Steamboat Gardens — Restaurant in Waterloo

Ok, so I lived in Waterloo for the first 19 years of my life and never tried Steamboat until tonight after returning to town over 30 years later. I got a hankering for a pork tenderloin and this was the only option, but I had heard good things. I will hand it to them that I ordered over the phone and it was ready when I arrived 20 mins later, but that and the friendly gentlemen who took my $26 (?!) payment for a pork tenderloin sandwich, fries and onion rings was very nice. Starting with the rings, they were fried well, but almost devoid of flavor, apart from the bland grease they were cooked in. No sweetness whatsoever and the oil was just industrial-tasting. The tenderloin was pretty big, but the meat was overdone and rubbery and the breading was still a little battery inside. Tasteless, like the rings. Fries were ok but lacking the same dimension as the other food. Switch out your fryer oil for higher quality, Steamboat. Maybe some salt and use...

We stopped here after a concert at Gallagher Bluedorn so it was later, around 9:15pm and only one car was in the lot so we thought they were closed. Luckily I checked the door and it was open so we went in and were the only customers in the place..BAD SIGN! We were wrong and the place had just emptied out a few minutes earlier according to the waitress. The attention and service was excellent and the food was too. But really what caused me to write this review was the condition of the place. Yes, it is an older building and nothing special on the outside, but it was very clean and in good condition inside and the restrooms were the cleanest and most modern that my wife and I have seen lately. That's a very reassuring sign in a restaurant where the cleanliness of the restrooms is usually an indication of the kitchen. A very good experience that we will...

Haven’t been here in awhile. I came here as a young child and now a parent myself brought all of my kids here at some point and realized our youngest hasn’t ever been here especially for the infamous tugboat Tuesday. It was by far less than unsatisfactory. Everything from the food to the mustard and ketchup tasted old and under seasoned. I understand it’s cheap grub but you also wanna have people come back for the food no matter what. Some people might not care or have a pallet but it was gross. I had extras to take with me for our athlete at practice and I just tried to give it away or throw it away. It has gone downhill for sure. Come back steamboat and make some renovations to the place. My child even bought candy bar before we left and she took a bite and said that was gross and...