Budd's Broiler — Restaurant in Richland

We came here a few times this year, none of them were very busy times either and they were good. We always had the cheaper food items under the Early Bird menu. We took the risk on my birthday and decided to have my dinner here rather wait till we get to big city for a real meal. It was busy and the waitresses were busy like in Dennys at rush hour. I’ve always felt a more expensive steakhouse’s should offer a more leisure meal and a Wait Staff that is pleasant and can entertain a little. When I was a teen I was a Waiters Busboy in a nice place like this. Busboys were assigned waiters as bosses. The waiters were all from Middle East and each one had a side talent. Each meal had some sort of table side show. A magic trick or jokes were most popular. My waiter had a story with a fire show and alcohols. Certain menu items were prepped at table side and customers knew this when they were ordered. Waiters were as much part of your dinner as the meal was. Plus the great wait staff could easily out perform some dishes, so kitchen mistakes were mostly overlooked by the customers. Waiters were very diligent at making sure cooks properly presented plates and they were correct. In the 70’s my waiter would give me $100-$200 dollars on busy nights. This is how I grew up and I have seen this service before but nowhere here in the Tri. I wasn’t expecting that tonight of course. I’m just explaining where the yard stick use to be in regard to specialty restaurants. I didn’t expect that service tonight either. Our waitress admitted she would do bad before ordering because she just got hired. We had to explain our drink order as it was printed on the menu, she just didn’t get it. We didn’t order from the main menu as planned due to her shabby visual appearance and lack of confidence of her skill, so we ordered from the Early Bird menu.the waitress had plenty of tables all getting that special Denny’s fast food resturant service. Bread not coming out till after our appetizer and after 3-4 asks, “oh, please, thank you’s”, plates being stacked on our table by the sever and why not? Because it’s a fancy Dennys with a higher price and fewer menu items. How did we get here? We have got to be crazy to be doing this! Anyway…. Bread was used to wash down ill prepared food, main dishes were under and over cooked, drinks full of more ice than drink finally at home my wife got sick after her meal. Happy Birthday Fatboy! Ugh Fancy restaurants still aren’t offered here in the Tri. It’s between you and the cook, or the host or the bus boy. None at your control but other staff is who the wait staff blames when something goes wrong. Wait staff needs to manage these things not be part of them because they are the only voice a customer has. A bad waitstaff can’t or won’t challenge cooks for bad plates. Management has to train wait staff how and what errors cooks and staff can make. This specialty restaurant should only have qualified, high-quality wait staff. It should be a place only the best in town want to come to serve and be able to raise a family comfortably on their pay. Customers need an advocate if the wait staff can’t be trusted then just close the doors. This was the whole point of Tipping! The table basically hires the wait staff to make sure the meal comes out as ordered and is a pleasant experience, that’s it. If the meal is great pay is good and so fourth. Having a wait staff with a personality and a side show seems to have gone out with yesteryear for sure. You can get better food and service for a cheaper price elsewhere in this town. Some places in town have a wait staff to serve you and take responsibility for what is served. Gave it a two star due to past meals and staff being good. This...

I've been meaning to come here for over a few years actually ever since I heard how good the steaks are. People sweared by them and now that a good friend of mine works here, I finally got convined to go try the food. I needed me time and a calm environment in a restaurant with comfort food, so Budd's Broiler it is.

I got there at around 4 PM and it was not too packed. To my left were 3 tables being served as well so I expected my waitress to be a little busy. The scenery was the first thing I noticed; the view of the pier and the boats parked made this restaurant shine. It's a whole different view in the cold weather. Very nice sunset came by.

I immediately knew I needed a Riesling as it is my favorite type, so Ste. Michelle Riesling was what I got. It was a crisp but otherwise bit rough. Once you drink water between the first few sips, the flavor starts to settle and it's actually a clean crisp. It is incredible!

A starter was very much needed so I got a ceaser salad and you best bet it was the best simple salad I have ever had in my entire life. It was so flavorful, the cheese was very good. The croutons were incredibly crunchy and the lettuce was very good too. I sprinkled the lemon it came with and it actually complemented this salad rather well.

Next, was the main baby I came for. Sadly they were out of the 14 Oz Ribeye so I had to opt for the Chicken Fried Steak wagyu top sirloin. Don't let the price difference fool you... it is hands down the best chicken fried steak I've had for the price. Yes, it is a bit pricey but by goly, the mashed potatoes were very flavorful. I don't like broccoli and I ate all of mine! The most wonderful part for me was that the steak was so tender and easy to cut. It was so flavorful because of the crust, the gravy held every bite into justice.

The next piece was desert; a very complicated choice between the Mark's Whiskey cheesecake and the Fire Roasted Apple Bread Pudding... Mandy came in clutch on the decision and even convinced Jennifer, my first waitress that I should try the pudding rather than the cheesecake. Guess what? Mandy was right! I am also not an ice cream guy and I ate all of it! Don't get me started on the bread, it was the most soft piece of heaven I've had on this earth! 🥰 It was very much like freshly baked bread! Went so well with the pecan vanilla ice cream! 😋

Now, the credit where it belongs. Cara, you are an absolutely blast of a manager. I can see why Jennifer, Mandy and Noel are very good team players! The rest of the crew seemed very cool as well, including Michael my friend. 🤗 Jennifer, you definitely deserve 10 for being an awesome waitress that made my day so much better! Thank you Mandy as well for the awesome service and being a good influence on food choices. 😊 Thank you Noel for bringing my Chicken Fried Steak over!

Finally, shoutout to everyone here for making sure Budd's gets the recognition it deserves. Along with CG Public House and Sterling's, Anthony's has done an incredible job to bring a unique experience within the local community. I can imagine why travelers would love to come and try these higher end restaurants; because people like Cara, Jennifer, Mandy and everyone else make sure every single person at the tables gets the feeling of being at home. It is the best aspect of these local restaurants, you're treated like family and not just...

I don't want to be overly critical but it is who I am and I went easy on this review. I have eaten at many a steakhouse but I was not impressed. I got the Double R and while it was cooked properly, rare, the cut of meat is one of the worst I have ever had. I have gotten better cuts of meat off the clearance rack at Fred Meyers. I feel the Chef knew this because it was salty, like first time homemade beef jerky salty. Other than that, the appetizers were good and thoroughly enjoyed. The Macaroni and cheese was well received as were the chicken sandwiches. Desserts were were cheesecake with whiskey drizzle, which they were out of and instead offered Huckleberry. It was just ok. $10 for a slice of generic cheesecake probably purchased from a large chain to supply restaurants, maybe don't charge $10 a slice for that.

Drinks were subpar with whoever made them needing to reup their Bartending Certificates. An Old Fashioned has never and will never have soda water or seltzer added. That's not how it is made. I have been drinking the same drink for almost 20 years and this was the worst one I have ever had, I even sent it back which I have never done. The main point wasn't that I had to send it back or that the server said that's how they are made, to which it is most certainly not, it's that it is a simple drink where I assume the only equivalent for an outsider would be messing up a rum and coke. This is a common dive bar technique to lessen the amount of actual alcohol in a drink and mask it with the bite of carbonation.

My reservation was for 8:30pm and I did not realize they closed at 9pm, which is my fault and they made sure to make it a constant reminder until 10 when my party left. If it was an issue, don't make the reservation knowing a larger party will be staying at least an hour. From the rolled eyes to the heavy sighs, I thought I was at home explaining something to my daughter. I was not impressed. Don't like the field you are in, find another. It was very obvious to my entire party that we weren't wanted there. This was a Christmas celebratory dinner for my employees and I was not pleased that they were treated as such.

Setting was very nice and very clean. I liked the aesthetics and could imagine the sunset looking very nice through the windows. I think it was a tad dark but not in a bad way. Setting overall was amazing and I think outdoor seating in a warmer season would be perfect.

Overall for 6 people a $300+ isn't terrible but the quality isn't what I would have expected for the price. I was upset to see items on my bill that were not purchased by my party and being we were the last ones left leaves the taste is suspicion in my mouth.

I do understand that this review is critical but it isn't undeserved. The best and only redeeming factors of the evening were my company and the Brussels Griffon I saw at the end. Good company and puppies and I am a happy guy. I gave one star for the food and pricing and the other two for my staff...