Ponderosa Steakhouse was founded in 1965 in Kokomo, Indiana, by Dan Lasater, Norm Wiese and Charles Kleptz. The restaurant chain was named after the television show Bonanza, which featured a turn-of-the-century ranch named the Ponderosa.
The company expanded into Canada, where most of the locations remained until 1984, when the chain returned to the U.S. Canadian-based locations were sold and later changed to Red Lobster locations.
Ponderosa Steakhouse, as well as Bonanza Steakhouse, restaurants was purchased in 1997 by Metromedia Restaurant Group.
In 2008, Metromedia Restaurant Group filed for bankruptcy and reemerged in 2009 as Homestyle Dining, LLC. The company redesigned all 22 Ponderosa Steakhouse and Bonanza Steakhouse locations.
The restaurant chain offers a casual dining experience and features typical American cuisine, including steaks, chicken, salads, and sandwiches.
Ponderosa Steakhouse is one of the many restaurant chains that is struggling to survive after Covid.
The company maintains a corporate office in Plano, Texas.
Ponderosa Steakhouse was founded in 1965 in Kokomo, Indiana, by Dan Lasater, Norm Wiese and Charles Kleptz. The restaurant chain was named after the television show Bonanza, which featured a turn-of-the-century ranch named the Ponderosa.
History
The company expanded into Canada, where most of the locations remained until 1984, when the chain returned to the U.S. Canadian-based locations were sold and later changed to Red Lobster locations.
Ponderosa Steakhouse, as well as Bonanza Steakhouse, restaurants was purchased in 1997 by Metromedia Restaurant Group.
In 2008, Metromedia Restaurant Group filed for bankruptcy and reemerged in 2009 as Homestyle Dining, LLC. The company redesigned all 22 Ponderosa Steakhouse and Bonanza Steakhouse locations.
The restaurant chain offers a casual dining experience and features typical American cuisine, including steaks, chicken, salads, and sandwiches.
Ponderosa Steakhouse is one of the many restaurant chains that is struggling to survive after Covid.
The company maintains a corporate office in Plano, Texas.
we need pondersoa back in dayton ohio
HERE WE ARE APRIL 09,2023
EASTER SUNDAY Our Church went to the VINCENNES, INDIANA 47591 STEAKHOUSE Approx 20 of us and when I approached the Casher they have a sign displayed that says pay with cash and receive a discount, so I ask her about Senior Discount that was also in my favor when she told me that my meal was going to be $ 17.11 for just one person ( me ) NEVER AGAIN NOPE
I WON’T EVER GO BACK IN THEIR, And I do believe the Remainder 19 said that was uncalled for, after calculating I had WATER I came up with $360.00 for 20 of us THAT IS UNREAL I can see $12.95 w/ WATER $15.00 W/ SODA
ANYWAY DONT KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON BUT THAT IS REDICULOIS
NO WONDER PEOPLE ARE EATING MORE AT HOME
You guys are dearly missed Facebook talks about it a lot !! I think now would be a good time to expand again this restaurant would for sure bomb with business , I know my town Uniontown pa on Facebook said they would even sign a petition to have a restaurant back around!
Come back to Lancaster Ohio. Please. We miss you!! Your old location is waiting on you.
I use to work at Ponderosa and got fired for not claiming enough on tips..
Bring ponderosa back to where it belongs kokomo Indiana we would love to have it back here we miss it more then you will ever know. Please
Please come to pineville la 71360. There is an empty Ryan’s steakhouse that would be perfect with businesses popping up everywhere. Please come!
Went to Ponderosa today in Beaver Dam, WI. and was very disappointed. I ordered the 16 oz. Porterhouse steak with the salad Buffet. There was a nice picture of the steak but the steak I received was 1/4 inch thick if I was lucky and I ordered it medium rare. It had part of it done and the rest medium done. The waitress was very nice and said she would get me a different type of steak. She said she would talk to manager about a rib which is thicker and make sure it was done right. Well I ended up with a Sirlion. It was ok but I paid $12.00 for Porterhouse and ended up with a $7.00 Sirlion which nobody offered to give me the $5.00 difference back. Nice way to make a profit. Did not make me happy. If I every go there again I will never order another steak. I’m a Senior and losing $5.00 on a meal sure isn’t easy. Have receipt if you to have me send it.
We visited Ponderosa in Lawrenceburg, TN. There were no empty tables except in the hot sunroom. We went into an empty room. While we went to Buffett a waitress or manager turned off the lights. Another couple ( not in our group) was already seated and eating when the lights were turned off. There were no reservation signs nor placards anywhere. They made us feel so embarrassed. Everyone in the restaurant was watching as the manager joined with the waitress and they got louder and louder. We ask for a refund and left. Needless to say we will never be back as this was the second bad experience for one couple in the group. It might be helpful if someone from corporate visited and experienced this treatment for yourself.
Sincerely,
Carl & Dana Goolsby
James & Debbie Doss
my son was fired from the ponderosa in Wilmington n c because he wouldn’t get into a dumpster and jump on the garbage and push it down while he was working now this is both an unsanitary act plus a very dangerous act rats be in there along with other animals imagine your worker in the kitchen jumping in the dumpster and cooking food or washing the dishes you eat off of the Wilmington restaurant is very unprofessional there have been fights in the kitchen with employees swinging knives at each other ,other employees going to the parking lot to settle disputes no firings but my son who is sort of special needs by the way refuse to jump in the dumpster and push trash down gets fired what a organization.
The people in Anderson Indiana would love for you to open up a Ponderosa here
I received gift card for Christmas. The local restaurant is closed with no warning. Went to use my card last week only to find them permantly closed. How do I go about getting a refund for this unused card? There are no other Ponderosa within 3 hours of where I llive and would like to refund this card to the people who gave it. Please respond to my email homemomma8@ gmail.com
thank you
worked in the kitchen one day and I was working with a hurt back from my other job, I called off my second day to rest my back, I went back the third day and asked for help lifting two frozen boxes of chicken. I was called into the managers office and she told me I was a liability to them working hurt and unreliable because I called off my 2nd day of work and no guarantee I wouldn’t call off again with same issue.
But, let me tell you what I saw in that kitchen….
. trays of dinner rolls on racks from the prior night that sat out all night
. baked potatoes on trays stacked in the corner on the floor
.opened bags of pastries and desserts thrown all over
.opened corn meal bags in stock room
.the cooler smelled like rotten food
.they had me breading frozen chicken and putting it in the cooler
.bowls of food sitting everywhere
.coleslaw that was out when I arrived at 8 am and taken to line at 1030 not in cooler
.there was no room to move because there was so many trash cans overflowing with trash
right next to food prep areas and cooking areas
.nobody wore hair nets, gloves or aprons, I was not even given an apron
Today 11-5-2018 i went to ponderosa scorial puerto rico i ordered fish nuggets it took 45 minutes to bring the food and when i got the plate it was three different ways of cookie!!! It was very terrible.I called the manager he offered me another meal but i had to go …
Today July18 we stopped to eat at the West Branch Ponderosa and I have had lap and surgery and can only eat 1/2 cup of food, so I showed the manager my lap band card to see if I could get my meal at a childs price and he said no. All other Ponderosas honor the lap band card, so I had to pay $7.99 to eat a tablespoon of mashed potatoes and a spoon of beans and a 1/3cup of lettuce and could ot even finish all of it. I was very use that his has hapened. Thankyou, Jane Troryer
Was going to eat at ponderosa steakhouse in Kissimmee, Florida on 192, we come here monthly for the breakfast buffet. And on our last visit our server gave us a coupon for a future visit. We came back today 6/20/18, and the place would not accept our coupon. Said it wasn’t their coupon. Even though it had a big ponderosa across the top, Then wouldn’t even give the coupon back to me so I could see for myself. They throwed the coupon in the cash register drawer. And they wonder why franchises are closing down everywhere. It’s because they dont have good customer service skills. We will not be back to this restaurant.
My fiance and I have been going to the Ponderosa in Calcutta Ohio. But lately the food has been absolutely horrible not cooked the way you ask and usually 99% of the time it comes to our table cold. It’s ridiculous to go somewhere to eat and you get such lousy food. And the food on the salad and hot bar is something to be desired. The wings are usually so done on the outside that you have to hopefully not cut your mouth on the sharp pieces of the skin and then the inside isn’t done. You need to get new people working there that’s supposed to be managers. I don’t usually like to complain about food in a restaurant but when they’re not busy and your food comes out the way it has been coming out the last three times that we’ve been there it’s time to complain. I have spoken with a manager and all I get is oh I’m sorry. So please check into your Ponderosa in Calcutta Ohio and see what is not going on that the food is so bad.
I have been an employee at Ponderosa in Moorefield, WV. since Sept 2017. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE MY JOB! This past Sunday(Easter), i was expected to serve 17 tables(Banquet Room). The other 4 waitresses were expected to serve 8-10 tableseach. Needless to say, we became insanely busy very fast. I had customers(large families) sitting at dirty tables requesting silverware & demanding drinks. Other tables requesting that their food from kitchen be boxed & wrapped. Other tables asking for drink refills. Customers were cleaning tables & crowding my waitress station with dirty dishes. I ran out of cups & ice. People were eating with no drinks & moving tables where other customers were blocked from getting in & out. So everyone was upset & i was getting no tips. I have never been so humiliated in all my years as a server. I went to the office & 3 times & asked the owner for help, in which i received none. She will never show her face in a situation like this. Unfortunately i broke beneath the load. I just left crying 2hrs before my shift was scheduled to end. I was at a standstill. So now, i am without a job & a lot of bills to pay. I messaged the owner on the following day(Monday) & apologized. I tried to explain & begged & pleaded with her to allow me to come back on Tuesday. Her reply was, “No”, i wouldnt be able to justify that to my other servers”. I just really would like a meeting with District Manager Bob.& i informed the owner that i was going to request one before i sent my reviews to Trip Advisor, Yelp, etc. In the 7 months that i have been employed there, they have lost 1 Manager Trainee, 2 Full Time Managers, a dishwasher, a full time Cook, a few good waitresses, etc. I would love to continue to work there. Its very good tips & 5 min. from home. PLEASE help me if you can. Thank You.
Sincerely,
Carol Stump
We ate (tried to eat) at Ponderosa Steakhouse in Madison Indiana 9-22-2017. The food wasn’t
fit to eat. Some of the food wan raw and some of it was hard and could not be eaten.
I feel that the manager and the cook were not doing their job. A big disappointment
to us.
We are done with Ponderosa and wont return.
I want to share our dining experience with you.
My husband and I have been to the Ponderosa several times in West Branch, MI. We’re seniors and have mostly gone before the dinner hour, so I believe our senior price for the buffet was $7.99 each, plus drinks and tip.
This past Friday (May 13th), we went around 6:00 pm for the dinner buffet. $11.99 each? Really? We both had a salad, a piece of chicken and some beans. No dessert because the dessert area was overwhelmed with people. $30 for two buffets and drinks?
Way too much for seniors. And of course, the gratuity is drawn out for you on the receipt.
My story is this: not only was the price horrendous for seniors, but within an hour or so we both had stomach problems. Something has changed at this location and we won’t be back. And.. $2.19 for a pop? We’re very disappointed, but from what we have been told, there are newer restaurants coming to the area.
Thanks for listening