HuHot Mongolian Grill — Restaurant in Topeka

We were on vacation, and my husband surprised me and wanted to treat me to HuHot. This is a sacrifice for him because he has had negative experiences in others where we lost a lot of time and money following lines of people who get two bowls vs. one.

As usual, this HuHot doesn't enforce the one bowl rule. Two young men in front of me demonstrated why this needs to enforced. The cooks at the grill have to take the time to ask if both bowls belong to the person; in this case the young man said they did. Then he asked for them to be cooked separately. At least the next young man stacked his three bowls together and avoided the question. His plate just took longer to cook.

My first plate looked great. When I began to eat; however, a piece of my chicken was cold, and so was a piece of my baby corn. I tried something else, and it was also cold. I called my waitress over, and I told her why I wasn't eating it. She sent the manager to me. I told him I was concerned for myself and other diners and didn't want anyone to get sick. He thanked me. I stated the food stayed on what seemed to be a typical time and suggested perhaps the grill should be made hotter. I also noted I had just come behind the entire grill being used. He said he would check the grill but suggested I tell the cook I wanted my food, "Well done." The manager said he would cook my next plate. He accepted my food (I gave him a smaller amount than I had the first time) and began cooking it then told the older gentleman something and went to do other things.

I received my second plate and the food was hot all the way through. The manager came to check and I told him it was "better." Then I got a third plate; the unfortunate fact is when one says "Well done," It's not just the meat, it's also the vegetables and the noodles. This plate was chewier than the other plates.

Overall I was disappointed in this restaurant, and I am sorry to say that, because I adore HuHot usually. But, to be a good guide and a good customer, I have to give management the truth no matter how unsavory it may be, pun not intended, because I believe if they don't know what's wrong, they...

Why are the sauces so corn starch thickened?????….it’s goopy and gravy like…

I put extra sauce and could still barely taste any flavor….even the soup had a gravy like consistency which tasted worse as it cooled.

Not a huge fan of how the cooks flipped raw food (MEAT) and then flipped my basically done food with the raw food spatulas..within the same 10 seconds…gross.

Asked how much the crab rangoons were and was told they come in 4,7, or 12 and she talked about the “all you can eat” thing which made us think crab Rangoon was just included since she didn’t answer when asked….it is not included btw. So the cost of the meal was a heckuva surprise….not worth that much at all for one trip or one plate (for me), 2 sodas, and 2 appetizers, total pre tip for 2 guests $55.00. So, $27.00 a person plus tip…not worth it for one trip through the buffet.

Should have gotten Thai food for less and woulda had leftovers….this was so bland and such a waste of money.

Plus side….the soda wasn’t flat….and I was impressed at how hard the gents were working at the grill just not a fan of the cross contamination thing 😬. Waitress seemed good at keeping drinks full…

Second time there in ten years and my opinions consistent with the last time…ugh, gross, overpriced, bland.

I wish I could leave a better review…but in all honesty, I shouldn’t have bothered trying it again.

To Management: With 2 sodas and 2 appetizers and the meal. But we had NO idea what was what cost-wise even after we asked the waitress.

The same thing happened last time…prices should be clearly marked on a menu on the table or something not something I have to beg the waitress for….transparency and clarity...

Food was great. Cooks always do a fantastic job. Service, not so much. They seemed more concerned with chatting than customer service. At one point when there were tables needing bussed one of the servers, who had either her child or sister (who couldn't have been over 10 years old) using the little manual sweeper on the carpet. This was at 4:45 on a Saturday with a fairly full dining room.

First off, this is not professional. There seems to be a lack of direction from management who happened to be one of the chatty people with the servers. Employees follow the example set by their supervisors and that's exactly what was in practice.

Secondly, if something had happened between the child that was sweeping (and at one point helped bus tables) and a customer, it would be disastrous for this restaurant. Way too much liability.

And last but not least, if the best employees in the restaurant are the cooks and the worst, on this day at least, are the management, maybe the cooks should run the show.

I was in restaurant management and turnarounds were my specialty. The scenario I witnessed this evening is one major cause I'd witness in a restaurant heading...