Reunion Family BBQ — Restaurant in Spring Green

I want to start out by saying that I was sooooo excited to dine here tonight. We are visiting from out of town and rarely treat ourselves to good BBQ food. We were recommended to go to Reunion and after looking at the good reviews, photos, and menus online, we decided it was the perfect place to go. Visually, everything outside and inside looked exactly like we expected. Unfortunately, it went downhill from there. We walked in and there was mariachi music playing, which seemed out of place for a BBQ restaurant. We sat down and saw the menu was entirely different than what was posted by others in reviews. It was all a spin on Mexican food. The drinks were also very different than the menus we had seen online. So, is this no longer a BBQ place even though it still has that name? Despite the disappointment that we would not be getting BBQ, I saw a smoked mezcal old fashioned on the nenu and got excited. It is hard to describe the flavor profile but essentially it just tasted like syrup and a little bit of smoke essence. I didn't want to cause a fuss, so I drank it and tried to move on. My partner and I talked for a while and then after about 30 minutes of talking, we realized people who sat down and ordered after us were getting their meals before we were. After several more minutes, I finally was able to flag our server down. She said our ticket was up next and should be out soon. My partner had to step outside but I continued to be positive. It took a few more minutes, but our food finally made it and it was hot, which made me feel a bit more positive. I took a couple bites, mostly tasted wilty lettuce and oil, and then realized that there was not a single piece of meat in the chimichanga/ burrito I ordered. It took me another several more minutes to get someone's attention, but finally I got a gentleman's attention. I explained what happened, shared that I was upset. He asked what I wanted instead. I told him I honestly could not wait for a new meal because it took so long for my current one to even get in front of me. He asked me what I wanted to do and I said I had no clue at that point (because, why am I, the customer, having to decide what gets done about this?!). He said he would comp my meal and left the table. I ate two more bites of my side (beans, would not recommend), and my partner encouraged me to eat some of their food. Honestly, their meal was just okay. I could go to a normal Mexican restaurant and spend $5 less on the entree and get the same or even better food. After talking to the gentleman, I had to step outside because the whole experience was so upsetting. My partner talked to the server while I was away from the table, and she informed them that the gentleman was actually the owner. She also said that in the 10 minutes between the situation happening and her talking to us, she hadn't been informed about the meal being comped. They both gave excuses of it being the first night of the new menu, and the server said how busy they were earlier in the evening. As someone who spent over a dozen years in the service industry, I am always trying to give the servers and restaurant the benefit of the doubt. But tonight was by far the most disappointing restaurant experience I've ever had. Our server didn't check on us once outside of getting our order and bringing us the food. My drink was poorly crafted and my food was wrong. The food in general was sub par. The way the owner handled the interaction was incredibly upsetting. It isn't a customer's job to figure out a solution when things go so poorly. And it isn't their job to worry about if a restaurant has a new menu or was busy earlier in the night. There is no excuse for us waiting 40 minutes for food that isn't even prepared correctly. All in all, I would not recommend Reunion until they make a major change in their service and menu. Not worth the money I spent or the time I...

The interior is really cute. That’s kind of where the charm ends. The food is mediocre at best. The pappardelle was good but the portion for the price was stingy. The cheese board was good, but it’s hard to screw up a cheese board in Wisconsin. The Whitefish Hash brown was mushy and drowning in tartar sauce. The chicken cutlet was over breaded and mushy because of the tomato sauce poured over it. Why create a crispy crust and then destroy it by pouring the sauce on top? It was supposed to be accompanied by a shaved fennel salad. That amounted to two pieces piled on top of the mushy chicken. We were also not given the same service as the table next to us by our server, Steven. He seemed to avoid our table and I am not really sure why. He did not give us the same customer experience as the guests in the room around us, did not offer us a dessert menu and it took him almost 20 minutes and us having to wave him over for him to bring our check. If he was very busy, we would completely understand and have all the patience in the world, but it seemed like a choice. He checked on every other table in our section and actively avoided ours, there were moments which he was just standing against the wall waiting for something to do. It’s disappointing because we were really looking forward to seeing what Reunion...

I really enjoyed the apps and drinks but the steak was stringy. On top of that, the steak 🥩 was not let to rest which turned the potatoes into soup. Also the fat was not rendered. We basically went hungry since the entrees were inedible.

Edit:

I was on a date night with my wife and did not want to ruin the night by starting something with our waiter who was indifferent. In the past, I have had waiters who immediately noticed that the steak was cooked wrong and took it back themselves after letting me cut into it. They are experts in the food they are serving and I shouldn't have had to say anything and ruin the night. It was visibly cooked wrong and our waiter was inattentive and had to get his attention a couple of times. I was not sure if anyone actually cared at this point. As far as the one star review, other restaurants in the area have exceeded my expectations and I have given them great reviews that were earned. Neighboring cafes and restaurants are easily 5 stars. No issue. The bulk of the price of my meal was the steak but I wanted to highlight that other things were good. I would have honestly just left an email address to contact you instead of being passive aggressive. I wanted to provide constructive criticism rather than posting a picture of a messed up steak that will stick longer...