Grotto Seafood & Steakhouse

My family went to the Grotto to celebrate a birthday. That birthday will be unforgetable because the dining experience was so dreadful. Three of us had steak (about $25 each) and only one was edible. One of us ordered pasta. After about three bites -- and a few laughs, that person just took it home to the dog, although the animal probably has better taste than to eat it. Finally, another one of us had veal, or at least that's what the menu said it was. When the inattentive waiter returned for our dessert order, we all laughed and went somewhere else. The next day we met again to compare notes. We agreed that it was a dreadful dining experience and it was overpriced. Atmosphere? You don't get it by hanging a chandelier in an old drugstore building. I don't know where the owner spent his $4 million but it probably would have been better spent in the kitchen and the food. Pros: conveniently located Cons: Food, service more

My wife and I and another couple tried the restaurant for the first time in late December. We all really felt the place had no atmosphere. We were seated in the dining room which is a rather large and open area. While we were not dressed in formal wear, we were somewhat taken back by the baseball cap and blue jeaned patrons, especially by the older gentleman, seated with several patrons, who ate dinner wearing his ballcap! Two of us ordered the prime rib, both cuts of meat were an unusual grey color. Mine was edible but lacked flavor, the other member of our party had to send her cut back as it was way undercooked. My spouse ordered the tuna which was delivered to our table cold. The fourth order was that of seafood combo which was just 'ok'. The waitress was good and attentive to our needs, unfortunately the chef was not. Our bill, for two dinners was over $70 with the tip. We'll be surprised if this restaurant will be around in the spring and if it is I'd be surprised if I returned. The only concensus we had was we miss the Triple Crown Restaurant and it's Wednesday prime rib. Pros: Fair Service Cons: Food/Atmosphere more

The good: Waitress was nice and attentive. Wine list acceptable. My friend's seafood & rice dish looked good. $4 mil spent over several years to bring this beast to life so it's pretty and spacious...kinda like the "wow" factor of the two story foyer & great room McMansions most of the builders market with the same effect: after a year they make the owners feel small and the overly spacious place is found to be inefficient, noisy, & always feels cold...even at room temps. Waiters will be in good shape tacking on the miles of walking it will take to navigate this joint. The bad: Where to start? My $26 Halibut was over-cooked & dry. Luke warm string beans and carrots looked and tasted as if right out of the bag and dunked in a warm water bath before being tossed on the plate. How hard is it to toss them in a fry pan with a little butter, olive oil and garlic, or some other simple but tasty recipe? For $26 I expect at least a minimum amount of effort. Want dinner music? No problem, just break out your wallet and feed the "Internet Jukebox". Unit says "12 plays for $5". Seems pricey to me but I said "what the heck, this place needs music". But BEWARE, the songs I selected were apparently the wrong ones (an old Tori Amos album) and each selection cost 2 credits. So for $5 I got 6 songs. It would have been cheaper to buy the CD. Live weekend music is nice but the owners spent $4 mil on everything EXCEPT ANY acoustic treatment. Folks...you don't put a rock band up against a glass wall in a room with minimal soft and cushy materials and expect decent sound. At LEAST put a heavy curtain behind them! And how about spending 0.01% of that $4 mil on a website that reveals to the world who is taking the stage when and what the wine list looks like? If you are thinking about going to this place, you had better hurry because I will bet they will not last through the spring unless they have another $4 mil stashed away somewhere they can afford to lose. Pros: Our service was good Cons: everything else more