Applebee's Grill + Bar — Restaurant in Ephrata

As most always, service today was very good. Our waitress, Hannah G, was friendly, courteous, and attentive, stopping by at regular intervals to make sure we were still doing alright, or if we needed refills, or plates cleared away. My meal, which used to be called "chopsteak" (a plain hamburger patty, with no bun), was okay. The beef patty was cooked exactly as ordered, my fried redskin potatoes with melted cheese, had been blasted to within an inch of their lives by melting the cheese under a salamander, which also rendered the plate viciously hot. Fortunately, I only burned two fingertips moving it off my main plate....... My wife and daughter ordered from the "2 for $25" menu section, with both choosing the 6oz "USDA Choice" steak, with various potato sides to go with. Both steaks were cooked perfectly visually, but both were very tough to cut (despite being juicy), and they presented a flavor that was "odd". My comment was that it tasted like it had been aged in the same environment as a cheese, Asiago, perhaps....? And did you know that their dessert sundae shooters have more flavors than hot fudge? If you only read the menu, you won't, that's all that's listed. It was Hannah's making sure we all wanted the "hot fudge" that prompted me to ask if there were other flavors. There are! Also available are strawberry and caramel flavors..... so if you order a sundae shooter for dessert, make sure you ask in order to ascertain what flavors may be available before you order. We ended up with 3 hot fudge, and 1 strawberry dessert..... It is this somewhat hit or miss, or perhaps "almost there" food quality that keeps me from giving them a...

Right away utensils are covered in some sort of thick soapy film, looks dirty but they claim it's from the water softener. Got news for you, that's not how it's supposed to be. When you ask for clean utensils they tell you they are all that way. Management is lacking in getting that addressed. We had to scrub it all off with paper towels before we could eat. Food service was pretty slow, granted they were very busy. But then when the food came 3 of the 4 dishes were "cold" like luke warm, not hot or fresh. One meal was missing two key ingredients. Fries were clearly sitting out for 10-15 minutes before serving. Our waitress was nice and friendly but I had to get up and walk to another empty table to get ketchup. We reported the issues to her and she had her manager heavily discount the meal but the manager never actually came by to speak to us in person. We didn't come here for a free meal. Again, management isn't being accountable. What made it even more insulting was the original bill was 75 bucks. We ordered two of the four cheese Mac n Cheese with chicken tender meals, one smaller 5 piece chicken tender basket with fries and the bourbon Street chicken and shrimp, three lemonades and one beer. Even if everything was piping hot and correct this would have been far too much for what we ordered. I barely felt okay with the 40 ticket we were left to pay. Made sure to tip the waitress well as it wasn't her fault the ticket got slashed but the management will never get any better if they don't take accountability and get face to face with the people they are...

You would think that all Applebee's are the same. While they have the same menu, they are not. I have been in many Applebee's and am usually pleased getting my favorites. Not so with this branch. It was the worst Applebee's I have ever been in. From the service to the cleanliness to the food, it was all terrible. The only reason I gave it a 2 stars is that the server said that he was serving 10 tables and was frazzled. He was nice but rushed. Unable to listen correctly to the needs of the customer. I asked for Splenda to go in my drink. A girl came out with the spinach/ artichoke dip. I took it but still needed the Splenda. About 10 minutes later the server shows up with Sweet and Low. I had to tell him that Splenda comes in a yellow package. My salad showed up 45 minutes after ordering. The chicken on this salad is usually warm. The chicken was very cold and in big hunks, not cut up. It was served with a dirty fork, no knife or napkin. There was chunks of the lettuce brown and the end was also in it. I noticed that other customers were having problems as well. French fries for another appetizer they ordered. They had waited so long they just settled and ate them. I'm upset that this store is giving Applebee's a bad name. The Applebee's in Royersford PA is the opposite and I will continue to go there but never again will I be back to the Ephrata PA store. I hate to leave a negative comment ever as everyone has their issues but I thought this...