Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar

Our wait at this Applebees on a Friday night was 15 minutes.  We sat down and were waited on soon after.  The drinks and food came promptly.  We had the shrimp combo, chicken tenders, bourbon sizzler, and steak and nobody had complaints.  The server provided good service and was accommodating.

Why is this place so busy?!?

On my recent visit, there was a wait. It was not an unusually long wait, but since I could see open tables and the waiting area is small and crowded, it was frustrating. I waddled in miserably pregnant, and the host wanted to seat us at the bar. Luckily, another employee intervened and got us a booth so I didn't have to balance my wide, aching backside on a tiny stool.

Once we were seated, we were served by a waiter who didn't know the menu, wasn't on top of refills, and didn't seem to care that he brought our appetizer with the meal. He also brought us only half the appetizer, told us they burned the other half and were remaking it, and then brought us the other half when we were almost done eating--still burned. The broccoli in my stir fry? Burned. My husband's burger? Burned (but luckily he likes it that way). The "garlic bread" was stale and did not taste like garlic at all. The sauces are too salty. My mashed potatoes were thin like cream of wheat and tasted like they had accidentally mixed a little Duncan Hines cake mix into them. I know that sounds oddly specific, but that's how it tasted.

We were also really annoyed by the loudness here. Somebody kept turning up the volume on random songs, so that every third song or so, the baby sitting behind us would get startled by the sudden blast of music and start crying. The poor mother would have to take the baby outside and walk her around a bit, then come in and try to finish eating, only to have her baby startled again a little bit later. Some of the patrons here thought it was karaoke night, so unfortunately, a screaming infant was not the worst sound I heard during my meal. Nobody on the staff seemed to care or feel like they should do anything about the noise level and the patrons who didn't appreciate it (by my estimate, about half the restaurant).

Considering the plethora of dining options around here, I can't see myself returning on future visits to Chambersburg. I keep looking for a reason to give this place a second star since it's not like I got salmonella or found a bug in my water or anything, but they really just fell short in every regard.

I'm not sure how applebees is 1) still in business, especially in Chambersburg and  2) still always busy?

Wait times are always horrible, service staff is hit or miss every time, food is always dissapointing, and it's for sure NOT eating good in the neighborhood.

I got a steak and shrimp there about seven months back, had to send it back twice because gristle/over cooked, and the third time I just asked for something else. As said before, why waste too much money on mediocre food when you can get the same quality or better at McDonalds for cheaper.