Mad Cow — Restaurant in Laurel

I was recommended to eat at this place and I gave it a chance, TWICE. so let's talk about it: (As a disclaimer: i know COVID has made it very challenging on restaurants and other businesses. But there should be no compromise when it comes to quality and cleanliness. If you can't handle quality control on the dishes on your menu, then simplify your menu temporarily until you can.)

FIRST VISIT: a simple lunch date. I had to ask the table I was seated at to be cleaned because it still had a sticky residue on it. I wished the Host noticed it before leading me to the booth but I'm sure times are "that" tough. I was first put off by the confusing menu; is it Jamaican? spanish? american? keto? asian? its very clear that this place doesn't know their own identity.

The online menu is not consistent with the menu offered in the restaurant.

Two dishes were ordered (reference image attached): A zucchini noodle keto dish and a shrimp curry dish with collard greens. Both dishes were different but both tasted the same. Definitely frozen and incredibly low quality. The drink I ordered was very strong and I appreciated that I got tipsy off of one drink, I love a good OVER-POUR. I ordered off of the cocktail menu and got a drink I expected from a frat party.

SECOND VISIT: I visited for drinks and bites to give the place another chance. The Parmesan brussel sprouts were definitely better, fresher and a saving grace. The oxtail is definitely NOT fresh and greasy which was incredibly disappointing. I ordered a tequila sunrise: and got a mango mixture instead-- it was not delicious in any way. I also find it laughable that the bar was unable to make a mojito, when they already had most of the ingredients but fresh mint. In my opinion the bar was not a complete bar with actual skilled bartenders-- bar tending is more than just pouring ingredients on top of each other. The juices and mixes they use in their drinks is definitely just concentrated processed "ish" and not worth my money. There's all that sugar to drown out the liquor-- if you like that then go try it out.

AMBIANCE: Every visit was uncomfortable and confusing. The staff undeniably looked overwhelmed and unhappy with their work conditions. There was deafening, blasting music around brunch and the evenings. Loud, obnoxious music that makes it impossible to hear the person next to you let alone your server. I love music to drown out the sounds of eating, but this restaurant thinks its a club that needs heavy bass to shake my drink and head. I feel pity for those that work there, I hope they get compensated for painkiller or migraine medication.

My visits were around April and early May which is before restrictions were lifted. But there were mask-less, glove-less servers and staff. Why are the standards so lax?

I've looked over other reviews and see people happy with their visits and that the food was enjoyable for them. Sorry not sorry but the meals are low quality and you deserve better for the money you're spending. The cleanliness aspect was nonexistent to me and i returned in hopes that the lack of cleanliness or standards was just a fluke. but the disappointment was probably the only thing consistent at this establishment.

Google response: consistently angry unremorseful response from Ed. No surprise on the repeat I’ve response. Take some time to work on things, grammatically. I don’t want a “call” I would hope you were making changes to improve the safety of your team and the customers that visit you. The article about your mother and a “glimmer of hope for restaurants “ is a shame because you have no safety precautions or practices in place. Advertising your food is fresh when it’s not is a serious issue that should be dealt with. Go ahead and continue ordering products from a third party, like your famous red velvet waffles, and put people’s health at risk. Again, you can boast and be delusional thinking you are the busiest in the dmv— but in the end your food is poor quality and you don’t value health or a...

If you’re thinking about dining at Mad Cow in Laurel, do yourself a favor and keep driving. From the moment we walked in, it was clear that professionalism and competence are not part of this establishment’s training manual.

Let’s start with the host stand: staffed by two young women who quite literally seemed confused by the concept of hosting. Neither possessed the common sense nor the communication skills to manage something as basic as seating guests efficiently. It felt like we had stepped into a bad high school group project — no structure, no urgency, and certainly no hospitality.

The food? An absolute disgrace. • I ordered the Rasta Pasta, and as a Trinidadian woman, I found it nothing short of offensive. The dish was a watery, bland mess — noodles floating in what tasted like seasoned dishwater with a dash of cayenne for fake heat. It had zero depth, zero creaminess, and absolutely no soul. Whoever’s in the kitchen clearly thinks Caribbean flavor begins and ends with pepper. It was culinary disrespect, plain and simple. • My boyfriend ordered a burger, and even that was a flop — dry, underseasoned, and simply not enjoyable. No condiments were brought out, and when we asked, our server was too busy sitting down scrolling through her phone to care. I had to physically get up and interrupt her personal break just to get ketchup. The bare minimum in service wasn’t even being attempted.

Service: Speaking of our server, after being asked for the check, she blinked at us like it was the first time she’d ever heard the word “check” before casually saying, “Oh, okay” — then disappeared for 20 minutes. Only to come back and announce he could just pay at the front. Girl… really?

Final thoughts? The staff clearly don’t want to be there, the cooks don’t know what they’re doing, and the menu needs a complete overhaul if this place ever wants to be taken seriously. Until then, save your money and your dignity — Mad Cow...

Went to Mad Cow for the first time for Sunday brunch. The music was extremely loud like day party brunch. I was with my mother and son for my son’s 22nd birthday. We were immediately sat by a host that didn’t say a word to us. When we got to the table, the vinyl on the seat was torn and the table was dirty. We asked the host to clean the table and he never acknowledged our request. Moments later he came by again to seat someone else and we tried to flag him down about the table being dirty. Again, he never stopped to acknowledge us. So as he passed, I said, “excuse me,” over the loud music. He just turned to me and put his hand up. We proceeded to look at the menus which were two stapled, black and white regular paper copies and one double sided color copy on regular paper. They weren’t even laminated and were so crinkled the ink was missing in places. A lady comes over to clean the table and proceeds to only wipe the half of the table closest to the aisle. The other half, closest to the wall, was where it was dirty. My mom asked her to wipe over there and she proceed to the wipe the crumbs in my mother’s lap. Never even asked us to stand. BUT she did say, “He told me someone over here was yelling so I thought I’d better get over here right away!” I said, “I wasn’t yelling, I was trying to get his attention!” She never acknowledged my statement but said, “Is this good? Is this good enough?” over top of me while I was trying to explain that no one was yelling. Obviously she couldn’t hear me over the music either. So to avoid actually yelling and having an even worse experience, we left, right then and there; with her standing there holding a rag. It’s amazing an establishment can turn you off within 5 minutes of arriving. Will never go back. The staff are ridiculous and rude and the restaurant...