Applebee’s Restaurant Review

Applebee’s Review 1527 Caldwell Blvd
Nampa, Idaho



In Nampa, with so few good newish restaurants to choose from, its easy to get into the habit of overlooking poor service and food. Such is the case with Applebee’s.
This was my 5th visit to Applebee’s over the course of the last several months. In fact, the only real reason why I keep coming here is because people keep giving me gift cards. This visit was on a Tuesday, when it was not especially busy. I have previously eaten at times when it was crowded, so I wanted to come when it was slow and see if the service and food was still the same.
My wife and I came with my 7 month old daughter this time. We were met at the door by the manager, which was very nice and pleasant. Though I got the distinct impression that this was seen by the employees as more of an annoyance than a pleasure. We were seated promptly and I quickly settled in for what I hoped was to be a very nice and enjoyable dining experience. At numerous restaurants, I have found that the little things are often overlooked, so I have come to look for these things. In particular, a filled and clean ketchup bottle has become one of my pet peeves. I scoped out the ketchup bottle and it did indeed look clean and full. It was not until I picked it up that I found that it was simply the color of ketchup, which made it impossible to tell if it was full unless it was physically checked. There was only a small amount of ketchup in the bottle, so I went for the one at the table next door, only to find that it too was almost empty.

My wife loves the Orange Chicken and orders this almost every time we come here. In the past 4 times though that we have come here, every time she has ordered Orange Chicken, there is very little to no sauce on it. The Chicken, though good and crispy, is as dry as a proverbial bone. My wife again ordered Orange Chicken, and we even explained to the waiter that every time that we ordered it, it had come without sauce. He told us that he would make sure that not only would it have sauce, but that he would bring out extra. We were satisfied at his assurance and placed the order. I wanted Chicken Fried Steak, but I only saw Chicken Fried Chicken on the menu. I asked the waiter if he had chicken Fried steak, but he didn’t seem to know. I finally had to point out the chicken fried chicken on the menu to which he also pointed and said that this was apparently the closest they had.

We got our order quickly, but we were sadly disappointed once again at the quality of the food at Applebee’s. My wife’s Orange Chicken not only came with without any sauce, but the waiter also forgot to bring the sauce on the side that he had promised us. It wasn’t until we complained that he came out with the sauce. The sauce that he brought us though was yellow and didn’t seem to have the same flavor as the sauce that was suppose to come with the Orange Chicken. My Chicken Fried Chicken was good, but didn’t have enough gravy on it.

Being from Texas, I love my iced tea. In my opinion that only way to serve tea is in the form of Unsweetened and pre-sweetened. It’s only common sense, as well and physics, that sugar just doesn’t dissolve well in cold liquids, so if you want your tea sweet, you have to stir and stir and stir. Even with all that stirring, you will still be left with unsweetened tea that is only slightly less bitter than the original. So, I have to take off points to any restaurant that does not have to good judgment to make two kinds of tea.

After about a dozen visits to Applebee’s Restaurant in Nampa, I have no choice but to conclude that their service and food is poor and has little if any chance of improving. My advice would be to find another place to eat at. It’s only a matter of time before a good restaurant. like maybe Chili’s, move into Nampa.