Romano's Macaroni Grill - Tustin

Good food as always. Not too noisy or crowded

I set a reservation on OpenTable for a specific time at said venue. When my date and I got there, the ladies behind the podium didn't honor said reservation, despite clearly seeing it on their PDA. We had to wait 15 minutes in order to be sat, as there were walk-ins ahead of us.

What was the point of using this website, then? Zero. A waste of time you were, OpenTable. And remain with this pointless review.

Food was okay not great Italian food we had a gift certificate so we tried this restaurant. Total bill was $75 this was way to much for the food we received it was okay mediocre food. Our service was great but that can’t make up for the food

Management at Tustin Macaroni Grill is absolutely horrible. On Valentine's day there was overbooking of reservations and had to wait for an hour before we got seated. The table that we got was not adequate and because the folding of the sides was not even I got wine spilled on my shirt and pants. I had to force being transferred to a different more appropriate table for six. The Manager did not come to the table to apologize or face the problem but sent the waitress to tell us they would compensate us with a bottle of wine. The one that I spilled was a very expensive bottle of Cabernet that I brought to celebrate the occasion and it was replaced by a cheaper wine. Of course the food took a while to be served although I have to recognize the the waitress tried very hard to do her job well. Then came the check. The check was very confusing at we complained and asked to talk to the Manager. The Manager was rude and inconsiderate. This lady really should look for another job where se does not have to manage or deal with the public. Very poor experience.

Couldn’t even get in to get seated when we had reservations on Valentine’s Day, really really horrible service

poor time management. i get that it’s a holiday (valentine’s day) but staff for the event correctly and don’t overbook on a holiday you have all worked before. people were waiting HOURS after making reservations and being on time for their reservations

The food was good, and it was Valentine’s Day so the service suffered some. I finally got up and fetched our own service from the baskets. But the most frustrating thing was how they overbooked the restaurant... by a lot. We arrived 5 min before our 7:45 reservation and were finally seated over an hour later. To make it worse, when we were finally seated we saw 4-5 other empty tables, which told us we had been waiting needlessly.

We had a 7:15 Reservation. Arrived at that time and checked in- the restaurant was extremely crowded. It seems they were overbooked and understaffed.

Bartender, hostess, and servers were clearly doing their best given the situation. All interactions we had with them were very pleasant, but management should have planned better for one of the busiest nights of the year dining out. I felt bad for the staff as so many people were upset and they had to deal with it. I felt for them.

We were finally SEATED for dinner after the 4th time of me going up to check in at 8:30pm- 1 hr and 15 minutes AFTER our RESERVATION. Nothing was offered by management, nor did a manager even bother to come by the table to apologize for the wait.

Food was good, and we had an excellent server.

Very good food, very good service. We had to wait for a while to be seated but it was Valentine's day

Make a reservation! Ha! I checked in 15 minutes early waited and hour and left. Still haven’t gotten my text or message that my table is ready. Why have reservations if it’s not honored?

Our reservation was at 7pm. We got seated at 8:30pm. What’s the point of making a reservation?

1 hr 30 minutes wait, no point having a reservation. Very unprepared management for a special occasion. Not enough food. Waiting for food for over an hour. Hostess in front was laughing at the situation and lying to people when people would ask how long more they had to wait, not professional at all. The worse of all manager was hiding in the back while the whole restaurant was in chaos. Never going back again.

We made reservations for 6:30, we didn't get a table until 7:45 although I noticed there were several tables available. The service was terrible, it took an hour just to get our appetizer. It took 2 hours from the time we sat down to get our food and they ran out of salmon by the time the cooked our food. By the time we got our food it was cold. We were there for 4 hours. Very bad service.

The restaurant overbooked their reservations and ran over an hour behind schedule. Had a 630 reservation, didn’t get a table until 740 and didn’t get our meal until 830. Saw several tables become available and no one was around to bus them and get others waiting to a table. They were so unprepared and under staffed and there wasn’t a manger in site to assist customers

Reserved and checked in at 6:30pm on Valentine day. Didn’t get the table until 7:30. It’s a terrible experience ever

We had a 6:30pm reservation. We arrived at 6:10 and were seated at 7:30! Our dinner arrived at 8:10-it was a prix fixe menu and our entrees arrived before our appetizer. It was interesting that there were quite a few empty tables and a huge line of customers waiting to be seated but that it seems there was only one bus girl and she decided to clear her each table piece by piece instead of using a tray and clearing the whole table at once. The empty tables sat as the hostess was not notified they were available. The fireplace directly behind me went out and the waiter said he would alert the manager. The manager did nothing to re-light the fireplace and he did not close the flue so cold air was blowing on my back all evening. Our dinners were sub-par. My husband’s steak was coated in this strange green sauce and he had a huge pile of Brussels sprouts on his plate. A very odd vegetable selection in light of the fact that it was not noted on the menu. What a horrible evening and a waste of money.

Overbooked

Even with a reservation, we had to wait 30 minutes to be seated. Others after us were waiting over an hour for their reservation. Otherwise, service and did were fine. This was Valentine's day and a bit more demand.

Loved our server! Prompt and friendly service! Great and healthy food selection for a very reasonable price! Soups, salads, pasta - lunch special.

It was my future daughter-in-law’s birthday. I had only been to a Macaroni Grill one other time many many years ago. Now I know why I’ve never gone back. The service was terrible and the food was just okay. Our server was a mess. My husband and I ordered two glasses of Prosecco and she had to come back three times to clarify what size we wanted. She finally got that right and then brought us the hardest loaf of bread I’ve ever tasted! It was terrible. She took our orders and it seemed like it took a really long time to get our food but we finally got and it was okay, nothing special. And then I found a HAIR in my salad! Ordinarily I would have let my server but I decided not to say anything as I had already eaten quite a bit of it and really didn’t want anything else. Since it was a birthday we decided to have dessert. I noticed they had pumpkin spice cannolis on the menu which sounded really good so I ordered that and everyone else ordered something different. We waited at least 20 minutes after ordering dessert and then she came back and said they were out of pumpkin spice cannolis and would I mind a chocolate one. It took her that long to find out they didn’t have what I ordered??? I said no I would just share my husband’s cheesecake with him . Again we waited and finally got dessert which was just okay. When we asked for the check it took her at least another 20 minutes to bring it. All in all we were there more than two hours and they weren’t that busy. There was no reason that we had to wait so long for everything. Now I wish I would have told them about the hair!! We will definitely not be back to Macaroni Grill nor would I recommend it to anyone.

Talk about a sinking ship! When you arrive with 6 people and parking lot is almost empty, should have been our first clue! There were over 15 yes 15 tables not cleared and left filthy since we sat down till we left! There excuse was they let staff go home early! Unacceptable. The service was fair at best and food was good! This was not the first time the service was Unacceptable! No managers around! Sure hope they get it together!

Despite the restaurant being practically empty, our table hadn't been set up yet. The waiter seemed distracted, we had to keep reminding him for things we had asked for, like water, or more bread. Someone in the back kept yelling out for servers, I assume to bring out food orders? Since the restaurant was relatively quiet, the woman's voice boomed across the dining room. On the plus side, the food was good, but I think next time we'll order to go.

Macaroni grill Glad to see they're putting some more healthy items on their menu

We sat at the bar, the value was excellent since it was happy hour. Our bartender was exceptional.

3 visits in 60 days and will not go back. Reservations are ignored. Uncleaned tables sat empty while I waited 40 minutes. Both glassware and bread plate had residual food on them from a previous diner. House salad was about 1/2 cup in size. The entrée was served immediately following the salad. The chicken used is the same grade as boil-in-a-bag. Kitchen staff could be heard highly distressed over the din of the restaurant. After 3 times of similar experiences I would not recommend this location.

I had a reservation but they didn't seat me after an hr when i saw that even walk ins where being seated. And i complained what the reservation was for???

That was the only bad thing. Server was great!!!! Food was good

We eat here often and typically don't have a problem. However, we h ad reservations for 7:00. Checked in and one hostess said it would still be a 20-25 min. wait. My husband checked again 10 minutes later, and a different hostess said they could seat us right away. That was the first problem. We were seated, but not approached by a server until we flagged the hostess and asked her about it. A server took over our table and she tried her best, but the bread was served without the oil and rosemary finishing touches. My husband's salad had no dressing. We ordered from the special menu, so they should have been prepared. Took a long time to have my dinner plate cleared away while we waited for dessert. They ended up taking $4 off our meal, but overall a very disappointing New Year's Eve dinner.

Unfortunately our server was not too happy to be there on Dec. 31. Hostess also very unhappy to be there.
All things understood that young people would rather be with friends on NYE, the server forgot to bring our bread(left the oil, but when asked for bread, said "OH Yeah, I forgot"), had a hard time refilling our drinks, plus just a weird off putting feeling. It wasn't that busy. Bottom line, it is a corporate restaurant, but for the price, probably should have a better experience.

First time I went the ambience,the service and the food was excellent.

Second time I went within the same week the restaurant had ran out of coffee the food was mildly warm and the service declined.

My last visit to this restaurant was on January 1 as you can see in the pictures the strawberry cheesecake I took home had moldy strawberries by the very next day.
No wonder the cheesecake my daughter had at the restaurant tasted awkwardly funny.
Now we know why.

Even though we had reservations we were told there would be a 45 minute wait. Left restaurant and will not reserve through open table again!

The service left much to be desired. Through no fault of the server, there were just too many tables for her and it caused such a delay to take drink orders (10 minutes from when we sat down) from when we sat down until she was able to help us. This was already on top of waiting 20 minutes for or reservation. The food came quick but by then, the experience was already shot.

I sure hope they can get their act together or they may end up next on the chopping block.

I should mention for a Friday night they had a little lore than half of their tables open and we still had to wait and still had a server who was over taxed.

Nice server but she didn’t check in enough

Not sure what was worst, the service or the food. Both were equally disappointing. The manager was as incompetent as the staff.

Our family decided to go there for Christmas dinner and it was extremely busy. We made a reservation but it took an hour to get our food after being seated. The kitchen was overwhelmed with orders to go. Next year we will just stay home and cook.

We waited for the meals for one hour and an half due to understaffing. The CEO needs to have two options, open on Xmas day only if there is enough staff and if not, then closed the restaurant.

We were seated at a nice table by the fireplace. The server was very pleasant and the food was good.

Great place to celebrate a birthday. Service and server was wonderful

Decided to give Macaroni Grill a second chance after a previous debacle involving a double charge on my credit card and having to get a replacement card as a result. (Management gave a half-hearted apology for the incident.) Showed up 30 minutes early for the lunch reservation and the place wasn't busy - about half full. The greeter assured me that my party of two would be seated ASAP. 25 minutes later, nothing. Went back to the counter to a different host who didn't know anything about it and sat us right away. Annoying.
Seated at a nice table and 10 minutes later, hadn't even been addressed by a server. That was the final straw for me. I stormed over to a server, told her we're leaving and demanded to speak to a manager. Incidentally, it was the person who checked us in! Told him that making his guests feel invisible is not a good way to get return business. He was very apologetic and offered to foot the bill for lunch and wanted to make things right. I reluctantly agreed and, from then on out, everything was perfect. There are some definite issues this place is going through, but when they have their act together, things are good.

Food was mediocre
Nice Waitress but new
Old restrooms

Love the rosemary bread. Our dinners were good. Service was decent this time. Wish the fireplace was turned on!