Applebee's Grill + Bar — Restaurant in Harrisonville

I’m sad that Applebee’s has gone downhill. I used to love coming to Applebee’s. I was in denial for a long time that it had really gotten to be that bad. My last visit to this location opened my eyes to the problems. It’s unfortunate because I’ve gotten some really good meals at this location in the past, but it just seems this has had a steady decline.

First of all, it seems the service has gone down. No one was rude, but it seemed that they weren’t trained properly on how to deal with customers or taking the initiative with different tasks, such as seating customers if the host was busy, refilling drinks for other servers’ tables, etc. I saw several servers standing around doing nothing while a few tables around me needed something. I had a similar experience with my previous visit when the server pretty much ignored my table and the table next to us and, when we asked for different condiments, never brought it out when we asked repeatedly. I kind of felt bad because the staff doesn’t seem to know what to do.

Second of all, the food had gone downhill to probably just a step above a nice fast food joint, if that. I like to order steak as a treat and probably 80 to 90% of the time, it is overcooked. I don’t mean that it was overcooked to where it was bordering on medium when I ordered medium-rare, I mean it was well-done (and tough) when I ordered a medium-rare. Plus, it wasn’t hot or even all that warm. There was still a glob of softened butter sitting on the steak. Even with the seasoned butter, it had no flavor and was tough to eat. I hate sending food back and wasting food, so I choked it down. The fried red potatoes that came with the meal were flash-fried to where the outside was overcooked, but a bit raw on the inside. Plus, they were over seasoned (you missed the steak with that seasoning!). My daughter’s fries were cold and tasted like they had been fried the night before and just heated up before they opened (we went just after they opened.

Also, please redo your parking lot. It is so rough and so tight in areas. It needs repaving...

We stopped here to get dinner on a Thursday evening while traveling through.

We were seated almost immediately which was nice, however when we walked in we observed quite a fair amount of trash throughout the restaurant on the floor.

Once we were seated our server was immediately with us and got our drink and app. orders. This one gal was bussing all the tables herself. I'd guess her to be late 50's and she was wearing a walking boot from an injury while the other much younger staff members stood and watched her work. 👀

Our mozzarella sticks were Luke warm and stale when they came out.

I ordered the bourbon street chicken and shrimp, my Dad ordered the steak and shrimp. We both agreed that this particular Applebee's must procure their shrimp from the Ramen noodle company as they were much smaller than the shrimp at any other applebees we'd been to...

My shrimp and potatoes were not warm, they were simply thrown on a warm plate. The shrimp were flavorless. The potatoes had good flavor as did my chicken. Dad and I both agreed the potatoes, meat, and brocolli were good. I'd burn my mouth on any food directly touching the plate but the food onto was barely warm.

When I went to the restroom there were paper towels and trash on the floors as well as the floors were sticky throughout. Rather than washing my hands and using the hand dryer that was disgusting I walked to the truck for hand sanitizer.

I've managed quite a few people throughout my career and have come to the synopsis that there are some good folks working here but the management is failing to utilize their skills.

Our server was great and she is the only reason I didn't give a lower rating, the other staff members clearly know how to do their jobs, they just aren't being made to.

It was a very...

This is truly the first time I've ever had a five star experience at an Applebee's. Kelsey was extremely influential in making that happen. Though tending bar she was alert and saw that I had sat down at a nearby table. She served me a menu and asked what I'd like to drink then proceeded to take my order for food, all the while the bar was never abandoned as she ensured everyone was promptly served. I noticed as I ate my food (which arrived quite quickly) that when all her guests were taken care of she was cleaning and stocking. Kelsey never wasted a minute. Also amid the busyness she remained alert and watched the doors to tell departing guests "Thank you!". From a consumer standpoint I was glad that she suggested dessert and was impressed she remembered the dessert menu off the top of her head. From a business point of view I was impressed with her natural ability to upsell. This location is so fortunate to have Kelsey as an employee and I sincerely hope they recognize her work. I would also like to note that the...