Denny's — Restaurant in Meridian Charter Township

This may be lengthy, so hang in there. So upon arrival to this Denny's, we first had to dodge the potholes that were large enough to swallow a small car. I can't believe that their property insurance even allows a liability nightmare like that. Once the adventure of parking was completed, that is where the disappointment started. We entered the facility to be greeted by a nice employee, but said nice employee could not find a seat for us as EVERY table was covered in dishes, and debris. Now, I would say that they must be busy and don't have time to get to the tables.......but there were only like 7 people in the entire restaurant and three of them were employees. We found the cook to be playing the claw machine for some silly coffee cups (poor guy never got one), and one employee looking for the "orange handle broom" because that is the only one that they wanted to use. The floor was so slick with some sort of grease like film that I felt like Disney on Ice. Ok, so on to the food order. So I ordered this "super spicy skillet". On this skillet the menu lists mushrooms, potatoes, chorizo, chicken, jalapenos, and peppers topped by a 5 alarm sauce. The waitress, our second waitress, came out to tell us about 15 minutes after we ordered that they were out of 5 alarm sauce. Well, I maintained my order as the food for the rest of my party was almost ready. Here is where it gets almost humorous. My super spicy skillet that no longer had its super spicy sauce came out WITHOUT CHORIZO, AND MUSHROOMS. So of the super spicy skillets 7 ingredients, it was missing 3. Maybe the cook should spend more time learning the menu and less time at the claw machine. Food was subpar at best, service was subpar (2nd waitress was much better), parking lot maintenance is damn near negligent, and housekeeping was poor. New staff, new housekeeping practices, new cook, and probably new management, and you may have something that you can work with. OH! Those pancake puppy things were pretty awesome. When a pancake puppy is the only star for the day, you need to...

I grew up going to Denny's at least once a month. Not this Denny's in particular, but I was a frequent customer of the Denny's franchise as a whole. I have great memories of the food (specifically the Moons Over My Hammy) and spending time with my family.

Well, this Denny's was nice, but it didn't align with my memories. Part of it is probably due to what the past few years did to big chain restaurants like this in my area. Part of it is something I can't quite put my finger on.

We were there for dinner. The lighting was low, and the restaurant was nearly empty. It took a while for someone to seat us. When we were seated, we were at a booth with a rip in the seating. The menu has changed over the years. I don't like the look of it. It's harder to find things. That's not a fault of this particular restaurant. What is their fault is that it took a while for someone to come take our order. Fortunately the food didn't take long after that. The burger I ordered was fantastic. The onion rings were very good, even if I only received five or six despite the upcharge from (wavy? since when do they have wavy) fries. One of my daughters enjoyed her macaroni and cheese, but it was pointed out to us that it's Kraft. That's probably another ding on corporate.

So the in-house food they prepare is good, but some other things aren't so great. The atmosphere could use some improvement, from lighting to seating. But the people working there are very kind. There are just things beyond the control of this location, which is a shame.

Another thing beyond their control, why aren't French fries included as an option...

So to be honest this really would have been a 2 start review if it wasn't for the manager.

The waitress didn't seem to really care much about the customers or checking their orders. After we put in our order and waited 20 minutes she came over and told us they were out of something for what we ordered (ok, but why did it take 20 minutes to say something?), then magically they did have it and our food showed up. But it had the wrong chicken (fried not grilled) and ice cold Alfredo sauce on top of the hot chicken. The waitress literally threw the plate down and walked away.

So I obviously noticed the ice cold Alfredo when I was clearing it off the chicken to see if it was actually grilled. This is when the very nice manager (I wish I could remember her name) came over and because she seen we weren't eating our food and trying to get the attention of our waitress (she was the only waitress wishing, but only had two other tables and was sitting playing on her phone and not looking up at any of her tables).

After the manager came over and I mentioned the issue with the alfredo sauce, she took it back and had it remade. She explained the kitchen staff were all new and learning.

In the end the food was average Denny's food (so average mediocre). Service was subpar (and that's being generous). Kitchen staff leaving me desiring more attention to their work. Management was great in saving customer service, but could be better in the actual management of the restaurant (if they had been watching/training their kitchen staff closer all these issues could've...