LongHorn Steakhouse — Restaurant in Pensacola

We received a gift card so I though it would be nice place to eat. It was not until I walked in that I remembered I have eaten at a Long Horn Steak House in Fort Walton Beach back in 2001 and swore I would never go back. It sucks there was not Google reviews back then because I would have re-gifted the card to someone else.

On Saturday 4/5/2025 My Husband and I went to the Pensacola Long Horn Steak House. I reserved my place in line online to get in faster, The app said there was not wait so I was glad. When we walked in it was more than 3 minutes before we were even greeted, even though several employees walked near the hostess stand, even looked at us as they were returning menus. When we finally did get greeted by the hostess we were sat right away. It took another 5 minutes before Mia our server came to the table. 5 minutes of the most gut wrenching baby crying and screaming to where we almost walked out.

We ordered bread and butter to start with a sweet tea with lemon and a raspberry unsweetened tea. The butter was cold and hard and the bread was luke warm. We had to use our Steak Knives (Mini Sword) to cut the bread and butter it as well. The sweet tea had lemons floating in it instead of on the rim or on the side, and the raspberry unsweetened tea tasted like they used some sort of syrup, not very good. Mia brought a refill before the drinks were barely gone and I had her take the raspberry tea refill back because I did not want it.

The Problem with food runners running food for servers is they drop and run, they do not know what the guest asked the server for. The chopped salad did not have extra blue cheese and the caesar salad reminded my of the kind you would get at Denny's in the 90's. Once again, we had to use our steak knives (mini swords) to cut our salads because the pieces of lettuce were so big there was no way to bite them with out making a mess. We had to ask our server three minutes after the salads were dropped off for the extra blue cheese, and wait some more while she went to go get the dressing and bring it back.

When the food runner brought our meals, once again, with out our requested wine with our meal, I was disappointed I did not get my wine but, excited because the food actually looked good. "Got the biggest steak in the game wearing our name. Or 22oz Porterhouse combines a bone-in strip and generous filet into one thick cut expertly grilled over the fire to bring out the flavor" is a 1/2 inch thick cut? I think not! I wiped off my Knife (mini sword) for the third time and cut into my potato and was immediately disappointed. Why salt the out side if you can not eat it. I like a slightly crispy skin, but this thing was burnt. By the time Mia came by with our wine 5 minutes later our food was starting to get cold.

I have to say the steak was cooked perfect medium, I will give them that, But meat to plate ratio was ridiculous. I almost lost my meat onto the table several times while cutting it with my knife (dull mini sword)

In conclusion, if it were not for the gift card we would have turned around at the hostess stand (which I wish we did). The ambiance is that of a Denny's not a place to get a $40 dollar Steak. If you are paying cash they round up padding their pocket a bit more. Our check was $109.91, the gift card was $100 and I put a twenty with it to cover the $9.91. Mia came back with just a $10 in the book. I know it is only $.09 but imagine that times 100 people a month. I also save my change for a rainy day. I could tell Mia was new because of her lack of knowledge on the menu, items and service of the drinks. She did not know the local beer that was on draft (only one is on draft) and you never put lemon in a glass of tea it is always on the rim It used to be two minutes or two bites, not any more I guess. I will never return to another Long Horn for as...

I'm updating my review. I used to love this place, but after tonight, I may never go back. We went out with a group of eight people to celebrate three of their birthdays. One of them ordered a steak and told the waitress to make sure they did not put mushrooms on it. He wanted sauteed onions however. He also asked for macaroni and cheese. He was the last one to receive his meal.

When the kitchen staff brought it out they dropped it in front of him and practically ran from the table without even making sure it was okay. The steak was slathered with mushrooms and had no onions. We got the server's attention and she took it back to the kitchen to have it remade properly and returned without enough time for the state to be recooked.

His side dishes were cold and the steak had clearly just been scraped off instead of remade. It still had the mushroom gravy all over it. The server lied and said that it had been recooked. Our guest asked for it to be remade again because he could still taste mushrooms all over it. Many of us had also finished our water at the table by this point. The server said she would be back with more.

28 minutes later, We waited and all of us finished our meal but the server never came to refill the drinks, nor did she make sure of that Our guest received his steak. We got the attention of a man cleaning off a table and asked him to convey to our server that the steak was no longer wanted since everyone had finished their meal.

Within seconds, a very hostile male manager appeared with an overcooked steak with no macaroni and cheese. Our friend reiterated that he did not want the steak and the manager grew more hostile and started raising his voice " you mean you had my kitchen remake the steak and you don't even want it?" Our guest reiterated that no he didn't want it. The manager became even more angry. He stomped off with the steak.

The server came back, finally. But still didn't refill any drinks. Our friend said that it was three people's birthday at the table and he was very disappointed that it went the way that it did. She replied "well, that sucks for you."

Before we left, we were greeted by a female manager who was pregnant. She invited us to come back, and said the other manager had less experience managing than she did. Yet, she made no effort to rectify the situation.

I don't think we will be back. It's a shame because my previous review was five stars. I guess the next time My friends want steak, I will recommend them to go to...

On Wednesday, 11/08/2023, I went to Longhorns in Pensacola, along with my sister and brother-in-law, for lunch. The restaurant opened at 11:00 and we entered at 11:15. We were told it would be a 10-15 minute wait to be seated. This was confusing as all the tables were empty, save for one table where an employee was eating. One other person was waiting for a table and others came in after us. After five minutes my sister asked the hostess if the wait staff had called in. The hostess said, "No, they come in on staggered shifts." (NOTE: The hostess appeared to be doing the best she could under the circumstances.)

At this point we left as it was about 11:30. Three wait staff were rushing in, their hands full of take-out food orders from another restaurant. One said, upon seeing us leaving, "Oh, have you finished already?" My sister replied, "No, there was no wait staff to seat or serve us." The staff replied, "Well, we are here now!"

We were floored. And, I was embarrassed. I live in the Madison, Wisconsin area where the Longhorns there has over-the-top impeccable service. Based on that, I recommended Longhorns in Pensacola to my family members.

What kind of restaurant opens with zero wait staff?

Were these employees going to come in and eat their take-out food before serving customers?

Why would an employee be eating a meal at a table viewable by customers while the customers could not even sit down to eat?

Does the manager of the restaurant know about the restaurant not serving customers upon opening?

Was the manager even at the restaurant? If so, why were they not out taking care of customers if they had no wait staff? If not, why was the restaurant open without a manager?

Has the hostess been trained that when something like this happens, she needs to get assistance from the manager?

Is corporate aware of what is going on at this restaurant? Does Longhorns Pensacola realize that just one bad experience like we had can affect the public's perception of all Longhorns? Does Pensacola Longhorns know that with so much social media use, this kind of experience could be on TikTok and Facebook and be shared with thousands?

I am a Level 7 Google Reviewer and, over the years, rarely had to share a bad restaurant experience. The experience we had at Longhorns of Pensacola on November 8, 2023, was the very worst I have...