I understand it is hard to find quality servers right now but that doesn't mean that we should allow poor service from Todd to get a free pass. We were seated and it took him 10 minutes to come over. Then he said "i can get drinks", when we said we wanted to order food at the same time he sighed and seemed very put out. You had to give your order, drink first or he wouldn't hear what you wanted and made you repeat the entire thing. Then he looked at someone in my party and said "I assume you will want a side". She was highly offended. It took forever for the food to come out. Somethings were cold, no follow up, meal took 45 minutes in total. No hustle on Todd's part. It was horrible. read more

I came here for dinner the other night and I loved it. My server Ashlee was fantastic! She was nice, polite, & quick! I can't wait to come back. read more

This was the second time My husband and I visited thunder bay. First time was awful waited an hour for food waitress was not on her game. Well last night we went back and had the best night ever our waitress, Christina. So kind and very efficient. We will be back read more

Buffet had a really good variety, as with all restaurants I would love to see more gluten free/keto options. But I was able to pick things that fit within my lifestyle. Coffee was getting old but waiter quickly and gladly replaced it with a fresh cup. For a large party like we had and us older folk that have a hard time hearing, a room(or at least not close to other large groups) or round table would have been nice read more

We called and let them know a week ahead to ask about bringing 20 people over for a wedding dinner. They said no problem, we'll put you in the Musky room. We were ordering off the menu. When we arrived, we were greeted by two waitresses and told they would both be handling our party. We did end up with 8 more people then expected but they said they could handle it. They took our drink orders, brought our drinks, told us they'd be back with bread and we had to go find them after 20 minutes because they never came back. Then were told that they were the only two waitresses on the floor. So needless to say, service was not good! Bar bill was supposed to be separated from the food bill, it was not. All in all, the bill was close to $1000.00. The food was mediocre, definitely won't be back. read more

I've been here at various points in time for various meals and have not had any complaints. The brunch is fantastic. There is a lot of various breakfast items as well as lunch type items. The price is pretty reasonable for what you get. I was here once for an event that was in a large room and was catered. The staff were friendly and the food was also very good. I don't have enough good things to say. No complaints from me! read more

Okay experience. They were accommodating for our group of seven. Service was good. Did not care for the food (meatloaf). Others had better experience. read more

Our experience with Willow was more than spectacular. He was by far the best waiter I've had in 10 years. This man has so much kindness in his heart and it made our night. We need more people like Willow! read more

Our 2nd time here was disappointing. Salad bar not restocked, some food was cold. Wait staff did not know gluten free items, so offered gf menu to choose from... that was nice. Reservation was for 1 pm. At 1:50, waitress asked if we would be going back to buffet as they wanted to shut it down. Supposed to be open till 3. Very annoying. We were a large group and had a private room which was nice. Had to ask for drink refills. All in all... food ok. Will skip this place next year. There is no reason to not have food hot and refilled. Service needs improvement. A disappointing brunch. read more

Love the salad bar! Cedar plank salmon was very good. Our server (Nicole, I believe) was brand new and did a terrific job!

My husband and I visited Pewaukee Thunder Bay restaurant two years ago and were so impressed that we had been looking for an opportunity to go back since then. (We don't live close.) We finally made the reservation to bring 13 people for dinner recently. To say it was a disappointment was an understatement! Our reserved room was not ready even though it had been empty for over an hour. The chairs are an accident waiting to happen; they are extremely wobbly for an 120 pound woman much less a 250 pound man. We had to request napkins and silverware. Appetizers arrived wrong with some frozen in the middle. An hour and a half after being seated we finally received our entrees. The steaks were overcooked, there were bone chips in the ribs, someone who ordered sirloin received drunken sirloin and the rest of the food was worse than what I would expect from Applebees. 1/24/17 I'm revising my review only because I appreciate that a manager gave me a phone call, sincerely apologized and is looking into the matter. read more

Had lunch there with a friend this week. We were seated in the bar area back by the windows. That's fine except for the waiter assigned to that area. We have had him before. Not impressed. This time I reflected my displeasure with a modest tip. He never once came back to check on us until it was time to leave the check. Additionally he had forgotten my order to go. If he had checked on us, he would have remembered that he had forgotten to bring the saltines I had requested earlier, and had also found out that my friend's prime rib sandwich was served like warm... and not very good. I had visited a few times this year, and feel that the food at this restaurant has been subpar all summer. I won't go out of my way to return any time soon. read more

Good food, & service. It has a lot of seafood ( not my favorite), but also has other items for those who don't. Nice dining experience. Not exceptional, from my point of view. read more

Returned here for the first time in over a couple of years. We knew that there was a lot of space between tables, as we tried follow Covid protocols yet enjoy a night out. Food was good, service was decent, but the price tag was a little more than I thought the dish and environment were worth. We will come back, but not as often. read more

Not a great experience here. Seems to be another victim of the pandemic. Ordered the Fish and Chips and Bison Burger. Pretty obvious the food is frozen from a bag. The fish was soggy and full of oil which is a tell tale sign of frozen. The fries are the same brand of frozen fries that are found at various different restaurants. The burger was mediocre at best, asked for it medium and came back well done. Service was less than ideal. First and last time eating at this place. read more

I wanted to give it 1.5 stars, but Its getting one star only because the food, when we actually got it, was good. Everything else was awful. We had a reservation, and they said they confirmed it was a booth when we made it. When we got there they said they were getting the booth ready, and had to wait a 10 minutes for them to seat us at a table instead that they said was the "best table in the house". They sat us next to a huge rehearsal dinner where we couldn't hear what people were saying at our own table was saying. It took 20 minutes to get drink, which our wine glasses had old lipstick stains on them.. and a 10 minutes each after. After ordering duck, as all the food was about to come out they said they don't have duck tonight so my brother in law ordered a burger instead and it was late since they didn't tell us intime that there was no duck. There were Fruit Flys all over.. so when you could have a conversation you were constantly swatting them. Then after the manager came over and said if you pick up your presents (we were celebrating birthdays) we can move you to the other room... In the middle if dinner!!! At that point we just sucked it up and stayed. After we insisted we didn't want dessert, the waiter came back and said the manager wants to buy us a dessert.. we still insisted we still didn't want it. So they could have at least said we'll take a drink off. It was the worst birthday dinner and I would not recommend going.. maybe during the week when it's slower, but a busy Friday night was awful. read more

I love you Thunder Bay, but I can't handle the fruit fly's at your bar. It's constant.

In my eternal quest for quality Sunday brunch buffets, I have found a winner here. For me this restaurant perfectly fills the gap between the Machine Shed and The Copper Dock. The Machine Shed is good on quality, less expensive, but has fewer items to sample. The Copper Dock has great quality items, a very serene setting with large picture windows over looking the lake, but has fewer items to sample. All three restaurants have attentive waiting staffs. Thunder Bay had so many items that I will have to make a second trip to enjoy the salad and dessert sections that I didn't have room for my first time. What I did enjoy was the two styles of scrambled eggs(one plain, one with ham and cheese), sausages, thick cut bacon, pork ribs, garlic herb chicken, burgundy beef tips, ham slices so good I had to ask what make of ham it was), and a drunken steer (beef marinated in ale) omelet. There were three tables with 4 items on each table so if you do the math you can see I didn't sample everything. Again, the need for a second trip. Our waiter was so right when he said, "Brunch is served from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm. If you are not full by then, it's not my fault." read more

A solid 4.5 stars for Thunder Bay Grille! The Thunder Bay Grille is a nice lunch or dinner spot. I have come here on a few occasions - a bigger group (10 people, 6 people) and as a 'date night' location with just two of us. Our service was consistent each and every time, and I've never walked away with an impression of poor quality food or service. The interior always gets me when we walk in - it reminds me of an old Girl Scout camp, a la "The Parent Trap," where you find old camping relics from the 50's and 60's. If you have a bigger group, they are really good about accommodating - just make sure to call for reservations first. If you're looking for a romantic dinner, they offer a nice area by a huge, fireplace in the main area. The bar is HUGE, and they do offer live music on some nights (it used to be Friday, but I've heard it moved to Thursday now). Nice beer selection, an impressive spread of craft beers, or top shelf liquors - whatever you prefer, they offer it. When you are seated, they bring these awesome sweet biscuits with a cinnamon / honey butter spread. Sometimes it's hard to share those - if I could stay and eat those all night, I'm sure it wouldn't be a problem for me. They're really good. They also offer a really nice salad bar! There's something for everyone here. I usually go with the homemade chicken soup when I order my meal. Huge chunks of chicken and big, wide egg noodles - I don't know what they put in their soup, but it's delicious and I always have to get it. Don't get me wrong - it's not as good as my mom's chicken noodle soup - but it's up there. Overall we will continue to come here when we are in the area - food and service are consistently good and they always impress me. Make sure to try something different each time, they offer a lot of delicious meals here. read more

I've been here for dinner alone, dinner with a coworker and a large happy hour event. In every case service was prompt, friendly and fast. Dinner is always good, I've never been disappointed in anything I've ordered, both food and drinks. Dining room has cozy tables, a big fireplace, and nice dark, quiet ambience. Bar area is active, not too noisy and has large TVs for watching whatever you want, I prefer the lounge with high back chairs and a laid back feel. I recently discovered the small plates, which I often order when dining alone while working in the lounge. REALLY good and very inexpensive, especially for the seafood options. Scallops scampi and shrimp shooter were VERY fresh and tasty and only a few dollars. They also have an extensive bar, they even have my favorite gin - Hendricks, and I can order it with cucumber which a lot of places cannot accomodate. Its niche, and picky, but I appreciated it nonetheless :) read more

Good effort but missed the mark. I ordered the salad bar and steak tips. The salad bar seemed mostly fresh and clean, but the soup seemed to have been simmering for a long time. Also, one of the salads on the salad bar seemed to have "turned," and was inedible. The steak tips were dry and chewy, although the mushroom sauce was very tasty. All in all, slightly below average food for the price -- I had expected much better from the menu descriptions I had read. read more

Unfortunately, I have to downgrade my previous review to 3 stars. We visited this location again this weekend and once again had a very inattentive waitress who didn't write down the order, then messed it up. The salad bar was not fresh and was out of several items. We were excited to go back based off the last experience which was fairly positive, but we were very disappointed. It seems that this place lacks consistency. Likely won't be back. read more

Spacious for group parties and large families. The food was good and the staff was friendly. We called ahead for our group.

The waitress was nice and friendly but the food was terrible! I asked for medium rare salmon it came out over cooked and burnt. Another guest got the Ahi tuna which is served rare and it also came out well done. When we told the waitress she apologized and said she would have the kitchen make a new one. Then she informed us they don't serve salmon medium rare, but she could redo the tuna. It doesn't make sense, that you could serve one fish rare and not another one. She took both meals off the bill which was so kind. At that point I should have passed on dinner but instead I got an appetizer. The chicken taco was not even warm and fish taco was overcooked again. I will not return. read more

I ate at the TBG three times during a one week business stay, lodging at the excellent Comfort Suites just across the road. It has a large and busy bar area to one side. The dining room faces a made made pond with a fountain for visual interest. Orioles, geese and egrets waddle and fly around the edges of the pond, among the reeds. I was served on my first night by a superb attentive waitress named Dorian. I was a little taken aback by her excellence and during the meal suggested she take her self and her resume off to 11 Madison in New York where she would fit right in and earn big tips. The menu, besides steak, fish and burgers featured a wide variety of $4 to $5 tapas plates. Steak skewers caught my eye as did the crab-stuffed shrimp. Dorian reccommended the Black Iron Ahi tuna. As I hadn't had it before despite way too long wondering how it would taste from seeing it on so many menus I said "I'll take it". She said it was "like butter" and (doing the quick math) I said- "just bring me a stick of butter instead". Oh- how we laughed! I had a cold pint of Guinness and ate the entire basket of bread while I was waiting. I may have eaten the wicker bread basket too- certainly needed a toothpick afterwards. Small portions (but it's Tapas so...) of utter deliciousness. I now plan to eat Ahi tuna for breakfast, lunch and dinner. For dessert I ordered my favorite Sambuca Romana and a double espresso. The Sambuca was dee-liscious (as always) but the espresso was a no-go. The espresso machine died a month previously apparently and that needs to be remedied by a visit from a repairman or a new machine. On my second visit- no Dorian- but good service nonetheless. A Caesar salad, with shaved Romano and crunchy crutons was despatched and washed down with more Guinness. A medium rib-eye steak with a simple accompaniment of hot crispy hand-cut fries was vacuumed off the plate. Needed no seasoning, sauce or help from me. A good cut of meat, easy to slice and digest. Dessert ? I asked to look at the menu but instead a tray of goodies was brought out to gaze upon. There was a number of choices, including a creme brulee and red velvet cake, but it was the raspberry parfait with marscapone cheese that made me order. It was a wise choice. The prices were ridiculously good value....less than $30 for a three course, well-cooked meal, with brisk attentive service. For my thrid night I started at the bar where the excellent (one of several) bartender Chris poured me more Guinness while I watched one of the many flat screen TVs playing sports (with the sound off as it should be when athletes talk about "executing" and "making plays" and " I predict that the team with the highest score will have a chance of winning the game"). Smoking is allowed at the bar. This night I had a booth by the gas fireplace and ordered up a "drunken Steak" which had some beer used in the making-of. A lot of garlic went into the recipe too and made an already choice filet, seared and served medium, outstanding. Easy to slice, tasty with each bite and it settled well into my stomach. A vegetable accompaniment of steamed al dente green beans hit the spot. I had another Ahi tuna tapas as my appetizer,a Caesar salad and a Marscapone parfait with raspberries and strawberries and was well satisfied for $30. Superb value. 18 miles west of Milwaukee, exit 294 and worth the drive. For me it was a two minute stroll from my hotel. Will go back! read more

Met a friend here for brunch over the weekend and was less than impressed. Our server wasn't very attentive and my coffee got cold / empty more than once. Also, none of the food on the brunch buffet was very hot, or even mildly warm in some cases. For the price, I've definitely experienced WAY better - not sure I'd go back. read more

My husband and I are from California, we been eating out every night to experience the local food and to try places they do not have in California, up until Thunder Bay Grille we were batting a 1000, the service was tacky to say the least, we seemed more like a bother then a customer. My husband wanted to take his left overs back to the hotel, that turned out to be a issue, the container was way smaller then what was needed, we where not asked if we wanted a bigger container, the waitress watched as the excess spilled on to the table, then we asked for a plastic bag to put the left overs in, it was brought to the table crumbled in a ball and literally thrown on the table in front of him. Please know we where not rude, we had smiles, we said thank you, there was no reason for the lack of customer service we received. I would not recommend this place to my Dog.. read more

This restaurant is based more so off of my experience renting out a room for a bridal party . The food itself I would give three 1/2 stars . The potato soup I would give five stars . The staff I would give one star . ( Some are really nice , some weren't so friendly but mainly because of the disorganization ). We had meet with the party planner a month before the event . She was told we were interested in throwing a baby shower , so we had told her it was actually for a bridal shower . We were given a room that is connected directly off of the bar . She said we could rent black or white table clothes . We had said we would like to reserve 8 white ones to cover all the tables . She said a buffet line would be set up between the bar area and the room to kinda separate it . There was a table with a TV above it that we could use to set up decorations . She said since our group was going to be 30 or more she would hire extra staff for the event and to help set up . Day of: There is ONE staff member to help set up and also be the only waitress for the entire duration of the bridal shower . There was no wheeled in buffet line, instead where the table for my decorations/ gifts were suppose to go was now where the buffet was set up . She did however find a folding table to help place my decorations and helped as a area for the gifts . No white table clothes were reserved for us and she said there weren't any left available for us to use . We had to use black ones( if she still had some ) which was not matching the theme of a bridal shower , hence why we originally reserved white ones . We were told we would have the room all night and at around 7:30 we were told we had to hurry up and leave because they wanted to use the room to seat customers( this was said in a more polite manner , but the point was heard loud and clear ) . The manager on at the time started tearing down our decorations and adjusting the room back before we had even started to settle for the party . In the end , the room was just not ideal for a big party . I would say if we had half the amount ( about 15 people ) it would have been way more comfortable . The only way the chairs fit for everyone was placing them all directly next to each other . The chairs themselves were comfortable though ! I didn't really like how the room was open rite off the bar , but luckily it wasn't to busy that night . I did like the fact they let you bring in your own decorations to help make the place feel personal . It was never specified to people the only beverages covered were soda , tea , wine and mimosa so people ordered all different drinks we ended up paying for , which at the end of the day isn't the biggest deal . You don't throw a bridal shower expecting it to be cheap . I would not recommend this place for a party or shower unless you are having a SMALL group , or are guaranteed a large private room . Everything felt very disorganized and clearly there is communication issues between the the staff . The food however is good and high quality. I WOULD recommend this place for dinner or lunch ! They have a great salad bar with lots of options and kept at the rite temperature . read more

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Came here for a networking event, and that was lots of fun. I opted for the salad bar, but the soups had meat in them, so not an option. I have learned to ask, because even what you think you could get (like potato soup) has bacon in it! I thought it was as pricey as what I would get in SoCal, and because we were a group, they topped off my lunch with a tip. How special. They have a nice room that we used for our group meeting, so it would work nicely for a large family group as well. read more

Was at a fairly large lunch function here which featured a buffet-style service. The vegetarian lasagna was short of sauce, making it pretty dry. The beef and noodle dish (not strogonoff... burgundy?) was decently tangy. Salad was fresh. Very bummed the potatos had pork with them. Great facility for a large function or a multi-generational dinner featuring older folks and young babies. The atmosphere is cozy because of several fireplaces and the "outdoorsy hunter" chic decor. Lots of stuff on the walls to comment on if you're lacking conversational drive. Not my kind of place for a day-to-day dining experience, but definitely on the list for larger events. Great service. read more

New to the area and seemed to have a good crowd each time we drove by to frequent another nearby restaurant that we do like a lot. Nice ambiance, decor etc. Service was average at best, slow! The meal was extremely average, small portions, my steak was overlooked and served warm, my appetizer was soup, also served warm and not hot! The restaurant had a good crowd, yet seems to be a "hit & miss" feeling about it, we missed........ Life is too short to go back there again. read more

The prime rib was EXCELLENT, one of the best I've ever had. Great service, great drinks. One thing to note: we went to the bar after our dinner, the service and drinks were great but it was definitely an older crowd that was listening to the equally older folk music. It said "Classic rock" but this was more like "ancient rock". We are 25, and were by far the youngest people there. Wasn't a huge deal though since we didn't go for the band. read more

Love the decor. We sat at the bar for a light dinner. The bartenders were all friendly and helpful in offering suggestions. We started with the famous seafood fondue. The cheese sauce is rich and creamy texture with beautiful seafood notes. Not a traditonal mornay sauce; is there Velvetta in it? Hmmm. Something was throwing it off of perfection just slightly, but still real good. The shrimp was perfectly cooked. I did not notice any crawfish. Bread was fresh, crusty and warm. Next was the roasted beet plate and the four cheese stuffed mushroom caps. The beet plate was not quite what I was expecting. I did not look at the description close enough. It has mustard vinaigrette; which was good but I didn't care for it on beets. The manchego cheese was a nice touch. I liked the green onions but the red onIons were were a little too much. Beets were excellent. I would not order it again, but overall it good for what it was. The four cheese stuffed mushrooms were great. The cheese topping is to die for. I wanted to lick my plate. Lol. It could use another note to add some complexity, like a crawfish or sausage, but that's just me. I will get these again. Great bartenders! Great atmosphere. I will be back. read more

Very disappointing food and service. It started out fine with the three of us getting our drinks. We decided to sit at the bar. It was confusing as to who our waiter was, but it ended up that between the two that waited on us one of the waitresses obviously was annoyed whenever we tried to get her attention to get another drink and then eventually order our food. We got the calamari as an appetizer. It was extremely greasy and so very salty that it was not edible. When the waiter asked how it was , he told me that he would let theChef know. We had a barbecue chicken flat bread. The chicken was so dry and flavorless. The other entree was a burger and fries. Again way too much salt on the fries! The burger was done well. Between the slow unfriendly service and the disappointing food probably won't be back for awhile . read more

Solid bar seating with good tv positioning for sports. Walking distance to my hotel huge plus. I have eaten here a number of times this is my first review. That being said I have had a number of menu items nothing has been poorly done, but that being said nothing has blown me away. The salad bar is a much better option than a salad and the soup is always good. Worse options in the area read more

More like a 2.5, mainly for location and space. The location is convenient, the dining room is large (as is the bar), and they have some private rooms - thus, this is a great place for a meeting or a business chat. It's always packed with suits over the lunch hour! However, I've never left here feeling like the food was something I wanted to come back for. It's not horrible, just...Okay...not memorable. I've tried a variety of apps, sandwiches, and entrees here. These days, I stick to the salad bar whenever I visit, even though the $10 price tag for salad and a small cup of soup seems high. Better food to be had nearby, but if you're on business at the hotel and in the area this is a decent choice for the immediate location. read more

Live Music is no longer offered at ThunderBay Grille. I hear the redecorating is posh, but without live music and dancing, this just isn't going to make our list of places to go out. Prior review: This place has a lively night life with live music most weekend nights. Some space for dancing, but bring your dance shoes with smooth bottoms as the dance surface is carpet tiles and slate. read more

After seeing the comment to my first review that they are trying to improve, I figured I would follow up because it is only fair to do so if possible. I had a supplier review a week or so ago and swung in for dinner to see if anything had gotten better. I am happy to say it was a pleasant surprise that things had appeared to be improved. The wait staff was much more attentive and timely, and the menu had appeared to have been changed for the better. Although this is a small sample size (only went back once, by comparison to the multiple times I had been their prior), I definitely want to increase my rating to 4 stars based on this last experience. Nice improvement, and I hope the next time I swing in they have maintained the higher level of food and service! read more

Dirty and wet bread plates on table. Restaurant needs cleaning. Womens bathroom needed cleaning. Prime rib cold and tasteless. New York strip was not hot and had no flavor besides peppercorns. Only saving grace was our waitress was excellent. The place and food has gone down hill since its early years. We will go elsewhere in the future. read more

My pork chop was good, but a little over cooked, and the service was top notch. The chicken Marsala was a bit too creamy for our liking. The deserts were mostly bad, except for the lava cake. I am sure all of them are from a supplier. Skip desert here. For the price, they are not worth it - which is why 3 stars. read more