Restaurant Review: Fire Mountain - Flint, MI

Have you ever been to a restaurant that has so much potential but you have a bad experience because basic, common sense things are ignored? That is Fire Mountain in a nutshell.

Fire Mountain has a buffet style setup and has many good choices. Well, they would be good if they were consistently fresh... or hot... or even warm. The lettuce was wilted, several of the dishes were downright cold, and a couple of the options (like the fish) appeared as though they had been sitting there for hours. The fried okra was nearly raw underneath the breading.

Fire Mountain would be place with a homey, country-style feel... if it were clean. The floor was terrible - I literally could not take a single step without stepping on dropped food, straw wrappers, etc. It looked like everyone's food had exploded. The sticky puddle in front of the ice cream machine was a lawsuit waiting to happen. It was obvious that someone had made some attempt to clean our table, as it was still wet with familiar 'rag streaks' on the surface. When I used my napkin to dry it off, brown gunk came off. Very, very appetizing.

Unless and until the management at Fire Mountain makes some serious changes, I cannot in good conscience recommend this place to anyone. My suggestions are:

1. Set aside one staff member to do nothing but make sure the floor is clean and another to make sure that all the tables are clean. The waitstaff there are generally very friendly and attentive. However, they also seem to be responsible for the floor and tables. Keep each staff member assigned to one job because the more tasks you assign them, the less chance there is that all (or any) of them will be done well.

2. Set aside one or two staff members to do nothing but make sure the buffet is clean and the the food is hot. More than any other factor, the food is what will keep people coming back or will keep them away. The buffet is the focal point of the business and should be treated as such.

I fully understand and appreciate that it is hard to keep up with everything when you have a large crowd. While that may be a reason for a messy floor, dirty tables, and a disheveled buffet, it is not an excuse. While I have never been a restaurant manager, even I know that certain days and times are busier than others (such as Sunday at dinner time). PLAN FOR THAT.

I was fully prepared to give the place a decent review... before yesterday. I genuinely like the food and I like the service but I don't like eating cold food in a filthy setting. Yesterday was simply some of their common problems greatly exacerbated. The bottom line is that these simple things shouldn't be problems at all.