Top Restaurant Complaints and Worst Offenders
Even a delicious dinner can leave a bad taste in your mouth if the restaurant’s floor is littered with leftovers or you can’t carry on a conversation because the room is too raucous. For our survey respondents, the biggest bugaboo was noise—loud customers and blaring music. Second-rate service was another key annoyance, and of course people complained about food that was cold, burnt, over- or underseasoned, or unappealing. They had gripes about dirty floors, tables, bathrooms, and silverware on just 7 percent of visits. The 25 chains below received the most complaints in our survey; they’re listed in order of the number of overall complaints each received per 100 visits. The percentages represent the proportion of dining experiences for which a complaint was reported.
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Chain | Excessive Noise Levels | Poor Service | Problematic Food Prep | Dirty Environment |
Average Percentage for All Chains | 16% | 12% | 8% | 7% |
Fricker's | 22% | 22% | 12% | 22% |
Dave & Buster's | 32% | 23% | 13% | 14% |
Taco Mac | 24% | 28% | 13% | 9% |
Native Grill & Wings | 23% | 19% | 13% | 15% |
Quaker Steak & Lube | 25% | 18% | 11% | 12% |
Buffalo Wild Wings | 30% | 17% | 12% | 10% |
The Greene Turtle Sports Bar & Grille | 25% | 20% | 12% | 10% |
Huddle House | 15% | 20% | 13% | 23% |
P.J. Whelihan's Pub + Restaurant | 31% | 13% | 8% | 10% |
Joe's Crab Shack | 24% | 18% | 11% | 11% |
Hurricane Grill & Wings | 21% | 20% | 11% | 10% |
Wild Wing Cafe | 24% | 20% | 10% | 11% |
Hard Rock Cafe | 31% | 20% | 11% | 7% |
Rainforest Cafe | NA | NA | NA | NA |
Iron Skillet | 11% | 19% | 16% | 16% |
Texas Roadhouse | 38% | 10% | 7% | 10% |
Buffalo Wings & Rings | 31% | 31% | 10% | 9% |
Dick's Last Resort | 18% | 20% | 9% | 16% |
Logan's Roadhouse | 24% | 15% | 12% | 14% |
House of Blues | 19% | 19% | 14% | 10% |
Bar Louie | 25% | 16% | 10% | 8% |
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews | 26% | 16% | 10% | 9% |
Waffle House | 17% | 12% | 9% | 22% |
Flanigan's Seafood Bar and Grill | 27% | 11% | 12% | 11% |
Duffy's Sports Grill | 33% | 14% | 10% | 5% |
Editor's Note: This article also appeared in the November 2016 issue of Consumer Reports magazine.
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