers. It looks like they have a nice patio with heat lamps for the warmer months as well.

I wish this place the most success and would love to see them expand their business with other restaurants. Thanks for a...