4 /5 jim T: We stopped in at Applebee’s tonight and overall had a good experience, thanks largely to our server Lexi and the manager, Adam.
We had about a 10-minute wait to be seated, which wasn’t bad. Once we sat down, Lexi greeted us right away, took our drink order, and got our kids’ meals started. We ordered two kids’ chicken tenders with fries, plus a side of applesauce and a side of strawberries. They don’t normally offer strawberries as a side, but for $1.75 she made it happen. It wasn’t a huge portion, but the fact that she went out of her way to accommodate that request was appreciated.
Drinks came out quickly, and the kids’ food followed about 4 minutes after we ordered – incredibly fast, which is a huge help when you’ve got little ones. My wife and I both ordered the appetizer trio. I chose the pickle fries, crunchy shrimp, garlic parm boneless wings, and a side Caesar salad. My wife got mozzarella sticks, BBQ boneless wings, chicken wonton tacos, and an order of loaded waffle fries.
Unfortunately, after about a 25-minute wait, the food came out ice cold. On top of that, the sauces were served in large ramekins and had spilled over into the food, and the loaded waffle fries were burnt from sitting too long in the salamander. When Lexi came back to check on us and I explained the issue, she immediately grabbed her manager instead of making excuses.
Adam, the manager, came over, listened to everything, and handled it exactly how you’d hope. He offered to remake the food right away. I joked, “Not if it’s going to take another 25 minutes,” and he confidently said it wouldn’t and to give him about 5 minutes. It really felt like he went back there and took care of it himself, because within about 5 minutes, we had fresh, hot food in front of us. The difference was night and day. Yes, in total we waited around 40 minutes from the original order to finally getting food we could enjoy, but Adam absolutely owned the mistake and made it right without attitude or pushback. That goes a long way. We were happy to pay full price because of how professionally he handled it. Great job, Adam.
Lexi’s service throughout was friendly and attentive. At the end, she brought us boxes and a to-go bag for our leftovers – something you rarely see handled that thoughtfully anymore. Extra points for her hospitality.
Our bill was around $63 and we left a $15 tip. Despite the rocky start with the food, the way Adam and Lexi took care of us is the reason we’d consider coming back. Mistakes happen – it’s how you fix them that matters, and they did a great job.
On top of that, this was honestly one of the nicer Applebee’s locations I’ve been to. The layout felt open and comfortable, the dining area and bar were very clean, and the overall ambiance was relaxed and welcoming. Even the men’s restroom stood out — they had screens by the urinals, which I’ve never seen before in a casual restaurant and thought was a pretty cool touch. It all added up to a place that felt well cared for and intentionally maintained.
