J Arthur's Restaurant — Restaurant in Maggie Valley

I've debated long on even posting this review but I decided others need to know about the dedication to the customers and the business as a whole that the owner has. My husband and I, recently in Maggie valley for our anniversary, found j Arthurs who came highly recommend from the owner of the motel we were in across the Rd. I gave this review 4 stars based solely on the food, decor and how the owner handled our unique situation that I folded. Now to elaborate on that, food was good. I had the ribeye and mashed potatoes. First steak was a bit tough but the second was steaming hott and tasty. The trout.. . Chef's kiss. Call the food network. My picky eater husband was a member of the clean plate club and raved about that trout. The rolls were a smidge tough but that's a personal preference. Salad with ranch was fantastic. Good quality ranch dressing. Good sweet tea too which any true southern one knows is the make it or break it. Now on to the service which is where it gets dicey, mind you we saw some amazing servers in there. Steve being one of them going above and beyond however, for us, I will not mention names as the waitress we had does not deserve any form of recognition. She was slack to begin with through the meal and much preferred speaking to my husband over myself. Her issues come at the close of the meal after we paid and was exiting I'd stopped to speak with the manager ( whom is also the owner) on a totally unrelated note from the waitress we'd had or the issue with the steak simply on something I'd noted that she may wanna correct so it didn't cause any issues. Said waitress we had saw me waiting and approached me, asked me if I'd forgotten something to which I replied that I'd not but was waiting for said manager to seat a gentleman. She then blows up in my face yelling at me asking me what my problem was and why I didn't like her and didn't tip her on my card. I told her I had every intent of leaving cash with the manager as I'd not caught her name during what little time she was with us. No matter how far I backed away and just agreed with her she got lowder and closer to me. I was trying to just hush her for the sake of the other customers but she had none of that. So after said episode with Ms waitress the manager/owner took my name and number to address the situation after the evening rush which was beginning to amp up by this time. The way this lady showed compassion for the unfolding situation and complete shock at her employee was what led to my review. She made it right. She's left me wanting to return to the establishment in hopes of the true j Arthurs experience others raved about. I can honestly tell you she cares about that business and the customers whom patron it. She heard me and validated my feelings and made the decision best for the company. I appreciate the professional way she handled the situation and will definitely go enjoy more dinner at j Arthurs who knows maybe I'll try that mountain fresh trout myself. Thanks again Erin, you run a beautiful establishment and cherish Steve. He's a gem!! Btw for those wondering the waitress we had was offered a one way ticket to new employment opportunities apart from j Arthurs which I hate for her right at the holidays but she did...

Last night was our 38th anniversary and we wanted to enjoy a nice dinner. We made reservations for 6:00 PM since it is an extremely popular establishment and we knew that, on a Friday night, it would be busy. Arriving a few minutes early, the parking lot was full, and people were being told there would be about a 30-minute wait. Since we had a reservation, we were seated soon after arriving.

Stephanie introduced herself as our server and we quickly were brought our drinks and a plate of rolls with butter. We had already decided we would have cheese sticks as our appetizers. I can truly say that I have never had better ones! They were piping hot, made with actual mozzarella cheese that stretched like you'd see in a commercial (but never actually is), and served with a bowl of marinara sauce. Soon thereafter we ordered our dinners.

My wife had an 8 oz. prime rib, a baked potato, and a side salad. I decided to have their full rack of ribs and also had a potato with a salad. Her prime rib was cooked to medium (as she requested) and it was excellent! It was tender and was served with horse radish. My ribs were tangy, tender, and even though I was given a knife, I easily cut them with my fork as they fell off the bone. Our salads and baked potatoes were delicious accompanied the meal perfectly!

We could not have chosen a better restaurant to celebrate our evening. The food was truly without equal, and the portions were quite generous (we needed to get to go containers!). The atmosphere was relaxing and each of the staff members were extremely customer service oriented and professional. I would like to especially thank Stephanie for taking care of us! She was very attentive, and even though J. Arthur's was full, she never let our glasses go empty and checked on us frequently to ensure we did not need anything.

J. Arthur's Restaurant is, in my opinion, the premiere dining experience in Maggie Valley and surrounding area. The food is superb. The atmosphere is relaxing and the perfect place to celebrate after a hectic week. The service is outstanding and sets the standard for other restaurants. THIS is the place to bring your company to showcase a mountain vacation! Set a reservation, bring your family and friends, and bring your appetite!

My bride and I would like to thank J. Arthur's Restaurant, and especially to Stephanie, for a memorable evening! We will...

We ordered mozzarella sticks, the filet and chicken parmesan...

The mozzarella sticks were acceptable simply because they come with a good marinara sauce, definitely not award winning by any mean.

Really expected my $35 filet to taste better than a $10 sirloin from sagebrush down the road but was wrong... Tasted like oil, probably a decent cut thrown on a flattop grill with nonstick spray.

Our salads with no tomatoes came to the table as lettuce and tomato only, even after asking about the onions and croutons that were missing we get a small dish with yet again, more tomato. Loaded potato came with sour cream only, asked about the rest of the toppings and our server just blamed new kitchen staff even though any decent server would notice these multiple issues that would have mostly been avoided with a simple pen and paper to write the order on.

The chicken parmesan has the same sauce as the mozzarella sticks which is a decent sauce but the chicken itself is just bland with no flavor at all.

After asking for both to be removed from our check because we didn't want them the server seemed to catch an attitude about taking them back.

Expecting a manager to come inquire about the disappointing meal we received also never happened, just who I assumed to be the host bringing the check for which I assumed would be the mozzarella sticks and maybe the drinks... Again was I wrong, looking at a $30 check for two side salads (with no toppings except an entire tomato) and two baked potatoes that also remained untouched.

I honestly should have just left the check on the table... Will never be returning.

I've have bad food and I've had bad service but rarely, if ever has a restaurant...