Romano's Macaroni Grill

We have eaten at many other Macaroni Grill locations for years and have always had a good experience. This past monday, we decided to eat at the Murfreesboro location for the first time. We arrived for a late afternoon lunch to avoid the crowds and as we walked in there were many empty tables. No one was at the host station so we waited for awhile and a very nice young man came over and told us there would be a 15 minute wait. That seemed a bit odd, since they didn't really seem to be that busy, but as we went over to the waiting area there was a family of 4 waiting ahead of us. No problem so far - just a different experience than we were used to at other locations. We were seated eventually and we waited....and we waited....and no one came to our table. We noticed that the folks who had came in AFTER us were already ordering and had drinks on their table. We waited until they had been served bread and we still had no waiter at our table, so we found the host and asked if we were going to be served or what? He apologized and went into the kitchen and eventually a waiter came to our table. No apologies or excuses for such poor service was given by either. We ordered two of our favorite entrees that we'd had many times before. When they arrived we first noticed that the portions were remarkably smaller than we'd EVER been served at any other location. As we began to eat, we noticed that both entrees were mostly pasta with significantly less shrimp, chicken, and even spinach! The sauce was very watery and not very flavorful. Very disappointing. We will NOT be back again to this location for sure! more

What started out as a simple, happy gathering for my husband's birthday ended up being an overall disappointing and offensive experience.The food was so-so but it wasn't a big deal and was over-looked, in fact not one of us complained. We were just happy to be with our family and enjoy my husband's birthday. The major offense came after the dinner. We had a custom cupcake-cake made in the shape of a SRV custom series guitar for my husband. It was very detailed and it was clear that a lot of time was put into it. He loved the cake - especially since it was his favorite guitar AND the fact that his sister made it for him. It was a very big, nice surprise for him. Unfortunately we were all stuffed from the dinner so only 3 of the cupcakes were eaten, which was a small portion of the overall cake. We were going to do some shopping in the mall next to the restaurant and it was an extremely hot day so we knew the cake would get destroyed if it sat in the car. So I asked one of the waitresses if it would be okay if they kept it in their refrigerator for a few hours while we shopped - she checked with the manager and he said yes, but they weren't responsible if anything happened to it. I assumed what she meant was there was a slight possibility that it might get damaged a little bit if someone moved it around in the frig or put something on top of it, etc. Didn't think anything of it because they weren't very busy - there were only a hand full of tables of customers at the time. I thanked them multiple times for helping us out. When I returned in a few hours to pick it up I noticed that the top of it was very loose -- I had to snap it back down. But I didn't think anything of it because I figured it popped loose when they put it in the frig. I thanked them again for their service and help. When we got home my husband was admiring it and then looked puzzled -- he noticed that portions of the cake was missing. And that's when we figured out the restaurant employees had ATE IT! They touched it with their bare hands (remember it was cupcakes) and ate a stranger's birthday cake! UNBELIEVABLE. My husband was so disappointed because it was so special to him. So I called and spoke to the manager and he admitted he was puzzled about the situation and didn't know what could have happened. Well I know...they ate it! Then he did the unimaginable and said ""Well that's why I told you we weren't responsible if anything happened to the cake"". WTH?! If it were damaged that's one thing. Hell, I would have let it slip because it would have been damaged worse if it sat in our car. But I sure didn't think that his statement inferred that they were going to eat it! And then he had the nerve to act like it couldn't possibly been them because he didn't see anyone walking around eating cake, to which I replied ""Well it certainly didn't just disappear!"". I was so offended that I just hung up the phone. What else could've possibly happened to it?! Gremlins ate it?! Unreal. Never in my life have I ever heard of anything like that. Now we don't want the cake because we have no idea what they did to it or how many people touched it, etc. Ruined. The whole thing is ruined. Thank you Macaroni Grill for taking rude to a whole new level on what was supposed to be a wonderful day. And it makes me sick to think of what they do behind the scenes if they have the nerve to do something like that! What other disgusting things are doing when no one is looking?? I don't even want to imagine. Never ever again will we eat there. more

we always loved the macaronni grill at opry mills. we were a party of 6 and all of us were disappointed. my wife had always loved the lobster raviolli.she said this tasted bad and portions were smaller than we were use to at opry mills.our friends said the chicken parmazani did not taste good as it use to. i had the chicken marsala and it tasted excellent but portions were very small.we talked to the manager and he finally admitted that they had changed some of the recipe's to be more healthy.i guess mrs obama strikes again.we will not be back to the macaronni grill. more

This was my second visit Romano's Macaroni Grill. I had previously visited the Opry Mills location where I ordered Lobster Ravioli and was less than impressed. For a $16 dish, I expected it to taste pretty good, which it did, but I felt as if I was given a half portion. I didn't bother going back to any of the chain's locations for about 2 years. That brings us to the preset. My wife and I were encouraged by friends to visit the restaurant with them. They are not regulars either, but wanted something different. Not having forgotten about the small-portion incident at the Opry Mills location; I decided to order something less expensive that did not contain lobster. I understand that lobster is expensive and may sometimes justify a smaller portion. I ordered the Fettuccine Alfredo for $10 and added grilled chicken for another $2.50. When my food arrived, I could not believe how small of a portion it was... maybe 5oz including the grilled chicken. The plate that it arrived on was quite large with a smaller saucer size area in the middle of the plate. My meal was exclusively isolated to the inner portion of the plate. Ridiculous. For comparison's sake, the Cajun Chicken and Shrimp pasta at TGI Fridays for about the same price is easily 3 times the amount of pasta and chicken. My main course was the same amount of food as the children's plates or less! If I had not been out visiting with friends, it would have gone back to the kitchen immediately. The taste of the pasta was decent, but over all I was very disappointed. Other reviewers online have stated that their portions have become smaller as the prices have risen. C'mon it's pasta!!! I will not be returning to any of the locations in the future more