Kelsey's Steak & Seafood — Restaurant in Valparaiso

I don't understand the 5-star reviews here. To each their own, I guess. We ate here probably 10 years ago because it's expensive. It used to be okay but just wait... My in-laws came into town and my wife, and I thought we would treat them and take them to Kelsey's. It's Friday afternoon and we arrived around 4:30PM. There were four adults in our group. Upon entering, they initially wanted to seat us at a table in the bar area. Really? We asked if we could be seated in the main dining area. They politely said absolutely and then sat us down at a table right next to the kitchen. I mean this table was situated right next to where they come out with the food and the wait staff was passing right behind our table. We sat down and ordered our drinks. The drinks arrived in a timely manner. This table area was noisy because of the kitchen staff, and we had a lot of staff traffic! We noticed their patio area. We asked if we could move out to the patio. Again, they politely said absolutely. We gathered our drinks and moved to the patio. The patio area was very nice. It was quiet and comfortable. Awesome. We opened our menus and were taken aback at the prices on the menu! A filet mignon $58, Ribeye $48, Prime Rib $39. What the hell? We eat out quite often, but these prices were way over what we are accustomed to seeing in the Valparaiso area. Way over! Nonetheless, we wanted to give them a try. We ordered. Two prime rib king cuts, medium, one with mashed one with a baked potato $39 each. Two bourbon glazed salmon with rice $27 each. After we ordered they gave us bread rolls. They tasted awful and at room temperature they became hard. Ick. The salads arrived next. The salads were actually pretty good. Awesome, maybe the entrées will be too. The entrées came out next. On a plus, the entrées did come out quick. Now for the bad. Butter was placed on the mashed potatoes and the butter would not melt. The mashed potatoes were not warm. The two prime ribs cuts were over cooked with no juices running on the plate. They looked gray in color. The Au Jus sauce was barely warm. The two salmon entrées with rice were very small. Maybe 4oz each of salmon. The rice came in a bowl and the rice was barely warm. If you want a vegetable, it's an upcharge. So, all you get for $27 is a 4oz salmon with rice and no vegetables! The salmon wasn't good either. It tasted bland. It had grill marks but no crust or seasoning other than the bourbon glaze. Awful! For these prices we could have done so much better going to a chain restaurant. And, to top it off, if you pay by credit card, which most people do, they add an extra 3.5% "adjustment" to your bill! We heard the table next to us struggling to try and find enough cash to pay their bill so they wouldn't have to pay the extra 3.5%! Nope. We are done with Kelsey's. Never again. You have...

My husband and I have been Kelsey's regulars since we were in our teens, and we are now in our mid 50's. We eat at Kelsey's at least twice a month. The food and service are usually beyond reproach. When we dined on August 1st, I was sadly disappointed by our experience. When we arrived, the hostess did not ask whether we wanted a booth or table. Since we were on our "date night" we wanted a more initmate atmosphere and wanted to sit in a booth, as we always do. She was going to put us at a table in the bar. When I asked her if we could be seated at a booth, there was a somewhat long discussion among the hostesses before she sat us at a booth in the bar. No one was waiting to be seated and there were tables open in the main resturant, but we happily sat down. One of our regular waiters was working in the bar, so I was excited to get excellent service as usual. Things didn't turn out that way. We didn't have anyone come to our table for 10 minutes. When our waiter, Blake, arrived, none of the usual discussion occured. He didnt say, "Welcome to Kesley's. How are you this evening? Are you celebrating anything special," as all waitstaff usually do. He didn't ask if we had questions about the menu. He didn't apologize for the wait. He asked for our drink orders, and we told him we ready to order (since we sat so long waiting for him). He was annoyed by this. He didn't ask if we wanted an app, so although we usually oder one, we didn't. When my husband ordered his ribeye, Blake didn't ask the size. Blake asked what kind of potato my husband wanted rather than asking what sides. He asked what type of dressing he wanted on his salad rather than offering soup, salad, or Ceasar salad. I experience the same treatment when I ordered my prime rib and twice baked potato. We didn't get straws for our drinks. When our food arrived, it was evident that my husband's steak was not medium well, it was well done. Because he doesn't like to com[plain, he ate it anyway. Blake didn't stop back and ask if we wanted dessert by bring out the tray. He dropped the check and left. Blake needs to trained to meet the standard of Kelsey's other servers. His apathy, rudeness, and ineptitude would turn a first time patron off enough they may not return. I will remember him, and make sure he doesn't wait...

I was told that this place had great steaks and seafood, and being from out of town, gave it a try with other people who wanted some late dinner as well. But it turned out to be disappointing.

Food - for starters, I had a cup of chicken dumpling soup. Seems okay, other than the fact that it was lukewarm and tasted generic, as if it came out from a food service soup can (e.g. Sysco, US Foods) - disappointing. For the main, I got a "King" sized prime rib with 10 shrimp. The prime rib was cooked well (medium rare) bit was tasteless. I had to use the sauce (au jus?) to make it half decent tasty. Shrimp was very disappointing, if not upsetting. It was cooked but lacked taste and visual appeal. Side of red potatoes was good and tasty but I didn't have it in me to finish it off. This wasn't worth $50, or even $5.

Service - we got this gentleman who's first language wasn't English, as this caused an occasional jumble of whatever we ordered or the general conversation. Not his fault, but slightly annoying to us. He got our orders, served when ready, but we didn't see him often enough for more drinks and stuff. However he at least tried to hard sell the desserts, despite us being very full from our meals. Not being his fault, I had issue with the apparently required (if not highly suggested) and precalculated tip on the receipt. As customers, we have the right to give whatever we want, and we did, but to have it on the bill like that is almost insulting.

Misc - the place is nice, the staff is friendly, and bathrooms functional and clean. Many tables and chairs are available - seems like a place that's been there for a while (hence the interior styles), but it's comfortable here. Plenty of parking outside. If you have leftovers, the staff will give you dishes to put them in.

Since I have to stick to my self-governing policies, I will come to this place again, and give it another try, but with some reservations. But since it's nowhere near my home town, it may be a while since this first and last visit was not compelling me to do so.

Penalty stars off for suggested tip on receipt, the waiter not checking on us for more drinks and other hard sells (c'mon man, this is a restaurant, to make money and for repeat & happy customers!), and food lacking in taste and...