Jay B.
Yelp
When it comes to anniversary dinners, they've always been hit or miss for us. Why, we could tell you some pretty funny stories, as well as a few tragic ones. But Copper Door....falls into a very unique category of experiences. Because while everything was mostly good, the one thing we hoped would be great turned out to be.....eh....we'll just call it an underachievement.
This place is a little difficult for me to rate, mostly because half star ratings aren't a thing here. Sure wish they were. Because in my eyes, Copper Door is more like...3.5 stars than 4. Allow me to carefully explain and see if you agree.
Well, to start off, the decorum is pretty much everything you'd expect from a fine dining restaurant. Only, this place is more like casual fine dining as opposed to formal fine dining. Far as attire goes, almost anything goes from what I could tell.
Not even five minutes after sitting down, the waitress appears. This is so different from what we usually experience. If a server takes less than 10 minutes, it's pretty much expected. So, this was a pleasant bonus. Towards the middle, she was pretty scarce. But her overall friendliness made the evening delectable.
Now, for the food, we got: the crab dip appetizer, fish chowder, the filet mignon and rib eye with a stuff haddock add on.
If you follow my reviews, some of you probably already know where this is headed, so I may as well say this much upfront now. Basically, anything that was seafood related was cooked to perfection. The sides were pretty awesome, too. Where the restaurant fell short, however, was in the steak department (surprise, surprise). I dunno if this is a New England thing or just a NH thing. But we have been hard pressed to find a well seasoned steak up here that's NOT from a chain franchise.
So, I'll get this out of the way now. The steaks were unimpressive. Both had the same problem--lack of seasoning. The wife literally poured A1 sauce on her filet. I never commit such atrocities because it goes against my steak religion. Still, you know what they say: any steak which requires the addition of A1 is a flaming hot red flag of a steak.
The really odd thing is that, once again, the steak temperature and texture were fine. Well, as fine as they could be, considering the circumstances. While the rib eye temp was cooked perfectly, the filet was WAY undercooked. Wifey requested medium, she got back rare (almost looked blue). Worst part was when it came back a second time, it was closer to mid-well than medium.
Also, I feel as if the cut quality of the rib eye was low. Like they got the thing from Walmart. 5 out of 10 for both steaks.
Now, we can talk about all the good stuff! First, the crab dip. My GAWD!! This thing must've been infused with crack or something. Because I could not stop eating this dip. It's fabulous! Between the creaminess of the artichoke and cheese sauce, the huge pieces of crab mixed in, along with the generously seasoned pita slices....solid 10 out of 10.
You guys remember that stuffed haddock I mentioned earlier? Equally fabulous! That lemon butter sauce situation they have going on...MMMMM!! I dunno what you call it. But I want the recipe! It is arguably the greatest thing I have ever tasted in fish form and it gets another solid 10 out of 10.
Wifey also reported the fish chowder was a perfect 10. A shocker in the chowder world, btw.
I almost forgot to mention this one small thing. But the garlic mashed potatoes that came with the steak were also pretty awesome. The only thing I'd change is that they could have had a more creamy texture, and maybe a pinch more salt. But I could tell they mixed butter and sour cream into the potatoes, which I love. They get an 8 out of 10.
So, to sum up: seafood=excellent, appetizer=stellar, sides=good, steak=needs work, fellas. Needs work.
All in all, I'm gonna be gracious and give Copper Door 4 servings of crab dip that makes you wanna slap yo' mama out of 5.