I had not been to a ponderosa in well over 40yrs. It has changed i think. My steak was tender but almost seemed synthetic and was way too salty. The potato, beans and corn were delicious! The bread that was brought to the table was awful!! The salad choices were good and fresh and deserts were tasty. Our server was wonderful and attentive. When I went to the restroom, the kitchen was a disaster as if a tornado had gone through. There was a young man in there that looked like he was washing dishes and cleaning up, but the smell and the amount of cleanup required an army. Wow! I think in order for Ponderosa to survive, they need to embrace health and foods that are simple with reduced processing. They already have the great name recognition They just need to shift in that direction and use it for advertisement. I may come back and try it again I'm visiting the state. read more

I absolutely love the location in Coldwater, Michigan. Always good food and great service. I am so glad this location is still open.

Love stopping here with the family on road trips! For years, my family and I have been stopping here on the way back from Indiana and always love doing the buffet! I will say that the options on the buffet line can be hit or miss sometimes on options you'd eat but for the most part, there's a good variety for everyone! The service here is also super friendly, never had a bad experience with the staff here. They also keep the food on the buffet line nice and fresh! The restaurant itself is always very clean as well and has a very cozy vibe to it. I can't wait to be back!!! read more

I was very surprised to see Ponderosa as I was traveling through Coldwater for work. I had thought that all the Ponderosa locations had closed. For the sake of Nostalgia I decided to eat lunch here. This turned out to be a really nice experience. First, all the employees were extremely friendly. The employee at the register greeted me and asked if I lived in the area. I told him no, but I often traveled here for work and he gave me coupons for my next visit. He was enthusiastic as he described the buffet and process. Although I hadn't been to a Ponderous in years I immediately recognized the buffet and dining area. It was just like I remembered. The roomy booths, the hot buffet, the salad bar, the desserts. My server was very attentive. She immediately brought a hot roll and butter. She stopped by several times to make sure I was finding everything I needed. The food was exactly as I had remembered. Mashed potatoes, two kinds of gravy, corn, green beans, macaroni and cheese, pasta, fish, some casseroles, pasta, and much more. Everything was hot and fresh. The salad bar was great. Everything was very fresh and there were quite a few options. There were three soups too. The bar was very clean, and employees were constantly checking the food and making sure the food was fresh. This experience was so much more than I had expected. A pleasant surprise, and I know I will be gave the next time I am in the area. read more

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Friendly staff. Server was great and efficient! This restaurant is very clean. I was happy to find a Ponderosa that is still opened in Michigan. read more

I usually don't give reviews but this was the absolute worst place I've ever eaten at. The food was lukewarm and dry as heck. Chicken was all different temperatures and pink Catfish was terrible. Spaghetti was watered down. $18 for absolute slop and a belly ache. The ONLY redeeming quality was the dessert, Mac n cheese, and salad bar. read more

Ponderosa Steakhouse - Raw chicken - Steakhouses Near Me - Coldwater, Michigan

Was starved and decided to go here while in the area, have been to other locations in the past. All of the workers are really friendly and good at keeping up. The inside is pretty big and everything was clean. Now for the food everything I had was great. From soup to wings, fish, meatballs, and vegetables. I just wish this was closer to my home. read more

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Clean, friendly, food was fresh. Would recommend. Went for dinner around 430pm on 12-27-25.

Not only had the food been out for too long my feet were sticking to the floor ALL AROUND THE BUFFET. Absolutely gross! Server however was very nice. Our table however hadn't been cleaned. Overall, I wouldn't take my dog here to eat. Even the carpet was filthy. Not sure who the manager is there but there were 4 girls at the front of the establishment doing absolutely nothing. I would say cleaning is not what is not even in the top 10 on the list of things to do. Guys shouting out to the girls working the floor. So disgusting and unprofessional. Twenty dollars per person is far too pricy for the dump this is. McDonalds is cleaner and that's pathetic! read more

Visited 10/17 @ 4:51pm. Appearance and presentation of food was outstanding. Taste and temperature of food was perfect for me. My server was on it as well. Never had to ask for anything. My ticket # was 95. My name is Daniel Avery 1705 South Rd Garrett, In 46738. 269-858-8945. I was very impressed. read more

The food on the buffet was nasty. Cold and old. The meatballs were so tough you couldn't cut them with a fork, the potatoes were ice cold, the taco meat was ice cold, the soup was empty and dried up and the sweet tea was so weak it looked like light brown water. The "manager" basically told us we were wrong, and that they had checked the temps and everything was good....and that nothing was wrong with the tea, she likes it... Save your money! Or at least spend it somewhere good. read more

This place is really gross. Everything was tepid on the buffet, and the employees are pretty unfriendly. The price $$$$$$$ was the worst surprise!! The only enjoyment I got was giggling at the misspellings on the buffet line items (e.g., Smores "Moose"). read more

Was passing through town 10-2-23. Saw the sign and just had to go in! Blast from the past sort of thing FOOD SUCKED! Soup- out of a can Veggies- out of a can Mashed potatoes- soupy instant Baked chicken legs - dry Mac & cheese- floury Fried fish sticks- burnt Only meats were the chicken legs. NO FRIED CHICKEN- a staple in any buffet. Food so bad we walked out and ate at some restaurant that had "root beer" As their sign. read more

Good hot food server are always looking to mske customers happy Wed is senior day 10.90 drink included and if ask will get a free plate of liver and onion If your veteran ask discount i think 1.30 or more off read more

When I saw the sign I knew we needed to stop here for dinner. We both had the ribeye steak and baked potatoes. The meal and items on the buffet were very good. Great reminder of how good a Ponderosa steak house can be. I will definitely be back! read more

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New to town was extremely excited to see ponderosa got off work walked in at 805 pm the lady said they shut the grill off no steak for me the people that were leaving were pissed they would not put any more food on buffet another couple behind me were disappointed also so there you are lot 6 customers on shot lost a couple hundred dollars immediately and no future money from 6 people and there Freind's need someone to run the place all these people wanted to do is go home read more

I knew not to expect much but I still went for nostalgic purposes. it has been ages since I've been to a Ponderosa so had to check it out. I was pleasantly surprised. Food was good. Steak was cooked a perfect medium. our server was very nice and was always checking on us to make sure we were ok. Buffet was clean and well stocked. read more

I have eaten in restaurants all over the US and this one was the worse I have ever gotten. Over cooks and no real meat. Could not recognize the mixture in pans. Not sure what it was. Food cold. Over priced for nothing. Did not even get refills on the drinks we had. Can't say enough on why you should never go into this place. For sure we will not be inside again. read more

Highly disappointed. Buffet hardly had anything but canned vegetables. Fried fish, 2 pcs of baked chicken, and over fried wing dings for meat choices. Hubby ordered a steak rare came out medium rare but wasn't more than a 1/2" thick. They were dead, and our waitress only gave us our first and only glass of ice tea. Only 3 choices of dessert ice cream, peach cobbler, or chocolate chip cookies. Bathrooms were not clean. Wouldn't be stopping here again. read more

I called one week ahead of time to confirm they could supply 125 wings for my mom's 95th birthday party. She hadn't had them in 20 yrs since they are all closed in my town. We were prepared to drive an hour and a half to pick them up so I called and was told by a manager that they had no wings. He said the truck didn't deliver any. He proceded to hang up on me. I guess this is the final nail in the coffin for a place we've always loved. So disappointed! read more

No Beef of any kind on buffet. Desserts were taken off buffet at 6:45pm...when they don't close until 8pm. Salad bar was good. Main buffet was horrible. Over cooked fried fish, almost burnt chicken, and NO white meat at all. Waitress almost non-existent. Overpriced and no Beef, we'll never be back. read more

Ordered medium ribeye with the buffet. It wasn't even that busy and I made three trips to the buffet and my wife was on dessert by the time I got my steak. Not only was it overcooked but it's definitely a VERY cheap cut of meat. I took two bites and just couldn't do it. I even second guessed giving it to my dogs. Ponderosa just isn't what it used to be. read more

I love this place. The food is good the service is wonderful it's clean and the owners are local which I think makes a big difference.

Ponderosa... where good service goes to die....40. 00for just buffet for two. Nothing but canned food ..brown lettuce..the bar as well as not clean... dessert awful..so sad ..and when we were asked how everything was all we got was a shoulder shrug and snarky comments from the staff...what happened??? read more

We came here because my son loved the place when we had one locally.... Never again will we be back. The food was absolutely horrible. Seemed like it had sat there for hours, not much of a variety at all. The one we had back home was 3 times the size and always fresh for the most part, lots to choose from. We were extremely disappointed. read more

The food was excellent! The service was superior to any other buffet I have gone to. Thank you Gabby for great service.

So we went to ponderosa to try it again after reopening. It wasn't great but wasn't terrible. Lots of young people working there. Ordered steak and shrimp. Steak was tough. Shrimp was good. The buffet was nice and mostly everything was hot, but the ham was questionable. Isn't my favorite. read more

Waited 30 minutes for our steak to come out still mooing it was so raw it was cold. And then waited 20 minutes just for our drinks after we sat down. DO NOT RECOMMEND not as good as it use to be read more

This place is amazing workers are so cool they are very polite amazing humor so nice people all around food is great awesome service. read more

Ponderosa Steakhouse - Food is great - Steakhouses Near Me - Coldwater, Michigan

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horrible management , moldy walls , food taste like something from a can ! this restaurant needs help

Food was awful. This place sucks. I came in Seotember22nd around 4pm and 3 other tables came in after me. I ordered before them, they all got their food before me. After 40 minutes I finally complained and the waiter (mexican or Indian) he told me apologized and said we are waiting on the baked potato and we are busy,remember only 5 tables in store. I finally got my steak and baked potato and they were ice cold, not even Luke warm. My theory is the dumb waiter forgot about my food and lied to me. Horrible experience. read more

Great food! We had the best steaks dinners we have had in a long time! They were perfectly cooked and the flavor was excellent and tender. Great service from our waitress also. Forget the steak houses this place is where we will be staying with. Fast service and great prices read more

The rarest thing on my plate was the tips no refills on drinks the tips I ordered rare tips they were medium and there was only 5 tips. Kinda rare usually there was more Food on the buffet was nasty never agsin read more

Food was cold. I ordered the sirloin tip way over cooked. Service was horrible waited for ever for my entree. They no longer have chicken wings on the buffet read more

I had an opportunity to eat at this Pondarosa steakhouse on a Wednesday night at around 7 PM. There were about 15 patrons in about six or seven employees the night I came in. The buffet was well stocked but I was very very concerned about food temperatures. I had a wonderful waiter by the name of Ethan who is extremely enthusiastic in there every time I needed him. If it was very good with all of his customers conversing with them and making sure they had everything they needed. I'm generally not a fan of buffets but overall this was an okay experience. read more

Came here during the dinner rush(6:30-7), while on a business trip, and was not impressed. Even though the restaurant was full of people the food seemed like it had sat out for hours. Taste was very bland and the selection was not plentiful. For the price I paid ($16 for buffet and soda) I had expected a lot more. Wait staff did a pretty good job, so no complaints there, hence the two star rating. However, between the food quality, price, and overall cleanliness of the restaurant/bathroom I was deeply disappointed and will not be returning here. read more

Now that the Auburn location closed this one is the "last frontier" so to speak in this general area for a Ponderosa, however this place is also circling the drain as well as its almost just as bad as the former one in Auburn... read more

Terrible food and the service left something to be desired. Stopped for lunch on my birthday. So disappointing.

Husband and I went for supper and it was 32.00 wow. The potatoes were crusting and they came out with new and then dumped the old in with the new.. the salad bar looked like the stuff had Sat there for along time the cucumbers looked like they had been frozen... not a good dinner date with my guy.. although he does love the wings we have gave them 3 tries and will not try the 4th time read more

We visited this restaurant on Sunday. Hadn't been there in years. Same food. No flavor. Chicken wings for a Sunday dinner at a high price! Service was the only good thing about the place. The mashed potatoes must have been instant because they had no flavor either. All of the salt and pepper in the world wouldn't fix it. Salad was browning... all of this and it was $80+ for 5. Don't waste your time or your money. McDonald's is a feast compared to this place... we don't ever eat McDonalds. read more