Applebee's Grill + Bar — Restaurant in Temecula

During the pandemic, this was my go to place. They stayed open late and had great value for exceptional product.

What happened?

Seating was awkward. I was by myself so the hostess wanted to sit me at the bar which was ok but when the bartender finally arrived (after awhile) she seemed to be waiting for me to order a drink. No menu. Had to ask for one.

*I got the 16oz rib eye. I ordered it medium. Not even sure what I got. It was half rare and half well. I'm guessing that they only used half the grill?? If that wasn't bad enough, about one third of the cut was gristle. Quality took a nose dive. I normally don't even mind a little crispy gristle but it was just too much.

No silverware.

Then no salt and pepper. Had to ask for both.

Mashed potatoes was good and the green beans were good but this shouldn't even be a question. It's just the steak was so bad that the sides were the only thing that saved the meal.

I also ordered a tall space dust beer. I'm thinking this bartender was new because she filled it wrong and left a giant head of foam on top. She was nice but yikes service and quality took a huge double twist 3 quarters flip into a belly flop. It hurt so bad I didn't even want to mention anything while I was there. Was almost embarrassingly bad.

But, I guess if I'm only paying 25 to 30 bucks for a steak and a beer, I shouldn't be complaining. It's just that they were so good for the past year, I guess I got spoiled.

I had to change my 5 star to 2. I can't sacrifice my integrity for what...

This is location was chosen due to its location near some shopping and errands that needed to be run. Now, to pre-empt this review by saying, we had a 1 star negative experience at an Applebee’s on previous reviews you can reference. This was our attempt to have Applebee’s redeem the urge to visit again. How did this location do? Well, really well… Greeted with a smile. Sat down fairly quickly. Service was quick and Mackenzie did a great job on getting our order in, keeping up on our wants and needs and did it all with a great smile. We noticed management walking around ensuring everyone and everything was good. The entrees were not bad at all. As ordered. There were only a few critiques we had in our review on the food. The steak was a tad on the tough side, being Med Rare. The broccoli was a bit salty. I had noticed that in previous reviews, they under-seasoned their broccoli, so maybe this was an effort to correct that, just in other direction a bit too far. The potatoes were a bit too “whipped” and not that classic mashed mouth feel you desire when eating mashed potatoes, giving it that processed feel and not home cooked. Other than that, spot on. Good flavor, served piping hot. Well covered and flavored boneless wings(nuggets). Clean restaurant. Could have used a bit more “ mood music and lighting “ to bring up the vibe to a dull roar… It was quiet and a bit somber feeling. Thanks to Mackenzie for bringing up the vibe and making the atmosphere a bit more inviting....

Worst hostess and customer experience EVER!! I came in with party of 5 for my best friend’s 30th birthday. I asked for the empty corner booth table in the main dining room that was open and able to fit 6 people. There were customers enjoying their meals on either side of this empty table. Instead of seating me there at my request the hostess walked me over to a table in the bar. I once again asked for the large table in the main dining room. Instead she walked me to a table for 4 in the main dining room. I told her that I was the customer and asked her why as aI couldn’t have the table I wanted. She said that they would be cleaning up in that area soon. It was 7:15pm and there were people sitting at the tables next to the one I wanted!!! She rudely handed my daughter the silverware, napkins, and silverware and said to just sit wherever we wanted and then she walked off. I sat in the table I originally wanted and waited for the waitress to come by so I could talk to a manager. Instead the hostess called a meeting with the three waitresses on duty and kept on looking over at my table. We waited 20 minutes for someone to come over but all they did was keep on walking by being careful avoid all eye contact. We got up and went to another restaurant that treated us AMAZING. I will NEVER COME BACK...