Bristol Seafood Grill — Restaurant in Leawood

Disappointed that I need to lower my previous 5 star review from 2 years ago (which was overwritten with this review, yet the owner response remains) to a 2-star review. But the experience just didn't deliver. Warning... if you have a reservation (ours was for an early 5 pm seating) but they still put you in The Leawood Room... immediately lower your expectations. Walking past the large open and welcoming main dining area with views of the kitchen, and then past the energetic bar area, felt like we were being brought into a hidden back room of a diner used for overflow customers (even though the photo on their website suggests something nicer).

We were dressed nicely... jacket and tie for me, dress for wife, and cute dress for my daughter before her dance. Yet the table next to us had 6 Chiefs fans sporting their favorite red jerseys. Nothing against showing your pride for a local team ready to play in the big game, but was a sharp contrast that impacted our expected atmosphere for a restaurant like this (and frankly these people should have shown a little more consideration and respect for their choice of restaurant and choice of attire for this type of venue). Unfortunately that's probably just the world today and lack of interest/ability for restaurants in enforcing any sense of dress code, such as the person leaving wearing shorts and sneakers from the main dining area as we arrived. Really?

A manager type was working the area filling water glasses and we didn't have our dinner order taken nearly 30 minutes. People behind us had to ask the biscuit server (yes, their biscuits are still great) for their bill because they hadn't seen their server for a while. Given our other commitments for the evening, and sensing they weren't running on all "cylinders", decided against ordering a full entree and opted for appetitizers and just one drink to stay on time.

Would have probably ordered more (and easily spent more) if service and atmosphere were better. Now the food we did have was still great (I got the same crab cakes I gave great reviews to 2 years ago), but left feeling like this was a big letdown for what could have easily been a nicer night, especially when leaving through the main dining room bustling with servers, energy, and ambience versus the back...

I'll give you the cradle to grave scoop. Made a Friday evening reservation the night before. Earliest time was 7:15. Took that for wife and I to celebrate our wedding anniversary. We got there about 7:05 and were seated at exactly 7:15. I know we are in a pandemic but you would have had no idea based on the number of people there. It was filled to the brim with a wait. I personally have no issue with it. The greeter wished us a lovely evening & Happy Anniversary - mind you we did not mention it! When we got to the table, there was a nice, personalized card stating the same! AND our waiter said the same! So, we were off to a great start. They immediately gave us each a complimentary glass of champagne to toast the evening - another nice touch. For starters - 1/2 dozen oysters on the half shell that were a 4 star though they were a little on small side (very tasty but you are not in New Orleans). Also had fried calamari that I would rate a 3 star (just OK). Had the mixed green salad which was excellent. Moved on to the main course of surf and turf. We each had 6 oz filet. Mine was excellent (5 star). My wife got hers medium well and it was dried out (3 star). i kinda blame her for getting medium well! I had scallops and wife had the shrimp. Both 5 star. We topped off with a piece of carrot cake (5 star). Total bill around $200. *Keep in mind it is very hard to get an overall 5 star from me. Our overall experience was 4 star drivin by the recognition of the anniversary. Service/wait on the food was a little slow but understandable with the lack of workers/help caused by the pandemic. Ambience of the place is nice. Kinda darker and cozy. I did see a waiter grab a bill after a table of two left. He immediately opened it up to look at the tip. Right away he grumbled under his breath and I heard the word cheap A$$. We are living in tough times so I guess I understand the waiters reaction. BUT people should always know that others are watching and listening. Overall the food was good, not great, but good. The nice touch knowing our anniversary definitely gave it a lift. Not sure I would come here for anything other than a special occasion (I come here with business vendors that pick up...

Went here for a family occasion and I made the mistake of ordering some steak. I figured since it was a high quality restaurant then the wagyu was a safe bet, but I was wrong. It was quite honestly the worst steak I've had in quite awhile.

It was a little tough when I got it (despite being ordered medium rare), but I decided to try it anyway. The meat was dry and the only flavor came from the char left by the grill. It didn't taste or look like any wagyu I had eaten before. When the waiter asked how it tasted I told her it was ok and she asked what was wrong. She offered to replace it and I accepted. She did a wonderful job and did everything she could to help make my experience better. I even told her that I was not sure that this was wagyu and that it looked like a strip that you'd buy from Hy-Vee.

When the steak came back, different woman (maybe the manager?) gave it to me. After sliding it onto my plate she kept repeating "does this seem like something you'd enjoy", which I thought was a strange question because I couldn't tell without actually tasting, so I asked her to let me test it. As I was cutting it and tasting it she kept repeating "does this seem like something you'd enjoy", which I felt was pushy, rude, and a little bit annoying. The second steak was even worse than the first. It was cooler, less flavorful, extremely chewy. At that point, I gave up. I told her "it's ok" and she turned around and marched off.

Overall, the worst steak I've had from a restaurant in Kansas City. I would not recommend it. On top of that, when we looked at the bill I found out that they did register the wrong cut of meat, which makes me believe that they did give me...