Cooper's Restaurant & Sports Bar — Restaurant in St. Charles

My extended family, totaling 11 people, was visiting Bear Lake for my parents 50th wedding anniversary and had chosen Coopers as the destination for a nicer sit down meal. We made a reservation over a week in advance and were encouraged to dine later under the "lights". I was also told there would be live music outside on the deck. When we arrived at dusk, our table still needed to be bussed. After waiting for that, we were finally seated. I observed quickly that there was no live music. Once seated, we waited for over 10 minutes for a waitress to bring us menus. After the menus were delivered, it was another 10 minutes before our drink order was taken. We finally had our appetizer and meal order taken by our waitress. Sadly, multiple items we planned to order were unavailable which was disappointing. Then our real wait began. It took nearly an hour to receive our appetizers. By this time it was completely dark outside. The restaurant was nearly closed. There were only two other tables of people left who were also desperately waiting for theirs. One family had little kids they were taking turns entertaining because they were becoming rightfully impatient. There were string lights along the deck, but they were never turned on. It had became chilly enough that they turned on their two space heaters for three spaced out tables. With 11 at ours and nearly 10 at another table, it simply wasn't enough. We shared our appetizers in the dark. Then we waited again for a long time before our meals were delivered and it was so disappointing. The seafood dishes were not good. You could tell the seafood was old and overcooked. The steaks were well done, not how they were ordered. The incorrect plates were delivered to two people in our party. After waiting for so, so long and then be given such poor food quality was a major disappointment. For such an important dinner that cost a tremendous amount for 11 people, we were very, very disappointed. We were offered no discount for our extensive time spent there. Minimal apologies were made. I would not recommend this establishment for anything more than some drinks at the bar. Beware of long waits and poor quality food!

The only thing I can compliment is the view...

Cooper's is a decent place... be sure you have a reservation, or you likely won't get a table. We went on a Sun evening, because that's when their website advertised there would be live music. That wasn't the case. Cooper's signage, at the entrance to West Lake, said live music Sat at 7 pm. I was told that was a mistake and that the band would be there on Sat afternoon at 2 pm. Take it from a musician, 2 pm on a Sat afternoon at a relatively out of the way spot, is a horrible time slot. So, that was kind of a strike for me. The food is good... not great, and the prices are fair. I had the bison steak which was $40. I ordered it cooked medium, with the understanding that many cooks are not aware of how to cook a steak to medium rare. This steak was delivered pretty close. The spirits are priced about the same as anywhere else, although somewhat skimpy. I had a shot of Jamison which was served in a 1 oz shot glass... most places use either a standard shot and a half glass or a highball. I'm not gonna lie, I appreciate a slightly heavy pour. This shot was scant. My wife had a vodka soda, lemon twist. She got lots of lemon but wondered whether they'd forgotten to add the vodka. Cooper's bright spot is their staff... very friendly, and while a bit disorganized, they clearly tried hard to offer good service. It's not a bad restaurant, but very noisy as they try to keep every table full, and they're rather close together. When I made the reservation I requested a table on the deck, hoping for something with some ambience. When we arrived, we were seated in the main dining room. When I informed the hostess I'd reserved a table on the deck, she said "sorry there isn't one availableIf." Strike two. If you're looking for some place quiet and romantic, you'll need to look elsewhere. Although Cooper's is a nice enough place, it really doesn't offer anything unique, or outside of what most any other steakhouse has to offer. I MIGHT consider eating there again, but I wouldn't go out of my...

This was a complete let down....we recently purchased a cabin in the area. We drove by Coopers several times and finally had time to stop with 2 of our children....when we first arrived we waited at the hostess stand for quite awhile before being greeted (bad sign)....not that busy either..it was a Wed night. After finally getting seated...we waited another 10 min to be greeted by a food server and get a drink order. She took forever to get the 4 drinks 10 min...after taking our order...it took another 10+ min to get our soup and salad. In the mean time...we noticed several guests were looking for managers to complain about their food and service experience. 2 guests wanted to find their server and pay their bill AND complain to a manager....cold food, bad service... (We were sitting near the hostess stand and witnessed every complaint) ...the hostess found the manager and the young blonde assistant manager came out and was completely clueless on how to handle the complaint. She needs to be fired ASAP. She basically told the server to handle it which looked awkward. They were NOT understaffed. There were at least 6 servers...and a hostess for maybe 10 tables. I was a waitress for 5+ years. Again, fire the assistant manager if you want to stay open for business. I would say 100% of the people there were having a miserable experience. I guarantee you will get calls about this night. And LAST, we walked out couldn't wait any longer to get our food ....after hearing the complaints about the _frozen meatballs etc. We were worried about the food handling of our chicken and seafood. I rarely complain esp at restaurants because it can be stressful and busy I understand ! But, We were the only guests in the front half of dining...all the others were dining by the windows with a view. Didn't look like a full house...Beautiful view just sad to have this disappointing experience. WILL NOT Recommend this...