Arby's — Restaurant in Simi Valley

UPDATE I've decided to change my review based on the response from management that I received shortly after posting. The manager quickly determined that I'd been served the wrong type of meat: brisket meat instead of the thinly-sliced and tender roast beef.

The manager offered a free meal replacement the next time I visit. That's pretty good customer service, and I am pleased with the response. I'll leave a less-than-perfect 4-star review just because the brisket shouldn't have been so dry and filled with so much gristle, but they promised to resolve my issue and i am glad that the soft, moist roast beef is still a thing.

Original Review Arby's sliced beef (the beef they use in their classic roast beef sandwiches and other sandwiches) used to be thinly sliced and soft, mostly free of fat sinew and other undesirable bits.

Since the COVID-19 Pandemic, however, it seems quality has taken a massive hit: The sliced beef is thicker and not as soft, filled with sinew and hard, rubbery strips of fat.

The classic sandwich I bought from this location the other day was tough, thick, dry, and full of rubbery fat. Biting into the sandwich resulted in the entire contents pulling out from the buns because of the rubbery fat sinew.

Gone are the days of high quality beef slices, moist and soft, free of rubbery fat.

Won't be going back unless...

Went to Arby's Simi last week and will never go back there again. Ordered a turkey,bacon ranch sandwich at the drive through. I asked if they could toast it. Oh yes they said. Okay please make it extra toasty because I cannot eat bread. Also with extra ranch. I heard her ordering it saying extra toasty. When we got the order I told my husband to wait while I checked the sandwich. It wasn't toasted at all. I took it back in and asked them to please toast it. What a joke. It seems they don't know how to make toast. They kept putting the bread in a toaster oven or grill. They give it back to me with just one side barely toasted. Now I'm mad. I told them that I wanted both sides toasted. I don't know what there problem was. I could hear them talking trying to figure out how to make toast. They brought another sandwich, again only cooked on one side. Finally the server said do you want your money back. Of course I did. Well he had to get the manager. Well apparently they do not have the capability to make toast properly. It looked toasted but it was not and it tasted burnt. It was by far the worse tasting sandwich I have ever had and the service was terrible. And to think that we were so looking forward to finally getting an Arby's. Ventura has the...

I ate here out of nostalgia. Hadn't been to an Arby's since the Before Times (pre-pandemic). Had seen ads online, decide to try it.

Ugh. Over-priced, poor-quality, the store smelled bad inside. Indifferent and dull service. I was the only customer inside and the drive-through service had no one in it. Took 8 or 9 minutes to do meal delivery after paying. I ate the #1 combo (20 oz soda, Arby's basic sandwich, curly fries) and it cost $13 after tax. Food looked nothing like the ads. The one bright spot is the triple-chili sweet-hot sauce in the condiment dispenser.

Much of this is Arby's corp. and the state of California's ridiculous fast-food chain minimum wage laws. The chain used to be about "roast beef" (R-B's). The sandwich filling is a compressed beef deli meat-ish stuff, stuffed into a tube, held together with some sort of stabilizers and starch binders, then thinly sliced using a meat slicer. It's nothing like "roast beef". Even gobs of "horsey sauce" couldn't fix it.

Better option: travel 3/4 mile west on the same street, buy an actual steak at Stater Brother's market for the same money,...