Red Lobster

We went there for lunch on 1÷16÷2016. It was not good at all. It seems to me Red Lobster continues to serve poor quality food at not so reasonable prices. I ordered the blackened catfish with a ceasur salad and rice pilaf. The salad dressing tasted like it was just poured out of a bottle. The rice reminded me of a box of Rice a Roni… probably was. The catfish was ok but a very small filet. The other person ordered a seafood pizza. It was extremely salty. Told the server and he just says… sorry…and walks away. I remember over the past years when RL was good. Now it’s all about cutting corners to increase profits. Darden should just realize maybe it’s time to close Red Lobsters and move on. They know there have been problems over the recent years. I will not be back based on another poor experience with RL… it’s not worth it.

I know, I know. It’s Red Lobster. I know it’s not a high class fish restaurant. I know saying it’s a seafood place is the equivalent of saying Olive Garden s real Italian food.
But those cheddar bay biscuits…
The two stars are for the quality of the biscuits and the warmth bad friendliness of the staff. Smiles abound here, even though it’s often accompanied by an apology for the slowness of the kitchen.
Now, to the negatives…
Since a few months ago, the portion have decreased while the prices have increased by about 2 dollars a plate. The shrimp scampi, for example, used to have 7 shrimp. It now comes with 5. Plus the side salad is no longer included with the meal: it is an additional $ 2.49.
Something about the recipes has changed as well. The crunch fried fish, usually done with a thin layer of breading, was more like a hush puppy with a little bit of fish between layers. Unappealing and not well spiced.
This restaurant used to be my parents’ go to spot for their after church lunch. Disappointing how a few changes can ruin an otherwise pleasant experience.

This Red Lobster location has the most sweetest staff. The food was delicious and filling but the service was just Wow! Our waitress Cindi was simply amazing. Thank you.

Horrible. When we were seated we were told the kitchen was running behind. That alone with the advance notice would have been acceptable. After being seated our party of five sat there for 15 minutes without even so much as a hello I will be right there from anyone. Will never go back.

This is one of my go to places for lunch. They are fairly fast with serving our food so I can count on being in and out in enough time to get back to business.
They are never crowded during lunch which aids to a relaxing, quiet atmosphere. The kind of atmosphere you wouldn’t mind being in if you’re wanting to unwind.
I’m always satisfied with my meals and they are always switching things up, keeping the menu enticing. Currently they are featuring their Crab Fest! Boat loads of crab legs, crab cakes, crab surprise dishes that all you crab lovers would love to enjoy. Seriously, if you like eating crab there is so much to choose from. There is also a new drink on the menu that if you like rum you’ll enjoy this drink. It’s served in a mason jar that for a limited time you get to take a jar home while their supplies last. The drink is called, High Tide. It was so, so good.

After the horrible experience at the red lobster in Kissimmee, FL I was glad that the experience at this location was so pleasant. The place was clean, the staff were all very cheerful and acted like they were happy to work there, and the food was hot and delicious. I have been back and will go again.

We decided on RL last night in order to satisfy our crave for Crabfest. We were curious to see whether the new owners of Red Lobster have changed anything and as far as I could see, they haven’t. Overall the experience was just ok. Service was a bit slow and the food was extremely salty for some reason. The dining room was pretty empty and we still had to wait about 25 minutes to order. Servers need to learn how to be a bit more friendly and smile sometimes, it makes a difference.
We began with two salads that tasted like pure salt. How hard is it to make a Caesar salad? Salt doesn’t need to be added because the dressing and the parmesan cheese already contain enough salt. We mentioned it to the server and she had no reaction to it. My wife chose the King Crab Legs after being told she could not substitute the shrimp for another cluster of snow crab on one of the entrees. I feel restaurants need to cater to guests from time to time. We were willing to pay an upcharge for the switch but the server came back and said it wasn’t possible. I decided on the Crab Trio with Snow Crab, King Crab and shrimp. My snow crab were excellent, sweet and fresh even though it was just one cluster and it was missing one leg. The king crab legs were drenched in a garlic butter broth that was also very salty. I hate it when they cut the legs down the middle, I prefer to break the leg so I can pull a whole piece of crab meat out instead of two strands. The shrimp were small and nothing special.
I hope the company that bought out RL makes changes because the past few visits to have been disappointing. They need to bring back quality even if they have to charge a bit more.

The food is usually pretty good here. Nice for a quick stop in for a last minute meal on the go. They are in serious need of an updated menu. They’ve had that same menu for at least 10 years. The food could use less salt. All in all a good place. Staff are nice and the place is clean.

Came here for lunch with a co-​worker one day. The restaurant was really dimly lit so it made me feel sleepy. The one thing that was keeping me awake was the thought of the yummy cheddar biscuits!
We advised our server that we were on lunch break. He accommodated us with the time constriction which was awesome. Our food was brought to us in a timely manner.
Good tasted good, just like any other time. I asked to bring some cheddar biscuits home (the ones that were left on our table) and our server asked if we would like fresh warm ones. Hell yes, was that even a question?! He was so awesome to do that.
Great service from the server. Food was good but not excellent. Good experience.

Not the best seafood I’ve had, but what do you expect with Red Lobster. I ordered a lobster and the meat was very tough. (There was no meat in the legs (where there usually is) and the shell just fell apart, letting me know that it was boiled too long.)

My daughter was craving crab legs so we decided on the ol’ RL.
I think everyone was pretty happy with their food. My tilapia was flavorful but a little mushy. The crispy red potatoes are new since the last time I was here and they were a nice addition to the menu. I also love their Caesar Salad because they put plenty of dressing on it. Their Cheddar Bay biscuits are still the star but the kitchen can never seem to keep up with demand.
The two stars is due to service and housekeeping issues. I’ve been on a string of really bad service luck lately as it pertains to waiting. We had abnormally long delays between courses and the server, being frazzled, started to unravel and let the unprofessional, casual side out. My spoon had food debris still caked on it and when she brought out a replacement, it also seemed unclean. To me, that is an unforgivable offense in a restaurant.

on Nov 1 evening some friends and I went to the red lobster near the FL mall to have dinner. My husband and I live in Vt. and it was a wonderful dinner w. old friends of mine. Im a big fan of red lobster. I worked for red lobster for many years back in the late 80’s early 90’s. I saw what goes on behind the lines and that is why I still eat there today. Clean kitchen, fresh seafood, delicious recipe’s and a dedicated staff. On NOv 1 we had a wonderful waiter (ruben), he was as attentive, and friendly. Despite my friends’ bf who ran is ass off, with the shrimp refills! and he was rude. the water handled it professionally. On my way out I gave him some xtra money and apologized. About the food. I just love the crab alfredo and that is what I always get! The biscuits are aww so good! and the margaritas YUM! I live in Vermont and there is no red lobsters in our state. There is one near lake george, NY and we try to go there when we are in the area. Red lobster has been around for many decades and I hope that it remains to be around for many decades to come.

Not a normal pick but we had a gift card. This placed used to be packed for the Sunday lunch crowd, not so much today. Tried the endless shrimp — it should be called the endless waiting for your shrimp instead. The initial order came out right after we finished our salads, the first re-​order took about 20 minutes and the second took about 35 minutes. You can only have one re-​order at a time so the waiting is inevitable. I guess this is how they wear you down from asking for more. The shrimp we not much bigger than popcorn shrimp size. The taste was bland as only Darden can do seafood. Red Lobster used to be so much better than it has been lately. The inside of the restaurant was clean and had a comfortable atmosphere. The server was also friendly.

Red Lobster– normally I’d pass, but with a gift card in my wallet, it was time to try them again.
Ordered the Sailors Platter ($ 10.25) w/​the fish entrée broiled.
The included five– fried shrimp came to the table on my plate mushy– so I promptly told my waitress these guys were «losers» when asked how everything was. She offered me fast replacements which I agreeded to. The replacements were both fast, hot and totally better as they should have been first go round.
The fish fliet; had me contemplating what high tech method can a portion of fish be sliced sooo crazy thin whilst not loosing its structure as a filet! Maybe 3/​16″ max. thickness, if not only an 1/​8″ thin! Had a seasoned salt on it which was okay. So, the filet got extra point from the intrigue factor. Taste and texture (well all the texture that 3/​16″ can offer) was acceptable but with no reason to condemn or recommend or desire a repeat.
The shrimp scampi also has this interestingly different (point getter) presentation. The grouping appears similar to the large swirly lolli-​pops but w/​o the stick. They nested 6 shrimp (or so) in a circular design and are served in a shallow dish of really garlicky butter. Ummm. This was the winner on the plate. Only wish the shrimp could have been bigger as these were pretty small guys — but shrimpy and lusciously buttery-​garlic. Met my expectation for scampi w/​o the pasta.
Biscuits were their famously hot, sorta crunchy top-​with a buttery and salty goodyness. DANG! Sometimes eating Paleo is sooo hard. A pinch or two, or three? couldn’t hurt. Well after defiling both biscuits with those 3 pinches, I realized I got dangerously close to vacuum mode and pushed em away.
Tough keeping the weight off at sometimes.
My server Tracy R was a delight and efficient– and at lunchtime, that is a blessing.
So– You know what you are getting at Red Lobster usually. Value– close call IMO but this lunch meal for me of course was exempt!