Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen — Restaurant in Vinings

My opening statement regarding my recent visit to the Windy Hill Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen location...what is going on ??????

I apologize in advance for this very lengthy review, but so much was "off" and highly unusual for the brand in itself. For starters, I'm not a new customer to this location. Secondly and most important for you all to understand, I live in Jacksonville, Florida. When I travel visiting relatives in the ATL, we make it a priority to dine at this location.

Our server was Amir E. (#60) He barely earned the 2 star rating. His aura was of someone who didn't want to be there. This is the first time we experienced a server that was "less than there" Maybe our group of 2 didn't thrill him (tip-wise)...but on that note, as we ordered our drinks, apps, entree's, and to-go orders totaling $265.43, he should've put a bit more pep in his step. Nope. If his efforts and service was worth the 20%, I would've gladly honored his commitment to excellent service. Amir did the bare minimum when checking on us throughout our visit.

The star rating are as follows:

Food - 2 Stars My all time favorite dish, the "she's gotta have it" meal that never, EVER failed me is the catfish and red beans & rice meal. I now find it necessary to rescind all of the accolades this dish has garnered in the past. For the fried catfish....the not so crispy breading (that was falling off of the fish. That has never happened with previous orders. This led me to think that my order sat in the window until my daughters meal was ready....or worse...frozen fish?...THE HORROR! The red beans had a sweetness to it that I've never experienced before.

Service - 2 Stars Blame it on Amir's lack luster performance.

Atmosphere - The vibe was what we're accustom to....but our server lowered the score.

Let's get back to the food part. I read a previous comment stating the Windy Hill location has a new chef and recipes are being tweaked....STOP IT....STOP IT RIGHT NOW! Whatever tweaks have been made to the fried catfish/RB&R meal are not working. If changes are being brought about due to costs...I do understand that. However, if you can't replicate the dishes and flavors your massive customer base is used to, I'm sorry to you'll lose a great deal of your core customers.

Our to-go Orders- Note to self - Remember to check 'to-go' orders prior to leaving.

We ordered the shrimp & crawfish fonduex to go. The cost is $24.95 per order. When we opened the container.....well...it looked like 1 ant floating in a huge swimming pool. If that was the serving for that order....PLEASE use a smaller to-go box (optics)

Dirty Rice - Can you all fill the container all the way up.

On a positive note....my daughter ordered the filet mignon Oscar. The cook on her steak was amazing! Keep up the good work, Chef.

In closing, we noticed, at least for lunch, the loaf of bread is no longer given to patrons....well, we didn't receive any. When we ordered the Lump Crab & Spinach Dip, it came with 4 pieces of perfectly toasted bread. I'm sure this was a cost saving measure. We would've appreciated a few more slices of the toast for the remainder of our meal. This may have been as simple as asking our server, but again.....Amir E. was in the wind.

Maybe this was a 1 off (beans and rice), but the server issue should never...

This is our usual go to place for fried seafood. We arrived at 10:30 AM. Tried to walk-in at 10:50 AM since the restaurant opens at 11:00 AM. The doors were unlocked however, we were not allowed to enter until around 11:12 AM or maybe later. There were a lot of us waiting and people were starting to complain and get impatient. Other people tried going in and only to be turned around, LOL. My DH and I were the first ones to go in and were the last ones of about 10 tables to order last. Yes, I did count the tables.

I was confused and disappointed that the table we were seated was dirty. I asked the hostess if she could clean the table. Instead of doing so she sat us at the next table which was also dirty. I said, “ma’am this table is dirty to”. She looked at me and what might have been an eye roll and walked away. Yes, we had to clean our own table. Neither did she nor anyone else clean the table next to us.

The restaurant opened late and the dinner tables were all not cleaned made me think what type of service would we receive today.

Well our waitress arrived over 15 mins later (probably longer). All guests around us were eating their appetizers and we didn’t even have a waitress. How is it that we were the first to be seated and the last to eat. There were three parties of 6-8 people who were seated after us and eating their appetizers before we receive drinks. Better yet a waitress or waiter.

Our waitress seemed disinterested and barely awake. The tables next to us waiter checked on them six times and our waitress only came to make a drink order. When she finally arrived we were ready to order our food. Which we normally get an appetizer. Due to the extremely poor service we’re ordered our main course and water only.

The other waiters asked their guests if they’re like a to go plate and if they’d like him to bag everything. Did we get an option of any sort? No, she didn’t even ask if we wanted a drink refill. Nope, we did not! I had to ask for everything. After she brought the containers for food, I had to request a bag for the food.

Even though the service was horrible I still tipped the waitress even though she didn’t provide service. She merely placed our order.

If this was my first time at Pappadeaux I would not come back. Based on my experience 7/28 I would not recommend this place based on service. However, I’d recommend this placed based on the food we received.

Also, the women restroom was not up to par either. Management was not at their best this day.

I rated two stars because the food was good. Other than that I would’ve rated a negative zero for the service and cleanliness.

I could say more...

Disastrous Dining Experience at Pappadeaux's on Windy Hill Road, Georgia

I recently dined at Pappadeaux's on Windy Hill Road in Georgia with my family to celebrate my mother's birthday, and I must express my extreme dissatisfaction with the service we received on March 20th. Despite our excitement and love for Pappadeaux's, the experience fell far below expectations, especially considering the hefty price tag attached to each meal.

Upon arrival, despite arriving well before 8 o'clock, we were informed of an hour-long wait. While we patiently waited, it was disheartening to realize that the level of service did not match the hospitality expected, especially with the restaurant closing at 9 o'clock. Throughout the evening, it was evident that the staff's priority was to rush patrons out rather than provide a memorable dining experience.

Our server's lackluster attitude was apparent from the start. There was no proper greeting, and it felt as though he had an agenda to quickly serve us and move on to the next table. He failed to offer any menu suggestions, and when taking our order, he seemed disinterested and rushed. Additionally, important details regarding condiments or specific requests were completely overlooked, further highlighting the lack of attention to detail.

After an uncomfortable wait of almost 30 to 45 minutes, our food arrived lukewarm, which is unacceptable, especially for seafood. When I notified the server, instead of promptly addressing the issue, he took the meal away and left me waiting an additional 20 minutes. Upon its return, the portions were smaller, and the food was still not hot. The manager, whom we were told would address the situation, never showed up, leaving us feeling ignored and frustrated.

To add insult to injury, when we requested another order of oysters, we were informed that they were out, which seemed unlikely given the early closing time. It appeared that the staff's priority was to expedite the closing process rather than accommodate patrons.

Overall, the service we received was far from satisfactory, especially considering the hefty bill of nearly $400. This experience not only tarnished our celebration but also left us feeling disrespected as paying customers. Despite our willingness to generously tip for excellent service, the staff failed to deliver, and as a result, we will never return to Pappadeaux's on Windy Hill Road. It's a shame that what should have been a joyous occasion turned into a disappointing ordeal. If you have a 9pm close time you should stop talking patrons at 8pm. Especially if you’re...