Ladonna's Grill — Restaurant in Meeker

Excellent sides and huge portions. Everything on the menu looked great and it was hard to choose!

Do try the onion rings! They're amazing! They're huge and the batter breading is both light and crispy. My mother, who makes her own onion rings, said she thinks Ladonna's are double battered.

They have excellent sides, although twice I've gotten steamed broccoli (with all the fried food I ate, you gotta have a green vegetable!) and the broccoli has been undercooked, with the stem or stalk part nearly raw. Come to think of it, the florets were nearly raw, too. Anyway, I would just request that they steam it until the broccoli is a bit softer whenever you order it. Both times I went I had shrimp. Fried shrimp, and then a shrimp sampler type platter which included fried shrimp and shrimp scampi. Both were excellent, very good. The scampi is especially rich though, lots of butter. Don't order it if you're watching your weight!

The kids' meals are large portions as well. I don't usually order a kids' meal for my toddler but I did at Ladonna's. Huge portion of spaghetti and sauce (no meat in the sauce, which is what we prefer!) and garlic bread. She may have gotten a side, too; I don't remember. She loved the garlic bread and I ended up spooning the sauce on to it to get her to eat at least a semblance of vegetables.

The dining room is spacious and the seating never feels crowded. You don't overhear other diners' conversations, which is nice. If the mafia held meetings in Shawnee, they'd choose a booth at Ladonna's for privacy and rest assured no one would hear their plotting.

The Daily Special sounded a bit unusual. It was a "Farmer's Plate" consisting of a bunless hamburger Patty, mashed potatoes, and gravy in some odd configuration. I wish I could remember it because I remember thinking that was a very unconventional and possibly unpalatable way to serve those items. But if it's a "Special" someone must like it. Previous specials have been Indian tacos (on fry bread, I'm assuming) and prime rib.

Overall, this is typical small town American food, but standouts like the onion rings make it worth the visit. If they have other items they're "known for" that are as good as the onion rings are, I'd suggest trying them. Ask your server what's good;...

While it is a popular place, I have been here several times to try different menu items. I am giving my review based on an average experience over the course of several visits in the past year. While the food in general is quite good, there a handful of items that need tweaking. My chief complaint is that when the menu clearly states 'two chicken breasts' in the description of an item, this is what should arrive. Inconsistently I have been served 1 breast, 2 breasts, or even tenders in place of the breasts. When I ask the waitstaff about the issue, I am treated as if I am a nuisance for asking or straight lied to and told "it always comes that way." To that point, service here though generally very friendly can be quite inattentive. It is quite normal to wait 15 minutes for your server to greet you and get your drink order. Check backs are hit or miss, but once they get irritated by questions about the food or requests for things to be corrected they do not attempt to offer dessert, just push you out. In all, atmosphere is a bit boring, but country style. Like sitting in a large church hall or barn to eat with minimal decoration and basic tables. Some of the booths are in disrepair, but the place is generally clean and well kept. Temperature fluctuates from freezing or warm. Really no rhyme or reason there, bit it is generally comfortable.

Basically, if you like good food, and don't mind a bit of deviation from the menu this is a great place to stop by as long as you are not in a hurry. Slow country eating in family setting. Onion Rings are definitely a win as are the loaded potato slices. Pricing is also fair.(As long as you get...

The food is really great! However…Went on a Friday night—super busy! Service was slow, and one of our five meals didn’t come until 15 minutes after all the others. 2 people joined us and it took 20 minutes for their order to be taken and another 30 for it to be delivered. Server said they didn’t have enough cooks. So we figured what the heck, they are busy, it happens. Went the next night, Saturday, because the food was really good. This time there were very few patrons. Order taken quickly and drinks brought to table. Took 20 mins for food to come. No utensils. Had to ask for silverware. Was brought 2 forks. Just forks. Had to ask for napkins. Hubby’s order was incorrect. Had to take it back. Also he didn’t have a knife to cut up his chicken. Entree sized salad was unimpressive with very little chicken on it. Restaurant was dirty with food and eating utensils under every unused table. We really like the food, but the service and appearance of the dining room were really bad. Maybe need to hire more people, or train them better. Good food with poor service does not keep customers...