Gino's Steakhouse — Restaurant in Ross Township

I dined here on Saturday, June 6, 2020 at 8:00 PM. Before I made a reservation, I had looked at the menu online and at the overall stars. It was a huge mistake not reading the reviews; especially the most recent ones. The website and menu price are deceiving which i makes you believe that Gino’s is a high-end restaurant. My family and I dressed in semi-formal attire and when I arrived, I was greatly disappointed that it was actually a casual environment without the anticipated white glove service. There was a bit of disconnect with seating as two hostesses were confused on where to sit us and who would do it. The reservation did not matter anyways as they were not busy. We sat down and ordered 2 alcoholic beverages. The moscato tasted like Welch’s sparkling wine and my husband’s Woodford Reserve with Pepsi mix was severely watered down. That was the first strike. Bread was brought to the table and it was cold, hard, and stale. Second strike. We ordered the shrimp cocktail and 2/4 of the shrimp were clearly not deveined. The lemon and decorative salad were not fresh, the cocktail sauce was diluted, and it was brought out in a plastic cup. Third strike. At this point, we were pretty worried because we had already purchased 2 plates of the surf and turf. In addition, our table ordered off the “invisible kid’s menu” for a cheeseburger and fries. Before ordering the soup that came with the meal, I asked the waiter if the lobster bisque soup actually had real lobster. He said that it depended on what day it was. Based on his answer, I chose the broccoli soup instead. When the soups came out, I was highly disappointed. It was soup that came out of a can and there was a light layer of oil in it that is typically seen in preserved meals. The lobster bisque did not have real or imitation lobster. We used salt and pepper, including the stale bread to eat it. Fourth strike. Next the entrees came out. The steaks were requested as medium but came out medium well and in some parts, well done. We each got a large gravy boat of garlic mashed potatoes that tasted like the kind out of a box with a garlic powder additive. At this point, we were all furious. The lobster was “good enough” and a generous size, but it was flavorless and not cooked well. Every two bites, I was eating shards of shell embedded in the lobster tail. The second steak that I received after sending the first one back was drowning in what looked like watered down “a jus” sauce and half a pickled onion. The steak; although made medium the second time, still somehow tasted tough and bland. Some of the garnish on the plate was actually seasoning flakes instead of fresh herbs. The same wilted lettuce was added for decoration. Our cheeseburger and fries was a bit off in terms of freshness. The plate was inappropriately brought to a 5 year-old with a large steak knife on it. We quickly asked for the bill so that we could end our time there as soon as possible. We had to box up our own food into food truck style, aluminum to-go containers and white paper bags. To end the harrowing experience, the bill came out at a total of $265.00. Nothing there was worth that kind of money. I never even spent that kind of money at St. Elmo’s Steakhouse or Harry & Izzy’s in downtown Indianapolis. This place is a grossly overpriced scam and poorly operated. They would be a great candidate for Hell’s Kitchen.

I mean this in the most sincere way possible - please just permanently close your restaurant. I hope no one else has to endure this experience. This place should not be in business. The owner and cooks should be ashamed...

My husband and I went here about 8 years ago and the service was not hospitable. We recently received a gift card and were not excited to go back since we didn't feel welcome in the past. The service has definitely changed for the better. I didn't feel unwelcome this time, but the server was a bit aloof. The server did a good job of being balanced with the communication during the greeting and ordering the food. I am very sensitive to this, I find it very unprofessional when a server only has eye contact with one of the people during a dining experience. We ordered the crab cake for an appetizer. The server came back and asked how was it and we let her know it was delicious. I ordered the seared salmon which was overdone and borderline burnt. The server came out and asked how was everything while only looking at my husband. When she left I told him that my salmon had a hard crust that if you tapped on the fish with your fork you could hear it, now that's hard. I order salmon in every city or town I visit. I have never seen seared salmon so hard. It was almost like it was breaded, the outside a totally different texture from the inside. When I cut it the hardened outside made a mess of the soft tender inside. He asked did I want to send it back. Under normal circumstances I would have. The hardened brown dried out crust looked extremely unappetizing to anyone with eyes, however, the server's behavior had changed so I did not know if the lack of eye contact was due to tension in the kitchen that she was trying to avoid by not having the entree come back or was it something else. Then she came back to ask if everything was ok, while looking only at my husband again. It was as if I had totally disappeared from the table. It was obvious she was putting great effort into hoping I would not say anything. The restaurant only had 4 tables being served, so it was definitely not busy. I decided not to send it back, when it comes to my food any weird behavior from the server puts me on edge. I don't want any funny business with my food. So we asked for the check and got out of there. In hindsight I see the environment as tense. The first and last time we went it's as if the staff is under some type of pressure that is translated to the customer. My guess is the work environment is hostile and it bleeds onto the customer's experience. If you want a delicious crab cake in a tense environment this is the place for you! I will not go back, unless we get another gift card (God I hope the next gift card is for another place). This restaurant leaves a bad taste in my mouth, pun...

Im really not one to leave google reviews, but I waited 2 days to see if I still felt the same about my last experience here. I have been to ginos at least 10 times in the last 3 years. I have been there with my girlfriend, friends, coworkers, and I have sang their praises as “my favorite steakhouse in indiana.” Unfortunately, that sentiment has disappeared, just like their professionalism. I went there during lunch hours (around 1pm) to take a friend out to lunch. We were immediately greeted and asked if we were related (weird question to ask but no cause for alarm yet) Appetizers were great (the fried calamari is a favorite of mine and it hasn’t missed once ) The steak was a different story. I ordered the filet mignon (again my usual order, I usually stick with something that works) happy to pay the $45 for what is usually a great cut of meat. This time it was sour, like it had been soaked in vinegar for hours. I took 2 bites and decided that was enough. My friend across from me ordered the porterhouse and we both agreed the steak was off. When the waitress came back to bring the check, she asked me how our food was. I told her the steak was pretty gross and that I would definitely not want to take the rest home with me. Then who I presume to be the owner came over…this guy was like one of those restaurant owners you see on Kitchen Nightmares. Completely tone deaf to my complaints about our meal. He proceeded to argue with me about where the steaks had come from and how “theres no way they should taste sour because they came in this morning.” To his credit, he did take my filet mignon of the bill, and that probably would have been enough for me to forget about all this had he not followed it up with the most awkward and inappropriate 30 seconds of small talk I’ve ever had. The first question he asked my friend and I was “what our nationalities were” and then asked “ if we were serbian” (we arent, but WHY would you ask a paying customer what they’re nationalities were???!) I work in customer service and thats like one of the golden rules. I will NEVER return to Ginos steakhouse and I now put it on the same level as Kelseys steakhouse (both of them are equally expensive as the nicer steakhouses downtown chicago, but neither of them has the same quality of food or customer service) Tell your owner to stay in the office and not to talk to customers in the dining room, he isn’t...