Firebirds Wood Fired Grill — Restaurant in Plano

As Grand Openings go that I've gone to, this was easily the best one I've been a part of. Heading into the evening, I kept hearing the voice of a coworker telling me earlier in the week that Firebirds is basically a high-end Applebee's. Needless to say, my expectations were not super high hearing that but even if they had been super high, they would've been exceeded.

The location is an OK location because you have to fight to get over 3 lanes of traffic after exiting the toll way. However, there was lots of parking, and the building just oozes with an inviting feel that makes walking in feel exciting.

We were greeted warmly as we entered with the staff holding the doors open for us as we walked in. The service was really top-notch all night, and that was just the start of it.

Looking over the menu, we were really hard pressed to decide on what to order as it all sounded very good. The starters, for instance, all sounded equally amazing. I even tried to convince our wonderful waitress that it was a great idea to go off menu and make a starter tasting platter, but I couldn't convince her to do it. We went with the Philly Cheesesteak Egg Rolls, and let me tell you, the Thai chili and hot mustard sauce really set that starter off. It has everything going; the cheesesteak, spicy, crunchy, gooey, glorious concoction of a masterpiece. (We were deciding between that and the Lobster Queso and went with that and are all the happier for it. (As a bonus, if you take it home as leftovers as we did, it actually gets more of a spicy kick.) Pro tip: The Double Black Diamond Martini pairs really well with this starter but be cautioned that more than 2 of them can make you a bit flush in the face.

We each ordered our entrees and chose the 21-day aged Ribeye and the Chilean Sea Bass. First, the steak...I order it medium rare with the Roasted Garlic Thyme Butter and a skewer of shrimp. When it came out, I noticed the added seasoning was not on it but on the side. I was momentarily disappointed because I thought they had brought me out a cold glob of this seasoning instead of cooking my steak in those juices. To my delight, it was not a cold, hard glob but instead somehow perfectly softened to literally melt on contact with the steak. I added a house side salad to my order and it seriously could've been another entree with how big it was. And it wasn't soggy either, which meant that they tossed the salad in my dressing right before bringing it to the table thoughtfully prepared to maximize presentation.

Now the Chilean Sea Bass... One word: YUM! I had food envy for a hot second because I tried it before I tried my steak. It was so delicious. It was perfectly seasoned, cooked, and presented to us and literally melted in my mouth.

Now for the finale, which we almost started with and made it a Fireman's Dinner, was the Creme Brulée Cheesecake. The raspberry coulis, cheesecake, and bruléed top were absolutely decadent and the perfect way to...

I had been recommending Firebirds to my family for years, looking forward to finally experiencing it together during a joint celebration for Father’s Day (for myself and my father-in-law), my mother-in-law’s birthday, and my daughter’s Sweet 16. Unfortunately, the experience left a lot to be desired.

We arrived for lunch with a party of seven. I ordered the premium Bloody Mary, which was served missing the signature candied bacon garnish. When I asked our server, I was told that “the kitchen sometimes tries to skimp on the bacon” because it comes from their inventory, not the bar's — which was a disappointing and unprofessional explanation right off the bat.

Next, our table's food was brought out in two waves — half of us received our meals, and the rest waited another 10–15 minutes. When my Tomahawk pork chop finally arrived, I found a piece of steel wool (what looked like a Brillo pad) under the meat. The manager was apologetic, removed the dish from the bill, and had the kitchen remake it. Unfortunately, the replacement chop came out dry and overcooked, and the carrots were undercooked and nearly raw. Meanwhile, our server said nothing about the ongoing issues.

At the end of the meal, the manager offered me a complimentary dessert since the rest of our party hadn't yet received theirs. I appreciated the gesture — but by the time my dessert finally arrived, everyone else had already finished eating and was ready to leave. Again, poor timing and communication.

To the manager’s credit, she was polite, acknowledged the issues, and even offered a gift card to make things right. However, I live out of town and won’t easily be able to use it. The rest of the staff, including our server, never once acknowledged the ongoing problems or made any effort to check in.

As someone with over 15 years of experience working in both the front and back of house, I can confidently say this service breakdown could have — and should have — been prevented. On such a special occasion, with notes clearly included in the reservation, I expected better.

I’m giving two stars purely because the manager showed professionalism and made some effort to correct the situation. But overall, this was a disappointing experience I wouldn’t recommend to others unless things improve significantly. I may give it one more try using the gift card — but next time, I’ll keep my...

We visited today for Mother's Day - it seems everyone else had the same idea! We arrived for our 12:30 PM reservation, and had a brief wait while they cleared the morning crowd out and cleaned up tables. The restaurant smells great - like a wood fired grill - and everything was new/clean.

I started off with their Double Black Diamond Martini, which was fresh pineapple juice and pineapple vodka. My wife got after me for drinking it in approximately 3 minutes, but I couldn't help it - it was amazing! We ordered the Bacon Deviled Eggs for an appetizer, which were topped with candied bacon and a slice of fresh jalapeno. The bacon was the best part of the dish; I thought the deviled egg could use a bit more 'pizazz'. Incorporate the hot sauce, which was drizzled around the plate, at your discretion.

For our entrees, we ordered off the brunch menu, which is served on both Saturday and Sunday. I ordered the Steak and Egg Bowl - medium rare - and my wife ordered the Smothered Tenderloin Breakfast Burrito. They have a GREAT kids menu as well, with choices beyond the standard mac and cheese / burger / chicken tenders. One of my sons ordered the wood fire grill steak!

We noticed others were being served warm bread and butter, so we reminded our server to bring ours. He brought it shortly, but unfortunately, the rest of the food never came. After an hour, it became apparent the kitchen was really backed up, and the server apologized and sent over a manager. The manager apologized as well, and admitted they just opened, and this was their busiest day yet. She added that our food was next up, and we could eat it there, or have it boxed up to go, but either way - it was on her. We appreciate that. I left a tip for our server (it wasn't his fault) and were on our way after a nearly two hour visit, still hungry.

We ate our meals when we returned home. The food was hit or miss. The Steak and Egg Bowl was missing the tomatos, the eggs were scrambled (not poached), and there wasn't much sauce. The kids meals were solid. But we'll give it another try. After all, we all have 'off' days. Rating 4 stars for now, given the accommodation, with a chance to be 5 on...