Red Lobster

6/10/21: I read the Yelp reviews & gave them a shot anyway. We rode by and they were DEAD, so I figured we couldn't go wrong. My mistake.

We ordered online...a few appetizers, Walt's favorite fried shrimp with double mashed potatoes, & cheddar bay biscuits. I thought we couldn't go wrong there. Again, my mistake.

Their 7:07 pm text said that our food would be ready at 7:32 pm. We pulled up to their curbside spot & texted that we were there at 7:30 pm. The huge bag of food was promptly brought out, so we were excited. So, tell me why the food was COLD!!! And my favorite thing, the biscuits, were DRY!! Where's the butter?!! Lord!!! What's wrong with these people???

So, needless to say, I'm regretting not paying attention to the reviews. This location needs to do better with coordinating cooking times with pick up times. Don't tell us to pick up our food at 7:32 pm if it's ready more like at 7:20 pm. We ordered it at 7:06 pm. That was a complete waste of money.

Lesson learned.

Upon entering the restaurant to be seated, we (a party of 3) was not greeted at all. The young lady at the desk came to the desk and immediately stated that there is a 45 minute wait time. We said "Ok" and proceeded to have a seat.
When our table was ready we were greeted by another server who called our name with a party of 2 instead of three. No big deal. As we were seated, the booth table adjacent to us was clean, but the floor and seats were filthy as if someone had a minor food fight.

The service was the worst. Our server had us waiting for over 30 minutes just to bring water. no silverware was brought to the table. he brought 2 rolls to the table to be split between 3 adults, because they were short on rolls. we waited another 30 minutes for our entrees, again, still no silverware. The meal was not complete because the one plate for fish and chips (french fries) suppose to have 2 pieces of fish, only to have one piece of fish and he never brought the second piece of fish to complete the order. The fish was dry and at room temperature. As a matter of fact, all of our food was at room temperature.

There was a disgruntle party of 3 that was seated two booths from us that was having the same issues, but they were more vociferous than we were about the service. Upon the completion of the night, we calmly explained to the server what was done wrong and what needed to be corrected in the future. His cash tip was placed on the table before he gave us out bill, and he asked, "Is this for me?" and reached over and picked up the tip.

Horrible customer service from the greeter and server. I will not eat at this location again. FYI, the food was delicious but with the lack of service, it made for a very bad experience at this location.

Looks can be deceiving! The photo I'm going to post of our spread might look delicious, but the reality was far from it. First, this location is woefully understaffed. We walked in to an empty restaurant. There were maybe 6 tables of diners, tops, and nobody at the host stand. The bartender saw us,the servers running in and out of the kitchen saw us, but we got no greeting, and we were not seated for at least 10-15 minutes. Drinks took longer than expected, and we had to ask for biscuits, which also took a while to come out. Not a great start.

My friend got the ultimate endless shrimp, with scampi, linguine and popcorn shrimp to start and a side of fries, and I got the ultimate feast, with crab legs, sirloin, grilled shrimp, scampi, and a side baked potato and broccoli. The only, and I mean ONLY, properly cooked and tasty things we received were the shrimp and biscuits.

I should have known things were off when the crab legs did not come out with my meal and I had to request them. What I was eventually brought was possibly the worst set of crab legs I've ever had in my life. The crab was clearly old and/or overcooked because the red part of the meat was sticking to the inside of the shell. The crab meat I did manage to get out of the one part of the one leg I cracked was dry and crumbly, and the whole thing smelled like it came from the bottom of a dirty fish tank. I don't know how to explain the steak - it was cooked properly (medium well) but had no flavor at all. It didn't even taste like meat, somehow. The baked potato was laughably small and overcooked, and the broccoli was cooked to the point of disintegrating.

All the shrimp dishes were good. The scampi tasted amazing, if a little salty. The popcorn shrimp were nice and crispy. The linguine was well cooked with a lot of sauce, though the shrimp still had the tails on, so it made them hard to eat without fishing them out of the alfredo to remove the tails. The grilled shrimp was a little overcooked, but that's ok because they had a nice flame cooked flavor and a little crunch to them.

The worst part of it all, though, was the response to the poor quality of the meal. I did not eat anything from my plate but the shrimp, and the server noticed and said she would speak with the manager. I must be clear - we did not expect a comp - but we did expect a little more than a 10% discount for a $41 plate of food where everything was sent back except a few shrimp. I'm shocked the manager did not even come to speak with us about the poor quality of the meal, or offer a dessert, something.

Tanasha, our server, did a great job considering she was handling quite a few tables as more diners came in while we were there. She was friendly, polite, and provided good service; however,we will never be returning to this location, and I highly recommend against anyone wasting their money at the Colonial Heights Red Lobster. Disappointing.

I am truly disappointed in my experience here.

1. Upon arriving, I never received any silverware or napkins. After mentioning to our server about not receiving silverware they brought us plastic silverware. I asked what was the reasoning behind this and they said they had no clean utensils. At that point, I was understanding but still disappointed as it wasn't the servers fault. Later on our server brought us actual utensils stating that they were freshly washed. After unwrapping them, the utensils were extremely dirty and disgusting with spots all over them.

2. The food wait time was decent however, the food tasted super odd. It tasted very old and as if they just reheated it.

3. Then we asked for butter and our server stated they were completely out of butter. I was understanding as I'm aware sometimes places run out of things or they can't get them in stock. Later on she brought us this concoction which she stated that the kitchen told her was garlic butter. After tasting it, it was not that at all. To be honest, I don't even know what it was.

4. At the time I received my check I started to feel very weird and this hot sensation throughout my body. I went straight to the restroom and started gagging. After about two minutes, I began projectile vomiting.

Overall, my experience with the food was awful and unsanitary. I will be contacting the store manager in the morning to make them aware of this situation. The only positive thing about this experience was my server was nice and tried explaining that unfortunately the location has not been able to gather any new staff. Hopefully that changes in the near future.

Yeah, it's a no for me dog. Long review alert!! I should have known it wasn't meant to be when there was about 10 cars in the entire lot but we were told it would be a 30 minute wait. The hostess was less than enthusiastic to even greet/seat us. She wore what looked to be a workout outfit complete with leggings and an athletic zip jacket and sneakers. Maybe it was her day off and they called her in. I felt it wouldn't be that long and it wasn't (about 15 minutes). We were quickly greeted by our server Kayla. Kayla took our order but never bought garlic cheese bread out to us the entire time we were in the restaurant. She also didn't come back to us as often as she should which lead me to asking another staff member to please find her. The place was empty so why so slow I'm not sure. The food itself was good but the experience was subpar. I asked to speak with the manager who couldn't come out because she/he was "on the line cooking". Terrible experience and I give it a 2/10 and DO NOT RECOMMEND!

Stopped in to the restaurant this evening. Not even 7:00pm. Very empty parking lot, but a few people inside eating. Nobody waiting in the lobby or lounge. Told first it would be a 20 min wait. Went to the restroom for a few and when I came out I was told it would now be a 30 min wait. Not sure why the staff doesn't want diners tonight, but I'm sure there are other places open and willing to serve.

A hidden gem in Petersburg great service and fabulous tasting food with a great price line. It is definitely a favorite for a quick bite

P.S.A.- Ok, here I go! First I would like to start with this is the first time in eight years going back to Red Lobster Colonial Heights. The only reason going is my wife received a gift card. Okay we had a 15 minute wait, normally that's not bad but when the place is empty why wait? Oh, we had to wait for the staff to come to work. When seated they ask what we would like to drank, One water, two Pepsi.... We are out of Pepsi...Then the food order, son, chicken tenders, fries , and a Pepsi zero. Wife, the unlimited shrimp, Caesar salad, and water. Me, cheeseburger no pickles because they are out of pickles and Pepsi!! When my son receives his food five French fries!! But lucky my cheeseburger came with fries and I give them to him. Far as the unlimited shrimp with way cold mashed potatoes on the side.. My wife may have ate a total of five shrimp.. the first serving all were cold, second try she did the grill / chewy microwave shrimp... so her total is still five consumed shrimp! Going back is never an option even if you receive a gift card!! I would rather lick the door handle going in any Sheetz or Wawa.. I feel so sorry for people that had to pay for that ****! Almost $60.00 for five shrimp, half cheeseburger only bottom of bun, and three chicken tenders with five French fries. The place should be shut down!!

Red lobster I ordered a takeout and then when I picked up my food to go, I was told the salad didn't come with takeout.

Staff was friendly and food was good but the service and wait time for food was horrible. They obviously have a challenge with staffing. So sad because the limited staff working were so nice and friendly and food was good but it took a long time to order and get food. Based on time we waiting I won't return even though our meal was tasty.