great food, so-so staff. this was my second time eating at big orange. the first time my experience was pretty much perfect. friendly staff, great food, cool atmosphere. the second time, however, was as if the staff kind of just quit caring. when we walked in this time, we were greeted by two teenage hostesses who clearly did not want to be there. when asked if we wanted to sit inside or out (it was almost 100 degrees outside- why would they even ask that?), i said we wanted to sit indoors.
something about my answer must have really ticked her off because she attempted to seat us at an incrediby tiny table right next to the bar. like i said, i'd been there before so i knew that at that particular table, servers tended to gather and socialize in groups while waiting on the bartender to make drinks for their tables. so, in essence, i would have butts in my face the entire duration of my meal. when i told the hostess that i would prefer to sit elsewhere, she picked up the menus she had just sat down on the table and threw them on a table adjacent from that one. she let out an audibly loud sigh and stormed back to her station.
from where she sat us, there was this "cubby hole" thing next to our table that just so happened to be positioned right next to the hostess station. i lost track of how many glaring looks the hostesses kept giving us through it...that is...while they weren't on their cell phones.
anyway...the food....it seemed a tad bit greasier this time. yes, yes...i know it's a burger joint. but the last time i ate there, i felt like i was eating a gourmet burger. this time, it felt like it had come from someplace like sonic. our waiter was decent, though my water ran dry about 10 minutes into dinner and he never refilled it. my date had to ask for his soda to be refilled, which you shouldn't have to do. a good waiter will notice that your drink is getting low and refill it without having to be asked.
i know some of the things i mentioned above are what could be considered "nit-picky", but as i said earlier, the first time i went here, i had an awesome experience. now it feels like the honeymoon is over for the staff and they're just barely performing to moderate service levels. a word of advice, though: insist on sitting out in the main area of the restaurant in front of the bar and not in the tiny hole that's to the right of the bar. once all the tables are filled up in that part, it's one constant traffic jam in front of your table.