Dinner Detective

Went with a large party for a friend’s birthday. It was nice sized and fun to have entertainment between courses of the meal. It was 3 hours so we had plenty of time to grab drinks and chat. Food wasn’t bad. Averages salad, bread, potstickers, egg rolls, salmon entrée, and cheesecake. It was decent with groupon plus souvenir cups. Preferred more excitement in murder.

We got tickets for the Dinner Detective Christmas gift.
When I made my reservation I was charged 20.00 on top of the cost of the ticket,
Drove 130 miles for this thing
The room was too small over packed
The service was so bad servers unfriendly like they didn’t want to be there
Food was below my standered worst than fast food, lacking flavor, my fish was cold, salad welted, desert frozen/​defrosted cheesecake. not worth my time or the money.
The show was so bad the acting terrible clues or should I see the lack of it. hard to follow and the clues they gave us had nothing to do with the murder. too much noise not enough material to help with the case at hand. the detective actors were so bad we did not appreciate the sex jokes not NOT funny at all,
I asked for a cup of hot tea, DID NOT GET IT ALL ALL very disappointing
I WILL NEVER DO THIS AGAIN
I WILL NEVER RECOMMEND THIS TO ANYONE
NOT WORTH THE MONEY OR YOUR TIME
SAVE YOUR SELF DON’T DO THIS
if I could give less than one star i would — star

The actors were entertaining and the food was okay. I think there’s a lot of room for improvement in logistics and writing, though. It really does take a while to check-​in, but they expect you to have your alias ready at the front… we literally met a guy named «Air». Poor guy couldn’t recover, so he left right after finishing dinner. Oh, and we also met a different guy named «Huge Organ» :/​Keepin’ it classy, Sacramento! By the way, you might want to bring some extra money to order at the bar, keep your picture, or upgrade to a t-​shirt souvenir.

The actors are hilarious! The nice woman that checked my family in made sure to put us all at the same table and even though there was a little mistake she was able to fix it right away. The photographer at the event was extremely friendly and I ended up purchasing photographs for my family. The photos were only one for $ 20 or two for $ 35! That was an awesome deal since we wanted something to take home from the event. We paid on groupon so we ended up getting free mugs as well. The food was great. we started with appetizers, then a salad, then main course, and then dessert! My table was full of great people and we all had a lot of fun. There’s also a bar in the same room as this event!

We went to the ³⁄₁₄ show for our girlfriends 30^th birthday, I didn’t really understand the mystery with random evidence and murders not related to the initial murder.
Food was decent but the waiters were a touch rude…
Actors are amusing. We attended stating who our party was with but we were not all seated together. I am glad we went it was an interesting experience for something new, but I don’t know if i could do it again.

Hubby took me here as a surprise Valentine’s gift. He knows I love mystery shows. I’m struggling with giving this a two or a three…
We did have to wait in a long time and then were put «on the spot» to come up with aliases. We took cute pictures that I was excited about but they ended up being $ 20 for one picture or $ 35 for two. Outrageous prices considering how much the show costs. Warning– you don’t get the meal until at least an hour and a half into the show, although you do get salad, minimal appetizers, and bread before that (all pretty tasty). I also thought my chicken dinner was delicious, but the plain white rice with it was a little boring. Good portion size.
The actors are way over the top. The ones in the audience were not obvious at all, but we weren’t sitting with any either. Mingling with people was… Interesting. You’re kind of forced to and then it really has nothing to do with the mystery considering the murder hasn’t happened yet.
The most important part of the night was the mystery. It was much more complicated than other shows I’ve been to. Most people at my table seemed totally lost. I ended up figuring most of it out, but didn’t win. There were definitely some plot holes in their explanation and some things they could have done to make it a little bit more realistic to be able to guess the murderer. I was unclear on if we were guessing the murderer from the beginning or what because there were several murders and the staff member I tried to ask for clarification acted like I was trying to get a hint! That was kind of annoying.
I liked how the winner was the one with the best explanation. At the other show I went to, they randomly picked out of the correct guesses. I would have LOVED if they had read the best explanation, though, so the rest of us knew how close we were to winning. They read the three «worse» guesses, which was pretty funny. We did NOT have enough time with all the clues to guess. We got some vital information about 2 minutes before we had to submit our sheets and our table had to share all the clues, so that was a challenge. My husband had to run my guess paper over for me! More time would definitely be beneficial!
I probably won’t be going back to this show, but there were things I liked about it, like the food. They could definitely make some changes and make it amazing.

I have been to 5 or 6 other murder mystery dinners and since this one is a national franchise I had high hopes and invited two friends to join us. I can’t say it was the worse, actually Suspects on the delta King was far worse, but this was pretty bad. The acting was poor, way over the top and the worse part was the disjointed story line. There was no real plot except that three people died. Everyone in the room was able to figure out who «did it» because she was never in the room at the time of the murders, but apparently there was a better reason because only one person won the prize, but they never told us the reason. the saving grace and why this was given 2 stars instead of 1 was the meal… it was fabulous. I would not recommend this to others… save your money and go to a nice live theater or comedy act.

I was invited tonight. my first time and I was the winner of the gift bag when I wrote who the murder was. I was accused of being a plant and I can assure everyone reading this I AM NOT. Several people at our table figured it was this person sitting at our table and I became suspicious of his actions but was the only one the put on my paper work that it was this person that was the murder.
I had an excellent time, met new friends, relaxed and enjoyed. The dinner was FANTASTIC.
I’d had never won anything before.
I’ll come again
Thanks for all your hard work

My husband and I had an amazing time! We came with another friend and our table was talkative and nice. The food was surprisingly very good and we loved the interactive show and trying to find out who done it! I would recommend this show to all of my friends.

My date and I went to the special Valentine’s Day show at the Doubletree Hotel. Check-​in time was at 7 and we got there a little early and they weren’t accepting people in yet. All good.
At 7, we got checked in and the pseudonym decision began. That was cool, actually. Since all of the people who have name tags are «suspects» and none of us had our real names written down, people get pretty crafty with their names.
The location was pretty intimate and I was expecting a better «dead body» outline instead of a scraggly stick figure but it’ll do. I was expecting more designs in the area too but it was just blegh and typical hotel ballroom look.
We sat with pretty nice people and we had great and rather lewd conversations while waiting for the show to start. Hehehe.
Entrees (veggie spring roll and chicken potsticker) were served but were stingy about it and it wasn’t that flavorful. Then salad was served and it’s the typical salad. The chicken I had (my date had fish and he said it was good) was pretty big but a little dry. The mashed potatoes was excellent and the handful of veggies were a good contrast color. Dessert was delish: cheesecake with strawberry sauce.
The show itself was ok. I was expecting some Valentines themed show but it wasn’t. The actors were good too and were flexible at the crowd. There were some overacting in there but hey, it got the message through.
We had the pleasure of having actors in our table and I had no idea at all. That just shows how convincing the acting was.
Would have wanted to have more time to mingle around and find who looks suspicious. I was only able to talk to a few before we were told to sit down. And I was moving pretty quickly. A themed show would’ve been great considering it was a pricey event.
I got the suspect right but my reasoning wasn’t even close. Hahaha. Those clues were hard to decipher and some weren’t even that related to the show… Or I just didn’t get it.

I’m surprised at all the negative reviews. I just got back from watching tonight’s show (¹⁄₁₁) and my sister and I had a great time. We did the other murder mystery dinner show on the Delta King and my sis and I were in agreement that Dinner Detective was much better.
Right off the bat, I loved that we all had aliases (it really set a fun mood) and everyone at my table was really into it. Loved that the killer was one of us with a name tag and we were supposed to walk around and interview other people in the room.
The acting was pretty campy and fun and the mystery was entertainingly challenging to solve. There were a lot of clues and information put out and it was fun sorting it all out. I ended up winning tonight (won a free pass and a DVD collection of mystery movies)! Some people thought my sister was the killer and she love that. The hidden plants were enjoyable and very quick witted. We had a great time playing around with one (including the one at our table which I had quickly sussed out due to the fact she was a party of one). We were also blessed to be sitting at a table with a fun bunch of people who all had fun with us playing the game. No wet blankets here.
The food was pretty good (I had the fish). Thanks to the staff/​actors and all of their hard work. –Miss Nomer and Anita Nayme (the redheaded sisters)

This was our first dinner detective show and after reading a lot of negative reviews on Unilocal,I expected a bad show. I was wrong! We actually enjoyed ourselves (possibly because my husband had a little too much to drink as well).
Dinner was okay. The food wasn’t the best. The best thing we ate was probably the dessert (mini chocolate bundt cake).
The show was pretty funny and we laughed here and there. I was actually able to guess the right killer (although I didn’t win the $ 100 because someone had a better explanation as to why they picked that person as the killer).
This dinner detective show, although we purchased a groupon, was pricey. We spent over $ 100 for the dinner & show, but it was an experience.

Worst Groupon buy ever. :(Claiming the Groupon itself was trouble enough — I had to try the website several times to get an open date because only a handful of spots per show are reserved for Groupon holders. Coordinating this with friends I was planning on going with was especially hard with our varying schedules.
We showed up punctually for the 6:15 check in time and the line for registration was backed up down a long hall. We learned later that the back up was people trying to make up «aliases» for their nametags. Why this couldn’t be done at the dinner table or why we weren’t forewarned as part of the Groupon instructions to come prepared with an alias, I don’t know. I generally don’t mind long lines especially when in the company of good friends, but in this case, we missed the first course because of it. By the time we had entered the dining room, the promised egg rolls and potstickers were no longer being served. First huge disappointment of the night.
Then we were asked to haphazardly walk around the room and meet/​question other members of the audience. We were given sample questions like «Is that your natural hair color?» and expected to socialize with other similarly confused and reluctant attendees. It was extremely awkward, uncomfortable, and unnecessary.
The actors were not funny and the «plot,» if you can even call it that, was extremely hard to follow — we did not even know which murder we were trying to solve (because by the end of the night, several had «died»). The disjointed «clues» (handouts disseminated to each table throughout the night) were unhelpful and frustrating. When we were asked to determine who did it, I feel the entire audience was confused and had the reaction «what? that’s it? We paid $$$$ for this?» Even when the mystery was explained, we were largely unsatisfied with the explanation.
The food itself was pretty good. I had low expectations for hotel food but the chicken and fish (salmon) entrees were decent. My bf’s salmon was a reasonable portion size (albeit with the occasional bone) while the my chicken was a breast the size of a thigh. The cold chocolate bundt was reminiscent of
a Hostess cake, but dessert nonetheless.
I feel bad for those who paid full fare for this experience. What made this night remotely fun were the good natured people at our table and the company I came with. After this, I don’t know if I’ll ever want to try another murder mystery.

My husband and I attended tonight’s Dinner Detective (DD) show at the Doubletree. The experience can best be described as mediocre; it is $ 101 that I cannot get back ($ 78 for Groupon plus $ 23 in tax at time of reservation). I know that other show sites get great reviews (ie– LA, Denver), but I would not recommend that people see the Sacramento show until it gets some much-​needed tweaks. See below for all details.
The reservations process: I bought a Groupon a couple months back with the intention of attending tonight’s show to celebrate my husband’s birthday. Upon trying to redeem the Groupon through the DD website once tonight’s show date was posted, the website said it was no longer accepting Groupons for that showing and I had to wait until the Monday of show week to see if any new availability was there (due to people with real $ not buying tickets). Thankfully, I had wonderful customer service via email from Michael Maxwell regarding these issues, and was able to attend my desired show. However, it seems silly that Groupons would be instantly full as soon as the show date is posted. This also makes it pretty much impossible to plan in advance.
The show itself: The show itself was mediocre. The lead actors who played the detectives had good comedic chops and engaged in a lot of shtick, but not a lot else. The plot for the murder was non-​existent, and no real clues were provided throughout the «interviews» with planted actors/​suspects. The only clues we received were various handouts of articles that were supposed to help the audience connect the dots. It felt choppy and disjointed, with seemingly random narratives from the lead actors that did not really connect to the other info shared. There should be more interaction between characters, more scenes/​dialogues witnessed so that the audience has to consider who the suspect may be. It didn’t really feel like we were building up to anything. When it came to the end of the night and everyone was supposed to allege guesses, most people had NO IDEA. When the answer was revealed, most of the group was surprised and the clues leading to the murderer were pretty far-​reaching and included things that may not have been revealed during the show. The writing definitely needs some work.
The food: We enjoyed the appetizers (potstickers and egg rolls), dinner salads (served with Italian or Ranch dressing), hot rolls w/​butter, and dessert (chocolate bundt cakes). The entrée was very bland– overcooked chicken, veggies, and rice pilaf. It tasted like bad airline food; it needs a little spicing up. FYI: At the time of reservation, you can select a chicken, fish, or veggie entrée. We enjoyed the complimentary water and iced tea (cash bar is also available), and the servers did a great job. Our only other suggestion would be to improve the time pacing between courses; see below.
Other suggestions to improve the overall experience:
1.) Improve pacing between meal courses. Tonight’s show started on the late side, which may have contributed to the timing, but we did not eat our entrée until 8:45pm and the show didn’t end until 10pm. We arrived at 6:15, were supposed to be seated at 6:30, and the show was supposed to end at 9:30. Thankfully we had appetizers, salad, and rolls, but eating close to 9pm was far too late and people were definitely grumbling about it.
2.) Put a sign at the name tag table instructing people to create an alias name for the show. Tonight, there were name tags set out so everyone could create one. However, there was no sign and no staff member instructing everyone to write an alias name (not your real name) until right before showtime, so a bunch of people had to make new ones. This could have easily been prevented.
3.) Inform the attendees about the need to validate your parking ticket at the check-​in table outside the show room, and that you can then take the ticket upstairs to the self-​pay machine for the $ 4 parking fee. There was a machine at the check-​in table with a small sign, but there was no staff member or general announcement informing you of how the process truly worked. Again, this could have easily been prevented.
Overall: The Sacramento show has potential, but needs improvements if they want happy customers who feel their money and time was well-​spent!

I recently bought tickets from Groupon. You have to go to the Dinner Detective website and click on a particular link to redeem the Groupon, which leads to the dates. Clicking on any of the dates says they are sold out — but only for Groupons. Just clicking on the dates without going through the Groupon link shows that there are seats available.
I consider this pretty much a scam.

I just returned from the Dinner Detective tonight — I am Not Impressed.
The show itself wasn’t very funny, it was completely confusing and didn’t make sense at all. When they uncovered the Killer and the plot at the end, it was like, «What? I am totally confused.»
It was a terrible (non-​existent) story line and simply didn’t make sense. I’m sure that the lady who won — only won by «guessing».
Now the dinner? IT WAS TERRIBLE!
The appetizers were cold and they were stingy passing them out.
The salad was warm and wilted with soggy croutons.
The chicken was dry, had no taste, the rice was totally bland and pointless, the only thing that was decent on the Entrée was the spinach.
The mini-​bundt cake dessert was o.k. — but the menu stated it was Chocolate and it was either pumpkin or spice.
SAVE YOUR MONEY — AND DO SOMETHING ELSE THAT’S ACTUALLY FUN!

My first dinner detective show and I have never done one. So, I heard it was here and, I went as I have always wanted to try one out. This show was great entertainment for all in our group, a couple of main characters keep the show rolling with impromptu comedic mystery. The show is spaced over a couple of hours, during breaks you are served bread and salad, some more show, main course, more show, desert and the finally. The doors opened on time, everyone was in good mood it took little time to get everyone seated (figure there were around 100 people there in this setting).
The show had everyone laughing, the food was good, lots on the plate. I enjoyed my fish and red velvet cake, cleaned the plates and when it was all done, I was completely satisfied.
As you are a detective you are encouraged to mingle so there is a lot of visiting, it was a great date night for us. We talked to many suspects as we played the game, and even had a list of example questions to break the ice. Get dressed up, they take your picture, meet some new people try to solve the mystery or just watch the show and have a good laugh, it was fun.