Lola's Lakehouse — Restaurant in Waconia

I reserved a table on the patio in advance for the 4th of July. We planned this because we heard good things and that you could also watch the fireworks from the patio. Win win right? Wrong. Being told the patio was by reservation only I was under the impression we'd be seated outside but later told differently and ultimately sat inside. As disappointing as that was it wasn't a make or break for us. Fully understanding it's a busy night and we had eleven of us, we kept a positive mindset. But that's not where the disappointment ended, that's where it began. Got there on time after trying to find parking, which was difficult. Once again I understand it's the 4th. They arranged the tables for us in a timely manner and started drink orders right away. A couple people trickled in 15 min later which then had to wait awhile to order drinks or even get water. The drinks were sweet and the Margarita was awful, mixture being way off. As we talked and waited for the drinks we asked for bread and told it was just coming out of the oven and it would be a couple minutes. 40min later they delivered a basket of bread after asking a couple times and being told the same excuse. Waters for those that weren't drinking weren't refilled until asked ultimately sitting building pools condensation. Lobster bisque was very salty with no Lobster in it. Scallops were good in size but very sweet due to the sauce. The chef special was unique but lacked flavor and the crawfish tasted like fish left out of the water next to a pond developing that weird fish smell, if you can imagine that you'd understand. But that's not even the kicker, I actually had to get up and find my server 15 min later, after everyone was eating, to ask for my dish! Lobster risotto was decent but still lacked flavor and lacked meat. For the price, the food really didn't stand out and was quite disappointing overall. Service was sub par at best. We had ordered several of the dishes to really diversify and give it a chance but everyone stated it was just okay. We were polite and got along with our server. This wasn't a coup by any sorts. We all eat out quite a bit coming from San Francisco, Miami, and many of us travel a lot. It's just not a place I'd recommend. Now I don't like to be negative or end on bad note so I'll end on some positives comments. Server was nice and joked around with us and the bread was freshly out if the oven. That's it,...

Update – I am very disappointed they are closed. There was no posted signage and the door was unlocked. I walked in and they were taking out Christmas decorations. I then found out that they are closed until January 10. Very disappointed as I was coming here for my birthday and there was no posted signage and I also didn’t see anything online.

Prior review: If I could give this place, 11 out of five stars I would. I felt like royalty in this place. Not only was I immediately greeted and seated the second I walked in the door. I was given water within five seconds of sitting down, with a menu And a waiter who is ready to serve immediately. They checked to see if I wanted my appetizers first, checked to see if I wanted recommendations and checked to see if I had any questions about anything on the menu. When the food came out, the waiter also checked to make sure that the food was to our liking and that we enjoyed it. My friend gets full easy and wanted the rest of her food to go and the waiter said “I just want to make sure that the food was to your liking personally.” So, not only did the waiter check when it came out and we had already eaten halfway but he also checked as we left. This place had the absolute best service that I have ever received at any restaurant. I have been to hundreds of restaurants across the U.S and nothing beat the service here or even came close. That’s just the service, the food, mouthwatering. The lemonade I got was the best lemonade I’ve had, handcrafted, of course. the oysters were very fresh and a delicacy. If you told me that they harvested those oysters out of the lake they’re next to I would’ve believed you. The flatbread was cooked to perfection, and every bite was the feeling of the sun on your face in the middle of a summer day. It was phenomenal, no burnt or overcooked edges. This place was affordable, considering how fancy it was and how great the food was. The oysters were $22 for a half dozen. The flatbread was large enough for two people and was $17. 100% will be coming back. I think it’ll honestly be my new place with my husband. This is now a regular spot of ours that we try to do date night at least once a month. Thank you for always providing the best service,...

Lovely jingle bar experience - until the very end when we were asked to leave due to our time being up.

Music was loud but we were seated right next to the speaker. Musician had a lovely voice- this issue was not her fault - it’s a small space but just hard for us to converse. Loved the atmosphere and Christmas decor!

At the end we were asked by the hostess to leave after we hit our “90 minute rule” for our table. We got the text for the table at 4:31 and seated at 4:35 and at 6pm on the dot they were on us- “sorry ladies time is up on your table.” After 3 rounds of drinks, appetizers, salads, steaks and noticing we were just finishing our after dinner drink…you’d think you could give us 5mins to settle up (as there were 4 other tables free in the bar) before hustling us out. I understand why the rule exists but I have never had the pressure like this anywhere in Minneapolis/suburbs and I enjoy new, popular and busy venues. May only consider coming in for a quick drink or app not to have a relaxing multi course celebration.

Also, note they have a five minute rule for patrons to come up to the host stand when they text you that your table is ready. It didn’t happen to us but another party came after 8mins and the hostess said “sorry you took too long so we filled your table but you can get back on the bottom of the wait list.” 🥶

We did have an issue (food quality) with one item during dinner, but they corrected that quickly with fresh food.

Later looking at our bill we had up charges for a bunch of things which we never asked for and charged $4.00 for “rocks” on the Martini- so we paid for ice?….and the bartender to shake the Martini in it. Also was asked if we wanted regular olives or blue cheese stuffed olives but never explained the additional $2 in charge.

Again, it’s more about the communication in cost for things because we would not have chosen those items if it was clear on the price differential.

Perhaps majority of folks who come to this restaurant don’t need to worry about being nickel and dimed and up charged but it was disappointing for us (trying to enjoy a special night out) to not get clear communication from the...