J G.
Yelp
My cousin's daughter was married here, on the beach, in early Oct this year. It was lovely. Not exactly as pictured in the website's beauty shots, but it was authentically Cape Cod. Sand, sea, mist and breeze, seagulls and late summer vacationers in lounge chairs on verandas. I will say that the young couple managed everything very well so that the event flowed smoothly on a seamless schedule, with added amusing perks and surprises. The wedding was the most fun I've attended in a very long time. Thank you all!
Now, I'm going to talk about the food since that's my background. The post-ceremony cocktail interlude was held in the hotel's sheltered courtyard. It was perfectly comfortable for a good meet 'n greet. The staff members were warm and gracious throughout. In general, appetizers/starters were mostly better than the main meal to come. Lobster salad "slider" sandwiches on buttered brioche buns were outstanding! The bruschette were the inexperienced variety with the typical chopped tomato-basil mix, sprinkled with hard mozzarella cheese and not good, if at all, olive oil. There were roast beef apps which looked decently cooked, but I didn't try.
Ok, so then when seated in the dining room, overlooking the lovely sea, we were served small cups of the very best clam chowder I've had in forever. Not too milky, not too roux-thickened creamy and thick, not burned on the bottom of the pot. Simply great. Clams, potatoes, and a delicious, savory base. Nice job! Beautiful. I could have ended the meal right then. Oh, but please don't plonk plastic packs of oyster crackers on a plate at a wedding. No, no, no. Place loose crackers in two covered serving bowls per table with spoons for serving. Hello, a little decorum.
The meal: roast chicken, grilled or roasted eggplant/pepper/tomato stack, and a riced potato flan. Oh my word. I took one bite of the chicken and felt a bizarre astringent, puckering aspect. I thought it was the vaguely teriyaki sauce and used a carrot to pool that away, but no. The chicken had been treated with a drying agent, possibly ammonia, and a strange flavor, like a commercial butter substitute. The potato cake was similarly flavored. I actually thought it was not safe to eat. I really did. So I didn't. Time to vacate the plate and dance like a fool.
Interestingly enough, I was so disappointed by the meal that I consulted my well-palleted sibs the next day. My brother-in-law (former high-end French restaurant cook) and my sister discussed it on their drive home to Boston, with similar conclusions.
I think the thing to say is, dine in the hotel's restaurant as average patrons before being served their special offerings for your life-changing event. In the long-run. who cares about the food when launching a new family, but someone paid the bill.