Jonathan L.
Yelp
Summary for the busy executive:
Come for a drink and the atmosphere. Dine elsewhere, unless you desire mediocre food and excruciatingly, unacceptably slow service.
Full review:
The Pioneer Saloon is certainly a cool spot: a cowboy/biker bar in a hidden, quasi-ghost town that feels like you're in the middle of nowhere, despite the fact that you're just minutes away from the Las Vegas metro area. The interior is charming, with a long mahogany bar and a dining room with a shrine to Carole Lombard and Clark Gable. Next door, there's an old General Store, which is now really just a gift shop and which serves as the entrance for the restaurant. The two buildings are connected by a large deck and a fabulous patio. The back deck of the restaurant serves as a bandstand, and the whole outside area is boasts a lively party atmosphere.
I was there on a Saturday, and the hostess got us onto the patio and seated at a table right in front of the bandstand quite quickly. I had my dog with me, and they were gracious about her joining us. The band was wonderful, and the guests were eating up the comfortable weather, dancing and drinking away the afternoon. We got off to a great start.
Things declined rapidly once we were seated. It took the server about twenty minutes to come to our table. Since we had been there for a while, we were ready to order, and we placed a rather simple one: a 10-inch pizza and two soft drinks. Fifteen minutes later, our drinks came. Thirty-five minutes later... Nothing. Soon thereafter, the server returned, apologized for the wait, and asked if we needed anything; my companion asked for a refill on her soda, and I asked for a water. Twenty minutes later (seeing the theme here?), the server returned with a soda refill and another apology. No water. Fifteen minutes after that, we finally got the pizza. Never got the water.
Did you do the math? I did: 10 minutes + 15 minutes + 35 minutes + 20 minutes + 15 minutes = 95 minutes. And what did we wait for? Not much is the answer. The pizza was pitiful, gas station fare: hard, saltine-like crust, jarred sauce, cheese that slid off the crust, and a handful of vegetables. Had it come out in fifteen minutes or a half hour, I wouldn't have complained. But a 95-minute wait for this food proves one thing: this management has no business running a restaurant. Time to downscale to a bar with some bags of pretzels, guys. Or else, hire a kitchen manager, and fast.
After we ate our sad lunch in about fifteen minutes, I wasn't willing to wait for the server to come back to the table. So I went to the bar to pay. I bumped into her, and she produced a mobile pay station and got me out of there pretty immediately. She was apologetic for the wait time--but not quite apologetic enough. She lamely said that they get busy on Saturdays (not really an excuse; plan better) and took a full $25 for that bad 10-inch pizza, two sodas, and a forgotten glass of water. Certainly not worth the money, even had the service been acceptable.
Will I be back? Possibly. I'd like to show people the little town of Good Spring and the lovely patio. I'll take them there on a lazy Saturday for a beer and a chat. But I'll order my drinks at the bar, and I'll never, ever wait for food here again. I suggest that you, dear reader, follow the same game plan.