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My friends and I have enjoyed the Harbor Restaurant many warm Summer evenings in years past, so we were pleased to see that it was finally open for the season. We went last night (6/17) to enjoy an evening on the patio watching the boats, a few beers and dinner. We were disappointed to see that the menu only had 5 choices (hamburger, chicken fingers, catfish and 2 salads) and none of the tasty appetizers and seafood we had enjoyed on evenings past. The beverages were limited to soft drinks and beer, no wine at all. We did order dinner, and a beer apiece and settled in to enjoy the evening. Unfortunately, we had arrived at 7, and the restaurant closes at 8. We asked our waiter if we would be able to sit and enjoy another beer after our meal, and stay and watch the sunset/twilight. He said that would be no problem. Dinner arrived- Hamburger was small- Supposed to be 1/4 Lb but it must have been low grade as all the fat melted out made it about the size of a fast food burger. 3 small chicken fingers and 2 medium sized catfish fillets were also served. The cat fish was cooked well- chicken fingers were chewy. At about this time, the manager and her friend showed up on the patio with a bottle of WINE and began having their own party. When the waiter came back, we teased him about the fact that we had wanted wine and there was none, but the manager was able to find some. He said she brought it herself. (I don't think they would have liked it if we had brought our own beverages with us....) I went inside to order a second beer for everyone and the place was deserted, even after we had told the waiter we would want one more for the rest of the evening. I went back outside to tell my friends about this, and the manager came over and asked if we were finished so that she could send the wait staff home (This was 8:05, and yes they were closing, but we had been guaranteed that we could have another beer to watch the sun set and stay on the patio.) Trying to be nice, we said that sure, were done. We continued to try to enjoy the evening while the manager and her friend enjoyed their wine and food. A few minutes later, the lights were cut off on us, so to our dismay, we decided to get up and leave, as we were obviously no longer welcome. The manager did say we were welcome to stay, but when the lights get cut off on you, you get the message. We packed up and went to an establishment that welcomed our business.

We were VERY disappointed in the food, beverage selection, hours of operation and friendliness of management. (I must add, the young waiter was very nice.) But those Summer evenings of the past sitting on the patio of the harbor restaurant are long gone, and we will NOT be back.

Life is a journey- not a destination.

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I recently arranged to have a birthday (informal) party at the Harbor and the food was great and the service wonderful. I think you are trying to compare a $5 meal and $2 beer to what you have become used to expect from a much higher priced restaurant. They are new and in "start up mode" and a "seasonal operation".

I agree that it would be nice to expand the hours on weekends to maybe 9PM or 10PM. I am glad they are open again now for the boaters and my convenience and I plan on eating there again very soon.
I am actually just comparing it to what it was in recent years. Menu price was not that much more, but the selection was much better and the quality was much better. And I did say that the waiter we had was very nice and attentive. I have a feeling it was management last evening that wanted us out of there so she could have her private party, and that is the problem, we felt very unwelcome.
Katgurl are you so young or so old that you cannot understand a sign that gives the hours of operation or when someone says, "we close at eight." If you want more beer; you have already been told when they close.
At your job; would you like it if someone kept you from leaving at quitting time. I'm sure you would be willing to sit around your job or office for half an hour to foty-five minutes so someone could soak up some more beer? Get real and give these people a break. Closing time means closing time. Most businesses start turning off the lights at closing time. Most businesses that keep regul;ar hours close on time. Next time show them your own very special I am allowed extra time pass.
We did read the sign as I said in my post... We knew they closed at 8, but when we ASKED if we could buy an extra beer and sit on the patio which is OUTSIDE of the building and would not have affected anyone as you can leave by the back and not go through the building, we were told that it would be NO PROBLEM AT ALL. Actually- I have worked in restaurants and when you close at 10, that means that you take care of the people that have already been seated before the closing time and who may have ordered 5 minutes before you "close". If a restaurant closes at 10- wait staff and cooks are scheduled to work at a minimum 30 minutes later so that they can clean and take care of customers.

The issue is, we asked and were told it would not be a problem before 8:00 - and then pretty much run out by management at 8:10. If you want repeat business, and are in this line of work, you take care of customers

And yes- In my line of work- which is self-employed service based I have stayed late MANY MANY MANY times to be sure my clients are happy, well taken care of and want to come back.
I've always said, and thought, that this restaurant is a perfect location for a Hooters but I doubt this area would ever support one or allow one to come due to their misconceptions about what Hooters is. As for the lady that owns the property down there or whoever owns it ... they are the ones that just got a large Government grant for improvements to the area so I doubt that, right now, they are too interested in customer service or looking for that restaurant to be the source of their profits. Too bad though if that is the case because, when it was Barnacle Bill's, it has in the past been very good, and popular.
i think its a case of someone running a restaurant who has never run a restaurant. it has to be as they make too many rookie mistakes. 1) their waitstaff has definitely not been trained properly. after my food was delivered noone came to check and make sure it was edible. i didn't even get a refill on my tea.2) the hours of operation are ridiculous, its obvious that whomever came up with these never worked in a restaurant or they want the restaurant to fail.3) the food was bad, burned burgers and over cooked chicken tenders . 4) they were stressing out like it was busy even though there were only three tables seated and one person at the bar and two of them had been served already.maybe they will learn quickly and turn it around but the magic 8 ball says highly unlikely.
I'm no chef but I would like to give a few suggestions. First expand the hours at least on the weekend. Second have a big beer and wine selection. And last expand the menu. I would like to see a menu such as the usual burgers, fingers, etc. but also add something fresh such as a couple of homemade soups, a couple of craft sandwiches like a blt, french dip, or cheese steak, and a couple of good salads. That is how I would want to do it.
For one I used to eat at the Marina Restaurant, very often, when it was Barnacle Bills. I've not tried it recently but pay close attention to those that have gone and posted replies on the newsgroup. I'm also glad when owner/managers stop by and join the forum to address or recognize complaints, especially when they do so with intent to make changes. IF there are changes made and commented about I'll add the Harbor Restaurant on my list to try whether I'm out on my boat or just looking for a place around town.

I also agree on adjusting the closing hours, especially in the summer time.
I understand that the restaurant is not what it used to be, but that does not make it good. It is a typical Marina restaurant. That's like saying that you do not like Sidelines because it was not the Princeton Grill. If you want something fancy, go to Dales or Georges. If you want a lot of variety, go to Demos or Roadhouse. I wish the hours were better, but I know what I am going to get when I go there, and I enjoy that.

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