Bob Evans — Restaurant in Monroeville

The night before Thanksgiving I called the Bob Evans in Monroeville 4 times around 7:30 pm EST to see how early I can call in 3 Thanksgiving dinners the next day. The line was busy twice and the other 2 times rang about 20 times before a Verizon auto message told me the number I dialed was not in service and to check the number I dialed. Early Thanksgiving morning I called same number and got right through. I was advised to call around 11 am although they had taken 10 orders already and gave me the impression they would not take mine at that time so I accepted (which I should've questioned in hindsight). When I called at 11 am, rang and rang then Verizon auto message again. ANGST! So at 11:15 I drive to Bob Evans to place my order that way anticipating a long wait BUT alas only one couple ahead of me so I placed my order quickly and was told it'll be just a few minutes! I was thrilled. The couple that ordered in front of me got their order within 5 minutes so still on track! BUT THEN, 10, 15, 25 minutes go by. I go up to the counter to check status and was given a confused look with the response "I'm not sure what's going on but I'm sure you'll be up in a few more minutes". 10 more minutes pass and nothing. The workers are looking confused. I approach them again asking why my meals are not ready. This is what I was told and something that should never be told to a customer. The very frazzled worker tells me "We are very short staffed because our cooks called off because it's the holiday AND she tells me that customers eating in, their breakfasts are easier and quicker to make so they are taking precedence over all take out orders.". I said to her "Are you kidding me right now!" So unprofessional and obviously not trained properly on how to handle such a situation. She offered her manager and I accepted. He saw me within 5 minutes. My overall impression about this manager was he looked incapable of understanding or handling the situation (my impression ended up being correct). He listened as I explained everything from my phone calls to the moment but all he did was look at me perplexed and said his staff that made those comments shouldn't have because they weren't true? That was it!!?? I was too exhausted to drag this situation on. He did force my meals to get wrapped up. The only positive thing that came out of this was the cashier who knew what was going on, when she finished packing up my meals, gave me 6 pieces of banana nut bread and an extra container of cranberries on the house. I have no doubt that my negative experience on this day was never addressed. The meals were on the salty side and the turkey slices (3) were paper thin. I will not fine at Bob...

I USED to go to IHOP specifically for their pancakes.....but it seems things have changed.

I USED to go to Denny's for their "Grand Slam" breakfast combination.....but it seems things have changed.......

There is one place however, which has remained consistent and consistently good and that is Bob Evans!

The food is ALWAYS perfect the coffee is ALWAYS hot the wait staff is ALWAYS smiling you can actually hear laughter and playful banter in the back kitchen area where it clearly shows the employees are actually enjoying and not dreading their time at work!

But above all that here is something that completely impressed me....an employee was at the restaurant on her day off when seeing the restaurant was getting crowded took it upon herself to clean off a table in preparation for the next guest to be seated!!!!!

ON HER DAY OFF!!!!!!!

Now of course The G.M. greatly showed his appreciation but reminded her that she couldn't work on her day off!

Who does that these days? That in my opinion was such an IMPRESSIVE observation that I asked to speak with the General Manager to specifically compliment him and his team and the level of commitment to the success of the restaurant by the particular employee who openly showed her dedication to her job by being willing to help out randomly spontaneously and knowing she wouldn't be getting paid to do so!!!!

Kudos to you Bob Evans in Monroeville PA.

Lastly for years I have made it a habit where I will select an elderly person or their entire table...a fellow Veteran....or a single mom who's there with one or more children and I quietly and discretely pay their bill for them and ask their waitress or waiter to not let them know that I did it until after I leave so as not to bring any attention to myself.....it's not about me....it's all about them!!!!

Do a random act of kindness for a complete stranger it may just make their day and I can assure you you'll feel kinda' good too! 🙂

The...

I called the week before Thanksgiving to confirm their holiday hours, and ask whether they were taking dine-in reservations (no). The woman I spoke with said to be prepared for a 45-min wait. When we arrived (around 4pm), I went in to put our name on the dine-in waitlist. The lobby area was fairly crowded, takeout on one side and dine-in on the other. Others waiting for dine-in were in good spirits, and helping those who walked in to find the right line. Those waiting in the takeout line were not so happy - there were apparently many takeout orders scheduled for the same pickup time, which caused an unexpected wait for them. Even though all the restaurant workers were clearly working hard to get and keep things moving, one takeout customer totally lost his cool, swearing and shouting at the staff before storming out. The workers handled the situation professionally, and moved on to the remaining customers after he left. Once the takeout line started moving, it seemed to move well; the workers said they had 200 takeout orders to process this year. We waited exactly 45 mins to be seated, and our delicious turkey dinner was attentively served by Sean. We were so glad we picked BE and chose to eat in. We came in expecting a bit of a wait, and that was good, because we did wait. We just made the best of it while we waited. After watching the 'process,' if we chose to order holiday takeout next year, I would: order an early pickup (before noon), check the order for accuracy before heading home, and reheat when we are ready to eat. Also, I would definitely get both pumpkin...