Larkin’s Carolina Grill

Prices ridiculous for small portions. Reuben had very little meat and I paid $ 2 extra for sweet potato fries for just handful.

Love the menu offerings. Service was OK. Will visit from time to time for the menu, but hope ownership/​management help improve service quality. Overall good place to go!

I’ve been to Larkin’s twice now, on two different vacations. The first time we sat in the dining area, right inside the entrance for lunch. Our service and food were good.
We visited again this past weekend for a mini-​family reunion. We made reservations for 8 and were seated in the back corner of the dining room. Our server was good and everything started out fine, but it was a Saturday night and a band was setting up. Several of my relatives are older and hard of hearing, so while they appreciated the classic rock being played it basically put an end to all conversation at the table.
The music was really, really loud. Way too loud for such a small space.
Our food was fine. My husband had the prime rib and I had the crispy chicken salad. I’d recommend Larkin’s, just not on Saturday nights.

Wow. I’m amazed. Poor service and awful food?!? Impressive. Drink level checked one time during the wait. Cold food after 35 minute wait. When waiter was informed, he did not make it right. Panini was «grilled» kind of like Elwood likes his toast (dry and white, for those who don’t remember).
Cheese was congealed. Fries were lukewarm. Flavor was absent. 17 bucks later and I hate me for not reading the Unilocal reviews first. Save yourself, run for your life.
Note: the baked potato was dry. This means that they baked it dry.
Hints for the manager: train your staff on how to manage tables and time. My food had obviously been under the «heat» lamps for some time.
Flavor should not be shied away from. When making your food, season it. Find a chef. They have degrees in this.
Cooking enhances flavor. Use the time and temperature to bring natural flavors out. High heat for 45 minutes on a wrapped or oiled potato would be a good start.
Fat is not the enemy. Butter that bread before grilling it! We’re eating out, not nibbling at a Jenny Craig convention.
The location is stellar, but your promos, not the food are what draw your patrons. If you aren’t a restaurant but rather a venue, stop luring tourists with promises of food. The interstate system has «attraction» placards for venues. Good luck.

Lunch just after opening on a Saturday. Burgers and chicken wraps were very good. All food was fresh, service was good, a very good lunch!

I’ve been to Larkin’s twice now because I work in Columbus. The first time, I tried the Prime Rib French Dip, which was quite disappointing. However, that was a few months ago, so when my husband came to join me for my break, I thought we could just go there and split a burger.
The service was SLOW, despite the fact that it wasn’t terribly busy. When we finally ordered our burger, we specified that we’d like it medium rare. The server even repeated it back to us, so I know she didn’t get confused. What came out was WELL done and had, for some strange reason, been cut in half on the griddle before having cheese placed on it. I can only assume the cook was checking how done it was and lacked the knowledge to verify it any other way. However, why he or she cut it in half, saw it was overcooked, and then decided to put it cheese, etc. on it and serve it anyway is beyond me. Of course, I might have felt slightly more forgiving on that point had it come out in less than 20 minutes.
Our server mostly ignored us, perhaps because we were a two top splitting a sandwich, so our drinks were never refilled. Of course, judging from the rest of the tables, I don’t think anyone was particularly happy with wait times.
I gave it two stars because, despite being slow, not terribly good, and overpriced, there aren’t too many options in Columbus and this, while not on our list, isn’t the worst place in the world. Also, according to a co-​worker, the beer is good. Just make sure you sit at the bar so you’ll actually get a refill.

We took a chance on the Sunday brunch which was in reality just an omelette station with a waffle maker. For the price it was definitely disappointing but the restaurant was very clean and servers very friendly. We stop again but order off the menu. Looks like the locals already knew that. And they did have live entertainment and very clean restrooms.

Beautiful little restaurant plus they had a piano player. Sadly the food was not good. The worst was that I ordered the black bean burger and the burger I was served was was beige. Now one thing true about a black bean is that it’s black. When I pointed that out to the waitress she said they had changed the menu to veggie burgers instead of black bean burgers. At least she took it off our bill. In general our food was bland. We won’t return

My wife and I went to Larkin’s Carolina Grill for lunch while on an outing and, having eaten at the other two Larkin’s restaurants, we were expecting something special. The venue is nice, but nothing special. I was a little surprised at the duct tape on the carpet joint in the bar, but the broken spring in the booth seat was an even bigger surprise.
I ordered a Cuban Panini and my wife ordered the French Onion Soup and a glass of Pinot Grigio. This is where we were extremely disappointed.
A Cuban sandwich is (by definition) ham, pulled pork, swiss cheese, spicy mustard and pickles on chabatta (Cuban) bread. The sandwich is buttered and pressed in a sandwich or Panini press. What I actually got was a ham sandwich with what tasted like white American cheese, pickles and a spicy mayo on while bread. It was toasted on a Panini press, but was dry. While it was an OK ham sandwich, it wasn’t a Cuban sandwich.
My wife’s French Onion Soup was actually sweet. I mean, made with sweet onions and sugar, sweet. When you are expecting the savory taste of a rich beef and onion stock, the last thing you want is an onion flavored sugar soup. She said she was really hungry and, since nothing else on the menu appealed to her, she salted it liberally to cut the sweetness and ate it anyway. I’m not saying it was inedible, just not very good. At least the Pinot Grigio was dry.
By itself this was an adequate, but very uninspired, meal in a nondescript bar. When compared with Larkin’s on the River, I couldn’t believe they were owned and operated by the same organization! The French Onion Soup at Larkin’s on the River will bring tears to your eyes it is so wonderful, and I have actually sent a personal thank you to the Chef after eating one of his melt in your mouth Reuben sandwiches!
Why only two stars? The food could have earned it a meager three stars, but the duct tape on the floor and the loose spring up the butt combined with a $ 25 bill brought it down to two.
I’m afraid I won’t be back to Larkin’s Carolina Grill any time soon.

We loved stopping here on our way home from Hilton Head. This place is beautiful, family friendly, and has healthy options as well as comfort food.
I ordered the pulled pork on gluten free bread with sweet potato fries and broccoli, yummo! They offer gluten free breads and buns as well as fresh veggies, so if you need a break from bad food, choose here.
My kid ordered chix tenders, but they even have mini steaks for kids! The hubby also ordered pulled pork and agrees it was quite tasty.
Outdoor seating available with gorgeous views of what I think are called foothills, just a beautiful, delicious place to eat.

We stopped on our way to Asheville at lunch time. No one to greet at door one waters at the bar section working tables and bar. One other waitress was short with other customers and not present. The waitress that attending us was nice when she wasn’t working the dirt or running the bar or the other tables she had. Food didn’t take long 20 – 25 a firehouse burger that was good and soup and sandwich of the day. Over all good food bad service !

We stopped there on our way to Louisville for a wedding. There were 4 of us and we all had sandwiches. They ask how you want your hamburgers cooked and they were very good and jucy from medium well to medium rare they were perfectly cooked. A very good experience. We’ll be back on our next trip.

This place is okay, not great, not bad. My dish was fine, jarred salsa was just that. Fries were good even as they cooled down. My friend had a bbq burger and had dietary limitations which they easily accommodated for her. This is a plus for the gluten free crowd. Prices were fine, cheesecake was fine.

Tasty Cuban panini fair price with quality service I will be back. The rest of the menu looked appetizing as well with a nice relaxing atmosphere.

Our meal here was just fine, I saw no indication of why the previous reviews had problems. Our server was very nice and attentive. The food was delivered in good time. None of us disliked anything. The French dip was delicious, but I always love that! The atmosphere was good, nicely decorated and clean. The restroom could use a bit of attention, but no major problems there. I’d give it a 3.5, I’d call it pretty good. Not my choice for a special occasion (4) and did not amaze me (5), but better than mediocre :-)

The atmosphere of this restaurant would be greatly improved with softer lighting and if table clothes, (even paper ones,) were set. Some money was spent on the décor but with such bright lighting it feels like a cafeteria. Food was acceptable, service was friendly. Over priced for what it is but with so little competition in the area I suppose they know what their market will bear.

Service was a little slow. (Apparently this is the norm, according to my parents who are locals?)
However, the food was fantastic — I got ribs. Om nom nom. If I remember correctly they were out of baked potatoes which was a little disappointing, although the sweet potato fries I opted for instead were good. I’m very picky about sweet potato fries, mushy sucks, and so does too crispy. These met the happy medium.
I shared some beastly brownie ice cream thing with my sister for dessert. It was also delicious and DEFINITELY a more than sufficiently sized portion.
Pretty views of the mountains outside, I think they have outdoor seating, although it was just entirely too damn hot out when we went (North Carolina at the end of June, what else can I expect, I guess) and my dad said he «didn’t want to listen to traffic.»
I’d go back again when I’m in the area.

We ate there last week to try something new. We drove down from Hendersonville. The food was pretty good, but over priced in my opinion. I would have given a 4 star review had it not been for the disgusting condition of the bathroom. The urinal had a plastic screened shield that was ill fitting. Sorry for the graphic details but urine splashes out and the customer has to stand back to not get splashed. The floor around the urinal was wet with urine and paper towels were strewn about the bathroom. The corners of the floor harbored so filth I just had to take pictures to show my wife because I just knew she would not believe me. I spoke with staff and was informed that the bathroom was indeed cleaned the day before. Their definition od clean obviously differs from mine. The women’s bathroom was clean according to my wife. In the end, the bartender (and I think manager) was apologetic but really how could they even remotely think that bathroom was presentable? The décor was otherwise very nice.

Great food and convenient location from I-​26 interstate. Very clean facility and staff was very friendly. Menu was a little high on price especially in the desert area but food and portions were great.

So, this is a first for me. I’ve never revised a review. But, here it goes…
I had several bad experiences at Larkin’s and finally wrote a one star review on them. And, I have to say that they deserved every bit of that one star.
After a while, one of the owners contacted me and said that the review had been a wake up call for them and he was committed to improving food quality and service. I had no way of knowing if he was blowing smoke and just trying to get me to change my review or if he was genuine. He invited me to come back soon to try their revised menu and even offered me a free burger (which, of course, I cannot accept). But, he did seem very genuine and committed to making improvements.
I had a Smokehouse Burger. I called in my order and had a very pleasant initial experience… even was asked how I wanted my burger cooked which was a new question.
The burger is an angus beef patty with bacon, swiss, BBQ sauce, pickle, lettuce and tomato. Oh, yeah… a couple of onion rings on there for good measure. Served with fries. The burger was really good. Cooked nicely. Toppings fresh. I still need to check out more items on their menu but this is a really nice change and I think that they should be commended for committing to step up their offerings. Thanks and I will definitely be going back for more.