Red Lobster — Restaurant in Mount Juliet

We had a terrible experience at the Red Lobster in Providence in Mount Juliet, and wrote about it (see below).

To date, 04/07/24, no response from Red Lobster

Well, let’s see if this is still how they like doing things.

Not a word from the management or franchisee.

August 2022 until 01/26/2024 and not a word.

That’s pitiful.

Hello, it has been almost a year since my wife and I had this terrible experience at the Red Lobster restaurant in Mount Juliet, TN, in the Providence Shopping Center.

I am wondering how long I should wait to have a manager or the franchise holder contact me about our unbelievable experience at this location.

Please tell me how long I should wait for the franchise holder to respond!

Apparently this is the experience the franchise holder wants you to have as I have never been contacted regarding my experience at the Mount Juliet Red Lobster.

[As of today, 6 months from the date of this horrible experience at the Red Lobster Seafood Restaurant in Mount Juliet, TN, I have not had anyone respond. ]

Original post below.

I have not heard from the franchisee. Pitiful.

My wife and I chose RL in Providence-Mount Juliet, TN, for lunch after church, today, August 7th, 2022.

Before today, we have visited RL MJ, frequently.

We were seated by the hostess, a young female that told another customer also waiting to be seated, that she couldn’t see her and that she should wave her arms (because the hostess was not at the hostess stand).

We were seated in a booth, the same one we ate in on December 20th,2021, when we took my mother to lunch for her 95th birthday.

Remember, We visit RL frequently.

My wife went to wash her hands, and I ordered our drinks (tea) extra lemons, and seafood stuffed mushrooms, straws and sweetener.

My wife returned and then I went to wash my hands.

While I was gone, my wife spilled her unsweetened tea.

We had our appetizer delivered by a food runner, who was told by my wife of the obvious tea spill, (tea everywhere) She probably expected some assistance.

None offered, none given and either he didn’t mention it to my server or she decided to stay away for the next 20 minutes.

When I returned, I used the two napkins that our silverware came in, and I made 5 trips to the men’s bathroom getting no fewer that 15 paper towels each time, returning to the table to clean the mess up that had by now rolled onto the seat on my side of the booth.

5 trips to the men’s room for paper towels.

Unbelievable.

Remember the food runner that delivered to my table, yea, me too.

Still no server.

So, I have now made 5 trips to the mens room to get supplies to clean this mess up, and still haven’t seen my server.

I made one trip to the hostess stand and got new silverware (I got it myself from the bin, as the hostess watched from 20 feet away with no comment or reaction).

This show has taken about 20 minutes so far.

I returned to my table and about 3-5 minutes later, my server shows up.

I asked for a replacement tea.

I asked again for straws and sweeteners. Yup, 20+ minutes.

The server excused herself, went to the back and returned with a tea and sweetener.

She had straws in her apron pocket.

Shortly after, our entrees were delivered by a food runner.

No plates for the appetizer.

This was as close to a total failure as I have seen in years.

Oh, by the way, I am in the hospitality industry.

I will be taking a break from Red Lobster for a long while, if we ever return.

There are too many other good options available for meals within a mile of this RL.

My experience was...

This is a review of how Red Lobster actually responds to concerns, beyond concerned-seeming posts on social media like Google. Sadly, like my review of the seafood on my last visit (see below), this is also one star.

Two and a half weeks after I posted the one-star review below, and then responded as the GM asked--on, it turns out, the Red Lobster feedback website--I’ve heard nothing. They have both my phone and my email, and not even a light touch back, to tell me when they’ll be responding fully.

Getting such a concerned-sounding response with no actual follow-up leaves me thinking that not only is Red Lobster now too aggressive managing bottom line numbers like spoilage, but they’re also managing the fallout on social media by manufacturing a responsive seeming presence. All hat and no cattle, or better, all shell and no lobster.

Red Lobster used to have reliably good seafood, and reliably responsive service. Now it feels like rolling the dice. Most of the time it will still be great; but I also have to be prepared to steel myself and push back, when an indifferent management is more concerned with numbers and appearances than my experiences as a customer.

Stay tuned … I’ll review Red Lobster’s responsiveness every couple of weeks, until I hear back.

Original review from 1/18/20

Great, patient service with horribly screwed up seafood…

I’ve been to this location about a dozen times because the quality of the seafood has been consistently solid. (I worked in my father’s east coast fish store, and know my way around…) Red Lobster has always had its seafood supply chain rock solid, from flash-freezing on the boat all the way to the table top.

Not at all so this past Wednesday (Check #39047). Two of us didn’t order seafood and did fine. One of us tried to avoid seafood (Lobster Pizza without the lobster). It came out with lobster the first time, and then the replacement was rushed out with the cheese barely melted.

And then there was the dreadful experience of the seafood lover. She ordered a dozen oysters, nice and fresh but that were served without detaching the muscle from the lower shell. (I did that for her.) She also ordered the Ultimate Feast. The broccoli came out cold. The mashed potatoes were cool and gummy. THE SNOW CRAB AND THE LOBSTER TAIL ON THE PLATTER HAD BOTH GONE SERIOUSLY OFF, to the point that I figured that a new GM is now too aggressive driving bottom line numbers like spoilage (in turn a reason for the kitchen to stop trying to take pride in the product). Crab and lobster were both much too old, had been thawed too many days prior, to have been prepared no less to leave the kitchen. We sent it back. I then went to the front and picked a fine, kicking lobster out of the tank to have it steamed. The lobster, of course, was fresh … but this time, instead of just splitting the bottom (a great idea) the way they usually do, they “cleaned” out the body, keeping the 10-15% of the lobster’s meat that’s in the body core to re-purpose for some other dish.

Through all this our server was great, and an assistant manager very apologetic (though she didn’t take off the lobster pizza the way she said she would). For me, though, it adds to my frustration when people on the line clean up after and apologize for managers who are unlikely ever to be held accountable.

An unexpected...

I went to this Red Lobster for the first time tonight and I was already skeptical because the reviews are lower than I would prefer. I order the shrimp pasta online and had it scheduled for an 8:40pm pick up: I arrived with my two daughters to pick up the item and noticed other people were getting their items and walking out and I didn't see my order come up. When I inquired about my order and told them it should be ready by now, the young lady working the To Go area said she Couldn't find the order any where and she said Are you sure you ordered it from here ?

I showed her the order number and details and she said let me look again . She came back ten min later and said I found the order and she stated that someone had moved the ticket to an area where she couldn't see it. She said I will Bag it up And bring it out when new bread is ready.

I stood there for a while longer and then she came back and said it may be longer because we don't have bread cooked.

Around 928pm. I gave up and said let me go ahead and cancel the order . A manager came Out and said I can cancel it but it will be another ten min to cancel in the system and will take 10 to 14 days before the refund processes due to it being an online order.

She came back with a receipt for me showing the items were refunded .

I am wondering, is this a typical situation?

The website makes you pay online in order to pick Up Orders so I didn't have a choice but to pay in advance but now I am Waiting 14 Days to get a refund and I still have to go elsewhere for the food .

Çan a member of management walk me through how to do this differently for the next time I order ?

I left confused and very hungry still . My daughters had already eaten at Martins BBQ and I was suddenly regretting that I didn't simplify my evening and eat with them Earlier . I left regretful and...