Chipper C.
Yelp
The first star is for the amazing location and atmosphere. Right on the Creek with an amazing view of nature. People bring their own picnic stuff and claim a table to decorate up and they order their main dishes from the restaurant. I saw people with tablecloths, napkins, candlestick holders, wine, etc.
I will start with the parking situation. Horrible and dangerous. The restaurant is very crowded so there is no easy parking along the road. People were backing in because it is unsafe when you leave and you have to back into the road traffic. I actually saw one old lady get out and direct traffic so her friends could back out safely. I don't know how else they could do it, but it is a challenge to be aware of before you dine here.
Then comes choosing a table. We got lucky and found one outside in the shade down by the bathrooms. Totally private, except for all the people using the facilities, LOL!! We enjoyed our time sitting and watching the clams squirt as the tide went down. We saw some birds and the amazing trees that line the creek were beautiful.
While one of us stayed at the table, the others went to wait in a really long line. There were signs all over saying you need your table number, which we hadn't known when we got in line. So, one of us had to run down to the end of the pier to get our table number. Turns out there is a table map at the place you order so we really didn't need to do this!! The menu board is placed so low (below the order window) that when you are in line you can't see it. Also, it turned out that I didn't know until I got to the front of the line right before I ordered that they were out of so many items!! We were there about 6:00 so there must be good day sales. Turned out that everything I would have ordered was out, rumor has it that the fryer was broken!!
I had plenty of time to get my order ready to go, but they got it all confused. I had to repeat it several times. We ended up ordering a lobster roll, 2 cups of clam chowder, and a hot dog (that was all I could find on the menu that I liked). I asked for some ketchup and napkins. They gave me a ton of ketchup packets, more than I would ever use. What a waste. I ordered some water to drink and a cup of ice.
After the order was placed my sisters and I waited a really long time before, finally, the lobster roll was unceremoniously dropped on our table by a waiter who said "You guys got a lobster roll, right?". We waited at least 30 minutes before we realized the other items from our order were not coming!! One of my sisters went all the way back to the order window to check on our order. The server brought the rest of our items and offered some pie. We of course took the offer of pies, ordered the key lime and chocolate cheesecake. Although we appreciated the pie offer, they made no offer to replace the stale lobster roll!!
The hot dog was awful, just warmed up and slapped on a bun. Whatever, it was food and we were really hungry by this time. My sisters ate their chowder and poked away at the sad lobster roll (which came with Ruffles chips and sweet pickles). The best part of the meal was the mac salad we brought ourselves and the cheesecake!! OK, I suppose I will give them another star for the cheesecake.
I would definitely come here again for the atmosphere, but if the fryer was broken I would come back another day!! I would also make sure that if they didn't bring all our items at once that they knew there was more on our order. After all, it was probably just the waiter guessing about our lobster roll and they lost our $45 order!! I wish I could have removed the $10 tip I left when I paid. They certainly didn't deserve it, except for perhaps the server who offered us some pie.