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| - Once upon a time, Yard House was a great restaurant! And then Darden got its hands on it... I've been a fan of the atmosphere, the beer selection, the service and especially the food, since the Westgate location opened several years ago. Darden swore they wouldn't mess with what was a winning concept. It's been some time since my last visit, but dinner last night has me believing that things have changed.
As a gesture of thanks to a good friend of mine, I offered to take him to dinner at Yard House. It looked busy, which is normal. So we weren't shocked to hear the wait was 45-50 minutes. In the meanwhile, we decided to do some shopping nearby. We walked about ten steps out the door and the pager went off (like 45-50 seconds later!)
We were seated quickly and greeted by Cody. This guy is good at his job. He is laid back, very efficient, has a great table presence and is very likable. What happened next wasn't his fault...
The drink order got a little confused but my company's White Russian did show up. We were starving, and Cody recommended the Chicken Nachos. They were pretty good and very generous, but far from the best appetizer I've eaten here. In the back of my mind, I kept thinking, Chicken Nachos shouldn't even be on the menu. And then our HUGE side salads arrived. Normally, I would overlook this. For $3.25, it's a deal. But, we agreed that they were both ordinary and way too big.
When both entrees arrived, they were barely at room temperature. I've never been served something that was so far from an acceptable temperature range. I couldn't even twirl the noodles. They were one big clump on the plate surrounded by room temperature pieces of seafood. And my friends entree sounded promising, but seriously?! How long does Mac and Cheese have to sit around to get this cold? Both entrees were returned to the kitchen. They were also very quickly replaced and delivered by one of the managers, Tim. Tim did comp the appetizer on our check, which was unexpected but nice.
I feel I'm being generous with four stars. Honestly, had it not been for the great service, this would've been a middle of the road three star review. Nice save Tim & Cody. Crossing my fingers that the Darden influence on the menu stays minimal at best. I will be back because I know Yard House is better than this.
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