Kould Do Better

Location:

KDB

Easton Town Center

Columbus, Ohio

(no phone number available)

My little brother recently got a position as server/bar back at the new KDB at Easton.  He was given passes for family & friends to go and check it out before they opened to the public, so my mother and I took the chance for a free meal & headed out that way.

KDB is located in the old Game Works on the 1^st floor of the inside part of the mall between AMC and the Funny Bone.  When you walk in, the atmosphere is nice, not crazy like Game Works was, and you can tell that a lot of work, or at least a lot of money, went into revamping the area.  Upstairs is the kitchen, where there are booths, and the bar, which is 21 and over.  The bar features cyber bowling, some old-school video games (like Pac-Man), pool tables and a few couches.  Downstairs is where the party really gets started, and that is where we were seated.

Unfortunately, our server, Jeff, was an ex-boyfriend of mine and we had not parted on spectacular terms, so I was hoping that 5 years later he wouldn’t recognize me.  He came over and took our order, explained the concept of the “den”, and got our drinks.  We had received a ticket saying what we would be eating (yes, they chose for us) and the “choices” were nachos with chicken and BYO Pizza.  I mostly despise chicken so I asked if I could substitute nothing or beef instead, and my mom got the BYO (Build Your Own) Pizza with bacon, pepperoni, extra cheese, tomatoes, and light sauce.  Jeff was kind enough to get my nachos with steak, and the food arrived in a fairly timely fashion.  I had expected quicker turnaround but I supposed if the kitchen staff wasn’t used to being on full-service and this was their first time, I could give them a break.  My mom loved her pizza, raved about it, and I thought it was mediocre.  No better than any random pizza at any random non-pizza establishment.  The nachos, however, were freaking HUGE and topped with lots of stuff, which made me happy.  Black beans, jalapenos, sour cream, cheese, cheese, cheese, green onions, tomatoes… yeah, they rocked.  I even had to take some home and three days later when I microwaved them, well, they were chewy (haha) but they were still delicious!

Along with the free meal (more on that later) we each received a 120 token game card.  I played a few games for tickets and got jypped so I headed over to the football game (you know, where you toss the not-fully-inflated football into a too-small hole) and won a bunch of tickets there.  My mother found some kind of spinning dino game & made out like a bandit on tickets.  The games might have been more fun if they were all in working order, but for free what could we expect?  For all the tickets we won, the prizes were shit... Christmas pillows and stuffed animals from the “Grinch” movie, or a dolphin.  I HATE DOLPHINS.  I took one anyway and gave it to the cats to play with.  I also took a “Grinch” dog, the one with the antler tied to his head.  So lame.  My mother, being the hoarder that she is, took one of everything and two of something else.

Overall, I was not impressed.  For being a chain restaurant, this place has no website, no information, and no history to be found anywhere.  When I Googled the name, all that came up were a few profiles on arbitrary review sites, and they all linked back to a Gary Danko of California.  Supposedly he’s the owner… we may never know for sure.  On top of that, our meal would have cost $28.00 (without tip).  The pops were $2.25 each and both of our meals cost about $12.  For the amount we got, $12 was ridiculous.  Yes, the nachos were huge and yes, it was a whole pizza (remember when Pizza Hut had small pizzas?  That’s how big it was, 6 slices), but even so I don’t think it was worth $28 total.  Besides that, if we had had to pay for two 120-token cards, how much would that have set us back?  $40 more dollars?  The prices of cards weren’t listed anywhere, so I had no idea how much they were.  My mom wants to go back when my dad comes to town, while my brother is working, so she can harass him like a good mother.  If she’s paying, hell, I’ll go.  But I would never waste my money on a place with mediocre food just for the “atmosphere” of “fun”.  That being said, if they have a deal where it’s food & game combo, I might go – if it’s $15.99 or less.

Overall Scores: (1-5, 1 being lowest, 5 highest)           

Cleanliness: 5

Value: 2

Accessibility: 5

Friendliness: 5

Menu: full menu: unknown, happy hour menu: 4