Red Lobster — Restaurant in Suitland

I have worked in customer-facing roles for over 10+ years currently in a fine dining restaurant so I understand that restaurants get busy and mistakes happen. But there is no excuse for the level of disrespect and lack of accountability we witnessed from someone in management. A front-of-house manager should be setting the standard for the entire staff not making customers feel unwelcome and unheard. His tone was short and condescending, he came to the table looked at us and said so you don’t want your food and we stated we didn’t like it, it’s not tasting right. He said you ate more then half the pizza, which wasn’t true we both tried a slice and tried a piece together to see were we tripping. But it tasted like cardboard and instead of offering solutions or even a polite explanation, he spoke to us with visible irritation and impatience. It set a negative tone for the entire visit. Told us nah you going to pay for it and walked off. His energy made us cringe. We told our server how uncomfortable the manager made us feel and asked him can he cancel our entrees and give us the check for what we had.

Throughout the evening, our server Phillip did an excellent job. Definitely would love to get serviced by him any day somewhere else. Our check with our apps and 2 drinks was $77 we still tipped our server $25 for his exceptional service. He didn’t do nothing wrong.

The rest of the team (servers, kitchen, etc.) seemed like they were doing their best, but with someone like Sammy running the front, it’s no wonder the overall atmosphere was chaotic and uninviting. A bad server is one thing. A bad manager is something else entirely—and it reflects directly on the leadership and training of the entire restaurant.

I sincerely hope upper management or corporate sees this and re-evaluates who they are putting in charge. Sammy does not represent the values of hospitality, and frankly, should not be working in any role that involves direct interaction with customers let alone managing the front of house.

I left Red Lobster tonight not just frustrated, but truly disappointed especially being a pregnant woman It was hard to enjoy my meal when you’re treated like a nuisance instead of a guest. Unfortunately, thanks to Sammy, this visit left a terrible impression and unless things change, I will not be returning, nor recommending this location to...

I don’t usually take the time to write reviews, I just wanted to take a moment to say how much we appreciated the service we received from our server Phillip during our recent visit. You were professional, attentive, kind, and genuinely made us feel welcome and cared for. It’s clear that you take pride in your work, and your positive attitude did not go unnoticed. You were truly the highlight of our visit, and we’re grateful for the effort you put in to give us a great experience at our table.

That said, I’m genuinely disappointed to share that we won’t be returning to this location—and that decision has nothing to do with you or the rest of the staff. Unfortunately, our experience with the front-of-house manager, Sammy, was extremely negative. It was so disappointing especially due to the behavior of Sammy, the front-of-house manager that I feel compelled to share.

To put it simply, Sammy was shockingly unprofessional, dismissive, and completely lacking in the basic qualities you would expect from someone in a management position, especially one responsible for the guest experience.

There was zero warmth or hospitality. We weren’t acknowledged by the manager at the table, when we told him we didn’t like the flatbread lobster pizza that tasted like cardboard, with no type of love into it. We ordered 3 appetizers with 2 $60 + meals including a rum and coke for my boyfriend and a frozen mocktail for me since I’m 6 months pregnant we also got Steak , lobster, crab legs, shrimp with mash and broccoli. Sammy acted like we were being unreasonable, like we sat there and ate the whole pizza and tried to send it back. Me and my boyfriend tried it and it didn’t sit right with our stomach. Our bill was gonna be over $200 plus we were getting 2 deserts. Sammy dismissive attitude towards us made us feel very uncomfortable, There was no apology, no attempt to listen, and no sense that he cared about resolving anything. Instead, he talked over us, brushed off our concerns, and acted like we were being difficult simply for expecting the bare minimum level of professionalism. To...

If there was a choice of "no star" I would rate this establishment. I have attempted to give this establishment the benefit of the doubt because it is local to many in the Suitland area. However;more and more ,there is always a challenge than championed experience. On January 28 2020, my family came to have dinner. Indeed we had a great time of fellowship and fun. In lieu of exiting and my family going back to their hotel because it is rather close (5 minutes) to the area hotels within Camp Springs.... she realized her purse was still at the table. We went back with all of 12 minutes leaving, returning and coming back to the hotel. The waitress who was jovial and pleasant during our time was not jovial at all. Actually quite off-putting and a total shock to us as we did tip her well and provided grace and empathy when our request could not be accommodated to include requesting a "Well" cooked steak for my meal preference that included lobster. We still had a great time. My issue is that we were the last patrons to leave and although a mistake was made of leaving the purse... we definitely did not anticipate "theft" or the "nonchalant" and "off putting concern" of what occurred by the staff and Manager. I will definitely not support this establishment and urge Golden Gate to revisit it's pillars and vision with its staff to include management. I am not really sure if this will prevent or have the impact it should as a review, but I will continue to share the unfortunate experience and the disdain for how the situation was handled...... I won't name names to protect the persons that do work there in this review, but we can definitely have a conversation regarding the expectation of management, customer relations and operating from a place of integrity. It is my hope that patrons will be extremely careful and possibly choose another Red...