The Rockhill Grille — Restaurant in Kansas City

I don't usually write reviews, but after my recent experience, I feel compelled to speak up. My husband and I were looking forward to a nice evening out, but what we got instead was one of the worst dining experiences we've had in years.

Let me start by saying our server tried their best, but the overall service was terribly slow and disorganized. We waited nearly 25 minutes just to get our drinks, and our meals arrived lukewarm—mine was even missing a side I specifically ordered. When I politely asked to speak with a manager, I never expected what came next.

Enter PJ, the manager. I’m not sure what qualifies someone for a managerial role these days, but it certainly shouldn’t be rudeness and hostility. Rather than listening to my concerns, PJ was dismissive, condescending, and—frankly—aggressive. He rolled his eyes, interrupted me multiple times, and actually suggested I must have misunderstood the menu. Excuse me? I may be in my 50s, but I can still read a menu and order a meal.

It was clear that PJ had no interest in resolving the issue or maintaining any sense of professionalism. His tone and attitude turned what was already a disappointing night into a downright upsetting one. I left feeling not only ignored but insulted.

I rarely say this, but I would not recommend this place to anyone—especially if customer service and respectful treatment are at all important to you. There are far better places to spend your hard-earned money and your precious time.

I don’t usually write reviews, but after my first (honest and respectful) review was mysteriously removed, I felt compelled to try again—because people deserve to know. *

I visited this restaurant last weekend with my husband after hearing a few good things. Sadly, it was one of the worst dining experiences we've had in years. From the moment we walked in, the service was inattentive, bordering on dismissive. We waited 20 minutes just to be acknowledged, and when our server finally arrived, she seemed rushed and uninterested. I can forgive a bad day, but what truly pushed me to write this was the manager, PJ.

When we politely asked to speak to someone about the service, PJ came over and immediately got defensive. Instead of listening, he talked over me, dismissed my concerns, and made it clear he didn’t care whether we ever came back. His tone was condescending, and quite frankly, rude. I’ve worked in customer service—I know how challenging it can be—but there’s simply no excuse for that kind of attitude.

What’s worse? I left a review last time, carefully written and honest—and it mysteriously vanished a few days later. That tells me this restaurant is more interested in protecting its image than actually improving.

There are too many wonderful places in this city to waste time (or money) here. Take your business somewhere you’re...

Very disappointing experience overall. I accept most blame – we had a party of six and needed to adjust to seven (7). I called the restaurant ahead to modify our reservation. I was told our reservation was a booth and there was a limit of six. I asked about switching to a table and he said there were no tables open. I asked if all seven of us could fit in the booth and he said we might be able to squeeze together, but that it would be tight. So, since I’ve never encountered a restaurant limiting seating like this, I assumed we would just have to squeeze in together, and honestly everyone in my party thought the same, “Oh, when we get there, I’m sure they’ll work with us to accommodate,” as most restaurants would do.

I was wrong. Very wrong. The Rockhill Grille has a policy (and it’s clear on their website) that they won’t accommodate more than six per reservation. I guess it is their prerogative to limit party size, I've just never heard of a restaurant doing this before. To see their disclosure on the website, you must navigate to a link that says, “Dining Information” which then lists information on dress code, parking, children, seating limitations and options, etc. Again, never thought to look for something like this on a restaurant website.

So, my fault, clearly. That said, the person who took my call should not have implied we could “squeeze together” if he knew that was not going to be allowed. Also, it ended up that we were seated at a table (not a booth as previously indicated) and the table would easily have accommodated seven (or dare I say, eight). We asked our server…and we could tell that it was an absolute no. (Please know, we didn’t mean to upset you by asking – it just seemed like such an absurd limitation that we were a little bit in shock.) At this time, no people were waiting for seating and there were also a number of open tables (but I understand there may have been reservations).

In the end, we stayed and one person from our party moved to the open seating bar and ate alone. Maybe other restaurants are doing this now, too? If so, I’ve not encountered it before. Overall, just a disappointing experience considering the abundance of dining options in Kansas City. All things considered, The Rockhill Grille is likely not going to be concerned about losing...

Only came here to drink at the lounge area upstairs, but the ambiance is second to none around here. With the garage door style walls open, the view of the downtown skyline is amazing. There are plenty of couches to hang out on and plenty of space for a big crowd. I agree with drinks being overpriced, but you pay for what you get, and what you get is an amazing atmosphere. I'll be coming back to eat and try some of the delicious looking food.

EDIT: We went here a second time hoping to have a similar great experience, but left feeling like I crashed back to reality. There were major problems from the start. We wanted to drink upstairs, but it was closed for a party. We asked for a table and were told they didn't have any big tables reserved so we can start at a small one then move us to a bigger one later. Instead of taking up a big table, 6 of us comfortably sat around a smaller table to allow for bigger tables to be used by others. As the restaurant got busier on a Tuesday night, the manager asked one of us to stand up because he needed the chair for another table! He had absolutely no other plan on how to accommodate our table and must have expected one if us to stand in the middle of the dining room the rest of the night. It was uncalled for and later he apologized for any confusion, but never his actions which were rude for customers that had been there since 4pm. It was outrageous to think they had no other chairs to fill the other tables for situations just like this.

I also ordered the ribeye which comes with broccoli and mashed potatoes. For a steak costing over $30, it wasn't good. I asked for a medium steak and maybe got medium rare, the cut didn't seem too great, and the marinade just wasn't very good. The broccoli came as one big piece that needed the stem cut off just to eat it, and it was steamed but had zero flavor. The best part about the dinner were the cheesy tator tots appetizers and the drinks were in the so-so category. Our server was terrific though so service was spot on.

In all, I prefer grabbing a drink upstairs when it's open and having an appetizer. Otherwise, the true colors of this place shined and I wouldn't choose to eat there again in the downstairs dining room. It's way too expensive for...