McAlister's Deli — Restaurant in Marion

After McAlisters first opened our initial visit had a "blip" when they served us a regular bun for gluten free bread which my husband caught after eating a couple of bites. They made good with 2 free dinners & consecutive visits proved to make us very happy with the restaurant. Last week, however, they messed up my order with a sandwich instead of a wrap & had no fruit which my husband paid an extra dollar for. I didn't say anything because we were in a hurry. Tonight, however, the soda machine was on the fritz. When we placed our ordered the cashier never told us & our drinks were TOTALLY FLAT. My husband complained & they produced a 2-litre bottle of diet coke (I had ordered root beer) to refill our flat drinks. When our sandwiches came, wait staff informed us that they were out of fruit (AGAIN!) that we paid an extra dollar for. As my husband needs to be gluten free, the only thing he could substitute was potato chips which normally come with the dinner. This avoided another trip to the cashier. The order was already paid for so we lost another dollar .The capper was, I ordered soup & got no spoon. The wait staff said he would bring one & my husband had to chase him down 5 minutes later for it. I'm sure it wasn't a bad night considering it was a Thursday. & the place was empty. Not sure we'll go back. Too.bad because we love the food but not...

I am pretty happy that McAlister's opened in Marion since we go to others farther away when we travel. We've been there a few times since they opened and haven't had a bad experience. The place is new so everything is clean and nice.

They don't have their tumblers for sale at this location (at this time at least) but they honored the discounted refill price when we brought ours in which was great - definitely makes getting their "famous" tea easier on the pocketbook. Unlike the other McAlister's we sometimes go to, this has a self-serve ice tea station which I like since I like just a splash of sweet tea in my unsweet tea... They definitely have good iced tea.

In any case, the food was good as expected. As a salad/sandwich shop they have a nice selection, and we sometimes get their baked potatoes which is one of the best values on their menu. It's nice to have this eating option in Marion and while some may not consider this "fast food" this is how I classify McAlister's, so for this category, we've had only 5 star visits so far and expect that to continue. If you haven't been there yet, it's time to go. I also suggest you use their rewards program/app if you...

We luckily got there before the line was to the door and even went out the door a few times. People were having to sit at tables with dirty dishes on them. Not enough people to run food. There is definitely room for improvement as to how the restraunt functions which would improve customer experience and satisfaction. The sign said once you get her relax but that was not the case. It also said need a refill or anything let us get that. I never saw any staff refill drinks. I needed butterand sour cream for my baked potato I got up to get it, not a big deal it just goes agaisnt what they advertise. Also, why are they asking for tips to make a sandwich that i order at the counter? Subway doesnt do that. Now if you had a hostess at the front door seating staff providing menus and had waitresses taking orders refilling drinks, and had busers cleaning tables, as well as people running food I will gladly provide tips, which we do at 20% at any other restaurant that provides this type of service. Also, instead of order ahead why not have full drive through service?!? Otherwise food...