I was beyond excited when I heard that we were getting a Logan’s Roadhouse in Owensboro, Kentucky. My husband and I allowed the crowds to die down a little before going for the first time. It’s been open for a while now, so we decided to visit them for supper last night.
It was the most unusual restaurant visit we’ve had in a while.
You know how it usually is with restaurants: Most of the time they’re either ALL good or ALL bad. Owensboro’s Logan’s Roadhouse was like a tennis match – one thing was right, then the next was wrong, then one thing was right, then the next was wrong…
We’ll get the negatives out of the way first. Have you ever seen my list of restaurant “pet peeves” that appears at the bottom of my restaurant reviews? I make a big to do out of hosts and hostesses that just really stink it up. It may seem like a small thing, but think about it, your host/hostess is the first person a restaurant’s guests see, and often the last ones they see as they leave the restaurant. They’re kind of a restaurant’s ambassadors. When I walked up to the hostess station at Logan’s, an older woman was going over something with a young girl. I stood there for about a minute while she spoke with the girl (neither acknowledging me whatsoever). When they did look up at me, neither said, “Welcome” or even smiled. The older woman simply said, “How many?” I told her two and she motioned toward another girl and said she’d show us to our table.
She did. To her credit, this girl was friendlier.
Our server came and took our orders. She was extremely friendly, by the way, causing me to think, “Now, she’d have made a great hostess!”
Another negative, however, involved our server, which grieves me greatly because I liked her a lot. Someone from the kitchen brought our orders and put them in front of us – she turned and flew away before we realized that my vegetables were missing. It’s always best (and polite) to ask if everything looks right, THEN go back to the kitchen. At the very least, the server should come back to her table and check up on everything. Unfortunately, we were finished with our food before we ever saw our server again. We had to ask for our “to go” boxes along with my broccoli, which then went right into the box with our leftovers.
Final complaint: As we were leaving, we again walked right by one girl at the hostess station and one standing by the door. Unlike Applebee’s, Olive Garden, TGI Friday’s, and other places – neither said a word. No “Thanks, come back!” or even “Goodnight!” Nothing. Cold as a witch’s spine. As we walked to our car, I couldn’t help thinking of the the extra friendly staff at Olive Garden. Often, when we’re leaving there, three different people thank us for eating with them. Then there’s Applebee’s where they often go so far as holding the door for you.
Whether restaurant managers or staffs realize it or not, these details matter.
Now for the positives! If you’re writing a restaurant review and only half of it can be positive, I guess it’s a pretty good thing if that half involves the food! I ordered the Raspberry Tea which was really good. If you prefer your Raspberry tea to be very subtle, you’ll love Logan’s Raspberry tea. There’s just a hint of raspberry flavor. If you prefer your Raspberry tea to have a pretty strong raspberry flavor, you might want to skip it. I actually love it both ways, so it was fine with me.
I ordered Fried Fish and was delighted when it turned out to be catfish (if you read my reviews, you know catfish is to me what catnip is to cats). This was the most moist and juicy catfish I’ve ever had. It was exceptional. The breading was perfect, but the catfish, itself was the star of the show. Just how it should be! The tartar sauce was also fantastic, although I never insult catfish by putting any on its back. I did, however, take a little taste to see how it was.
My husband ordered pork chops which were served with some sort of an apple topping on the side. He didn’t care for the pork chops, but I thought they tasted pretty darn good. The apple topping, however, tasted kind of burnt or something. Not a biggie, though, because it was easy to shove aside.
We both ordered baked sweet potatoes and I was blown away by the size. HUGE! They came with real butter and a little cinnamon. Delicious. The broccoli had a good taste to it – peppery and really, really good. I would have liked to have been able to enjoy it along with the meal in real time. But it is what it is, no sense crying over broccoli that shows up to the party late.
The sourdough bread was delicious – served with real butter, thank you very much. I also was glad to see “real” ketchup on the tables (Hunts) – another detail that always brings a smile to my face. Say it with me, Off brand ketchup is gross.
As you can see, this review was a toughie to write. Logan’s Roadhouse was a great mystery. How can someplace that makes catfish this good blow it with simple details like friendly hostesses and the age old standard of getting orders right? I’m an optimist, so I’m willing to go out on a limb and say that they’re still trying to find their identity.
- Crummy sides. I hate for a restaurant to rest on the laurels of their meat and/or main dishes. If it’s on your menu, it should be able to stand on it’s own, as if it were the ONLY thing on the menu.
- Unfriendly servers. If you read a restaurant review on Genuine Kentucky and the server is not mentioned, rest assured that they either weren’t very friendly or weren’t exactly on the ball. Or both!
- Unfriendly hosts and hostesses. Hello?! You’re paid to be friendly. Your job exists to welcome visitors and make them feel like you’re glad to see them.
- Off brand condiments. I LOVE to see a restaurant owner who cares enough about his/her guests to serve them Heinz or Hunt’s, Red Gold at the very least. Off brand Ketchup is gross. It screams “Someone’s cutting corners!!!”
- Overcooked fries. Come on, take them out before they’re brown. Brown fries aren’t cool.
- Watery soft drinks. Servers should be taught that if you see the beverage come out of the machine and there is NO fizzle, DO NOT serve it to the guests. Blech.
- Servers who “Push the Wrong Button.”Servers charging the wrong price for menu items is becoming an alarming trend. A server can get annoyed with a customer and, bam, “accidentally” hit the wrong button. A word to anyone who eats out: Examine your ticket. For example, if the restaurant offers 1/2 off Sushi, make certain your server doesn’t charge you the full price.
- I am, by nature, a very friendly guest when I visit restaurants. I always, always leave tips. When the service is good, I don’t just tip, I over tip! My oldest daughter is the same way. One sweetheart of a server in Olive Garden once got a $10 tip from us for lunch. She made us smile, so we wanted to make her smile. It’s really as simple as that.
- Real butter is always better than Margarine.
- Options, Please. As someone with a vegetarian daughter, I love for restaurants to offer completely meatless dishes. Bonus points for the restaurants, like Denny’s, with Boca Burgers on their menu.
One final thought: If an owner really wants their restaurant to be the best it can possibly be, he or she should have comment cards on the tables. Guests will tell them what they’re doing right but, more importantly, they’ll tell them where they’re messing up. A closed, secure box should be provided for guests to put the cards in. Get the opinions from the people who’s opinions matter most.
