Bandits Grill & Bar — Restaurant in Thousand Oaks

Ahhhh Bandits!! I love this place. We started coming here about 2 years ago and it quickly became our staple in Thousand Oaks. Here's why:

First off, I must declare that I used to run restaurants in NYC. So I have this problem of picking out all of the bad things about restaurants when I visit them. Call me a critic but whatever, I know good service and quality food when I see it. With that said, I am convinced that this place has some sort of magic.

The staff: Super friendly and accommodating. We add like 3-4 modifications to all of our orders. (I know we are annoying). But they don't even blink an eye at it. They are always happy to see you and are really good at serving by making sure you have everything you need. The food runner Hector, always stops by our table to say hi : ) Kirby is an amazing waitress who will come visit us even if we aren't in her section as well as Edgar and a few others. They really are genuinely happy to see you, which is rare these days I feel. Thousand Oaks is a small town in the grand scheme of the world and it is fitting that when you visit here you get that sense of community. The servers have also been there for a while which is a tip of the cap to the management staff who run a well-oiled machine here. Shannon (mgr) stopped by the table tonight who is so down to earth and sweet. She took the time during a busy Friday night to talk with us tableside to get to know us better. Her family also owns a small business in town. The staff really take pride in their work here and it shows in the service.

The food: First off, they source food locally and never freeze anything. Everything is made in house and you can definitely taste it. We have come on weekday afternoons, weekend nights when its packed and random times in between. I stick to a few staple choices and I swear they must have the same cook in the kitchen every single day of the week at all hours!! The food is always consistent with a "T". It is an anomaly in the restaurant industry as different cooks simply cook things just a wee bit different each time. it's not anyone's fault, it's just the industry. But here, I am simply baffled at how they remain so consistent on their recipes.

I ordered the BBQ Chop Salad with Tri-Tip. I modify a little with no corn, no tortilla strips since I am sensitive to corn and extra onion strings on top (no charge ever). We also recently got the BBQ Combo where the chicken is probably the most tender I have gotten at a restaurant. And that includes other higher end BBQ places in Austin TX and fine dining places in NYC. The ribs are always leaving me wanting more. I recommend getting the yams as a side....

1st Timer here at Bandits Grill & Bar and WOW!, was it ever Awesome!! For starters, we chose to dine in the bar area due to arriving around 4:20pm. Happy Hour happens to be between 3-5pm on Saturday. See Menu in Photos for Happy Hour Times/Specials. Anyway, my counterpart for this meal, M2D2, has been here Countless times. In fact, when asked, 'If You could pick Anywhere to eat, where would you go?' Well, the choice was simple. From Malibu to T.O. we came and was it ever worth it! So we decided to order off the $5, $6, $7 and $8 Dollar Menu. It paid off Big Time!! Our 'Poison' of choice was the Lemon Drop Martinis. Typically a $12 drink, it was 50% off at Happy Hour. So essentially it was kind of like a Buy One Get One Free, sorta deal. For our Meal(s), we ordered the $5 Half Order of Onion Rings, which were cooked to Perfection! The $6 chicken wings. Unfortunately being a Chicken Wing Connoisseur, I can certainly say I've had Better. The $7 fish tacos, which I did question our waitress about, and she advised us that the fish inside was Salmon. I felt it tasted and had the texture of Tilapia, but either way, they were Spot On! Finally the $8 Prime Rib Sliders! I feel they just may get their Prime Rib from a little restaurant in Beverly Hills called Lawry's. The meat was tender and flavorful as Any Prime Rib I've ever had. As far as the reviewer 4377hn, who happens to have 1 (ONE) Total Google Review from about 2 months ago, their claim of salted food seems a little 'salty.' 🤭 There was No Over Saltiness in all of the meals we had. In fact, I almost added a little salt myself, but then I though IF my doctor happened to walk by, he would've given me the 'stink eye,' so I held off. No Vulgar language by any patrons, and certainly NOT by any employees. Our Waitress, Kayla H., was Positively Phenomenal! In fact, when we gave her our opinion of the chicken wings just being okay, Not Only did she apologize, she even offered to replace it with something else! How's that for Service? Needless to say, after that, and since we didn't finish the chicken wings, we most certainly had no choice but to order the Fresh Strawberry Shortcake! Bandits uses a Freshly Baked Biscuit, then they add ice cream, whipped cream, strawberries, and then top it off with strawberry puree and some powdered sugar. It was a Treat meant for a King and/or Queen! There is No Doubt in my mind that I'll be back Bandits. This is a Fantastically Solid Restaurant that deserves 5 Stars through and through!! They've got a Lifelong Customer Out...

A few weeks ago, my wife and I , along with another couple, had dinner at Bandits in Thousand Oaks. When given the opportunity to sit outside where it was quieter we accepted. We ordered drinks and food and I typically ask them to go easy on the seasoning salt, they never do. Food arrives and to my disappointment my steak is drenched in seasoning salt, it's just what they do there. About halfway through our meal a large empty table across from us filled with two or three women, the remainder being eight men. Immediately they start yelling obscenities and in general are speaking at the top of their voices, you would think they were on the sidelines of a sporting event where their team was losing. In the dining area with us are several families with young children. We asked our waiter to move them or speak to them, he did nothing. We then asked to speak to the manager. The manager offers to move us even though we are in the middle of our dinner and the other table has not received drinks yet. At this point we informed the manager we were not going to finish our dinner and left after paying the bill. The manager was a huge disappointment, he did nothing and in general was confused, he didn't offer to take care of the bill or any part of it.

I remember Bandits when it was half the size and across the road, wonderful place to dine. Since then every time we eat here we hope for the food and service that was routine at the old place.

We won't be going back and I suggest anyone looking for BBQ find somewhere else unless you enjoy over salted food and loud vulgar environment.

I will now contact my credit card company and do what the manager should have done...