Everyone is usually friendly and is quick to serve us!!
(3)
Daniel L.
I never think to tip on a To-go order, but the Monday night staff makes me wish I had. They were expedient and more than courteous when I ordered Texas fries and a strawberry lemonade. They even offered a refill even though I was only there for five minutes. Only got four stars because it's pretty pricy. For that reason I probably won't still tip on to go orders, but I'm also a broke student so yeah. Kudos to you, staff. If I had a hat I'd tip it
(4)
Katie H.
I'm just going to start off this review by saying I am server, and I have worked at high end and low end restaurants. Our experience started when I called ahead to ask how long the wait would be, around 7:15, "we have a table for you right now" said the gentleman. We arrived at 7:20, and we're greeted, "Hi, we're the couple that just called ahead, you said you had a table available? " to the only gentleman dressed in management clothing. The host behind him stated "The wait is 40 minutes." The manager said, "you must be mistaken, it wasn't me that you spoke to, but we'll get you a seat right away." He directs us to a tiny 2 seater booth, which still had crumbs on the table and seats. The host said "I'll be right back with menus for you." 10 minutes later she keeps popping her head to stop and watch the hockey game on the tv above us, still not getting us our menus. 5 minutes later our server Tammy S came over. "Hi what would you like to drink?" We ordered a soda and a water, I wanted an alcoholic beverage so I asked to see a menu, "They sat you without menus? I'll be right back with them and another set of silverware" She then proceeds to pull the only other manager near our table to which he replies "It's not my fault, I didn't seat them!" Another host ended up bringing us our menus and place setting (which was poorly wrapped and the silverware slipped out onto the floor.) We get our drinks (water and soda) came fairly quick (10 minutes.) I then order a salad, Arnold palmer, a 3 trio appetizer, and a pasta for my boyfriends' dinner, I still hadn't decided. 30 minutes later having still not received my drink I managed to ask another waitress if she could check on my drink, she asked if I would like sweet or unsweetened tea (something our server had failed to do) our waitress casually walked by I asked for some lemon for my water and 2 small plates for our appetizers (we never received either) Upon receiving our salad and trio appetizer, I was irritated that I had not yet received my drink, when the 2nd waitress whom I was able to get her attention brought it I thanked her graciously, however Tammy never even acknowledged the fact that she herself failed to get my drink. At this time I ordered a flatbread with extra chicken, as an entree, with 2 small side items. We finally received our meals (another 20 minutes later, which was a more than reasonable amount of time considering it was a Saturday night) my flatbread did not have extra chicken and the side item of broccoli I had ordered was cold, and very hard to bite. Upon asking for the check and 2 boxes, Tammy (very quickly) brought us our check (to which she laid upon my plate of food, for our small table was overflowing with used plates from appetizers and empty cups), and 1 box. She began removing plates and asked if she could take our card before we even had a chance to review the check. She removed a few dishes and came back with the 2nd box, hovering us to see that we paid, which is terrible server etiquette, unless you reason to feel we would "dine and dash". I reviewed the check and saw that I was not charged for the extra chicken on my flatbread that I never received. We paid on the tablet provided at our table, and began to review the terrible service as well. She promptly came over and said was your service unsatisfactory? Can I get you a manager? If she had made any effort to make a connection with our table or had offered to even look us in the eyes, she would have known from the first 30 minutes of sitting down that we were unsatisfied. However she waited until the end of our service to attempt to fix anything. It was for this reason that we left her a $3.07 tip, rather than stiffing her like so many of the other waitresses on Fowler Ave have come accustomed to. This is not all of Tammy's fault. Having seen her run to what I counted was 5 tables including ours, the 2 managers on duty should have known she "couldn't handle" that many tables and had staffed the evening accordingly. She then proceeded to "guilt us" by making a connection and saying "Have a Merry Christmas." As we were leaving the table. All in all terrible service, poor management, and we will not be returning. This review will be posted on Facebook, Yelp, and Google to hopefully prevent another terrible experience.
(1)
Andrew K.
Once again I have received some of the best service I've ever got at a chilis before. Our waitress Katrina(like the hurricane) was absolutely fantastic, nice, polite, got everything right and kept our drinks full the entire time! 5 stars again chills keep it up.
(5)
Geocel C.
The food wasn't anything special and the service was average, if not a bit sloppy. The waitress serving the other table had spilled a drink near the people I was having dinner and luckily, it just hit the floor and their shoes (as well as mine. I was wearing sandals and I felt it splash on my feet). Accidents do happen and you'd think they would wipe it off the floor, but they just left it there. Speaking of messiness, I've been to this location before and both times, the table and menus were sticky and not that clean. It is a good place to meet for drinks with a group of friends to chat and maybe snack on some appetizers but if you actually want to dine-in for a good meal, I would look elsewhere.
(2)
Dawn P.
I was really disappointed tonight....waited an hour and a half for my meal....different waiters were throwing food we didnt order on our table just to keep us happy. I waited so long on my salad that i ate too many chips with salsa and was full...my daughters macaroni looked like boxed macaroni....chicken tenders they gave ys were cold. The shrimp my friend ordered were ice cold....too much to mention !!! On top of it were late to bowling.....never again will i go there.
(1)
Timothy J.
Well there's really not much to say that people don't know about a chain restaurant like this. So I'll keep this brief. Food was just average. It wasn't bad, but please please do not expect a gourmet meal out of this (don't bring a date here either). Anyways, their 2 for $20 is always a good deal. Got to look for it in the me u though, it's like a small section on random page. I got the chicken fajitas. Not bad. It came with variety of toppings: cheese, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, jalapenos, and hot salsa. I'd say it was an ok meal. IMO Chipotle would have been a better meal and deal. So why 3 stars?? It would have to be the service. We may have just gotten an excellent waitor, but I would have to applaud his service. Checked on us often, water was never empty, AND he brought me refills on my Arnold-Palmer without me even asking (soft drinks are free refills).
(3)
Brandi N.
Yes...5 star. Ok so let's be honest...I'm not a huge fan of Chilis in 2015 and with that said I used to be a huge fan BUT I may be coming back on the team. We stopped into this local spot after some fun and I was not initially excited. Last time I went to my Chilis, well, the last two times it was a huge let down. My normal order being chicken fajitas, an appetizer of some sort ($2 for $20) and a drink. My last two visits the food was luke warm, looked like it was just thrown together and it tasted bland. But thank you Tampa Chilis for raising the standard. Bar staff at this location are very attentive and the food doesn't take long to produce. Our waitress (who's name I can't recall at the moment) was super sweet, brought us complimentary chips/salsa and didn't charge us for our strawberry lemonades. I ordered my usual after having a heart to heart with the waitress about my most recent disappointments and she assured me the best chefs were on shift to which she was very convincing. I think she felt my pain. We ordered chicken fajitas, mozzarella sticks, chips/salsa and drinks and everything was GREAT! The salsa was on point by the way, kudos Chilis prep staff. I was so pleased and couldn't have been happier with the choice to visit Chilis again.
(5)
Carey H.
Stopped in with a few friends from work for a drink. Very slow service, the server spilled beer on 3 of us at different times. The margaritas were ALL ice and the sugar around the rim on my cups had crumbs in it...
(1)
Sean M.
I had Brian as my server and seriously never had a better server was super friendly and on top of everything and the food was good to
(5)
Jessica F.
This place i was truly upset with. My family and I both order the 2 for $35 off the menu comes with drinks, appetizers, entree, and Dessert. First we waited a very long time but they were busy so we figure they were just busy but when we got served they forgot our appetizer and just brought the food. Second, we ask for the tortillas for the fajitas and they forgot to bring them out, third we asked for a side order of BBQ sauce because the ribs were dry and still our waiter didn't bring them out we made a complaint he said he was take the appetizers off that we never got but we got the bill we were still charged. We asked for the manager and waited over 20 mins before anyone came to our table. The manager did take care of us but overall service was horrible. Plus the place was no even clean all the tables were dirty and no one attended to them. Poor service.
(1)
Ericka J.
Been here a couple of times (at least the one on fowler) and looks like the place changed it up a bit by adding electronic menu and ordering system. Each table has one. It pretty allows you to self serve but you still get a waiter. For a chain restaurant that gets pretty busy I think it's a cool idea. So now here comes the rant about the service. Basically it sucked. If you sit in the bar area they give you free chips and salsa but we had to ask for ours where the table next to us didn't and got it right when they sat down. The waiter brought me the wrong drinks. And each time I would go to ask the waiter a question she would walk away, can you say rude! So we finally got our good after waiting a good 30min. The food was alright it's what you can expect for a chain restaurant. My friend use the bathroom and she said that it was a mess with water all over the floor. If you want chilis I would suggest not going to going to the one fowler.
(2)
Maggie F.
Terrible service...mid afternoon and according to our waiter, they were "short-staffed and super busy". Maybe management was short-sighted but the place was not that busy. Two in our party ordered fajitas. ..we said don't bring that dumb tower with a teaspoon each of stuff we don't want...just bring lettuce Pico and cheese. We get the towers. When I mentioned it he said he didn't want to have to charge us extra. ..what??? Brought tortillas that cracked in hslf when bent. Took forever 2 get served...over an hour...there were 4 of us. Manager wasn't any better. I left no tip and I will never go back there.
(1)
Cece C.
Positives: 2 for $20 dinner special... and fajitas. Negatives: everything else. From the mozzerella stick appetizer that tasted eerily similar to the frozen kind I heat up in the oven, to the obvious piece of Texas Toast served alongside my friend's pasta... this place is a culinary joke. There's no doubt the majority of their stuff comes straight from the freezer and microwave to your plate. One star mainly because our server, despite her attempts to be friendly, forced me to give a donation to St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Literally forced. Because I drew on the piece of paper placed so stratigically in the middle of the booth alongside a bucket crayons... can you blame me? Turns out, it's a donation form (on the back), and if you draw/color at all, you MUST donate. She said that she would have to give the donation herself and pay for the piece of paper if I didn't front the money. Oh no! At first I thought she was kidding. Until that is, she came back multiple times during our meal to check on how much I've decided to donate. Then, when I finally caved at a dollar, forcefully questioned my amount like it wasn't good enough. Really!?!? They must get a donation commission or something! So shady! Don't get me wrong- it's a great cause- St. Jude's covers the medical costs completely for families in need, and that's awesome. But don't force me to donate when I didn't expect to or even know about the campaign. If she had maybe explained the whole thing to me, and how it works, and asked for a donation at the end, I probably would have agreed to even more. But that time, it was no longer a donation. It was a fee. Chili's you're sketchy as heck and your servers are conniving. I was really put off by the whole experience. Can't wait til you go out of business! I'll make my own Texas Toast from now on.
(1)
Pamela C.
The server was nice and helpful but the host tried to berate us for not hearing our names called. So we wait another 5 minutes, so what? The blackberry margarita I used to crave is a brown half melted, looks like dirty dish water with no alcohol, was an early disappointment. The dinner was good but the stomach issues to follow were not to be repeated. Lesson learned. Don't go on a Friday night and complain, complain complain if they don't get it right.
(2)
CJ N.
I haven't experienced such horrible service since my first cell phone in the late 1990's. Besides the fact the server must have mistaken me for his brother ( I am guessing that's why he kept calling me Bro), this Chilis has a final answer policy. After placing my order and certain items didn't come out I was asked if i still wanted that. Like I changed my mind after ordering it. I guess next time I should order with more confidence so that they know that I am serious about having my appetizer before my meal. In my travels around I have witnessed certain foods deliberately served cold, but I have never experienced a place that serves cold baby back ribs. Well that comment was true until I came across this Chili's. When a place service and food is so bad that feel the only reasonable thing they can do is charge you for the drinks....run. The place is a complete disaster. The server deserved all of that 14 cent tip I left him.
(1)
Sarah B.
Standard Chili's experience: Fast service and yummy food. I love that you can now order and pay from the tablets at the tables... very cool!
(3)
David T.
I was amazed this Chili's was packed despite being late, but apparently this happens whenever Busch Gardens closes early. Service was horrible, between forgetting the drinks, letting us know 30 minutes after ordering that something hadn't been available, and forgetting refills. The food was not much better, and a piece of the steak looked so bad it was almost like it had been chewed on previously. It was also way undercooked. Needless to say, I will never be returning.
(1)
Nicole M.
Yes, I understand its chilis, but give me. Break: I was craving a brownie sundae and had a free appetizer coupon. My stomach rules my life (my stomach's girth will tell you the whole story). The original waitress I had introduced herself and then disappeared and another girl took care of us the rest of our meal. I kinda wondered if someone actually bit her head off bc there were some really rude people there, but then I saw her towards the end and she was in a different section. Seems like they move people between stations a lot, which would irritate me if I were them, but whatever. The food was hot, my water was refilled on time, and it satisfied my craving. I can't ask for much else from a university-area chain.
(3)
Steph G.
Not sure what's happened to Chili's, but man it really has declined. Maybe it's just this location, maybe not. Prices have increased, big time. Quality has decreased, big time. It's just not what it used to be. Go to Sate Asian Grill right across the parking lot.
(2)
Brittany R.
Let me start by saying the food is what you expect at Chili's ...just okay ... But the service here TERRIBLE!!! First off two servers is weird however it would have been okay of we had good service....first forgot out appetizer then forgot our drinks, then slammed our plates down and never checked to see of the food was okay finally finished the night by putting our check down didn't ask of we wanted more beers or dessert or anything and said "I'll be in the back". Whatever crappy server I've been there and know the bare minimum needed to get a decent tip... Never do we leave such a poor tip however this was the exception ... wow sincerely disappointed
(2)
Erin S.
My boyfriend and I decided to come here for cinco de mayo yesterday. 4 stars is for the food. We got the two for 20 deal, which is an appetizer and two entrees. We ordered chips n salsa, chicken fajitas, and the bacon ranch quesidillas....trying to be "festive" I suppose. The fajitas are always amazing. They bring the dish to you still sizzling, with loads of fresh toppings and plenty of tortillas. I love their salsa and although you can tell its not made in-house, its still quite good. I come to chilis every so often and the food has always been good, but the service is always hit or miss. This particular time was a miss. Our waiter was not at all attentive and we had to flag him down several times, and we waited over half an hour for our food when it was not busy and several other tables seated after us had received theirs. He wasn't rude or unpleasant but that doesn't make the service we received ok. Despite that I still left satisfied and I will return every so often.
(4)
Mikee R.
Typical Chili's... Our server was great, the food OK.
(4)
Kelly B.
Went in with a rather large group. We were seated rather quickly for a Thursday night. The server was wonderful and you could tell he was super busy. It took some time to get our drinks and we had to remind him about our appetizer. As usual it was absolutely freezing inside. Our food was brought out in a decent amount of time and everything was served as ordered, which is a big deal for a group of 10. Overall, it was a decent night, but they seemed overwhelmed and in need of hiring more servers or staffing the place appropriately.
(3)
Corey A.
When we first arrived at the restaurant, we were taken to two dirty booths before actually getting a clean one. The lights at the table were caked in grease and dust, the napkins that were rolled around the silverware had dried food on it. The food was great and service ok, but cleanliness was disgusting.
(1)
Victoria A.
Out with my bosslady on a weekday after work. I've been to this location a few times already and so far it's been a good vibe and atmosphere. This night the only down fall was the wings were cold and my frozen yummies were a little watery. Besides the blah food this time around fhe service was good as always and the crowd was awesome. I have to say it made my night when a customer came to me and said my style was awesome (like duh have you seen me lol). It was flattering. Ill be back for some more good times.
(4)
Clemmon H.
Really bad service waited 10 minutes for a server. Waited another 25 minutes for food and the place was not busy.
(3)
Carlos H.
I came to this Chili's for my birthday dinner, if you look back in my posts you can see what a disaster I had last year at the California Pizza Kitchen in Brandon, but this year Chili's was awesome to me on my 19th birthday. My birthday is plagued with always being on a busy week for people, now that I'm in college it falls right before Finals week, so everyone was studying it up for my birthday. Most people had RSVP'd that they weren't sure if they would be able to come. So when I received notice of this I informed Chili's and they worked well with me to have a suitable table for my party. We waiting for a little while, but that's to be expected on Fowler Avenue, where so many people live and people staying at USF are by. Once my party size of about 12 people was seated, the waitress was quick to fill orders and get our drinks out, in a speed that I commonly do not see in waitresses when you have a large party at a restaurant. The food was delicious, even my bottomless chips were tasty. The Shirley Temple I ordered was perfectly mixed. I ordered Chicken Crispers with my meal and they tasted great, the fries were pretty good too. Everyone else in the party was pleased with their food as well. Then to wrap things up, they came out and sang happy birthday to me and brought me a delicious fudge cake with chocolate frozen ice cream. It was a birthday success indeed.
(5)
Richard S.
The food was alright. Not good or bad. My issue was with the service. Our waiter was extremely slow. He would disappear for a long time then come back and see a drink was empty and say he would get another one. After awhile a woman waiting other tables would ask if we needed a drink and would say he is getting it. Then she would come back with one before him. This happened twice. I'm sure he was busy but come on. Plus the food took a long time to come out. not sure if that was the kitchen or him getting lost. We were very disappointed. I'll stick to the one in Brandon from now on.
(2)
Robert S.
If you are smart enough to read a review of Chili's, you should know better than to go to Chili's. Yes, I am yelping Chili's. I am doing this because I feel obliged as a good citizen to tell you to stop. Stop it. Fucking stop eating here. Why would you do this to yourself? Is it the gawdy atmosphere, the terrible food, the weak '2 for 1' drinks? How do you not know how miserable this place is? Do you really have no better option? Chili's is either directly or indirectly the cause of almost everything bad in the world. What's the bright side? So far I surmise that there isn't one. It is an absolute bad. What's your favorite dish at Chili's? Whatever it is, you can get it made better somewhere else, or you shouldn't be eating it anyway. Most likely the latter. This really applies to all of this type of restaurant, but Chili's is the poster-child for the genre because of its incredible commitment to mediocrity. So stop it. Really, stop eating anywhere that has a song and dance prepared for birthdays. I'm just trying to do my part, people. If I can deter at least one person from the sad, sad experience of dining here I'll be alright, but to try to reach a broader audience, I'm going to include some useful Google/Yelp search keywords to draw in the curious: Why am I so fucking fat? ; Why are my children so fucking fat? ; deep fried onion ; b.o. remedy ; heart disease ; salt ; scatology ; war ; abortion ; 9/11 ; cultural vortex
(1)
Rebecca H.
I would have to say that for a Chilis this place isn't bad. I has the nachos and my friend had the quesadilla salad. Both of which were fresh and delicious. The service was amazing as well.
(4)
Adam C.
OK... I know it's been a while since I updated with any reviews and I'm a little behind on ones I've been meaning to put up here. This was from another experience during my Tampa trip last week. This Chili's first off has a llllloooooonnnngggg wait time and take it, it was a Friday night. But I guess Chili's is popular in the "Sunshine State" because the other one we passed was told to be impossible to get in the year 2008. So we wait, and wait, and wait, holding a strange device that lights up when we are ready to be seated. So finally the "Star Wars" utensil flashes and we make our way inside. Some of my friends with me are rather large fellows, so groups of teeny boppers, anorexic "Project Runway" wanna Be's and jocks walking by sticking out their manly ripped muscle-boob chests as they pass were all giving looks of "OMG! Kill me if I ever look like that!". Take it I paid no mind but gave beautiful smiles instead to locals and tourists who try all way too hard to be "Hannah Montana's" foster family. So we take our seats and start off with the special drink options, which is far from special. A friend and myself got the two for one margarita deal. But I guess $18 for two margaritas in small mugs is considered a two for one? I ordered some kind of Reuben melt, not half-bad and their fries are pretty tasty as usual. I didn't like our waitress who avoided us many occasions when we needed refills or any other assistance. One of our friends in the group chuckled since she had a lazy eye, but they meant no harm. I believe she over heard it because she continued to slam dishes at our counter, mugs, and even before we finished she tossed the checks. A manager did approach us and apologize for the rather long wait for the food and how it looked like people who were seated after us were getting faster service. When I do ever visit Tampa again, I won't be checking into this particular Chili's. I'm really not a fan of chain restaurants anyway and as you know, ones with "White-made Mexican" food.
(1)
Prianka N.
Id rather eat the inside of a bear's asshole.
(1)
D S.
Food at Chilis is usually acceptable. The sizzling fajitas are usually good. Usually at other locations. This location has the worst food in town. Not sizzling at all. They ask us like eight times if we wanted boxes to take the food that we didn't eat. But, if we didn't eat it at the restaurant, why take it home! Not one item that was ordered was more than 1 star. Service was very good.
(2)
Ben O.
As a vegetarian who can't eat corn, I'm biased against Chili's. This visit was better than I expected -- which means TWICE as many stars as I'd ordinarily imagine. My diet Coke with a slice of lime was always refilled quickly, and always had a fresh slice of lime in it. And despite my frustration in not being able to substitute something for the bacon in the fries with cheese, jalapenos and bacon, the order came out accurately and tasted fairly good. Our server seemed to be absent when we were ready to order and when we were ready to get the check, but while we ate he was easy to find, and usually found us just before we'd ask for refills. Given that this is, after all, Chili's, two stars is a good rating. I don't think Chili's can go beyond three stars without sexual favors being exchanged.
Takes Reservations : No Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Lunch Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Alcohol : Full Bar Outdoor Seating : No Has TV : Yes Waiter Service : Yes
Jonathan B.
Everyone is usually friendly and is quick to serve us!!
(3)Daniel L.
I never think to tip on a To-go order, but the Monday night staff makes me wish I had. They were expedient and more than courteous when I ordered Texas fries and a strawberry lemonade. They even offered a refill even though I was only there for five minutes. Only got four stars because it's pretty pricy. For that reason I probably won't still tip on to go orders, but I'm also a broke student so yeah. Kudos to you, staff. If I had a hat I'd tip it
(4)Katie H.
I'm just going to start off this review by saying I am server, and I have worked at high end and low end restaurants. Our experience started when I called ahead to ask how long the wait would be, around 7:15, "we have a table for you right now" said the gentleman. We arrived at 7:20, and we're greeted, "Hi, we're the couple that just called ahead, you said you had a table available? " to the only gentleman dressed in management clothing. The host behind him stated "The wait is 40 minutes." The manager said, "you must be mistaken, it wasn't me that you spoke to, but we'll get you a seat right away." He directs us to a tiny 2 seater booth, which still had crumbs on the table and seats. The host said "I'll be right back with menus for you." 10 minutes later she keeps popping her head to stop and watch the hockey game on the tv above us, still not getting us our menus. 5 minutes later our server Tammy S came over. "Hi what would you like to drink?" We ordered a soda and a water, I wanted an alcoholic beverage so I asked to see a menu, "They sat you without menus? I'll be right back with them and another set of silverware" She then proceeds to pull the only other manager near our table to which he replies "It's not my fault, I didn't seat them!" Another host ended up bringing us our menus and place setting (which was poorly wrapped and the silverware slipped out onto the floor.) We get our drinks (water and soda) came fairly quick (10 minutes.) I then order a salad, Arnold palmer, a 3 trio appetizer, and a pasta for my boyfriends' dinner, I still hadn't decided. 30 minutes later having still not received my drink I managed to ask another waitress if she could check on my drink, she asked if I would like sweet or unsweetened tea (something our server had failed to do) our waitress casually walked by I asked for some lemon for my water and 2 small plates for our appetizers (we never received either) Upon receiving our salad and trio appetizer, I was irritated that I had not yet received my drink, when the 2nd waitress whom I was able to get her attention brought it I thanked her graciously, however Tammy never even acknowledged the fact that she herself failed to get my drink. At this time I ordered a flatbread with extra chicken, as an entree, with 2 small side items. We finally received our meals (another 20 minutes later, which was a more than reasonable amount of time considering it was a Saturday night) my flatbread did not have extra chicken and the side item of broccoli I had ordered was cold, and very hard to bite. Upon asking for the check and 2 boxes, Tammy (very quickly) brought us our check (to which she laid upon my plate of food, for our small table was overflowing with used plates from appetizers and empty cups), and 1 box. She began removing plates and asked if she could take our card before we even had a chance to review the check. She removed a few dishes and came back with the 2nd box, hovering us to see that we paid, which is terrible server etiquette, unless you reason to feel we would "dine and dash". I reviewed the check and saw that I was not charged for the extra chicken on my flatbread that I never received. We paid on the tablet provided at our table, and began to review the terrible service as well. She promptly came over and said was your service unsatisfactory? Can I get you a manager? If she had made any effort to make a connection with our table or had offered to even look us in the eyes, she would have known from the first 30 minutes of sitting down that we were unsatisfied. However she waited until the end of our service to attempt to fix anything. It was for this reason that we left her a $3.07 tip, rather than stiffing her like so many of the other waitresses on Fowler Ave have come accustomed to. This is not all of Tammy's fault. Having seen her run to what I counted was 5 tables including ours, the 2 managers on duty should have known she "couldn't handle" that many tables and had staffed the evening accordingly. She then proceeded to "guilt us" by making a connection and saying "Have a Merry Christmas." As we were leaving the table. All in all terrible service, poor management, and we will not be returning. This review will be posted on Facebook, Yelp, and Google to hopefully prevent another terrible experience.
(1)Andrew K.
Once again I have received some of the best service I've ever got at a chilis before. Our waitress Katrina(like the hurricane) was absolutely fantastic, nice, polite, got everything right and kept our drinks full the entire time! 5 stars again chills keep it up.
(5)Geocel C.
The food wasn't anything special and the service was average, if not a bit sloppy. The waitress serving the other table had spilled a drink near the people I was having dinner and luckily, it just hit the floor and their shoes (as well as mine. I was wearing sandals and I felt it splash on my feet). Accidents do happen and you'd think they would wipe it off the floor, but they just left it there. Speaking of messiness, I've been to this location before and both times, the table and menus were sticky and not that clean. It is a good place to meet for drinks with a group of friends to chat and maybe snack on some appetizers but if you actually want to dine-in for a good meal, I would look elsewhere.
(2)Dawn P.
I was really disappointed tonight....waited an hour and a half for my meal....different waiters were throwing food we didnt order on our table just to keep us happy. I waited so long on my salad that i ate too many chips with salsa and was full...my daughters macaroni looked like boxed macaroni....chicken tenders they gave ys were cold. The shrimp my friend ordered were ice cold....too much to mention !!! On top of it were late to bowling.....never again will i go there.
(1)Timothy J.
Well there's really not much to say that people don't know about a chain restaurant like this. So I'll keep this brief. Food was just average. It wasn't bad, but please please do not expect a gourmet meal out of this (don't bring a date here either). Anyways, their 2 for $20 is always a good deal. Got to look for it in the me u though, it's like a small section on random page. I got the chicken fajitas. Not bad. It came with variety of toppings: cheese, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, jalapenos, and hot salsa. I'd say it was an ok meal. IMO Chipotle would have been a better meal and deal. So why 3 stars?? It would have to be the service. We may have just gotten an excellent waitor, but I would have to applaud his service. Checked on us often, water was never empty, AND he brought me refills on my Arnold-Palmer without me even asking (soft drinks are free refills).
(3)Brandi N.
Yes...5 star. Ok so let's be honest...I'm not a huge fan of Chilis in 2015 and with that said I used to be a huge fan BUT I may be coming back on the team. We stopped into this local spot after some fun and I was not initially excited. Last time I went to my Chilis, well, the last two times it was a huge let down. My normal order being chicken fajitas, an appetizer of some sort ($2 for $20) and a drink. My last two visits the food was luke warm, looked like it was just thrown together and it tasted bland. But thank you Tampa Chilis for raising the standard. Bar staff at this location are very attentive and the food doesn't take long to produce. Our waitress (who's name I can't recall at the moment) was super sweet, brought us complimentary chips/salsa and didn't charge us for our strawberry lemonades. I ordered my usual after having a heart to heart with the waitress about my most recent disappointments and she assured me the best chefs were on shift to which she was very convincing. I think she felt my pain. We ordered chicken fajitas, mozzarella sticks, chips/salsa and drinks and everything was GREAT! The salsa was on point by the way, kudos Chilis prep staff. I was so pleased and couldn't have been happier with the choice to visit Chilis again.
(5)Carey H.
Stopped in with a few friends from work for a drink. Very slow service, the server spilled beer on 3 of us at different times. The margaritas were ALL ice and the sugar around the rim on my cups had crumbs in it...
(1)Sean M.
I had Brian as my server and seriously never had a better server was super friendly and on top of everything and the food was good to
(5)Jessica F.
This place i was truly upset with. My family and I both order the 2 for $35 off the menu comes with drinks, appetizers, entree, and Dessert. First we waited a very long time but they were busy so we figure they were just busy but when we got served they forgot our appetizer and just brought the food. Second, we ask for the tortillas for the fajitas and they forgot to bring them out, third we asked for a side order of BBQ sauce because the ribs were dry and still our waiter didn't bring them out we made a complaint he said he was take the appetizers off that we never got but we got the bill we were still charged. We asked for the manager and waited over 20 mins before anyone came to our table. The manager did take care of us but overall service was horrible. Plus the place was no even clean all the tables were dirty and no one attended to them. Poor service.
(1)Ericka J.
Been here a couple of times (at least the one on fowler) and looks like the place changed it up a bit by adding electronic menu and ordering system. Each table has one. It pretty allows you to self serve but you still get a waiter. For a chain restaurant that gets pretty busy I think it's a cool idea. So now here comes the rant about the service. Basically it sucked. If you sit in the bar area they give you free chips and salsa but we had to ask for ours where the table next to us didn't and got it right when they sat down. The waiter brought me the wrong drinks. And each time I would go to ask the waiter a question she would walk away, can you say rude! So we finally got our good after waiting a good 30min. The food was alright it's what you can expect for a chain restaurant. My friend use the bathroom and she said that it was a mess with water all over the floor. If you want chilis I would suggest not going to going to the one fowler.
(2)Maggie F.
Terrible service...mid afternoon and according to our waiter, they were "short-staffed and super busy". Maybe management was short-sighted but the place was not that busy. Two in our party ordered fajitas. ..we said don't bring that dumb tower with a teaspoon each of stuff we don't want...just bring lettuce Pico and cheese. We get the towers. When I mentioned it he said he didn't want to have to charge us extra. ..what??? Brought tortillas that cracked in hslf when bent. Took forever 2 get served...over an hour...there were 4 of us. Manager wasn't any better. I left no tip and I will never go back there.
(1)Cece C.
Positives: 2 for $20 dinner special... and fajitas. Negatives: everything else. From the mozzerella stick appetizer that tasted eerily similar to the frozen kind I heat up in the oven, to the obvious piece of Texas Toast served alongside my friend's pasta... this place is a culinary joke. There's no doubt the majority of their stuff comes straight from the freezer and microwave to your plate. One star mainly because our server, despite her attempts to be friendly, forced me to give a donation to St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Literally forced. Because I drew on the piece of paper placed so stratigically in the middle of the booth alongside a bucket crayons... can you blame me? Turns out, it's a donation form (on the back), and if you draw/color at all, you MUST donate. She said that she would have to give the donation herself and pay for the piece of paper if I didn't front the money. Oh no! At first I thought she was kidding. Until that is, she came back multiple times during our meal to check on how much I've decided to donate. Then, when I finally caved at a dollar, forcefully questioned my amount like it wasn't good enough. Really!?!? They must get a donation commission or something! So shady! Don't get me wrong- it's a great cause- St. Jude's covers the medical costs completely for families in need, and that's awesome. But don't force me to donate when I didn't expect to or even know about the campaign. If she had maybe explained the whole thing to me, and how it works, and asked for a donation at the end, I probably would have agreed to even more. But that time, it was no longer a donation. It was a fee. Chili's you're sketchy as heck and your servers are conniving. I was really put off by the whole experience. Can't wait til you go out of business! I'll make my own Texas Toast from now on.
(1)Pamela C.
The server was nice and helpful but the host tried to berate us for not hearing our names called. So we wait another 5 minutes, so what? The blackberry margarita I used to crave is a brown half melted, looks like dirty dish water with no alcohol, was an early disappointment. The dinner was good but the stomach issues to follow were not to be repeated. Lesson learned. Don't go on a Friday night and complain, complain complain if they don't get it right.
(2)CJ N.
I haven't experienced such horrible service since my first cell phone in the late 1990's. Besides the fact the server must have mistaken me for his brother ( I am guessing that's why he kept calling me Bro), this Chilis has a final answer policy. After placing my order and certain items didn't come out I was asked if i still wanted that. Like I changed my mind after ordering it. I guess next time I should order with more confidence so that they know that I am serious about having my appetizer before my meal. In my travels around I have witnessed certain foods deliberately served cold, but I have never experienced a place that serves cold baby back ribs. Well that comment was true until I came across this Chili's. When a place service and food is so bad that feel the only reasonable thing they can do is charge you for the drinks....run. The place is a complete disaster. The server deserved all of that 14 cent tip I left him.
(1)Sarah B.
Standard Chili's experience: Fast service and yummy food. I love that you can now order and pay from the tablets at the tables... very cool!
(3)David T.
I was amazed this Chili's was packed despite being late, but apparently this happens whenever Busch Gardens closes early. Service was horrible, between forgetting the drinks, letting us know 30 minutes after ordering that something hadn't been available, and forgetting refills. The food was not much better, and a piece of the steak looked so bad it was almost like it had been chewed on previously. It was also way undercooked. Needless to say, I will never be returning.
(1)Nicole M.
Yes, I understand its chilis, but give me. Break: I was craving a brownie sundae and had a free appetizer coupon. My stomach rules my life (my stomach's girth will tell you the whole story). The original waitress I had introduced herself and then disappeared and another girl took care of us the rest of our meal. I kinda wondered if someone actually bit her head off bc there were some really rude people there, but then I saw her towards the end and she was in a different section. Seems like they move people between stations a lot, which would irritate me if I were them, but whatever. The food was hot, my water was refilled on time, and it satisfied my craving. I can't ask for much else from a university-area chain.
(3)Steph G.
Not sure what's happened to Chili's, but man it really has declined. Maybe it's just this location, maybe not. Prices have increased, big time. Quality has decreased, big time. It's just not what it used to be. Go to Sate Asian Grill right across the parking lot.
(2)Brittany R.
Let me start by saying the food is what you expect at Chili's ...just okay ... But the service here TERRIBLE!!! First off two servers is weird however it would have been okay of we had good service....first forgot out appetizer then forgot our drinks, then slammed our plates down and never checked to see of the food was okay finally finished the night by putting our check down didn't ask of we wanted more beers or dessert or anything and said "I'll be in the back". Whatever crappy server I've been there and know the bare minimum needed to get a decent tip... Never do we leave such a poor tip however this was the exception ... wow sincerely disappointed
(2)Erin S.
My boyfriend and I decided to come here for cinco de mayo yesterday. 4 stars is for the food. We got the two for 20 deal, which is an appetizer and two entrees. We ordered chips n salsa, chicken fajitas, and the bacon ranch quesidillas....trying to be "festive" I suppose. The fajitas are always amazing. They bring the dish to you still sizzling, with loads of fresh toppings and plenty of tortillas. I love their salsa and although you can tell its not made in-house, its still quite good. I come to chilis every so often and the food has always been good, but the service is always hit or miss. This particular time was a miss. Our waiter was not at all attentive and we had to flag him down several times, and we waited over half an hour for our food when it was not busy and several other tables seated after us had received theirs. He wasn't rude or unpleasant but that doesn't make the service we received ok. Despite that I still left satisfied and I will return every so often.
(4)Mikee R.
Typical Chili's... Our server was great, the food OK.
(4)Kelly B.
Went in with a rather large group. We were seated rather quickly for a Thursday night. The server was wonderful and you could tell he was super busy. It took some time to get our drinks and we had to remind him about our appetizer. As usual it was absolutely freezing inside. Our food was brought out in a decent amount of time and everything was served as ordered, which is a big deal for a group of 10. Overall, it was a decent night, but they seemed overwhelmed and in need of hiring more servers or staffing the place appropriately.
(3)Corey A.
When we first arrived at the restaurant, we were taken to two dirty booths before actually getting a clean one. The lights at the table were caked in grease and dust, the napkins that were rolled around the silverware had dried food on it. The food was great and service ok, but cleanliness was disgusting.
(1)Victoria A.
Out with my bosslady on a weekday after work. I've been to this location a few times already and so far it's been a good vibe and atmosphere. This night the only down fall was the wings were cold and my frozen yummies were a little watery. Besides the blah food this time around fhe service was good as always and the crowd was awesome. I have to say it made my night when a customer came to me and said my style was awesome (like duh have you seen me lol). It was flattering. Ill be back for some more good times.
(4)Clemmon H.
Really bad service waited 10 minutes for a server. Waited another 25 minutes for food and the place was not busy.
(3)Carlos H.
I came to this Chili's for my birthday dinner, if you look back in my posts you can see what a disaster I had last year at the California Pizza Kitchen in Brandon, but this year Chili's was awesome to me on my 19th birthday. My birthday is plagued with always being on a busy week for people, now that I'm in college it falls right before Finals week, so everyone was studying it up for my birthday. Most people had RSVP'd that they weren't sure if they would be able to come. So when I received notice of this I informed Chili's and they worked well with me to have a suitable table for my party. We waiting for a little while, but that's to be expected on Fowler Avenue, where so many people live and people staying at USF are by. Once my party size of about 12 people was seated, the waitress was quick to fill orders and get our drinks out, in a speed that I commonly do not see in waitresses when you have a large party at a restaurant. The food was delicious, even my bottomless chips were tasty. The Shirley Temple I ordered was perfectly mixed. I ordered Chicken Crispers with my meal and they tasted great, the fries were pretty good too. Everyone else in the party was pleased with their food as well. Then to wrap things up, they came out and sang happy birthday to me and brought me a delicious fudge cake with chocolate frozen ice cream. It was a birthday success indeed.
(5)Richard S.
The food was alright. Not good or bad. My issue was with the service. Our waiter was extremely slow. He would disappear for a long time then come back and see a drink was empty and say he would get another one. After awhile a woman waiting other tables would ask if we needed a drink and would say he is getting it. Then she would come back with one before him. This happened twice. I'm sure he was busy but come on. Plus the food took a long time to come out. not sure if that was the kitchen or him getting lost. We were very disappointed. I'll stick to the one in Brandon from now on.
(2)Robert S.
If you are smart enough to read a review of Chili's, you should know better than to go to Chili's. Yes, I am yelping Chili's. I am doing this because I feel obliged as a good citizen to tell you to stop. Stop it. Fucking stop eating here. Why would you do this to yourself? Is it the gawdy atmosphere, the terrible food, the weak '2 for 1' drinks? How do you not know how miserable this place is? Do you really have no better option? Chili's is either directly or indirectly the cause of almost everything bad in the world. What's the bright side? So far I surmise that there isn't one. It is an absolute bad. What's your favorite dish at Chili's? Whatever it is, you can get it made better somewhere else, or you shouldn't be eating it anyway. Most likely the latter. This really applies to all of this type of restaurant, but Chili's is the poster-child for the genre because of its incredible commitment to mediocrity. So stop it. Really, stop eating anywhere that has a song and dance prepared for birthdays. I'm just trying to do my part, people. If I can deter at least one person from the sad, sad experience of dining here I'll be alright, but to try to reach a broader audience, I'm going to include some useful Google/Yelp search keywords to draw in the curious: Why am I so fucking fat? ; Why are my children so fucking fat? ; deep fried onion ; b.o. remedy ; heart disease ; salt ; scatology ; war ; abortion ; 9/11 ; cultural vortex
(1)Rebecca H.
I would have to say that for a Chilis this place isn't bad. I has the nachos and my friend had the quesadilla salad. Both of which were fresh and delicious. The service was amazing as well.
(4)Adam C.
OK... I know it's been a while since I updated with any reviews and I'm a little behind on ones I've been meaning to put up here. This was from another experience during my Tampa trip last week. This Chili's first off has a llllloooooonnnngggg wait time and take it, it was a Friday night. But I guess Chili's is popular in the "Sunshine State" because the other one we passed was told to be impossible to get in the year 2008. So we wait, and wait, and wait, holding a strange device that lights up when we are ready to be seated. So finally the "Star Wars" utensil flashes and we make our way inside. Some of my friends with me are rather large fellows, so groups of teeny boppers, anorexic "Project Runway" wanna Be's and jocks walking by sticking out their manly ripped muscle-boob chests as they pass were all giving looks of "OMG! Kill me if I ever look like that!". Take it I paid no mind but gave beautiful smiles instead to locals and tourists who try all way too hard to be "Hannah Montana's" foster family. So we take our seats and start off with the special drink options, which is far from special. A friend and myself got the two for one margarita deal. But I guess $18 for two margaritas in small mugs is considered a two for one? I ordered some kind of Reuben melt, not half-bad and their fries are pretty tasty as usual. I didn't like our waitress who avoided us many occasions when we needed refills or any other assistance. One of our friends in the group chuckled since she had a lazy eye, but they meant no harm. I believe she over heard it because she continued to slam dishes at our counter, mugs, and even before we finished she tossed the checks. A manager did approach us and apologize for the rather long wait for the food and how it looked like people who were seated after us were getting faster service. When I do ever visit Tampa again, I won't be checking into this particular Chili's. I'm really not a fan of chain restaurants anyway and as you know, ones with "White-made Mexican" food.
(1)Prianka N.
Id rather eat the inside of a bear's asshole.
(1)D S.
Food at Chilis is usually acceptable. The sizzling fajitas are usually good. Usually at other locations. This location has the worst food in town. Not sizzling at all. They ask us like eight times if we wanted boxes to take the food that we didn't eat. But, if we didn't eat it at the restaurant, why take it home! Not one item that was ordered was more than 1 star. Service was very good.
(2)Ben O.
As a vegetarian who can't eat corn, I'm biased against Chili's. This visit was better than I expected -- which means TWICE as many stars as I'd ordinarily imagine. My diet Coke with a slice of lime was always refilled quickly, and always had a fresh slice of lime in it. And despite my frustration in not being able to substitute something for the bacon in the fries with cheese, jalapenos and bacon, the order came out accurately and tasted fairly good. Our server seemed to be absent when we were ready to order and when we were ready to get the check, but while we ate he was easy to find, and usually found us just before we'd ask for refills. Given that this is, after all, Chili's, two stars is a good rating. I don't think Chili's can go beyond three stars without sexual favors being exchanged.
(2)