Palmers Fresh Grill — Restaurant in Lexington

Absolutely disappointed in the service and the accommodations from this restaurant. We reserved a table for my fiancé’s 40th birthday over 2 weeks before. We had 10 in our party. My fiancé and I arrived at 5:40 and checked in with the hostess. We were informed that the table behind the hostess stand was for us. This table had a current party seated/ this party didn’t seem to be anywhere close to being finished and also had 3 very young children. I let it go and said ok we would check back. At 6:15pm most of our party had arrived and still no table. I went back to check in asking if there was an alternative table since we had everyone there and were ready to be seated. I was informed that due to covid they could not seat us anywhere although the restaurant was almost completely empty. They then told me that there was an 11 top using a large table inside. I asked “ well have they arrived because I have 10 people without a table and a reservation for almost 20 mins ago” finally the teenage boy I said this to must have told the manager. She came outside and said they would create an area for us half inside / half outside. I agreed but worried that Because of the location of this table we would be ignored and forgotten and the table service would suffer. But what can one do? So they seated us and my fears of bad service were realized. In fact I’ve rarely had worse. The waiter did not seem like he had ever had a large party or been trained at all in fine dining or really any dining. For a place who charges almost 25$ a plate / you would expect better. At one point a lady in our party asked for a glass of water/ he looked at her and said “ I brought these waters out this one is your extra” he points to a glass in the middle of the table that had been there a long time and had no ice or anything. Never offered to refresh the ice or bring a fresh glass etc. the straw that broke the camels back was when it came time to bring the cake out. I had specifically brought the cake to the restaurant at 11am that morning (I live over 45 mins away) and this waiter brings out the cake in the box it came in. With no candles / no thought of singing happy birthday no nothing. And to top it off the birthday boy was in the bathroom when it arrived! Talk about clueless ! I had to go get the manager to get candles and a lighter / I expressed how bad our service was and she muttered an apology but that was it. Nobody offered any thing else / no extra service / no discounts not a damn thing. I am very upset with this scenario. If you are looking for a nice evening out with friends for a special event...

This was my first and last visit at Palmer's. I was recommended this restaurant by the local visitors center. First off not a convenient location inside a shopping center, then followed by the 2 bumbling greeters that made you feel unwelcome for the fact we had no reservations, which we were unaware of. My mother had a bad back and we asked for a booth or table.We only had the option to sit in the bar on the high top table with uncomfortable bar stools, the restaurant was empty with vacant tables, you could hear a pin drop, what was the issue. We then sat in the bar area. The menu was terrible, barely any choices with inflated prices to boot. We sat there a bit before a waitress approached us, we choose salad and soup because nothing on that menu looked good to eat. A small hard crusted bun came out sliced in six small pieces for 3 people!!!! With thier house olive oil herbal mix to dip in...this dip was terrible, so bitter tasting something like an after taste when you get powder residue from a pill you take, horrible. Then our salads came out, with their so called special vinegrette dressing, yuck is all I can say, this too bitter tasting and unpalitble, first salad I've eaten that I hated it with every bite. The waitress really was absent most of the time and had other waitresses help, we then asked for butter and fresh bread instead of that bitter dip, the new bread served still hard to eat and the butter pats in foil hard as a rock you could not spread the butter and appeared wrinkley like they been recycled from hot to cold. We asked if the butter could be slightly warmed to spread and no one brought any...we told waitress how we disliked the dipping oil, the salad dressing, and hard roll, but no apologies or fixing the situation, just a oh well that is how we make it, and a look of too bad, just eat it, with no correcting or offering anything else. Needless to say no tip was left and I will never eat here again nor will I recommended this place to dine. The lack luster service , minimal menu and overboard pricing is a complete downfall to this place. I don't see this place as high end fine dining by any...

On a chilly Saturday, Fat Man Reviews ventured to Palmers Fresh Grill in Lexington, KY. Palmers serve New American cuisine and cocktails, while offering a waterfront patio.

I started with the Old Fashioned Breakfast. This is made with Knob Creek Smoked Maple Bourbon, Regan’s Orange Bitters, orange peel and candied bacon. The maple is present throughout, the bacon was crispy and the grease adds to the flavor. The ice was embellished with a P for flair.

My fiancé tried the Sangria, this was made with White Peach and Red Strawberry wine. The drink had a great fruity smell but was overall watery.

I decided to try the Black & Bleu burger with truffle fries. This is made with blackened spices, bleu cheese, caramelized onions, brioche bun, lettuce and tomato. I ordered the burger medium, but it was closer to well, but it was still juicy and seasoned well. The bun and tomato were fresh, but the onions were more sautéed than caramelized. The blue cheese was salty and helped to cut through the blackened burger. The fries were out of a bag and cooked well, but they were not the truffle fries, instead they were the bistro fries. The house smoked ketchup was pretty good but a little sweet.

I also tried the Palmers Corn & Clam Chowder. This is made with clams, corn and red peppers. The broth was light and buttery, the vegetables were cooked well with a slight crunch for texture. The clams were a little over done and slightly chewy. The flavor was nice in this soup.

My fiancé tried the Cod Sliders and bistro fries. This is made with fried cod, house made tarter sauce on a bun. The sandwiches were fried well, and the buns were soft and fresh. The tartar sauce was tangy and just the right touch.

Palmers have several dishes including a lot of fresh seafood, and they offer brunch, lunch and dinner. The waterfront view offers a great patio space and there are bands that perform in the summer. They have a full bar and the staff was very pleasant. The Fat Man says that Palmers Fresh Grill is Fat Man Approved...