Red Robin Gourmet Burgers

Let's just say I have been to my fair share of Red Robins. Which would dictate I would not normally write a review because , it's a chain and I think most people already know whether or not to try them out.

My reason for writing definitely comes from the atmosphere of this location . Not one person seemed to genuinely be happy while working there. The hostess was nice .Our server was friendly in a fake way and definitely was not engaging.

I am one of those weird folks who can't eat a sandwich if it has lettuce on it . I made sure when ordering my meal to say no lettuce . Of course I had to not only send it back but I was looked at like a weirdo because I wouldn't just pick it off . Here is the thing , I already know I'm odd. I also know what happens when I pick lettuce off a turkey blt. All my mayo goes with it and that just doesn't work for me .

Anyhow just be prepared for a not so stellar wait staff experience and I hope you end up pleasantly surprised . On a good note the Mac and cheese that I got as my side was delicious . That might of been starvation after a long day of travel but it was devoured before my turkey blt made it back to the table without lettuce :) I also didn't get a photo of that since I ate it so fast !

In the spirit of wanting to keep it simple, we tried the Red Robin at Lakeforest Mall. It wasn't busy when we arrived...so I did expect the service to be more than fair..but our server Ciante turned out to be phenomenal.

But first, let me start with the eats. We ordered the Royal Red Robin burger, which comes with a beef pattie, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, mayo, and bacon with a sunny side up egg. Our server Ciante recommend ordering the egg "hard over" so to prevent excessive running of the yolk, which we agreed to. I wasn't too hungry this particular evening, so I really just wanted a small bite of whatever he was going to eat. However, when Ciante first brought out the burger, they did not make the egg hard over, so he promptly took it back to the kitchen. They removed the egg, and cook another egg hard over, but didn't place it back on burger, but instead served it on a separate plate (..ok?!). Either way, Ciante's recommendation was on point because the burger was delicious. After my mandatory bite of the burger, I munched on a few sweet potato fries and steak fries, which were both fresh, hot, and crispy.

Ciante checked on us several times throughout our meal..and always demonstrated professionalism and kindness.

I recommend this Red Robin, but beware, the place is a little small, so it might be a cluster f*%k when navigating through the restaurant during busy times. Also, always double check your order if you make any specific food request. Finally, ask for Ciante, so that your service will be top notch.

This is a decent choice if you end up in Lakeforest Mall and get hungry. Be patient...their servers seem to have better things to do. Even on a Tuesday afternoon. Even if you are their only table.

The food is decent. They have some unique burgers. You can switch out any of their burgers for chicken or a veggie patty so the options are there.

There is endless fries with their burgers. I got the cobb salad and it was huge! Tasted great. I will definitely get that again. If I have the patience to wait for it.

I love Red Robin... But I love them more when they actually get the order right. I've ordered on 5 separate occasions, and each time they got something wrong. That's my only beef with this location.
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Literally 10 minutes after I wrote this review, I ordered a Red Tavern Double Burger with steamed broccoli. When I arrived 15 minutes later to pick up my order, the bartender told me they are out of broccoli.

I asked for a discount, and she refused it saying, "we don't give discounts for items that come without sides". So I replied, "how about discounts for essentially getting my order wrong...?" Again, she refused any discount and instead offered me salad or fruit.

I chose fruit, and I've uploaded the pics of what I received (see the soggy fruit pics above). Nice RR. You've lost my business for good. You've also lost another star. Way to go.

I came to this Red Robin for the first time. Normally, I love Red Robin for their unlimited steak fries and their delicious burgers! This time though, was not a good experience. First and most importantly, the service was SO slow. Could not find our waiter to get us more water, a side of lettuce and tomato, or more sides. Not only did he never refill our waters once, he never came to check on us. We had to hunt around for him. I was tempted just to get up and go to the back myself to ask for things. Our burgers were not good either. I got the prime chophouse and it was bland. My husband got the A1 peppercorn burger, and said he could not taste the A1 sauce. Neither of us were impressed. What happened, Red Robin?? The unlimited steak fries and the unlimited broccoli were good, especially with the Red Robin seasoning, although they were slow in coming out.

I would not eat at this Red Robin again.

This may just be your average Red Robin, but with endless fries and strawberry lemonade, what's not to love? Ok perhaps the location could be better, but at least there's always plenty of parking at the not-so-great mall. And who cares if your burger is 1500 calories, enough to give you a heart attack? At least it's tasty!

I've found that the waiters and waitresses here are exceptionally nice. My last trip here, we had a really nice and friendly waitress (I'm horrible with names). She constantly checked up on us, refilled drinks and fries, and smiled. a lot. It's seriously not normal to be that smiley all the time. but we definitely appreciated it!

I remember the burger being better. I got the whiskey burger and added an egg. It was still good, just not as great as I had remembered. Also, save your money on the mac and cheese. It's not even as good as easy mac. Would have been better off getting another burger, lol.

Meh.

I've been here many times with groups. Sometimes the burgers are better than others. The last time (8 months ago?) was not so good. My wife and I aren't planning on going back.

The Lakeforest Mall is going under anways, so I guess the previous statement was a mute point.

Overall, I love Red Robin. Their burgers are usually great and part of me wants to eat the whole tower of onion rings by myself.

But this location just wasn't thrilling me.

I stopped in on a Monday afternoon. The place was almost empty and some of the staff seemed to think that that meant they could just take their time. The guy seating tables took the family ahead of me to their seats and then got waylaid on the walk back and just stood there chatting with one of his friends for a minute or two - while a couple of groups were standing around waiting to be seated.

My cup of french onion soup had a really nice flavor to it. Unfortunately, the onions were cooked unevenly - and most of them were undercooked. The cup also seemed like they kind of skimped on it. At most places, you'll get a cup or bowl that's filled to the brim - that wasn't the case here. My patty melt was better. It was cooked properly and the onions were fully cooked this time.

My waitress was acceptable. Friendly enough, but didn't do check on me after she brought my patty melt until I was done.

Someone from corporate needs to come in here and straighten this place out.

When we're hungry, and it's late, and we "need" some steak fries or a fried egg on a burger, we come to Red Robin.

We've never had to wait here, so of course that is a draw in G-burg, where it seems you have to wait everywhere. Seriously, why aren't there more restaurants in G-burg? I digress...

Solid burgers, good fries with seasoned salt. My favorite burger is the Royal Red Robin burger, which has a fried egg and bacon on top. There is something fantastic and naughty about a egg over easy on top of a beef patty. Guilty eating, definitely.

They have a new addition to their dessert menu, which we generally avoid since it isn't anything special--cupcakes. Now of course cupcakes are the rage right now, and who would think a chain burger restaurant would have good cupcakes, BUT THEY DO. We had the chocolate cupcake and the Freckled Lemonade (named after a non-alcoholic drink at RR), and they were sooo good! I ordered 2 dozen cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcakes in DC last year, and Red Robin's were better, and like 1/8 the cost. Each cupcake was less than $2, and they were moist and flavorful and the perfect bite (or two) at the end of the meal. The Freckled Lemonade cupcake had strawberry filling, and lemon icing.

Red Robin wouldn't be my last meal on earth, but it's worth a try. Also really the only reason to go to Lakeforest Mall.