This last visit wasn't our first time at the knotty pine, we went a couple years back when we stayed in Westport for a weekend. The food back then was fantastic and the service was great but this last visit was not pleasant at all. We all felt like we were invading somebody's space and were unwanted. While the manager was taking our order of food one of our peeps ordered a bloody Mary she stopped everything that she was doing to go Blake the bloody Mary and didn't even finish taking our food order. And... Why the hell is a restaurant in the middle of a coastal town, full of charter boats that take people out to go fishing, full of boats that people go out onto the ocean and fish with... Out...
We were in town the week of June 17th thru June 19th for a mini vacation. On June 18th, we were looking for somewhere to eat and most places close early, we were able to get food at a mexican place and because it was late they had no beans or rice. Anyways back to the review of Knotty Pine Tavern, we had 3 toddlers with us that wanted fries so I walked here from the mexican place. When I went in, there were two people in front of me I waited like 5 min as it appeared there was a gentleman that was working the bar. He did not acknowledge the couple in front of me or myself. So I popped into the kitchen and asked for help from the woman cooking, she stated he was the owner and dud not help out...
I wish I could give give this zero stars on service and atmosphere. We were excited to try a local spot after being out late. It took 2 hours for us to get any of our food. Even our appetizers. There was a dog barking inside the eating area, and other people who ordered food after us got their food, ate, and left half an hour before we even got a sniff of our food. Absolutely ridiculous. Edit to add; their portions were big for how much we spent. And when we asked to just have our orders to go at the end, it ended up all cold. And while the food wasn't horrible, it wasn't worth what we spent.
First time calling to place an order for pickup. We never ate here before, but we were willing to give a local business a try. The person that answered said give me a moment . Okay, we figured 5 minutes at the most. Well, 15 minutes later we were still holding, listening to conversations of people who were near the phone. That is totally unacceptable customer service. After several attempts yelling Hello with hope that someone would hear us and remember they left us on hold, we hung up. As the saying goes, first impression is the last. We were impressed, just not in a good way.
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Lives up to dive bar notation. Pretty sure we got food poisoning from the hamburgers. Multiple dogs in the restaurant. Definitely a spot for locals not people just passing through. If you aren’t known, you probably will get served last. Just saying. Atmosphere gets two stars for people watching alone. This place seems like the type of place that when someone plays Sweet Caroline “BA BA BA” Will be screamed at full force.
The fish and chips were fantastic! The batter was light, and the fish was juicy. The fries weren’t very crispy and had a fresh taste, reminiscent of In-N-Out fries. The clam chowder was slightly thin, but it still had a nice clam flavor. The Bloody Mary was outstanding! The staff and locals at the bar were friendly and enjoyable to chat with.
We were greeted immediately. The bartender was friendly and gave me a good recommendation on some delicious grapefruit vodka. I ordered a bacon cheeseburger and fries, which we're fresh cut, and the burger was big and delicious. My friend ordered a BLT that she said she wanted to marry. Would definitely recommend!!
We waited nearly two hours for our food, and even ordered two additional drinks that never arrived. The restaurant wasn't particularly busy, but it still took an unusually long time to get our meals. To make matters worse, they got our order wrong. However, I have to admit, the food was quite tasty.
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The bar food is quite good, with the nachos and wings really hitting the spot. It's one of the few places open late in this quiet fishing town.
Bree gives outstanding service. Great breakfast. Beer pancakes with blueberries and chicken fried steak with country gravy and eggs.
