The Inferno — Restaurant in Independence

I'm going to give two stars for tonight with a chance to redeem themselves next time I go. This was our first time trying this venue and admittedly I do not like trying new places because there are too many unknowns. We didn't know it was their three year anniversary celebration when we arrived, but noted it was absolutely packed. We took the last parking space available and headed to the back of the building where a signed pointed to the restaurant. There was one sign saying seat yourself and that's all I saw. There was a long line of people up to the bar and no other obvious instruction of what to do. Personally if I was by myself I would have left at that point because there were no tables open and a large line of people and no one telling me what to do or where to go. My companions staked out a table and started asking other patrons till we found someone that told us you have one person claim a table and the rest order at the bar. No idea if this is the norm. We waited about 20 minutes to order. Their card readers weren't working so they had some issues with payments but that wasn't a big deal I don't mind paying at the end in fact I prefer it. Paying in the beginning stops me from ordering more drinks/tipping etc. After waiting awhile an employee let us know that several items we ordered were unavailable. We all changed our orders to fit into what was available. We waited another bit and one person at my table got his food. He finished his food while my husband and I waited for our sandwiches. My sandwich was not the first order or the second I asked for when it arrived. It was just steak bites on bread haha. The owner apologized and said they were very short staffed and having difficulties. Now for the good part: everything tasted good even if it wasn't what I ordered. Presentation was okay- they looked like gray plastic ikea plates which totally clashed with the rest of the vibe though( maybe these were backups because it was swamped). Premises are nice and the outdoor space looked particularly lovely there just wernt any tables available outside when we arrived. I would prefer to have clearer signage or communication when arriving for what's expected and they could work on communication about what's running low obviously. I would have really liked to try the brisket or the pulled pork sandwich as they both had toppings which probably made them a little more interesting than bun with plain meat. I think that this space was underprepared for the busy night and maybe needs a better system.I am optimistic that going during a less busy night might yield a better time and will give more stars if this turns out to be true. Also I didn't see a sweet option, but a tiramisu/empanada/flaky pastry and coffee would have really gone good with...

We were extremely excited to try this new place out for my wifes Birthday. It was advertised as food being cooked over fire.

She ordered a burger with pork belly on it. I ordered nachos with brisket and a 1/2lb side of pulled pork and a 1/2lb side of flank steak rare/medium rare.

When we initially got there we went inside to order and were told to go outside and grab a seat. A larger group came in after us, went inside and then came outside and got their food and drinks probably a good 10-15 minutes prior to our food order even being taken.

That being said, when our food came out, it came out in 2 waves. The nachos and the wifes burger and then the additional sides of meat.

For my wifes burger she took a bite and immediately noticed the burger patty was missing. She went inside to mention it and the server said I dont think it has a patty. She then pointed out on the menu that it clearly states it has a patty. She also asks to have the pork belly cooked more so its crispy.

As far as the nachos go, the chips came out stale, and the brisket was well mediocre brisket as I enjoy BBQ in TX a lot so I was like for OR its doable I guess, the chips though were rough.

About 10 or so minutes later the second round comes out (1/2lb of pulled pork and 1/2lb of flank steak). I looked at it and recognized the pulled pork but then pointed to what was supposed to be the flank steak and said is that Brisket? They said yes and I said I ordered flank steak on the rare side off medium rare. He apologized and said I'll get it out right away for ya. No big deal.

About 10-15 minutes later go by and the 3 pieces of flank steak are brought out (about the size of 3 slices of bacon) and its medium to medium well and I was told this is the closest they can get it to rare/medium rare as they cook everything previously the day before and reheat.

I can understand cooking Brisket and Pulled pork prior but flank steak is maybe 1/2cm to 1cm thick and shouldnt take more than 5 minutes to cook to rare/medium rare, especially over open flames as advertised.

With that being said, I got my food from there to go. Enjoyed the pulled pork and brisket the next day, it was ok, but still not TX bbq. The flank steak I had tried a bite and knew it wasnt for me at that point but gave to my dog for a treat, which she loved.

Will I try this place again? Probably because I believe that it couldve been a bad night, but hope when I do these things...

The place was pretty quiet when we arrived with multiple employees hanging around the bar. We were told to grab a table wherever. We grabbed a game to play while we were there and a table outside.

I initially thought the table might be stained but, after putting my elbow in something sticky, I wiped the table down with a wetted napkin and it was FILTHY. The server came out while I was cleaning and brought more napkins. He did not offer to clean the table. The game we played (Battleship) was also covered in grease.

The server was very nice, but seemed very nervous/anxious, even before I cleaned the table. I ordered the shared platter - the menu only showed one veggie option (esquite), so I assumed that was my veg with the platter, then also ordered a side of zucchini. The server apparently thought I wanted the zucchini as my veg and didn't bring out any esquite. I explained that I wanted the esquite with the platter AND the zucchini and he promptly brought out the esquite. No big deal!

However, just as we were starting to eat our food and we were in the middle of our game, the server tried to start telling us what the desserts were. I interrupted and explained I would like dessert, but I just got my food and wasn't ready to start thinking about dessert yet.

As we were finishing up our food, another server quickly brought us our check and tried to take my food tray before I was finished. In hindsight, I realized the original server may have been getting off his shift (though it was 7:00 and they closed at 9:00) and wanted to get his tip before leaving, because I didn't see him again.

After a few minutes, no one came back out to take my card, so I went inside to pay and asked for a dessert menu. The employees were again hanging around the bar and seemed almost bothered that I interrupted them.

Based on the cleanliness and service alone, I will not be eating at the restaurant again. The food was tasty, but served in a puddle of grease. I can only imagine how disgusting the kitchen is, based on the tables. If I were to ever order from here again, though that is highly unlikely, I would only...