IHOP review: Service complaint

Store #2066

Server: 145 Jeralyn

Ck #5133

I have been coming to IHOP for most of my life. And although there have been good and less than good experiences, today, July 22, 2023, was by far the worst.

When we arrived, we were promptly seated, and the server came over to take our order. Our drinks arrived shortly afterwards, and it seemed to be a normal visit to the restaurant. The restaurant wasn’t busy and there was what appeared to be an adequate number of servers on the floor for the volume. We were seated in a booth directly across from the kitchen and we could see other servers coming and going pulling their plates for the counter in front of the cook station. (The higher counter with the heat lamps).

I watched as my grandson’s cheeseburger along with the food for the rest of my table was placed on the counter and waited. As each server took their plates and served their customers, my server was standing in the corner chatting with someone in the end booth.

After about 25 minutes, two other servers pulled our plates and brought them to our table. At that time, I expressed that I was upset because I had watched the food sit there for 25 minutes. One of the servers stated that she would ask the manager to come speak with me. A moment later, the original server came by and asked if we needed boxes for our food, which had not been touched. And we stated the obvious, that we hadn’t eaten anything and just received our food.

A few minutes later the manager stopped at our table. I told him that I was upset about our meal sitting on the counter for almost a half hour. There was no offer to make fresh plates and extended no apologies.

Both my husband and I sent back our plates and insisted that our meals were removed from the bill. I did pay for the 2 meals that my grandchildren ordered.

When leaving, I brought my bill to the register to pay where the manager was and again received no apology and when I asked for the corporate phone number or contact information, he told me to find it myself online.

Our bill was $42.03. However, if we had received our food within a reasonable time after it was prepared, this bill would have been over $100.00. Based on this experience and my ability to view the kitchen area during this visit as I watched my families' food sit on a counter for almost a half hour, my family and I will no longer be eating in your restaurants.