Applebee's Grill + Bar — Restaurant in Rocky Mount

UPDATE: My original review was 5 years ago (below). Tried them again today and all I can say is ditto. Ribs were barely room temp and dry, mealy as they could possibly be. The spinach dip was not baked with a browned top like it is at other locations. It was like canned cheese with spinach that you could get at a dollar store and microwave except it was gritty. This place just does the bare minimum. I asked the manager if the dip had changed and he said it hadn't. I realize now that it just wasn't prepared properly like everything else there. The service is so, so. It is obvious that everyone one from the manager down to wait staff are very used to repeating the word "sorry". The GM said "I'm sorry" and said "I'll take the ribs off your bill" and walked away. I paid for the rest of the bad stuff. Terrible place. Don't waste your time or money. They don't care. They need to change their slogan from "Eatin' good" to "Eatin' crap in the neighborhood".

PREVIOUS REVIEW:

The phone number is busy for a very long period of time. I truly believe they take the phone off the hook so they they don't have to answer it. Service is OK when you get it (whether dine in or carry out), but the food is not up to par compared with other locations. It is nothing like the other Applebee's I have been to. They are way behind the others. BAD MANAGEMENT! You should be able to expect the same food and service from all locations. This is the worst I have seen! Grant it, the waiters are as good as any other Applebee's, but when I ask about the bad service and/or availability of items, they always apologize and move on. I can't blame the server, the blame falls on the owner/management of the local franchise. Unfortunately, I have no choice but to deal with it and double-check everything since I am 45 min away from the next closest location. I have to ask over and over for them to make sure the order (dine in or to go, doesn't matter) is correct. Even then, it is usually wrong or bad and I feel terrible when I have to get them to fix/redo it. SO SAD! Why can't they get the communication and quality...

The food could of been better. There was a lot of things wrong the last time we went. First the manager needs to wear pants that fit or at least not sag and wear a belt, and have his shirt tucked in better. He was helpful just dressed poorly. The waitress was dressed poorly, not to be ugly but her uniform was way too small it was unbuttoned showing her under shirt, but her uniform was gross too. The booth we sat at needed cleaning, especially the seat. Those electronic things at the table need to go, it adds extra charges even if someone accidentally bumps it before you sit. The hostess almost dropped my kids food on her lap. The plates are way too heavy for kids, and apparently adults. The manager almost the heavy plate on my 7 year old, it was empty of food at the time too. So if he has trouble lifting it then, maybe the plates are to heavy. Both the men's and women's bathrooms were gross. If it is so bad that people do not even want to wash their hands , there is a problem. After we paid my kids and I went to wait outside for my husband who went to the bathroom, when he came out he heard the staff talking bad about the customers, and us. They were very unprofessional. The service sucked, and this was during a time where there was hardly any people there. We were not the only ones having issues with them either, three other tables were having trouble with the staff, or them getting things wrong, or them trying to charge them for things they did not get. They were out of orange juice from the kids meal at lunch ( unprepared kitchen ), they got our order wrong and still charged us for it. They also then tried charing us for a game we never even touched or played. Just do yourself a favor go elsewhere to eat. If you don't then at least check your check before you pay. Do not rate places because you are friends with someone rate truthfully because it is their job to treat you well, and they can not improve if you tell them they are good and...

Came into the establishment with a warm welcome so that was appealing. My significant other and I was granted with a wonderful server, Samantha an extremely warm smile and personality. She got our food out in a timely manner. This is where things begin to fall, we asked for waters and there was black pieces frozen inside the ice. To me it looked like black mold. Reported the issue and the next waters that were brought out were of a lukewarm temperature, we ordered mozzarella sticks and that was the only thing that was good from our order. We ordered the Four Cheese Mac and Cheese Honey pepper chicken tenders, there was not that many people in there in order for our food to come out warm. The pasta was not cooked well; the tenders were tiny as if they were the small pieces at the bottom of the bag. Of all the times I have ordered that meal this was the worst; the flavor was like eating depressed Oatmeal, the Alfredo sauce had no taste I didn't even know that was possible. The bread had more flavor than the dish. The bacon I had in my dish was whole and not garnished like the menu shows. The server informed the manager and he didn't even bother to come over and speak with us; he just kept standing near the bar area. Our bill came out to be $62 dollars $7 margarita, $6.99 ceaser salad, $4.00 mozzarellasticks, 2 $18.99 Four Cheese Mac and Cheese. I kept praying my margarita would make the food taste better but I was wrong. I truly do not know if I will ever go back to that establishment. Also, I was given an excuse maybe the cook on staff isn't good; well they shouldn't be working there if that's the case all of your cooks need to be on their best game. I truly did not want to pay for that food but I just didn't feel like dealing with a debate, maybe I should have $60 for food that was not good is a joke. If anyone else has a better experience I will be surprised. At least the margarita was...