It just opened so they’ve been crazy busy and some waits have been long, but the staff is nice, does things right, and has had incredible patience with some very rude people. Everything we’ve ordered here has been right.
For the people writing 1 star reviews because it was opening week and DQ was busy or there was a napkin on the floor, here’s a news flash. If you go to an eatery the week they open (and the next nearest one is 20 minutes away) you should expect some longer lines with the possibility that they might miss something. Don’t be a jerk.
We were pretty excited to get a new fast food offering in Monument. And we fully understand there will be teething issues with a brand new place, but WOW. First - the place was CRAWLING with employees, and at least 5 guys that looks like Managers. And it was busy at lunch time on a Saturday. But things were moving very slowly given the staffing they had.
There are only 9 tables and one had one of the Managers tablets on it. When I mentioned it to one of the other employees, the guy came out and said something like: "Wow, it got busy out here." REALLY?! You hadn't noticed people standing around looking for a table in your own restaurant? My guess is he won't last long.
Then there was the food. I ordered a cheeseburger with lettuce and tomato, about as simple as it gets. I got pickles which I didn't want. The patty was dry and tasteless. No salt. And even with reasonably fresh lettuce and tomato, the whole thing was dry and awful. I didn't finish it. My fries were good - crispy exterior with tender interior and good seasoning. My guests fries looked like they were from a completely different batch - not cooked enough, pale, and wimpy. Their chicken fingers were terrible - heavy breading with far too much salt. The thick ends of the chicken were almost OK, but still not juicy. The skinny ends were hard and, you guessed it, dry. My wife got a mini Blizzard with chocolate ice cream and Snickers. She said it was good.
The parking lot is very tight, esp given that the other two tenants in the building are not yet moved in. It's going to be a mess when they do.
Given the number of tables (not many) and the number of staff (LOTS) the place should have been spotless. It actually wasn't bad at the minute we were there, but I didn't see anyone going around and checking, like at Canes. In fact, Canes is the standard by which ALL fast food places should measure themselves. Not only is the quality of food consistently exceptional, the place is always run like a military operation, and CLEAN.
Value was good at under $30 for the 3 of us, but honestly, we felt like we got what we paid for. The staff that we spoke to were pleasant and helpful. Other reviewers have said to go get ice cream somewhere else, but Dairy Queen is not really like "real" ice cream. It's a completely different kind of thing, and you either want it or not. We had McDonald's last night and it was better in every way, which is not saying much for Dairy Queen. Pretty sure we won't be back for food, maybe for soft serve.
The store opened this past Tuesday, so yesterday (Saturday) was its first weekend. I get that it's a difficult period. However, the store had at least 2 shifts worth of people, yet I had to cancel my order after waiting 30 minutes and watching my Peanut Buster Parfait melt for 15 minutes in the ice cream staging area overflowing with orders that workers were struggling to manage despite a corporate training representative being present and failing to better manage each person's duties. I watched as half-melted ice cream was finally taken to tables, so not only were people waiting an extraordinarily long time, they were also getting substandard product for their wait. This is the first Dairy Queen I have ever been to that had a staging area for ice cream, which indicates that this problem won't go away. It's also important to point out that I have worked at two different Dairy Queens in the past and NEVER saw a staging area for ice cream, which would have been unthinkable as it would have defeated the point of quick serivice with a time-sensitive product.
The first hint that something was wrong with this location was the parking lot. It is horrible! There is only one way in and out. The most convenient parking spaces are all small and dedicated to "compact cars only"... in Colorado, of all places. The larger parking spaces are adjacent to the drive through line, so those spaces were mostly inaccessible due to the backup in the drive through and I wasn't about to risk parking in the few available out of concern that I'd be trapped if the line backed up any more. I ended up parking in a field across the street where, apparently, the employees were parked.
I'll give credit to the manager for promptly refunding my order, but it was without any concern for why I was requesting the $32 refund and no apology was offered until I took the initiative to express the reason for the refund request, to which he apologized, but rather casually blew off with the excuse that it was an opening weekend.
While waiting, I saw numerous people return to the counter with messed up orders. Overall, I have no reason to return to this store when there are other ice cream shops in the area worth the extra few minutes drive.
First time wasn’t so bad. The second visit, however, was a completely different story. There were maybe 10 cars in line, and somehow the DQ lounge managed to turn that into a 45-minute drive-thru experience.
To be fair, a good chunk of that time was spent trying to communicate our order. We repeated it approximately five times, each time with the confidence that surely this would be the time it was understood.
Spoiler alert: it was not.
After waiting 45 minutes, we finally got our food… and, naturally, the order was still wrong. We ordered a mini Blizzard with chocolate ice cream, cheesecake, and brownie. What we received was a mini Blizzard with chocolate ice cream, strawberries, a piece of cheesecake, and Oreos in it instead. Apparently, somewhere between “cheesecake and brownie” and the fifth time repeating our order, the drive-thru speaker decided to freestyle.
At that point, I wasn’t sure if I was ordering DQ or negotiating a custom Blizzard recipe to the DQ committee that wasn’t possible.
Maybe consider putting someone on the drive-thru speaker who listens to the order the first time. Or at least someone who listens to it sometime before we reach the window.
Friendly drive-thru staff, but major hygiene issues!
I visited this new location tonight on their opening day. The employee working the drive-thru window was incredibly friendly, polite, and super helpful. However, I witnessed a major food safety issue in the kitchen. While waiting, I watched a girl from the kitchen staff handling food without wearing gloves. I directly saw her use her bare hands to touch the chicken strips and hamburger while placing them into the bag. Because of the backup, the friendly drive-thru worker actually had to walk into the back and finish packing up the food herself. Seeing kitchen staff touch ready-to-eat food with bare hands and then sweeping the floor with gloves on felt so unsanitary that I ended up throwing the entire meal away. I understand it is opening day, but basic health and safety rules cannot be ignored.