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Ponderosa Steakhouse

Ponderosa Steakhouse

10306 S Clare Ave, Clare, MI, 48617, United States

Buffet • Seafood • American • Steakhouse


"I went with my sister and as we both got the same thing, fried shrimp and baked potato, can 't comment on other dishes. Ordering was quick but using an old gift card I had found took a few minutes as the cashier had forgotten how to process it. With the meals paid for, we were shown to a comfortable booth for two near the food bar. Our waitress came as we were getting ready to go to the buffet, bringing our drinks and a cheery Anything I can help you with? She offered help twice more through the meal, running the perfect line between helpful and annoying. I wish I had gotten her name. We both got pasta at the create your own pasta station, with us both opting for cavatappi and shrimp. I added chicken, peppers, onions and tomatoes with a single scoop of Alfredo sauce the young man heated and combined right in front of me. I tipped him a few dollars because it looked (and was) scrumptious. My sister opted for different veggies and combined the marinara and Alfredo sauces, ending with what looked like a yummy sauce. According to her, it was. As we brought those back to the table, our meals were brought out. As usual, we ended up bringing the main course home to eat the next day. The fried shrimp were good and cooked well, just not the jumbo they 're shown as on the menu board. The baked potato with butter and sour cream heated up perfectly the next day in the air fryer along with the shrimp. We went back to the buffet for another plate. I got French fries, fried clams and fried shrimp. What I thought was another potato dish ended up being rice with shrimp and peppers. All were very good, particularly the clams which I haven 't had in a long time and the shrimp rice mixture which was a very pleasant surprise. (I have to remember my reading glasses next time to check the labels) After all that I couldn 't even look at the dessert bar even with my sister tempting me with talk of ice cream (no longer self serve as everything else was) and the many possible toppings. There were cookies and fruit there, what else I 'm not sure about. A very good meal at an excellent price with great service. For anyone interested, nobody I saw was wearing a mask, save for one or two cooks."

Ponderosa Steak House

Ponderosa Steak House

57-a Claylick Rd., Ripley, WV 25271, United States

Steak • Lunch • American • Desserts


"I used to love to eat at Ponderosa when I was young. Not having been to a Ponderosa in years, I was excited to share the experience with my family. What I ended being was very disappointed! When we first enter the restaurant, we were greeted by an unfriendly cashier. Then we were shocked at being asked to add our tip on to our bill before we had even eaten. The cashier explained this was their policy because elderly people are often too cheap to tip at the end. My husband asked if they gave military discounts. The cashier said that they did with ID. I asked if she needed to see all our ID 's. She said no but never explained that the discount was only being applied to the service members meal. We understand that this is sometimes the policy but it should have been explained more clearly. The buffet presentation was good, however it definitely did not live up to its appearance. The meat selections were cold and extremely salty. All three potato options tasted like paper and the gravy was horrible. I tried to flavor it up with their no-name steak sauce but that made it worse. The coleslaw tasted like pure vinegar. My 12 year old said the mac and cheese was disgusting. She wouldn 't even eat it. The dessert was tasteless. The other thing I really didn 't like was the organization of the buffet. The seafood sauce was with the desserts, which were split between the pasta and meat table and on another table with pizza. The only tolerable part of the whole dinner was that we had a nice server, who always had our plates cleared and our cups filled. To round off an all-a-round bad visit, we asked to see a manager to discuss the lack of military discount. The manager offered to discount all our 10% and that money. However, when he returned he informed us that he did not have the authority to offer us that refund. We would definite not return or recommend this restaurant to anyone."