OK, let me start off saying that my wife and I like the food at Macaroni Grill for what it is. It's not authentic - it's a chain restaurant, a next to a shopping mall type of place like the Olive Garden. We do, however, have some dishes that we enjoy and its great for kids because they can draw all over the table. In fact, when we lived in NY, we used to go to the Macaroni Grill in Westbury on a regular basis even though we were surrounded by real Italian food. There's no need to explain this phenomenon. The reasons for the 2 stars for the Columbia location are mostly due to the psychotic service we received. We had a party of eight and went at 2:30PM for a late lunch after a trip to the zoo. We were all hot and hungry and were seated immediately. The waitress comes overs and tells us promptly what the specials are and then says, "But don't get the lobster special - it's disgusting and not worth $18". OK, thank goodness none of us had our hearts set on lobster! At first I thought that it was nice she was being honest, but oh boy, was I wrong. So she takes our drink order and I ask for unsweetened iced tea, while two others asked for sweet tea. When she brings out the drinks she looks at the three teas and says, "oops, I brought three sweet teas". I tell her that that is OK, I'll drink a sweet tea. Then we all immediately realize she brought us three unsweetened teas. OK, just a common mistake - no problem. She then starts to take the other two away and I told her to just leave them on the table for me, "I'll probably drink most of them anyway" I said. She stood there and contemplated that thought for a good minute until I just reached over and put all three drinks in front of my place myself. She then told us that she has had a horrible day because she didn't know how to split a check and all of her tables wanted their checks split, so of course we told her that we would need out check split 3 ways. She went on to tell us a plethora of things she didn't know about being a waitress, which is always a positive thing at a restaurant while you place your order. When it was time to bring out the food, she had no clue who had what and started putting the wrong food in front of the wrong people. We were one of three tables in the whole place at this time and her only table. So my brother in law looks down at his scallops and spinach salad, and says, "excuse me, but where are the scallops?". She looked at the pile of spinach with disbelief and apologized and took his plate away. By the time she brought it back we were all almost finished with our meals. How long does it take to grill up some scallops? She also had a lot of strange small talk like telling us about her one year-old son and then commenting that my five year-old is almost as well behaved as her son. Your kid is one, lady - it doesn't behave yet. Then she told our fourteen year-old niece that she looks like Kris Allen's wife, but not as round. Huh? The fourteen year-old was mortified. As we were finishing up and having some good conversation at the table, she brought us our checks. That might not sound weird, but she never asked if we wanted anything else, and didn't offer us coffee or dessert. WTF? Dessert is part of the meal people! Then, and this was our favorite part of her insanity, she asks us if we're going to be much longer because she wanted to step outside. We hadn't even paid for our checks yet and she's pushing us out the door so she can take a smoke break??? Does she not believe in earning a tip? The other thing that pisses me off is that they used to have a portabello and chicken dish with risotto that was my favorite item on the menu and they don't serve it at this location. As I told my mother-in-law, at least she was confident... about not knowing how to do her job.
(2)
Mona J.
Just had lunch there today with a few friends. Excellent service and the food was very good. None of us were able to finish our meals because they were so generous. Could not manage dessert but they looked wonderful. Especially the Lemon cake and the Tiramisu.|| The menu was revised, fewer items but most of the old favorites are still there. I'll go again soon.
(4)
Charles C.
Absolutely HORRIBLE food. The only positive was out server. He was great but not even he could save this place from a one star. The food here SUCKS. A Friday night at 8 o'clock and only 3 ppl eating. DO yourself a favor and pass on this. Literally one.of the.worst meals I have ever had
(1)
Karen S.
Had dinner a few nights ago here and was impressed for the most part. Do like the set up of the restaurant, even though I did not readily see a hostess stand when I arrived. When you walk in, immediately to your left is the bar area with a few tables for dining. Immediately to your right is the waiting area (I presume) if there is a wait for a table. Also in this area you are able to look into the kitchen and there is a "bar-like" area to sit at as well/ They did have bar stools there with silverware and a bread plate, so not sure if you would be able to have your main course there as well. Going back to finding the hostess stand, once you walk in (and do not make a right or left into one of the bar areas), you walk down a ramp to the main dining area. The hostess stand is right there when you walk down the ramp. I did like the open dining area with the dimmed lights and the additional stringed lights to make it feel like you might actually be eating in a restaurant in Italy. I was here with a group, and they were able to fit our group in the dining area off to the side. The wait staff was great, and they were very helpful to our group. The one real disappointment about the food was maybe more on my end since I was not better prepared. I had ordered the Chicken Molonase (I believed that is the correct name). I had assumed it was going to be a grilled piece of chicken, but was surprised to see it was fried when my order did finally come out, but good nonetheless.
(4)
Misty S.
Wonderful meal, great service, fabulous wine! Been to Mac grills in Okinawa, CA and now in SC; was not disappointed! We both had the Parmesan crusted sole, generous with the capers, sole had a perfect crust that was crispy and full of flavor. Looked for the 'heart stone' that is a challenge to find in all the restaurants but couldn't find it, apparently this location doesn't have one. Disappointed about that but don't stay away for that reason, the food is wonderful!
(5)
Allison C.
Frozen bagged pasta is waayyyyy better than this crap. Service always sucks, including the Managers. They have really gone down hill with their "new recipes" that taste like frozen sauce and dry, overcooked pasta. Their service is below subpar the past three times we have been. I have boycotted Mac Grill three times and now it's for real. If you go to a chain Italian, choose Olive Garden...or just whip up some frozen pasta for $8.00 GROSS.
(1)
Jennie B.
Ate here today and was very disappointed. The sandwich and parmesan Fries were cold. The service was slow. I ordered tiramisu because I had it years ago. It was just some pudding in a bowl with a lady finger on the side. Definitely not worth the money. Will not be going back.
(1)
K N.
Can I give this zero stars? Truly a disappointment. I grew up going to Macaroni Grill weekly with my family and loved it, so this experience was a let down. We had a reservation, no table was ready when we arrived. The table was dirty (whoa that table cloth under the paper! Sick), the floors were gross (TP lined the hallways around the bathrooms), visibly unclean dishes sitting out for bread they did not have. The waitress came to our table three times: to get drink orders (she didn't know what the house wine was), to get food order (she didn't ask what we wanted, just stood there awkwardly until we said something), and to get the check. She didn't check on us after our food was served- I never ever send food back but I would have this time. The Caesar salad was swimming in dressing with burned croutons and a huge pile of cheese on top of bad lettuce. My pasta Milano (my favorite- I've had it dozens of times) was cold and again, loaded with entirely too much sauce. My husband said his food was "oily and tasted like it came from a can." He had fish. Twice I nearly fell on wet, slick spots on the floor while carrying my infant. Please find another place to eat if you're thinking of going here.
(1)
Kyleigh P.
The atmosphere was okay. They tried to give it a fancy, romantic feel with the dim lighting and general set up of the place. However, the tables had paper covers, and I got the general feeling that they were trying too hard. Our service was great. The waiter asked several times if we had questions and whatnot. No complaints there. I didn't much care for the food itself, especially considering the prices. The menu was full of traditional Italian terms, which gave it a classy air but the descriptions didn't always properly explain what the meals actually were. I ordered the mushroom ravioli. It was too peppery for my taste. The mushrooms themselves were good, but the pasta didn't taste fresh. If I'm going for upscale Italian I probably wouldn't think to come here again. It wasn't a terrible experience, but I definitely wasn't impressed.
(3)
Elaine H.
The tasting menu....15 bucks but worth about 5! Wine in a water glass? Our waitress was lazy she said this was the way they serve their wine now but I looked around at the other waitresses and everybody else had a wine glass! The fried ravioli was cold! The shrimp was tasteless. The only thing I did like was the ceasar salad and bread. The rest was nasty! Our waitress kept filling our water glasses with wine! Wow I guess she was trying to get us drunk fir a good tip. Done with this place!!!
(1)
Mia C.
Not the best Romano's. Comparing it with the one I have been to in Oregon, I didn't like it much.
(3)
Brandon B.
Not great. Had the classic Italian bake, which was pretty good. Wife had some chicken pasta that tasted like rubber noodles. Flavorless!!!
(2)
Toya C.
Went here for the first time tonight ( 4/18/12). NOT what I expected. Did a double date with friends and wanted to go somewhere different and decided to go here. Already knew that it was an italian based chain restaurant. Location: on Harbison strip near Olive Garden and small shopping area. Restaurant: the inside setting is very romantic. They had lights stringed from the celing and the lighting is dim. The layout of the tables were nice too. Wine was seen all throughout the room (which I know most ppl love with Italian dishes). The cute thing I noticed was that they kept a row of reading glasses (I guess for guests who needed them). Anyways was seated and greeted promptly. At first glance to the menu I felt very inadequate at detecting exactly what each meal consisted of besides the basic: Alfredo and chicken Parmesan. Ended up getting the 2 for $25 special and that included 2 free tapas. Tapas: 1. mac and cheese bites - very tasty and crunchy, you get about 6 of them; bruschetta crositini - only get 2 of them, basically this was garlic toast smothered with small, diced tomatoes and pieces of cheese (nothing to brag about, our bread was saturated with tomato juice). Our friends got the same and their tapas were: 1. spicy ricotta meatballs - basically just some meatballs and marina sauce, not spicy at all, you get a small bowl of this; then they had the stuffed small peppers - which was extremely hot and they exchanged it. The free item on the table was the roll of bread which you were to dip into olive oil and seasons. I didn't care for the taste at all. Meal: I ordered the pollo caprese: flattened fried chicken breast, potatoes brushed with olive oil and a arugula salad. There was no flavor to the meal at all. I felt as thought some marina sauce would have set the meals' flavor off but ohh well. Overall: It was an experience but not a place I would likely visit again.
(2)
Emily W.
I very much enjoyed my experience at the Macaroni Grill... it's a chain, and I've seen them all over, but had never eaten there. I had the Chicken Parmesan, and was very satisfied with my choice... again, it is a chain restaurant, but one of the better ones I've eaten. Random fun thing: it has paper covering the table, and you are supplied with crayons to draw on the table... I love stuff like that. Maybe I'm a little ADD, but I like to be able to entertain myself while I wait on food. Staff was friendly and attentive.
(3)
Bart B.
Macaroni Grill has become my favorite chain Italian restaurant. The food is almost always excellent (everyone has an off night now and then). The mushroom ravioli is excellent, and highly recommended.
(4)
Robert B.
I have never been impressed by the food, but the thing that really bugs me about this place is the NOISE! In an era where noisy restaurants seem to be the norm, Macaroni Grill wins. We once called in a take out order (someone had given us a gift card, and we did NOT want to eat in) and the guy could not clearly hear my order over the phone. I could clearly hear the clattering plates, shouting staff and music in the background. Really, music in a place where the kitchen is drowning out any chance for normal conversation? Fahgedaboudit!
(1)
Michael F.
After a long day of shopping, my family and I wanted to have Italian. It was either here or the Olive Garden up the street. We decided to go here and man, was it a mistake... We get seated after waiting for five minutes. Our waiter's name is Blake and proceeded to take our order. I ordered the Seafood pasta while the Mrs. gets a Chicken Alfredo and my daughter has the kid Spaghetti and Meatballs. The first thing we notice is that the waiter brings our drinks no problem, but what about the bread? Took him a couple of times before he came out with the actual bread. It's a hit or miss with Macaroni Grill's bread. It came out as a loaf and it was dry on the inside. Not too good. The calamari turned out ok. The funny thing is, we are seated right next to the kitchen. We can hear the General Manager screaming at the cooks to get their orders right and basically telling everyone that they are doing horrible jobs. I can also see the order screen where all the orders are being placed. After receiving our calamari, we waited for THIRTY minutes (yes, you read that right) for our food to come out. I remember seeing that my wife's alfredo and my daughter's spaghetti were done but since they didn't have linguine noodles no more, they decided to to change mine to fettuccine noodles instead. And from what the waiter told me, they took long because they used angel hair and then changed it last minute. So while my food took forever to cook, they put my wife and daughter's food in the warmer (SHAM was what I heard it was called) while my food came up. When they did finally serve us, they FORGOT the meatballs in my daughter's spaghetti and my wife's alfredo was already dry. They did correct this but it was disappointing to be waiting that long and they still didn't get it right. We finally got the check and the waiter told us it wasn't a good night to be here. He honestly told us that the General Manager doesn't like him and his performance. I appreciated his honesty. We left disappointed. I liked this place back home in CA but after this visit, it's Olive Garden from here on out.
(2)
Charlene R.
We needed two gluten free dishes tonight and called ahead to make sure they had a gluten free menu. They claimed to have 40 items on the GF menu. We got there and the menu was sufficient. However we were told that if we ordered gluten free it would take longer because they cook GF food fresh. We indicated that we understood and waited patiently. In about 45 minutes the regular (non gluten free meals) arrived. Still no gluten free meals. Finally in about another 20 minutes later the GF dishes arrived. However they were not cooked (the noodles were still hard and crunchy) and appeared to be the same dish even though we ordered different dishes. The assistant manager comped the two meals that were regular dishes. She was terribly apologetic and so was the wait staff who was very good. However, we returned our GF dishes and left hungry. They didn't offer gift cards which is just as well because I wouldn't go back there if it was free. Literally left without being served anything we could eat. Probably the worst dining experience I have ever had. I tried to rate this 0 stars but it made me give them at least 1 star.
(1)
D M.
Don't waste your time - cold and bland food... And the service was sooo slow and they were not even busy! Go somewhere else - you'll thank us later.
(1)
John J.
This is an excellent Italian chain restaurant. The setting inside is on the nicer side for a chain restaurant and the food is excellent. Prices are what you would expect for a quality chain restaurant. If you have never been to one of these places and love Italian food I highly recommend it.
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : No Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Trendy Noise Level : Very Loud Alcohol : Full Bar Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : No Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : Yes
The immense popularity of Italian cuisine globally isn't unknown. You can find an Italian Pizzeria around every corner of almost every city in the United States. Not to forget that in every house, people enjoy mac and cheese as comfort food. But it would be wrong to believe that Italian food starts with pizza and ends with good pasta as this Mediterranean country has much more to offer other than these two dishes. In Italian Cuisine, there is a high use of fresh tomatoes, all kinds of herbs, great quality of cheese, all types of meat, seafood and fresh handmade pasta. Many find it hard to believe that Italians have been making noodles long back.
Italian and Greek cuisines are always mistaken to be same, but they are poles apart. The primary difference between the two cuisines is the use of cheese in most of the Italian dishes. Italians love to cultivate their own cheese and process them as per their food requirement. It is believed that some cheese is so expensive that cheese producers secure them in lockers.
If you are bored eating the same old pasta or pizza, you can try some of the authentic Italian dishes like Risotto, Polenta, Ribollita, Lasagna, Fiorentina Steak, Bottarga, Ossobuco, Carbonara, Focaccia, Arancini and Supplì. Another item which Italians love to relish every morning is a good cup of Italian Coffee. Once you taste a freshly brewed cup of Italian Coffee, you might not visit Starbucks ever again. Authentic Italian food is made with heart and soul, so go find a restaurant where you can relish Italian cuisine in your city.
Joseph N.
OK, let me start off saying that my wife and I like the food at Macaroni Grill for what it is. It's not authentic - it's a chain restaurant, a next to a shopping mall type of place like the Olive Garden. We do, however, have some dishes that we enjoy and its great for kids because they can draw all over the table. In fact, when we lived in NY, we used to go to the Macaroni Grill in Westbury on a regular basis even though we were surrounded by real Italian food. There's no need to explain this phenomenon. The reasons for the 2 stars for the Columbia location are mostly due to the psychotic service we received. We had a party of eight and went at 2:30PM for a late lunch after a trip to the zoo. We were all hot and hungry and were seated immediately. The waitress comes overs and tells us promptly what the specials are and then says, "But don't get the lobster special - it's disgusting and not worth $18". OK, thank goodness none of us had our hearts set on lobster! At first I thought that it was nice she was being honest, but oh boy, was I wrong. So she takes our drink order and I ask for unsweetened iced tea, while two others asked for sweet tea. When she brings out the drinks she looks at the three teas and says, "oops, I brought three sweet teas". I tell her that that is OK, I'll drink a sweet tea. Then we all immediately realize she brought us three unsweetened teas. OK, just a common mistake - no problem. She then starts to take the other two away and I told her to just leave them on the table for me, "I'll probably drink most of them anyway" I said. She stood there and contemplated that thought for a good minute until I just reached over and put all three drinks in front of my place myself. She then told us that she has had a horrible day because she didn't know how to split a check and all of her tables wanted their checks split, so of course we told her that we would need out check split 3 ways. She went on to tell us a plethora of things she didn't know about being a waitress, which is always a positive thing at a restaurant while you place your order. When it was time to bring out the food, she had no clue who had what and started putting the wrong food in front of the wrong people. We were one of three tables in the whole place at this time and her only table. So my brother in law looks down at his scallops and spinach salad, and says, "excuse me, but where are the scallops?". She looked at the pile of spinach with disbelief and apologized and took his plate away. By the time she brought it back we were all almost finished with our meals. How long does it take to grill up some scallops? She also had a lot of strange small talk like telling us about her one year-old son and then commenting that my five year-old is almost as well behaved as her son. Your kid is one, lady - it doesn't behave yet. Then she told our fourteen year-old niece that she looks like Kris Allen's wife, but not as round. Huh? The fourteen year-old was mortified. As we were finishing up and having some good conversation at the table, she brought us our checks. That might not sound weird, but she never asked if we wanted anything else, and didn't offer us coffee or dessert. WTF? Dessert is part of the meal people! Then, and this was our favorite part of her insanity, she asks us if we're going to be much longer because she wanted to step outside. We hadn't even paid for our checks yet and she's pushing us out the door so she can take a smoke break??? Does she not believe in earning a tip? The other thing that pisses me off is that they used to have a portabello and chicken dish with risotto that was my favorite item on the menu and they don't serve it at this location. As I told my mother-in-law, at least she was confident... about not knowing how to do her job.
(2)Mona J.
Just had lunch there today with a few friends. Excellent service and the food was very good. None of us were able to finish our meals because they were so generous. Could not manage dessert but they looked wonderful. Especially the Lemon cake and the Tiramisu.|| The menu was revised, fewer items but most of the old favorites are still there. I'll go again soon.
(4)Charles C.
Absolutely HORRIBLE food. The only positive was out server. He was great but not even he could save this place from a one star. The food here SUCKS. A Friday night at 8 o'clock and only 3 ppl eating. DO yourself a favor and pass on this. Literally one.of the.worst meals I have ever had
(1)Karen S.
Had dinner a few nights ago here and was impressed for the most part. Do like the set up of the restaurant, even though I did not readily see a hostess stand when I arrived. When you walk in, immediately to your left is the bar area with a few tables for dining. Immediately to your right is the waiting area (I presume) if there is a wait for a table. Also in this area you are able to look into the kitchen and there is a "bar-like" area to sit at as well/ They did have bar stools there with silverware and a bread plate, so not sure if you would be able to have your main course there as well. Going back to finding the hostess stand, once you walk in (and do not make a right or left into one of the bar areas), you walk down a ramp to the main dining area. The hostess stand is right there when you walk down the ramp. I did like the open dining area with the dimmed lights and the additional stringed lights to make it feel like you might actually be eating in a restaurant in Italy. I was here with a group, and they were able to fit our group in the dining area off to the side. The wait staff was great, and they were very helpful to our group. The one real disappointment about the food was maybe more on my end since I was not better prepared. I had ordered the Chicken Molonase (I believed that is the correct name). I had assumed it was going to be a grilled piece of chicken, but was surprised to see it was fried when my order did finally come out, but good nonetheless.
(4)Misty S.
Wonderful meal, great service, fabulous wine! Been to Mac grills in Okinawa, CA and now in SC; was not disappointed! We both had the Parmesan crusted sole, generous with the capers, sole had a perfect crust that was crispy and full of flavor. Looked for the 'heart stone' that is a challenge to find in all the restaurants but couldn't find it, apparently this location doesn't have one. Disappointed about that but don't stay away for that reason, the food is wonderful!
(5)Allison C.
Frozen bagged pasta is waayyyyy better than this crap. Service always sucks, including the Managers. They have really gone down hill with their "new recipes" that taste like frozen sauce and dry, overcooked pasta. Their service is below subpar the past three times we have been. I have boycotted Mac Grill three times and now it's for real. If you go to a chain Italian, choose Olive Garden...or just whip up some frozen pasta for $8.00 GROSS.
(1)Jennie B.
Ate here today and was very disappointed. The sandwich and parmesan Fries were cold. The service was slow. I ordered tiramisu because I had it years ago. It was just some pudding in a bowl with a lady finger on the side. Definitely not worth the money. Will not be going back.
(1)K N.
Can I give this zero stars? Truly a disappointment. I grew up going to Macaroni Grill weekly with my family and loved it, so this experience was a let down. We had a reservation, no table was ready when we arrived. The table was dirty (whoa that table cloth under the paper! Sick), the floors were gross (TP lined the hallways around the bathrooms), visibly unclean dishes sitting out for bread they did not have. The waitress came to our table three times: to get drink orders (she didn't know what the house wine was), to get food order (she didn't ask what we wanted, just stood there awkwardly until we said something), and to get the check. She didn't check on us after our food was served- I never ever send food back but I would have this time. The Caesar salad was swimming in dressing with burned croutons and a huge pile of cheese on top of bad lettuce. My pasta Milano (my favorite- I've had it dozens of times) was cold and again, loaded with entirely too much sauce. My husband said his food was "oily and tasted like it came from a can." He had fish. Twice I nearly fell on wet, slick spots on the floor while carrying my infant. Please find another place to eat if you're thinking of going here.
(1)Kyleigh P.
The atmosphere was okay. They tried to give it a fancy, romantic feel with the dim lighting and general set up of the place. However, the tables had paper covers, and I got the general feeling that they were trying too hard. Our service was great. The waiter asked several times if we had questions and whatnot. No complaints there. I didn't much care for the food itself, especially considering the prices. The menu was full of traditional Italian terms, which gave it a classy air but the descriptions didn't always properly explain what the meals actually were. I ordered the mushroom ravioli. It was too peppery for my taste. The mushrooms themselves were good, but the pasta didn't taste fresh. If I'm going for upscale Italian I probably wouldn't think to come here again. It wasn't a terrible experience, but I definitely wasn't impressed.
(3)Elaine H.
The tasting menu....15 bucks but worth about 5! Wine in a water glass? Our waitress was lazy she said this was the way they serve their wine now but I looked around at the other waitresses and everybody else had a wine glass! The fried ravioli was cold! The shrimp was tasteless. The only thing I did like was the ceasar salad and bread. The rest was nasty! Our waitress kept filling our water glasses with wine! Wow I guess she was trying to get us drunk fir a good tip. Done with this place!!!
(1)Mia C.
Not the best Romano's. Comparing it with the one I have been to in Oregon, I didn't like it much.
(3)Brandon B.
Not great. Had the classic Italian bake, which was pretty good. Wife had some chicken pasta that tasted like rubber noodles. Flavorless!!!
(2)Toya C.
Went here for the first time tonight ( 4/18/12). NOT what I expected. Did a double date with friends and wanted to go somewhere different and decided to go here. Already knew that it was an italian based chain restaurant. Location: on Harbison strip near Olive Garden and small shopping area. Restaurant: the inside setting is very romantic. They had lights stringed from the celing and the lighting is dim. The layout of the tables were nice too. Wine was seen all throughout the room (which I know most ppl love with Italian dishes). The cute thing I noticed was that they kept a row of reading glasses (I guess for guests who needed them). Anyways was seated and greeted promptly. At first glance to the menu I felt very inadequate at detecting exactly what each meal consisted of besides the basic: Alfredo and chicken Parmesan. Ended up getting the 2 for $25 special and that included 2 free tapas. Tapas: 1. mac and cheese bites - very tasty and crunchy, you get about 6 of them; bruschetta crositini - only get 2 of them, basically this was garlic toast smothered with small, diced tomatoes and pieces of cheese (nothing to brag about, our bread was saturated with tomato juice). Our friends got the same and their tapas were: 1. spicy ricotta meatballs - basically just some meatballs and marina sauce, not spicy at all, you get a small bowl of this; then they had the stuffed small peppers - which was extremely hot and they exchanged it. The free item on the table was the roll of bread which you were to dip into olive oil and seasons. I didn't care for the taste at all. Meal: I ordered the pollo caprese: flattened fried chicken breast, potatoes brushed with olive oil and a arugula salad. There was no flavor to the meal at all. I felt as thought some marina sauce would have set the meals' flavor off but ohh well. Overall: It was an experience but not a place I would likely visit again.
(2)Emily W.
I very much enjoyed my experience at the Macaroni Grill... it's a chain, and I've seen them all over, but had never eaten there. I had the Chicken Parmesan, and was very satisfied with my choice... again, it is a chain restaurant, but one of the better ones I've eaten. Random fun thing: it has paper covering the table, and you are supplied with crayons to draw on the table... I love stuff like that. Maybe I'm a little ADD, but I like to be able to entertain myself while I wait on food. Staff was friendly and attentive.
(3)Bart B.
Macaroni Grill has become my favorite chain Italian restaurant. The food is almost always excellent (everyone has an off night now and then). The mushroom ravioli is excellent, and highly recommended.
(4)Robert B.
I have never been impressed by the food, but the thing that really bugs me about this place is the NOISE! In an era where noisy restaurants seem to be the norm, Macaroni Grill wins. We once called in a take out order (someone had given us a gift card, and we did NOT want to eat in) and the guy could not clearly hear my order over the phone. I could clearly hear the clattering plates, shouting staff and music in the background. Really, music in a place where the kitchen is drowning out any chance for normal conversation? Fahgedaboudit!
(1)Michael F.
After a long day of shopping, my family and I wanted to have Italian. It was either here or the Olive Garden up the street. We decided to go here and man, was it a mistake... We get seated after waiting for five minutes. Our waiter's name is Blake and proceeded to take our order. I ordered the Seafood pasta while the Mrs. gets a Chicken Alfredo and my daughter has the kid Spaghetti and Meatballs. The first thing we notice is that the waiter brings our drinks no problem, but what about the bread? Took him a couple of times before he came out with the actual bread. It's a hit or miss with Macaroni Grill's bread. It came out as a loaf and it was dry on the inside. Not too good. The calamari turned out ok. The funny thing is, we are seated right next to the kitchen. We can hear the General Manager screaming at the cooks to get their orders right and basically telling everyone that they are doing horrible jobs. I can also see the order screen where all the orders are being placed. After receiving our calamari, we waited for THIRTY minutes (yes, you read that right) for our food to come out. I remember seeing that my wife's alfredo and my daughter's spaghetti were done but since they didn't have linguine noodles no more, they decided to to change mine to fettuccine noodles instead. And from what the waiter told me, they took long because they used angel hair and then changed it last minute. So while my food took forever to cook, they put my wife and daughter's food in the warmer (SHAM was what I heard it was called) while my food came up. When they did finally serve us, they FORGOT the meatballs in my daughter's spaghetti and my wife's alfredo was already dry. They did correct this but it was disappointing to be waiting that long and they still didn't get it right. We finally got the check and the waiter told us it wasn't a good night to be here. He honestly told us that the General Manager doesn't like him and his performance. I appreciated his honesty. We left disappointed. I liked this place back home in CA but after this visit, it's Olive Garden from here on out.
(2)Charlene R.
We needed two gluten free dishes tonight and called ahead to make sure they had a gluten free menu. They claimed to have 40 items on the GF menu. We got there and the menu was sufficient. However we were told that if we ordered gluten free it would take longer because they cook GF food fresh. We indicated that we understood and waited patiently. In about 45 minutes the regular (non gluten free meals) arrived. Still no gluten free meals. Finally in about another 20 minutes later the GF dishes arrived. However they were not cooked (the noodles were still hard and crunchy) and appeared to be the same dish even though we ordered different dishes. The assistant manager comped the two meals that were regular dishes. She was terribly apologetic and so was the wait staff who was very good. However, we returned our GF dishes and left hungry. They didn't offer gift cards which is just as well because I wouldn't go back there if it was free. Literally left without being served anything we could eat. Probably the worst dining experience I have ever had. I tried to rate this 0 stars but it made me give them at least 1 star.
(1)D M.
Don't waste your time - cold and bland food... And the service was sooo slow and they were not even busy! Go somewhere else - you'll thank us later.
(1)John J.
This is an excellent Italian chain restaurant. The setting inside is on the nicer side for a chain restaurant and the food is excellent. Prices are what you would expect for a quality chain restaurant. If you have never been to one of these places and love Italian food I highly recommend it.
(5)