Chili's Grill & Bar — Restaurant in Espanola

It was the worst dining experience I have ever had in my life! We arrived at 9:00 pm and were seated almost immediately. They had to wipe a table for us first.

Our server showed up 15 minutes later and was extremely short with us. She took our drink order and never showed up again the rest of the night, though we could see her working at the bar.

We knew the place closed at 10, and we were ready to order even when she came to get our order for our drinks. Another wait staff brought our drinks after another 15 minutes. Finally, after sitting there until 9:35, they took our order.

The food came out quickly. I said I would like another drink. That wait staff said okay and left. Then, another wait staff came and told me it was too late to order another drink. I said that was unacceptable as we could have had more if someone had shown up. He said that was not his problem as he was not our server. I said this is not acceptable. He said he would send the manager.

The manager came and said he was not allowed, by law, to serve after 9:30 pm. I said it was not my fault that your staff did not serve me in time for me to have more than one drink. He explained the law again. I said you are not listening. He never offered an apology, nor did he send our original server over to apologize. So I asked what compensation he was prepared to offer for our inconvenience and their lack of service. So he gave us half off our meal.

The steaks we ordered were cooked as requested. So that was nice. Our asparagus was basically raw and of bad quality.

I must assume our server was mad because we came in so late. We also did not want to be out that late. We had arrived late due to travel. However, if they had served us when we got there, we could have been gone long before 10:00 pm. We also wanted to get to our hotel for the night.

To top things off, no one came to take our payment from us. We had our cash out on the table for several minutes. We finally tried to pay by using the QR code on the receipt. We couldn't get that to work properly, either. It kept saying it was processing. We checked, and it came through on our credit card.

I really hate to see things like this. People need places to work so that they can support their families. However, they also need to do their job and care for people. I have never had to leave a review like this, and I hope I never have to again.

I would not recommend going to this restaurant. If zero stars were an option, they would have received it. They even received a 1 star for atmosphere because of the rude behavior of all involved. I hope that changes...

It's an absolute shame. If I could give this location and the manager a zero rating I would. I was passing through town with my four grand-kids and had couple hours to go before we reached our destination in Angel Fire. We stopped in for dinner and I was told by the hostess that it would be at least thirty minutes before we could be seated. The restaurant which probably has a seating capacity of a hundred and fifty was over three quarters empty. I was told there would be at least a thirty minute wait time with the explanation, from the so called hostess, there was a large party ahead of me. There were around eight individuals total in the waiting area and there was literally over a hundred empty seats.. After twenty minutes of standing around in this empty restaurant without any explanation as to why we would not be seated I again asked how much longer before we could be seated. I was told it would be at least another twenty more minutes. So I asked to speak with the manager. Chris showed up after five minutes and I asked why we couldn't be seated in the basically empty restaurant. His explanation was that they have a staffing issue. OK, understandable I just want to be seated and get something for my grand-kids to drink. Chris said he couldn't accommodate us " that he has a thirty minute time limit to serve us our food from the time we were seated or he would be in big - big trouble from corporate." Seriously your denying us seating and water because one of your management measures your evaluated on is a service window? Chris again told me he would not seat us. Is this really a customers problem? So you would rather I stand with four grand-kids (3 under 6 yrs of age) for an hour or more than be comfortably seated with refreshments? Again Chris refused to seat us. How ridiculous and unprofessional of a person is he? First off the hostess should have explained to the customers when they entered this facility that due to staffing issues you won't be seated in this empty restaurant for basically an hour, so the customer could make an informed decision as to staying or going somewhere else. Secondly I very much doubt as a corporation, Chili's, wouldn't be understanding of the staffing issue at this location and would certainly allow a customer to sit down and have a drink of water So we left and went down the street to a competitors with the same issues and were promptly seated with refreshments. Was the service slow, absolutely, but we were treated has a valued customer. This location has 18 management complaints, now that's a real...

Update:

I use to come at least 3 or 4 times a month and almost always had a great experience. Unfortunately, for the last 6 months or so I have been coming in less and less. This is because things such as, in the bar area they leave all the tables full of dirty dishes. Even when they see you are trying to look for a table, they just walk right past you. Maybe it could be because it is close to shift change and they don't want new tables?

The wait staff on either side are unattractive and does not seem like they want you there. I have to sit with an empty glass for most of the meal, the food is cold, like it was sitting they awhile before it came out or it comes out wrong. For example, I ordered fajitas and it did not come out steaming; onions and bell peppers were still hard. Another time I ordered the endless soup and salad. The waiter didn't like that because 'he was busy and had to make it himself'. He really didn't like when I got refills. He even tried saying it didn't come with chips and salsa. I had to show him the menu, I guess he use new. They only seem to be attentive right before it is time to pay the bill.

I am usually not the type to complain, so I will not bring it to the managers attention and get anyone in trouble. I still really like chillis and will continue eat there. I just really hope the next time I go in these issues are resolved and if they are i will change this post. So i for now my rating goes from a 5 to a 2.

P.S. please remove the bush next to the chillis-to-go door it smells like something died.

The food always comes out fresh and hot. The staff is friendly and informative. Always a...