Red Robin in Edwardsville, Illinois

The Red Robin restaurant seems to be quickly becoming one of the most popular places to eat in the Edwardsville, Illinois area. I recently ate at Red Robin for the first time. My dining partner remembered having a burger at a Red Robin location in California when he was on vacation as a child. He was eager to try the place again when a location was built in Edwardsville as he had very fond memories of it. I am pleased to write in this review that we both enjoyed our experience eating at this restaurant.

The service at Red Robin in Edwardsville was excellent. We did have to wait five minutes for a table when we walked in the door, but that is only because the restaurant has recently become so popular. The staff was very friendly and obviously served us as quickly as they possibly could. We were asked if we had eaten there before and if previous experiences with Red Robin had been positive. Servers, hosts, and managers were all friendly and conversational without being overly intrusive.

The entrée that both my dining partner and I tried was the Royal Red Robin Burger. It was a difficult choice from a menu full of appetizing burgers, chicken sandwiches, soups, and more unusual options like a vegetarian burger. However, when the food came we were happy with our choice. The feature of the Royal Red Robin Burger that makes it unusual is that among the typical ingredients-bacon, mayonnaise, cheese, etc.-there is an egg. I'd never had an egg on a burger before, but it tasted good and not out of place. The sandwiches come with French fries which were also tasty, and I'm very picky about fries. As my friend stated, "this is one place you need to come to hungry!" Neither of us were able to finish our meals.

This Red Robin restaurant is located near Dierberg's on highway 159 in Edwardsville. The atmosphere inside is fun and kid-friendly-the only complaint I have is that it can get very loud in this restaurant. Otherwise, it is very clean and the retro décor is fun. The setting, as well as the food, at Red Robin is more conducive of a friendly meal rather than a nice dinner. However, you will be served your food and given enough attention regarding details like drinks being refilled even when the restaurant is very busy.

The feature that we were least pleased about at Red Robin was the price tag. Granted, they were very good burgers, but $30 for two people to eat hamburgers with a soda and shared appetizer seems expensive, especially for the Edwardsville area. My friend said that it was "more expensive than [he'd] expected," and we agreed that we would probably return to the restaurant, though not nearly as often as we would if it was priced more reasonably.