Russell's Steaks, Chops, & More — Restaurant in Town of Lancaster

We went for our Anniversary. We do go often for a nice enjoyable dinner. Yesterday was anything but. It took a good 10 mins after our drinks were ordered we received them. They weren't very good and I ordered off specialty drinks and my husband ordered a basic drink and couldn't even taste the vodka. Our shrimp cocktail came out again something we order all the time but, the cocktail sauce was so hot it made it overbearing. Our waiter spoke so fast about the specials it was tough to figure out what he said so we went back to the basic. Steak A la Russell. My ceaser salad came out the lettuce was all brown and soggy. Told the waiter he comes with a new 1 with anchovies on the side as well as the dressing did not order it that way says oops and takes it back and all he did was take the anchovies off the plate so I could still taste and smell them. Didn't eat that either. Now comes our dinner my veggies were just thrown on the plate on top of my mashed potatoes it was not plated well with all the mushrooms just thrown on the other side. There was 0 presentation on that plate. Also because of the salad situation those plates were sitting under the warmer because the plates were hot. After looking at this we ordered another drink. Now I try one of the the lavender spritz translation club soda with flower and again my husband's drink had no taste of Tittos vodka in it. Our steaks were ok at best I know the steaks are highly seasoned but never with the amount of salt that was on them and the mushrooms was awful. I had the 6oz and my husband 9oz. This is the 1st time I had grit and veins. At this point I was so disappointed I gave it to my husband to eat and he couldn't believe the difference between his and mine. I just wanted to leave. We did have a gift card and the 25$ one which I did not realize it was expired and the server just laughed and said we don't even take those anymore. OK no big deal but let's not embarrass the guest. We felt like they kept rushing us with no in between to rest for a few minutes between course's and there was no seating after us and still people eating. After all the years of patronizing this restaurant we're done. We never care what we spend on a good dinner but $266.00 for our unpleasant experience is ridiculous. Also, every Christmas I buy $1500 in gift cards which I will no longer do. I also don't do reviews like this but this is how upset we both are. I truly understad that restaurants do have bad days but not an apology and really no really question if everything was ok which a good server would have recognized. Even when he finally asked if we enjoyed everything I said not really he just looked at me and said oh. He did know were not happy but really did not care. I know some of the things were out of his control but he should have said something. We still left a 20% tip and left. One thing I fotgot to mention the 2 people at the host stand were taking care of us cause I always make a rez. When no he yelling no rez they sit in the bar. Both people took us to our table. There was no appoligeze. It truly means Russ needa to get off seating chart checking oh on customer. TUESDAY NIGHT IN THE. CORNER WE WERE INTO I TALKED NOTICE OF SEVERAL OTHER TABLES COMPLAINING. WE HAVE SEVERAL OTHER DINNERS AND A BANQUET WE WERE WORKIG THIS WEEK THAT I WILL...

This appears to be an end of an era for the once high level service that you used to receive when dining at Russells. My wife & I just got home from probably one of the most unwelcoming dining experiences we have ever had. We were celebrating my mother-in-laws birthday and had made reservations for the occasion. Upon arrival we discovered that they were also celebrating Russ’s birthday and was the top priority of the evening. It delayed not only our reservations but several other patrions as well. When we were finally called for our table we were rudely demanded that we must check our coats, which was not a problem. but the manner of which the hostess snapped the order at us was off putting. Once seated, the waiter took our drink order but failed to provide us menus so we could choose our dining options. After 20 minutes I decided to get up and procure the menus myself. At this moment we could hear the loud party going on for Russ and even the waiter made a comment regarding the event, but we were not there for his cerebration, we had made this night for my mother-in-law which is also why we mentioned when made the reservation that it was a milestone birthday and would be appreciated if they could make it known without being told the day of…but they didn’t. They were more concerned how I managed to procure menus without their knowledge When we eventually received our drinks I discovered they had made a mistake on my order but by that time I was so annoyed the low level of service and lack of respect for the common customers, meanwhile a party for the elite was happening in the next room that was clearly a higher priority for the staff . I acknowledge Russ is a great man and a staple in the community, but it seems when he takes the night off the rest of the staff does too. It’s really a shame because when my wife & I first came to Russell’s for our anniversary it was a completely different experience. Russ was at the hostess stand to greet the guests and the staff acted in a completely different demeanor. They gave great attention to every detail of the evening (pulling out chairs, dusting off tables, etc) they even brought us complimentary dessert that acknowledged our anniversary. We were so impressed we couldn’t wait to share this experience with our mother-in-law. But sadly it seems those days are over. Our service was no better than any given chain restaurant and the high prices don’t reflect the level of service that they once offered.I realize this review may come across as overly critical.. but this is supposed to be a high end dining experience for common people are supposed to enjoy as a special occasion for the milestones in their lives. But we ended up leaving the evening feeling that we were just an inconvenience for the staff. Instead of being a memorable night, it ended up being unforgettable...

The quality has gone downhill.

My wife booked dinner and night at the hotel for my birthday. Check-in and dinner were seamless as expected although I noticed several empty tables for dinner Friday at 715pm. Something I'd never seen in the past as we have eaten there before. Service was great no decline there at all. The food was good, but for the cost my steak wasn't as tender as I would've hoped. It didn't seem like prime grade as advertised. Needless to say dinner was way to costly, but overall okay.

The overnight stay is where things went off the rails! We got back to the room approximately 9:45 intending to have the dessert we got to go from the restaurant. At which point we could hear our 'neighbors' involved in some rather loud audible amorous activity (we will call it to keep this rated PG). An immediate blemish on an otherwise good night. My wife wanted to go home as we live locally, but I urged her to soldier on as hopefully things would improve from there... but they didn't.

At approximately 11:30pm there was a group congregated in the parking lot whooping it up having a big time, pumping music loud enough to wake us both up. Stay tuned it gets worse.

Our lovely neighbors decided one round was insufficient, and decided to go for a second approximately 12:45am; waking us up yet again. At which point we gathered our belongings, walked down to the desk, turned in the room keys, and went home. The night officially ruined beyond repair.

The night desk clerk didn't have the authority to provide us with a refund as we requested, and asked that we reach out in the morning to the manager. We did as instructed, and were not looking for refund on the dinner portion (even though it was under expectation) just the dreadful hotel portion. We were referred to Mark Jerge who was BEYOND rude on the phone. He kept telling me leaving was "my prerogative" that they could've given us an alternate room. Which is true, but by that time the night was in complete disrepair. Mark proceeded to offer a gift card which I declined as I never intend on going back, and finally he agreed to refund the hotel portion to our credit card. At which point he hung up on me.

Overall the experience was a nightmare. Russell's was always a pinnacle in fine dining; more than just meal. People got dressed up to have a quality meal, in a refined atmosphere (usually in celebration). We saw many people I will say underdressed. Not to mention the...