Marie Callender’s

They’re closed! Right in the middle of discount pie month too! :(

Congratulations to my Blackberry app. Urbanspoon, we landed here at dinner for my niece’s 4^th birthday. This is the grown up part of the celebration.
Anyway, the first choice was some American diner, which we should’ve went to, because we might have experienced better food.
My dad had the Artichoke and mushroom chicken. It was the most decent meal of the night. The flavors were there, earthy (mind you just using wild mushrooms) and parmesan cream sauce. The nice touch was the artichoke. This actually inspired me to make a better, refined for dinner tomorrow.
My step-​mom had the Salmon fillet. It looked a smidgeon behind ok. I didn’t taste it, so I can’t say anything about it, rather than the sides were just a tad monochromatic.
My youngest sis had the Braised and Slow-​Roasted Pot Roast. It was dry as hell. Not that I’ve tasted hell, but if it was indeed hot in hell, it would definitely dry the meat out and that’s what it was. The veggies were the saddest looking veggies I’ve seen. Looks like just an afterthought that hmmmm… let’s put some steamed veggies here and called it «summer vegetables».
My other sister got the salad bar. Good for her, because she had the choice to make her own salad.
Unlike me, I got the blech of a Cobb salad ever. Too much green onions. It was bitter. I had the honey mustard dressing and it still wouldn’t cut through the bitterness that was the ten ton green onions in it. Even the abundance of the Gorgonzola was not enough to make me forget about those onions. I tried adding more dressing but the thousand Island made the salad heavy and I didn’t care for it anymore.
I also got the chicken pot pie.
Come one. This is one of their staple dishes. What happened? The sauce was too runny, the vegetables were too soft, that it seemed like they bought it from safeway (safeway has the most horrible produce section). It was bordering on being bland. There was very light chicken flavor, and the celery was not cooked enough.
The only thing that saved the night was my endless Arnold Palmer. I’d go back there for just this drink.
Anyway, the chef could’ve done better.
I gave it three stars for the Ok service. The first meal came 30 minutes in, though attending to our needs, considering there were three children in our table was good enough.

I was here on a Thursday night for a late dinner. We were given the privilege to seat ourselves anywhere in the main dining room. It was cozy, well-​lit, and quiet, as there weren’t weren’t many diners left by that hour. Our server was attentive and accommodating, ensuring that all our requests were met.
The combo appetizer (onion rings, chicken strips, fried mozzarella sticks, and fried string beans) was large and filling and left us with hardly any room left for our main entrees. The string beans were seasoned differently than the rest of the items and were surprising tasty.
By the time my Pot Roast entrée came around, I didn’t have much of an appetite left. I took a few bites, though, and savored every one of them. It was served with carrots, broccoli, and mashed potatoes. Total comfort food. I have most of it in the refrigerator now and am very much looking forward to finishing it off this afternoon.
Without much room for dessert, we shared something that was described as a cup of vanilla ice cream topped with apple pie. It was huge! And tasty. I shudder to think of how much weight this meal made me put on.

When I hear the name, the Costco freezer section pops in my mind (famed frozen Chicken Pot Pie). My brother (one of his regular lunch places) suggested that the family dine here. Unfortunately, our party of four became two… my brother and me. Being Easter Sunday, they offered a brunch buffet special (missed this) and a $ 99.00 ham dinner (family style), which was a bit too much for two people. He ordered the turkey dinner with vegetables, mashed potatoes, and gravy ($ 14.99) while I had the Artichoke and Mushroom Chicken with rice pilaf and vegetables ($ 15.49). For an extra $ 4.59, I added a cup of chili. The chili was not bad with diced onions and tomatoes, melted cheese, tortilla strips, and green onion. The chicken comprised of four grilled boneless strips, covered with a creamy sauce with Artichoke heart slices and mushrooms. The sauce overwhelmed the rice and the veggies were on the salty side; glad that I ordered iced tea as a beverage. The two dining rooms were only sparsely filled with parties of two or four, probably because most of the Serramonte Mall stores close at 6 pm on Sundays. The service during dinner was efficient and sharp, but that would change when I got the check. After signing the bill and reaching the cashier area, our waiter, William, stopped me to explain that he gave me the wrong bill (price difference was $ 3.00 to my benefit initially). After waiting several minutes for him to correct the charge, he returned with my receipt for my signature. Being tired after a long day, I tucked the receipts and drove home. When I referred back to the bill to confirm the prices for this review, I learned that he charged me an added $ 4.39 for a cup of soup and forgot to charge my brother for his iced tea ($ 2.69). This obviously leaves a sour taste. I later spoke with another friend who regularly dines here for Sunday lunch and he asked me how I liked their corn muffins. What corn muffins? The food was 3 stars, but, given these two flubs, this was a 2-​star experience.

I am going to make a prediction…
This Marie Callender’s will not be here this time next year, unless they get their act together.
Went in today for lunch… only 3 other tables in the entire restaurant had customers.
Waited forever for lunch. When it finally came it was cold. French Dip and french fries do not taste good cold. The beef in my french dip was gray and tasted very strong… My friends chicken sandwich (crispy?) was cold as were the french fries… Cost $ 30.00??? Never again…

Just went there for dinner with a girlfriend, I went out off my little comfort box and ordered something new. the chicken lemon picatta pasta dish. I wish I had stayed inside my boring little box and ordered fettuccine alfredo instead. The pasta was ok, just tasted like they squeezed lemon juice over the pasta and chicken, so it wasn’t anything special. Garlic bread was good, a little soggy on the bottom. My friend had the shephard’s pie, but she wasn’t too keen on it. She said it was just too oily. I’m not a very picky eater, but I think this will be my last visit to Marie Callender’s. Our server was really nice though, that might have been the only plus.
ALSO, I think that $ 6.50 for a measly slice of cheesecake is beyond ridiculous, that’s almost the price of an entrée. This ain’t no cheesecake factory! I got the pumpkin cheesecake, and was a little disappointed. Tried the key lime pie, and it wasn’t too bad.

Just picked up my third pie this month.
Great pies at a great price… especially when most of them are on sale for $ 7.99.

great food… great service… great prices!
staff is always friendly and takes extra time to make sure your satisfied and your food is correct!
Pies…yummy!!! No better place to have brunch!
Donna is the best server ever! :)

Do you crave Banana Cream pie? Come here.
That is all that needs to be said.

I basically agree with every word Ari C. wrote back in 2007.
The food at MC isn’t that great. Actually, it’s totally uninspiring. Our last meal consisted of oddly salty clam chowder, an unoriginal burger and a loosely packed turkey sandwich that fell apart after a bite. The salad bar reminded me of a school cafeteria.
But the PIES? Kahlua Cream Cheese, Fresh Strawberry, Razzleberry, Banana Cream, Lemon Meringue? They’re GREAT. They never fail on holidays. And they’re so generously priced, most under $ 10.
SUM: A pie for every holiday, I like.

Marie Callendar’s is my comfort restaurant. My family likes to come here, and we have a few go-​to dishes. I feel like a lot of people overlook it cuz it’s not exactly «young and hip,» but you can never judge anything by it’s cover.
I love their deep friend green beans! And buffet brunch selection! And PIES! And even better when there’s a pie sale!!! Sometimes they’ll have a monthly sale of ANY pie for $ 6 – 7!!! And they’re all good!!! My favorites are KAHLUA CREAM and FRESH PEACH PIE! I recently discovered their fresh peach pie. It’s a MOUNTAIN OF FRESH PEACHES on pie crust. They don’t put a lot of that sweet syrupy stuff so it’s even better! That pie only lasted about a day or 2 in my household. That’s how good it was.
Their muffins are HUGE! And they’ve been having this endless sale of buy 3, get 3 free. The sale also applies to their GIGANTIC COOKIES! SAY WHAT?! Trust me. You gotta give this place a chance. At least for their baked goods. You won’t be disappointed.

I was bummed that Baker’s Square closed, and after reading terrible reviews for Sheri’s (the restaurant that replaced it), my boyfriend and I decided to go to Marie Callender’s. Figured it was the better choice. And it was.
I try not to eat at this place often as their food is pretty rich and also expensive, but I guess that goes hand-​in-​hand. Good, hearty «home-​cooking» for at a high price.
The corn bread was served hot and delicious.
I ordered the Chicken and Broccoli Fettuccine. It was all well cooked and delicious and very rich. The garlic bread was a little dry, but I guess it’s supposed to be.
I also ordered a cup of their French Onion Soup which I can never say no to if a restaurant has it. When it came to me, it was surprisingly a little cold, and not scalding hot as I have experienced at other places before. Not the best FOSoup I’ve had. Meh.
Boyfriend ordered the Appetizer Sampler combo thing. Seemed like WAY too much food… but what can you do?
We both ordered a slice of pie. Boyfriend enjoyed his cherry pie slice a la mode. I had a slice of cream cheese pie which was delicious. A much cheaper and lighter alternative to their traditional cheesecake.
Oh! Our waiter was extremely polite! (Can’t remember his name!!) He checked up on us frequently and filled up our water glasses without asking. He apologized for the long wait for the food (even though it didn’t seem like a very long wait to us). Then again, it was a Monday night and it was slow except for the pie counter. He was very nice. :)
I saved half of my dinner to take home and I still couldn’t finish the slice of pie! Marie Callender’s is your stuff-​your-​face home cooking place to eat… If you’re willing to pay for it. :) Overall, good experience.

I remember this place having delicious cornbread but when I came back for a visit it was not how I had remembered it. This corn bread was somewhat tasteless and not sweet. So i ordered some apple pie because i was not hungry and let me say it was a big disappointment. I thought safeway apple pie tasted better than the pie here.
I have also tried the tri tip here before and i didnt enjoy the sauce they put.

No, I don’t eat at this chain very often although it appears that I do. Happened to walk by with my friend, and saw a huge sign posted on the window advertising a lunch special of burger, fries, and slice of pie for $ 7.99.
We both ordered the special. Good size meat patty with lettuce and tomato and their special sauce. You can have a slice of cream pie only. No fruit or cheesecake with the special.
We both ordered the lemon meringue, and I have to say, this is what I remembered. Decent slice and nice and cold.
Overall good deal.

When Baker’s Square turned to Shari’s, their pies went downhill. So I decided to try Marie Callender’s because I am a sucker for a good pie, especially any of the fruit pies.
I went one night to get a fruit pie, but changed my mind when I saw they had a banana cream pie. I was so excited to try this, yet so disappointed when I did.
This pie was not good. The banana cream was nothing more than like vanilla pudding with banana slices in it. I was expecting more of a banana pudding or custard with banana slices. I guess I just expected more flavor, especially considering the name of the pie.
I did, however, end up eating two slices, just because I was tying to decide if it was bad or if it was real bad. And I decided it was somewhere in the middle of bad and real bad.
I will say the service at the pie counter was very pleasant and fast.
I will go back to try a fruit pie.

Perhaps if there wasn’t a screaming baby next to my table, I would give a better review. Don’t get me wrong, I have kids myself and I know some days are better than others when handling infants. But even minus the kids, this place just didn’t have anything to brag about. I had the soup and salad lunch special, but the salad bar was just so-​so and the potato and cheese soup was a bit bland. I hate when I have to depend on the corn bread to make a satisfying meal.
The staff was ok, nothing good or bad, just there to serve you. The atmosphere in the restaurant seemed so depressed though. I’ll stick to just ordering pies to go.

FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER, PIES ARE $ 6.99 + $.50 (for tin), excludes cheesecakes & fresh fruit pies.
Uhh…I wouldn’t say it’s THAT great… I can’t imagine myself coming back again, only for pie.
I had a well done burger, fries & pie combo, friend had that too but ordered medium rare. That was about $ 7.99. They mixed our order, but I only found out after eating halfway through mine. It was only medium rare towards the end, first half was well done. Friend had key lime pie, he said it was «tart, sweet, & sour but the crust was sort of burnt.» My pie was a chocolate satin pie, VERY GOOD. It had a oreo crust and nice chocolate-​y filling.
2 others had unlimited salad & soup combo for $ 6.99, it’s only $ 6.99 if you get a drink (if you don’t get a drink, it’s about $ 10 something each), so they both got an Arnold Palmer. Arnold Palmers tasted like artificially flavored lemon, it was just bland. Adding sugar helped, but it still wasn’t very good. Salad bar was okay, cherry tomatoes, chicken breast, macaroni salad, lettuce, bacon bits, ham, dressing… soup, there was creamy potato?, vegetable, & navy beans. Friend said navy beans was the best, it was the only one I tried.
Sis had an appetizer combo platter for $ 10.99. Out of all the meals, the appetizer combo platter was THE BEST. It came with fried green beans, potato skins, chicken tenders, & onion rings. If I had to eat here, I’d get that.
We also had a pie container from last time, so we used that to get $.50 cents off this time, or… just didn’t pay for the container this time. Got the cream cheese pie, which was ehh, I’ve made better. Crust tasted sort of burnt-​ish. It even looks burnt, does that not look burnt to you???
It has bits of ashes on top. Tasted okay, surprisingly there were 2 layers. It had a graham cracker crust, then a layer of cream cheese & a layer of sour cream. It was ok… not great but ok.
Everything was about $ 65 (including tax & tip) for 5 people, not bad since everyone was SO full.

I had no clue MC’s had a breakfast/​brunch buffet!
Came through on Saturday morning w/​the bf and his moms and we were all pleasantly surprised by the great buffet they had to offer.
They had a broad array of all sorts of breakfast/​brunch items, from what I remember:
french toast
made to order waffles
eggs benedict
biscuits & gravy
sausage
bacon
frittatas (were flaky & delicious)
omelette station
roast beef station’
bbq chicken
FULL salad bar
salmon and rice
chicken, mushroom, artichoke alfredo pasta (to die for!)
For 14.99 it was totally worth it … and if you wanna bring a pie home. just pick one up on the way out.
Next time, I’m bringing my Mom :)

Came here for their Sunday brunch buffet. Its one of the only places I know that has one.
They had a huge selection. I’m dying to eat their waffles again! They have an extensive omelette bar where you can choose your own ingredients. The only downfall is that I can’t eat a lot in the mornings so I didn’t feel like I got my moneys worth, haha.
Their desserts failed to impress. There’s nothing I love more than pie and theirs were horrible! What in the world, haha, I tried the berry one and the apple. Eughh, I’d rather just stick to the waffle bar instead.
I can’t wait to go back, its too bad its only available on weekends. I’m not sure if they have it on Saturdays too.

Elephant Bar was a 45 minute wait and Marie Callendar’s was the only other place for a sit/​be served lunch — attached to the mall, since this was a working lunch.
The scene — geriatric crowd and people with kids.
The service — very attentive and polite. Filled drinks, brought extra napkins and didn’t impose too much.
The food — decent — think a scale up from Denny’s but not as «lively» as a Fridays. The pie’s/dessert’s are what capture you — the cheesecake was very good and they had this Triple Brownie Sundae that was just a chocoholics vice!
So why the 2 star’s?
I’d tell you but I have to go to the bathroom — AGAIN!!!
And I know it was from their food because it was the only meal I ate yesterday and only meal I was able to eat yesterday.
It would be 1 star but I have always liked their pies and service.