Islands Restaurant Pasadena — Restaurant in Pasadena

I used to come here a lot during grad school but ever since post COVID, this particular restaurant has gone down hill. DO NOT COME AFTER 7:00 p.m. (they close at 9:00 p.m. but the sign outside is still posted as 11:00 p.m.). The food and service are beyond mediocre. Last week, the fries were soggy and they ran out of iced tea after my very first order but yet proceeded to charge me for it; had to drink water thereafter due to no other unsweetened drinks. Yesterday I went for wings; they were out. I ordered the Huli Huli crisp sandwich (without any of the sauces) and all I could taste was the cooking oil that it was fried in. A very young waitress asked if she could take my full basket of fries, hinting they were closing soon. Never coming to this location again.

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Based on the response below, I decided to give it another “go” but without contacting “Kayla” (management). My reviews are not for sale. It was the same mediocre customer service I experienced a while ago; the bartender seemed to pay more attention to the regulars whom the staff called by name (I sat at the bar to watch the Dodger game after a long day at work). I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt that it was not based on my appearance. The bartender was “nice” but again, as an avid sports enthusiast who frequents sports bars, I realized she wanted her “guaranteed tips.” I had to wait several minutes to ask different waitresses (a second time) for more “Cholula” hot sauce “packets” (they gave me 2-packets initially), due to my small tortilla soup and fish tacos needing more spicy flavor. By the time I got the hot sauce packets, my food was lukewarm. Overall, the food, drinks and experience were definitely not worth $50 (plus tip). The menu has changed post-pandemic and is in dire need of better flavor, and smaller portion option combinations....

My wife and I wanted to try this place again after decades of abstaining. We didn't have kids back then but thought it would be fun to take them.

Service I can't complain about the service. Everyone was happy, willing to help. Pretty impressed since I can't imagine it's a great place to work, but what do I know. Our waitress was nice. We asked for a meal taken off the tab because our daughter wasn't impressed, she obliged, but I sensed she was a bit peeved. Maybe because she thought her tip may be impacted. Idk... But that's not how I roll.

Atmosphere I was really hoping for more innovation with regards to atmosphere, but it just feels like a super lazy chain with super lazy owners who really don't understand how to create an atmosphere. It was just nonexistent, sloppy, old, lazy, and lackluster.

Food Same as atmosphere. I think they need to try a bit harder here. The kids menu is bleak. The kids Mac and cheese was literally the blue box Mac and cheese. Don't anyone tell me otherwise. The burger meat is more than likely a frozen patty, the chicken is awfully dry and bowls don't have much flavor. The beer is pretty good, but that was about all my wife and I had enjoyed.

In summary, we will never be back to another Islands ever again. There's really no point. I don't feel like overpaying for substandard food and atmosphere. I love spending money on food when I know the value is there... And for Islands sadly it just isn't there. Pasadena is full of amazing restaurants - no need to ever...

I have been coming to Islands since childhood. The first time my friends and I went out to dinner when we were 13 without our parents was to Islands and it felt like such an experience. 15 years later I still loved going to islands we used to go to the Islands in Old Town, Pasadena but that one has been closed for like 3 years now. We started coming to Islands on Foothill and usual its okay. But the last time it was just mediocre.

I don’t under what happened to the quality of the food. It was 5 of us and we all noticed the burger patties had no flavor and seemed way thinner than the usual patties. The lettuce that was on the burgers had been rinsed before it was added to the burger because it made the bread super soggy. The fries were over salted and not crispy felt soggy as well. We had a basket a wings and once again the chicken had almost no meat on it when they used to be such juicy drum sticks! We spent over $100 dollars to feel supper unsatisfied at least the drinks were decent!

After almost 20 years of supporting Islands I think the time has come to part ways with this establishing which is super disappointing since I could always gather my small group of friends to reminisce on old memories over good food, now its just good memories of...