Paul Martin's American Grill San Mateo

I highly recommend Paul Martin's American Grill. The staff is always incredibly friendly whenever I visit. I usually go there for dinner, and I've never waited more than 10 minutes to be seated. I've never had any issues during my visits. If you have a craving for chocolate, you should definitely try the chocolate cake drizzled with raspberry syrup—it's delicious!

Upon our arrival, we weren’t welcomed with warmth, but rather confronted by what felt like a metaphorical brick wall. Our request for outdoor seating? Just a figment of my imagination, along with the decent service I had hoped for. The hostess, bless her heart, offered us a selection of bar stools. Yes, bar stools for a group of eight, including a septuagenarian with questionable knees. Now, usually, I’m quite reasonable, but as I faced the glaring looks from the staff and the distinct sensation that we were more of a burden than anything else, our lovely Mother’s Day turned into a hangry nightmare. Here’s the deal, Paul Martin’s: reservations should mean something. I understand that Mother’s Day is a busy occasion, but a little empathy and a practical solution (beyond just suggesting bar stools) could have made a world of difference. Eventually, we opted to celebrate Mom at another venue, where there were actual tables—and, dare I say, some outdoor seating. Perhaps next year, Paul Martin’s, you could work on both your reservation management and customer service. In the meantime, I’ll gravitate towards restaurants that grasp these concepts. Would I recommend Paul Martin’s American Grill? Well, if you enjoy staring contests and endless games of musical chairs, then this might be your spot. Otherwise, consider packing a picnic and heading to a local park—chances are the food will be better and the service far more cheerful (squirrels, anyone?).

**Appetizers (3-4/5)**: I dined with a group and tried several appetizers, including tuna poke and pita bread with spinach dip. They were all average—nothing outstanding, but not bad either. **Seafood Pasta (2.5/5)**: While the presentation was impressive, the dish was quite bland. I only managed to eat a few bites, despite being a pasta lover. On the bright side, they were generous with the seafood. **Churro with Ice Cream (5/5)**: This dessert was excellent—not overly sweet. I would definitely recommend it!

The food was 2/5 stars. The 2 stars definitely go to the butter cake and spinach artichoke dip. We were a table of 14 and our server was amazing. This review is solely based on the food. Pricing is mediocre. We had more than 3 people order Ribeye it was tough, no matter how they had theirs cooked. Tough and chewy! Mashed potatoes, no flavor they were white like no butter was put into them. Fried Calamari was salty.... Drinks were okay. The service and waitress we had was amazing, i would love to point that out!

I went here when they first opened a few years ago and I remembered it being really good. Went here for dinner tonight and what a disappointment. I ordered the Chinese chicken salad and returned it. That's how bad it was. They gave us a free dessert to make up for it and the dessert was so generic tasting. I had one bite and that was not even worth the calories. Weird how everything just taste so generic and bad. Not worth wasting your calories to eat here!