Red Lobster — Restaurant in North Haven

NEVER AGAIN! I cannot express enough the frustration we experienced just trying to have dinner. We went to the Red Lobster in North Haven 2 weeks ago for dinner. We were seated by the hostess, and no one came by our table for 10 minutes. Not a soul. We wanted drinks, we wanted to order apps, and there wasn't a wait staff in sight. After 15 minutes, a young woman stopped by and said she's our waitress and would be right back. And then nothing. We asked the hostess to be moved, which she did, and a young man said he'd happily take our table. They moved us to a section that wasn't his section apparently, and 5 minutes later the young woman who stopped at our first table came over to take our drink order. At this point, we did not want her, as we've been there for 20 minutes now and we're still seated in front of an empty table - no drinks, silverware, food, no nothing! So we said we were being taken care of by someone else, and at that point the young man who said he would take our table came over and said to the waitress that she could have the table, which really pissed me off, as he just told us he'd take our table, and while I wanted to get up and leave, my dinner companion did not, as he claimed to be starving and just wanted to eat. We stayed. We both had the Create your own Ultimate Feast, for $50/each. Everything good is an upcharge- brussel sprouts, mac and cheese, drinks that weren't thoroughly watered down... everything. We ordered crab legs - got no seafood crackers, no nothing to open them up. Waited a good 10 min for the waitress to bring them to us after asking. Twice! The manager came over to the table to check on us, as she was making her rounds through the restaurant, and asked how we were doing. We said it was okay, but complained so we didn't have the utensils needed to eat our meal . She had the waitress finally come out with the crackers to open the shells and she must've seen that the crab legs had been sitting out there for quite a while, so she brought us a fresh plate of them, but by this time I was just done and wanted to get out of there. $180+ later, we left disgusted with the service. It really is disappointing, because the food wasn't bad. It actually was surprisingly quite good, but who the hell wants to wait around for 20 minutes before ever being acknowledged by their waitstaff? Ridiculous. The place was practically empty. Despite my better judgment, my companion left a very decent tip (over 22%) for the service we received, but like I said when I started this review,...

I’ve always said that you can taste the difference from between now to about 4-5 years ago before they changed the kitchen staff and hired better cooks. The food is usually great and the staff is never disappointing. Today, the biscuits served to us were cold… we told our server Vanessa who immediately got a fresh batch with no problem. She was pleasing to be served by, very nice, respectful and sweet. We received our appetizers which were great. Then our Entrees. The Manager, short Caucasian woman, dark hair, blue eyes, always has hair up - walks by and asks how our food is. We got our food about 10m prior and I HAD NOT touched my steak yet BUT we told her it’s good - which it was! My broccoli was great, the loaded potato was good, the lobster tail 👍🏽, my drinks were great - the passion colada always is….what was wrong???? I Finally got to my steak. I asked for my steak to be cooked MEDIUM RARE. Vanessa repeated it back as any server would. I cut my steak open in three sections . It was dry and cooked fully through, WELL DONE. I continued eating everything else as I waited for Vanessa to make another round. We hadn’t seen her for some time so we asked another server to grab her. She came out after about 15-20 mins later and we told her the steak was not cooked per my request. We asked her if it was possible to just take the steak off. (Because I hadn’t eaten it and having a new one cooked wouldn’t suffice because I was already full eating everything else while waiting) Vanessa apologizes and leaves with the food and says she’s asked the manager to remove it. I’m thinking remove the steak (percentage of the meal). All of a sudden you hear…”IT WAS VANESSA’S, NO VANESSA’S!!!! THEY LIED”…screaming from top of her lungs in the kitchen. I asked Vanessa if she got in trouble and of course she denied with a smile. No one lied ma’am, had you played your managerial role and came over and asked what the issue was with the meal yourself, we’d have told you everything else was fine, as we initially said, the issue was my steak seemed like it was reheated to well done. Instead of medium rare and still steaming like it usually is when I eat there. My meal was removed in full which I am grateful for, but why remove it if you wanna disgrace everyone’s dinner with yelling and screaming and berating at the staff saying someone is lying. It was rude and disgusting. We did however leave Vanessa a 30% tip for...

Red Lobster offers a pleasant dining experience with good service and a clean environment. The menu features a variety of delicious options, but some dishes are better than others. The biscuits and fried shrimp are highlights.

Full Review: My recent visits to Red Lobster have been consistently enjoyable, with a pleasant dining atmosphere and good service. The restaurant was not overly crowded, which contributed to a comfortable dining experience. The cleanliness of the establishment was also noticeable, adding to the overall positive impression.

The menu at Red Lobster offers a variety of options to suit different tastes, whether you're in the mood for a steak with lobster tail or unlimited shrimp. On both of my visits, I found the service to be excellent, with efficient and courteous waitstaff who were attentive to our needs.

As with any restaurant, some dishes are better than others, so it's worth keeping that in mind when making your selection, especially if you're planning to take advantage of the unlimited shrimp option. Additionally, there were times when certain menu items were unavailable, which was a bit disappointing.

However, the biscuits at Red Lobster are always a highlight, with their buttery, flaky goodness that is simply irresistible. The fried shrimp was also delectable, with a crispy coating and tender, flavorful shrimp inside.

One thing to note is that if you opt for the unlimited shrimp option, as with any unlimited offering, there may be a delay in receiving your order from the kitchen. It's important to be prepared for this possibility to avoid any disappointment.

Both of my experiences at Red Lobster have been consistently positive, with good service, a clean environment, and delicious food. While there are some minor drawbacks, such as occasional menu item unavailability and delays with the unlimited options, the overall experience has been excellent. I would rate Red Lobster a solid 4 out of 5.

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