I live about a mile from this place and have been several times. There's always a wait, and it's really not worth it. They have Byzantine rules about reservations (must be 6 or more; can't be for a time later than 6:30; everyone MUST be there at the time before you can be seated) and about takeout orders (no orders after some time--I forget which on two nights, and no orders after yet ANOTHER time on two OTHER nights). You practically have to have an engineering calculator just to keep track of it all. In a community full of families with children, not offering evening takeout with flexible times (I think the cutoff is 5:30 or 6:30) is just obnoxious. Another reviewer complained about the kids in the restaurant--if they offered a decent frame of time for ordering to-go, that might not be such a problem.\r
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Service is invariably slow to nonexistent. Our last visit, a woman at our table ordered the tuna salad. It came more than one hour later, and that only after I asked twice about it. This is pretty much how it's been every time. I almost had to tackle a server on one visit just to get some water. I don't think that when one is paying pretty good sums for one's food that one should have to trail around after one's server to get it or engage in contact sports.\r
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The food itself is OK...sometimes overdone (too much thick cheese, too much salt, too much of things that are best offered in small doses). I've never had anything terribly memorable or to die for, thank goodness, because given how rarely we can actually eat out in a restaurant, I'd be dead by now because you can't order takeout after...some time...on some days...that you'd normally want to order takeout. \r
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Want a good local experience? Go to Bistro 88 or to Las Palomas or even to Chinatown, which can at least be fun, especially if you order off the menu (Singapore noodles!). But unless you're looking for a loud time, bad service, OK food, and stupid rules (hey, we're paying here!), don't go to The Grove.
Pros: Um...there's a patio?
Cons: bad service, mediocre food, stupid rules for takeout and reservations
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