Dinner at the Lobster Pound

michael c · 06-07-2008, 11:50 PM

While I understand your frustrations with how long it took and the food good/bad..
The only point I will make is that ,unless you own a restaurant [ not worked at one or have a brother who works at a restaurant ] you could not begin to believe how complex it is...
It is very important that we don't pass judgement on this place for at the VERY LEAST 2 months.
They opened with a limited menu ,which says " we want to be open but we are not quite ready ,but we will open in a limited capacity now and please give us a little time and we will work out all the kinks in our new place.
It is my guess that these new people probably have about 3.5mil invested here and they deserve a little break here .
Restaurants are a lot like a new car . If you buy a new car and when it went through assemly line ,EVEREYONE did their very best ,,their best work ever and the car went out of the building 99.9 percent perfect, your new car will still have 13 things wrong with it.. That is how many parts there are in todays cars and restaurants are quite similar ,believe me .
I will wait until july 4th and try them a week later ....by then the kinks will be mostly worked out .
I went passed them last nite,Friday nite around 9:00 and there were at least 75 cars there. Again ,tonight at 9:45 at least 100 cars. Your right , they will make a lot on the booze and because of the location ...these people have deep pockets and there is no way that they will acceppt anything less than 100 % from their employees ,,lets give them some time ,K?

Irish mist · 06-08-2008, 12:55 AM

I'm sorry you had a bad time there....but God, give it a month or two. They just opened up on a limited basis. They seemed to do everything possible to address your concerns. I don't get the rage ?

EricP · 06-08-2008, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Irish mist

I'm sorry you had a bad time there....but God, give it a month or two. They just opened up on a limited basis. They seemed to do everything possible to address your concerns. I don't get the rage ?

I agree, the new owners may have 3.5 mil into this project, but I'm sure the kids working the tables don't. Their vested interest is just a paycheck and sadly they're the front line and that is always a double edged sword. They "represent" the business and they have the least to gain or lose. It takes a long time to learn how to waitress/wait and so I think the dining experience will take a bit to perc. I wish them a lot of success, the building is beautiful and it's nice to see someone investing in the area to improve the landscape.

Pricestavern · 06-08-2008, 09:32 AM

My wife and I went there last summer and ordered crab legs. What we recieved were various broken crab leg pieces and not many of them. Entirely disappointing.

Unless we hear from numerous sources that this place has turned around, we won't be going back.

Liquorish · 06-08-2008, 10:22 AM

To even compare this restaurant with the " old " Lobster pound is unfair. New owners deserve a fair chance. Not having eaten there yet you really have to give some time to work out the kinks. Yes these people have lots of money invested, the area certainly needs new blood. Let's all give them a chance, I can't wait to try it a little later in the summer.

brk-lnt · 06-08-2008, 01:03 PM

OK, you should give them a chance. But nobody forced them to put out the "Open" sign. If they say they're open and are willing to take peoples money, then I think it's reasonable to expect that you will at least get a halfway decent dining experience with a good portion of food.

Sure, the restaurant business may be hard, many of us here likely work at jobs or in industries that are "hard" or "unforgiving". Still, our customers expect to get a good product and service for their money. If you can't hack it, find a different profession.

sa meredith · 06-08-2008, 02:38 PM

Before stating my opinion on this subject, I want to say that I docked at the Weirs last week, and took a walk up just to check the place out. And I must say, I am looking forward to many a beer out on one of their two decks (looked like two levels, anyway). Certainly looks like it will be a great place to hang for a couple hours, and I'm sure it will be at capacity plus plus during motorcycle week. That being said...
I am closely connected to the restaurant business, and, in fact this restaurant recently opened a location in the lakes region. What they did to minimize the "kinks" (and this may be standard in the industry, I'm not sure) was this...they had two "mock" openings. All managers, owners, and certain employees were encouraged to invite up to 6 people at a ceratin time to come to a soft opening....the only thing different between the real opening and the soft opening was at the soft opening, noone got a bill...everything was comped. Free. Even booze. (which would violate state laws, so a tab was actually run for all drinks, the the head C.E.O. payed at the end of the night). The goal was to have a full house, with a full staff, on two separate occasions. It was explained to me, that, although it is very costly, the fact that you only get one shot at a first impression is the only thing that matters. So, when they opened to the public they were well prepared (and, of course brought some experienced help in from other locations). It would seem to me, that in a location where you have to make the bulk of your income in a three to four month span, your margin of error is tiny. Let's face it..the Lobster Trap's location will keep it busy all summer all by itself. But in less than peak times, they will need to have a reputation of a place that is worth the drive.
I feel for them, as a certain number of kinks in normal, but you really should be well prepared for an on slaught of customers at that location if you open in the summer time. And that, actually, was another point I just remembered about the other restarant I spoke of...they were certain to be open by late winter/very early spring, so when the crowds arrived, all employees knew their roll, and played it well.
I'm sure things will get better for The Lobster Pound, and look forward to going there myself...hopefully they will not disappoint too many people before things are running smoothly.

jetskier · 06-08-2008, 07:13 PM

I clearly understand that a new undertaking might involve a little debugging, however, it should be pointed out that this is an unforgiving economy and this type of restaurant relies on a very discretionary expenditure. In addition, the market appears quite seasonal. So, my sense is that they better sort things out quick; there are still a number of restaurant choices in the area. I would love to see a quality lobster restaurant at the Weirs rather than having to hoof down to Sandy Point when the urge presents. So, we will give it a shot, but hopefully we hear some positive postings in the future.

Jetskier

moose tracks · 06-08-2008, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sa meredith

...I am looking forward to many a beer out on one of their two decks (looked like two levels, anyway). Certainly looks like it will be a great place to hang for a couple hours,

I agree that the Lobster Pound needs to be given a limited amount of time to get the "kinks" out. We will certainly give them a try this season. In fact, we stopped by on Friday and picked up their menu in anticipation of our visit.

The wine by the glass prices took me my surprise though with prices in the $9-$15 dollar a glass range.

Beer is priced $3.50.

hazelnut · 06-08-2008, 08:09 PM

Lets give them a chance.

The reality is I am hoping and PRAYING that these people succeed. Weirs needs this place and as a long timer I really wish them success. I will most definitely visiting this place over the summer even after reading this negative post. Please don't get me wrong, I sincerely appreciate the post and information from vmartino and I think we should all feel the same. It sets a level of expectation that we can all use to our advantage when visiting this establishment. If we feel things are going "wrong" we can use the info here to nip it in the bud hopefully. Anyway, I applaud the owners for the renovations to the property and I hope the work out the kinks this summer. We all have a limited resource of restaurants to visit by boat and I was hoping this could be a new choice.

Good Luck to the owners and I hope they are smart enough to read this forum!

rick35 · 06-08-2008, 08:20 PM

A friend was visiting and I thought it would be a good time to try out the Lobster Pound. We were told when we entered that it would be a 30 minute wait. That's not unreasonable so we waited inside the door for our table. After about 15 minutes I noticed that four nearby tables were open so I asked the hostess about it. She told me that the were not seating people as the kitchen was running behind. About 10 minutes later she called our name and the other hostess came over to say the kitchen was an hour behind. They were going to seat us and drag us on for an hour. Luckily for us the hostess was honest about it and we chose to find somewhere else to eat. While I understand that it takes time to get a restaurant running the season is not that long and you better not take two months to get it right. There are too many restaurants looking for your business. We won't be back this year. Maybe if the forum feedback improves we'll try them next year.

Rick

mets3007 · 06-08-2008, 11:42 PM

Not shocked 1 bit I remember eatting at Nadia's ( same chef) and the kitchen was always slow on busy days and same thing tables empty that were not used because they were falling behind. Its been an issue before and its an issue again hmmm not blaming the chef some the evidence shows something towards that the issue could be the kitchen and the same person who ran Nadia's kitchen is in charge hmmmmm.

idigtractors · 06-09-2008, 06:14 AM

My wife and I went on Saturday the 7th around the 7ish hour. From the time we went through the door things went down. I'm not going through it all as most everything has been mentioned in previous threads. All I have to say, they will not see us again and I can't see how they will make it. Oh, bye the way we did get up and leave as the food was about to arrive.

Shore Driver · 06-09-2008, 11:23 AM

This is disappointing, but not surprising....they clearly have some kinks to work out. I will not ruin things for myself by going there in there in the first month, since I have high expectation and wish them to succeed.

Bike Week is going to be a real problem by the sounds of it.

Irish mist · 06-08-2008, 12:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pricestavern

My wife and I went there last summer and ordered crab legs. What we recieved were various broken crab leg pieces and not many of them. Entirely disappointing.

Unless we hear from numerous sources that this place has turned around, we won't be going back.

You went last year under the old mangement. it's new people & a new building now.

Misha888 · 07-05-2008, 11:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Irish mist

I'm sorry you had a bad time there....but God, give it a month or two. They just opened up on a limited basis. They seemed to do everything possile to address your concerns. I don't get the rage ?

and Michael C . . .

I know that these don't even compare, but if your investor was "new" and he/she invested your capital and lost a majority of it, you wouldn't be happy either. The poster was just wanting a nice relaxing dinner and they didn't get it.

Give those sharing a break. This backwards thinking is becoming the demise of this country. "lets give them some slack since they just opened". These are just excuses. Not holding a service oriented industry to some sort of standard is ridiculous. . . A good chef doesn't put out a plate that they're not proud of and if you're the owner and you're working the front end, there is no excuse. The manager made the right decision to comp, though I would have paid the bill. Poor and soft management is my guess. More people should plan their work and work their plan. p.s. I DO understand the in's and out's of running a successful restaurant. Hampton Beach (20 years ago).

Also, in a lower post I see that you stated that these people have a deep pockets aka in my business "skin in the game" and they'll make it work. Throwing money at it shouldn't be the strategy. You need a good chef, a stern but consistently,pleasant front end manager and good wait staff. They're lucking they're in a transient, seasonal town with repeat business if they can get it together. The kinks should have been worked out in the first week they were opened. It appeared that the construction crew was behind, and their opening was probably planned a few weeks before Memorial day . . . and I feel for them. No one should have a hard opening on a major holiday weekend, but you do what you need to do.

I hope they work it out, it's a fabulous location, the ambiance is nice and it's the perfect Friday night restaurant before taking in a drive in movie.

My sister and her husband and friends have been there twice this year and they weren't very impressed, they have one last shot but I think we'll wait to August and some time mid week to try them again.

All the best, really.

MeredithBay · 07-06-2008, 06:45 PM

I have given the Lobster pound a try 3 times. This last time our entire table of 7 vowed we will never return. I have NEVER been treated so poorly in my life at a restaurant. Not only did we feel like we were overcharged for our drinks and appetizers, but a person at our table ordered Fried scallops for $15.95. On our bill they charged us for baked stuffed scallops for $21.40, we asked if they could take care of it considering we didn't order that. The manager came over, laughed, and said "are you really complaining about $5? Sorry there is nothing I can do". We were astonished. The food and drinks are overpriced and that manager was absolutely beyond rude. Where do they get off charging people for something they didn't order and then saying "too bad". Appalling.

Irish mist · 07-06-2008, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeredithBay

I have given the Lobster pound a try 3 times. This last time our entire table of 7 vowed we will never return. I have NEVER been treated so poorly in my life at a restaurant. Not only did we feel like we were overcharged for our drinks and appetizers, but a person at our table ordered Fried scallops for $15.95. On our bill they charged us for baked stuffed scallops for $21.40, we asked if they could take care of it considering we didn't order that. The manager came over, laughed, and said "are you really complaining about $5? Sorry there is nothing I can do". We were astonished. The food and drinks are overpriced and that manager was absolutely beyond rude. Where do they get off charging people for something they didn't order and then saying "too bad". Appalling.

This sounds like pure BULL !!!

EricP · 07-06-2008, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Irish mist

This sounds like pure BULL !!!

I can't believe they wouldn't fix a bill, that's the craziest thing I've heard since last night. I agree it has to be bull.

MeredithBay · 07-06-2008, 09:45 PM

This is not "bull". I wouldn't waste my time complaining about somthing if it wasn't serious. I am a huge believer in supporting local business, and actually never have complained or posted anything negative about anyone, but this blew me out of the water. I have never been treated so poorly in my life. I have 7 others that will agree, actually 8 including the poor waitress that offered to pay for the wrong meal herself after her manager refused to help us.

Mr. V · 07-06-2008, 11:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeredithBay

This is not "bull". I wouldn't waste my time complaining about somthing if it wasn't serious. I am a huge believer in supporting local business, and actually never have complained or posted anything negative about anyone, but this blew me out of the water. I have never been treated so poorly in my life. I have 7 others that will agree, actually 8 including the poor waitress that offered to pay for the wrong meal herself after her manager refused to help us.

Your first post was a complaint; this is your second post.

Certainly you are correct when you say you "never have complained or posted anything negative about anyone," because you are brand new to the board.

The jury is still out, newbie.

jetskier · 07-07-2008, 12:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeredithBay

This is not "bull". I wouldn't waste my time complaining about somthing if it wasn't serious. I am a huge believer in supporting local business, and actually never have complained or posted anything negative about anyone, but this blew me out of the water. I have never been treated so poorly in my life. I have 7 others that will agree, actually 8 including the poor waitress that offered to pay for the wrong meal herself after her manager refused to help us.

I have been pondering whether to try Lobster Pound this season. There seems to be a plethera of very bad experiences. Has anyone had a good experience there? Does the management wish to respond to any of the discussed issues?

If not, I am just going to write it off this season. There are too many decent restaurants deserving patronage in the area.

Jetskier

wMw · 07-07-2008, 10:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jetskier

I have been pondering whether to try Lobster Pound this season. There seems to be a plethera of very bad experiences. Has anyone had a good experience there?

Jetskier

I went there one very hot night just before bike week with a couple of friends. Service was fine, food was ok, air-conditioner was not keeping up...we found it a bit too warm inside. All-in-all not a memorable experience but nothing really to complain about.

I, too, will go back someday, maybe on a perfect weather day so I can enjoy the view from the deck. I hope that they are able to sort out their problems and make a successful go of it.

This'nThat · 07-07-2008, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jetskier

I have been pondering whether to try Lobster Pound this season. There seems to be a plethera of very bad experiences. Has anyone had a good experience there? Does the management wish to respond to any of the discussed issues?

If not, I am just going to write it off this season. There are too many decent restaurants deserving patronage in the area.

I haven't been to the "new" lobster pound. But my experience last year was so horrible, and the comments this year have been too negative for me to venture out again. I would need to hear 15 or so different people all claim to have a wonderful, reasonably-priced meal for me to ever go back there again.

chipj29 · 07-07-2008, 08:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeredithBay

This is not "bull". I wouldn't waste my time complaining about somthing if it wasn't serious. I am a huge believer in supporting local business, and actually never have complained or posted anything negative about anyone, but this blew me out of the water. I have never been treated so poorly in my life. I have 7 others that will agree, actually 8 including the poor waitress that offered to pay for the wrong meal herself after her manager refused to help us.

Wow...just wow. That manager doesn't deserve to be employed...period.

Irish mist · 07-07-2008, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeredithBay

This is not "bull". I wouldn't waste my time complaining about somthing if it wasn't serious. I am a huge believer in supporting local business, and actually never have complained or posted anything negative about anyone, but this blew me out of the water. I have never been treated so poorly in my life. I have 7 others that will agree, actually 8 including the poor waitress that offered to pay for the wrong meal herself after her manager refused to help us.

Really, I'm having a difficult time believing this. I hope the Lobster Pound people come out here, because this just sounds like fiction to me. There's more to this story than meets the eye I think.

Overlake97 · 07-07-2008, 07:02 PM

If they really served "fried," but charged for "baked stuffed," there is no way you should have paid the higher price. If you were served the baked stuffed...said nothing and ate it...and THEN complained about paying for it..well that changes things slightly (I guess the customer could have assumed the 'baked' was LP's version of 'fried').

Also, you say you were overcharged for drinks and appetizers; does this mean they charged you for more of these than you actually ordered and/or received? Or that they charged more than the menu's listed price? In either case (plus the baked stuffed case) a restaurant cannot FORCE you to pay for food you did not eat/receive or charge you more than the menu price. If paying cash, just deduct the amount overcharged from your payment. With credit card, just tell them how much to charge the card. I don't think they can charge more than you state. If so, just don't sign it. Finally, you can always pay with a credit card, then call your card company and have them refuse payment. I think this still works.

MeredithBay · 07-07-2008, 09:05 PM

No, of course we didn't make the waitress pay. In the end the money wasn't the issue, it was the fact that you order something and get charged for something similar, but that you didn't order.

Actually Overlake97 i said "we felt like we were overcharged for drinks and appetizers". What I am saying is the appetizer portions were tiny and expensive, and a pitcher of sangria was cheaper by the glass than by the pitcher, which we thought was unusual.

Be a sceptic if you would like, but I have never had something like this happen to me at a restaurant period.

sa meredith · 07-08-2008, 08:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeredithBay

No, of course we didn't make the waitress pay. In the end the money wasn't the issue, it was the fact that you order something and get charged for something similar, but that you didn't order.

Actually Overlake97 i said "we felt like we were overcharged for drinks and appetizers". What I am saying is the appetizer portions were tiny and expensive, and a pitcher of sangria was cheaper by the glass than by the pitcher, which we thought was unusual.

Be a sceptic if you would like, but I have never had something like this happen to me at a restaurant period.

While I'm sure your experience was poor, as were many written about on this board, and they should have adjusted your bill, the situation is now a bit clearer for the rest of us. It would seem (as you never mention it in your last post) that "baked stuffed" was indeed served, as opposed to the ordered "fried".
While this does not excuse the poor attitude of the manager, it at least would explain his behavior. Baked stuffed came out, was eaten, and he wanted it paid for. I still agree with you however. The bill should have been adjusted.

Heff · 07-08-2008, 03:58 PM

They must be doing some things right since there was a 2 hour wait Saturday night! Has anyone had an positive experiences??? The outdoor 2nd floor patio is a nice addition to the area!

sa meredith · 07-08-2008, 05:08 PM

Heff...
I believe it has been stated earlier in this thread...
If a new restaurant isn't full full full at THAT location, on a warm Saturday night, in July, there would be a major problem. They are going to be full in July thru mid to late August by simply unlocking the doors. Now, I believe the impression they make during that time will determine how successful they are.

krm · 07-08-2008, 05:26 PM

Been twice, they serve a good bucket of beer with good view hopefully the food will catch up to the good view. It would be a shame if you could not go and enjoy the view bc they went under.

COWISLAND NH · 07-14-2008, 12:15 PM

Well we went back Friday night. It was great. The service, food, & live band were all good (w/ fire works!!)

. I'm glad we went back. Had the lobster, crab legs and buff chicken.....yummy. I encourage everyone to give it a try...we will be regulars now!

tricia1218 · 07-20-2008, 03:52 PM

We went there on a Wednesday night and all I can say was the waiter was nice and the calamari was good, other than that I would not go back for dinner, maybe drinks.

One of our group ordered Shrimp Fradiavlo and it tasted like spagetti O's sauce, I ordered the scampi and there was no flavor at all, it was like a water sauce with shrimp, another ordered the steak tips and they were cold.

I like to give places the benefit of the doubt and read the reviews here before and thought they just need time to work it out, in this case they really need to step it up in the kitchen because the food was not good. There was a little wait for our food and even that I can let go if it is worth it, this was not worth it.

Paugusbaby · 07-21-2008, 01:45 PM

I had dinner at the Lobster Pound Saturday night. We have waited a bit to give them time to work out the kinks I have read about here. Things started off good - we arrived at 8:05 and were told there would be a 20 min wait - it was exactly 20 minutes! It was down hill from there. We were seated right across from teh kitchen - which has no doors. I must say, it did prove interesting to watch the servers slip and slip dangerously all over the place while 3 to 4 men (who appeared to be either owners or managers) sat there and did basically nothing. Our waitress came over and appeared less than thrilled to be there. She took our order. I ordered the rib eye steak with a baked potato and was told they don't have "baked" they have "grilled" and I knew right away what that meant - they bake them all ahead of time and then cut them and half and grill them when it's time to be served. Oh well. My BF ordered the steak tips. I asked for dressing choices for my salad and, reluctantly, was told of several choices other than the "house" (and go the distrint impression it's an issue). Then the waiting began. Both steaks were ordered medium rare. . . after about 45 minutes (OH - and we ordered sodas when we got there and they were NEVER refilled) I finally had to ask if dinner was coming - she said she'd check with the manager. She came back and said our food was in like for plateing and it would be 3 to 4 minutes. All you steak eaters out there can feel my pain - obviously our steaks were done and sitting there - although "resting" it means they also continued to cook. The waitress then went on to tell us what a horrible night she was having, people were stiffing her b/c they were not happy, etc. My mom was a waitress and I do not hold kitchen issues against the server - but this one was less than friendly. ANYWAY, our food came. The steak was quite good. Not $25.00 good - but not horrible and cooked nicely. The steak tips were mixed. Some were well done and others were medium rare (as ordered). The potatoes were as expected - warm but hard near the skin. Presentation was zero. I think the worst part was watching those four gentlemen just sit there. The should have been walking around chatting with customers - or helping their poor staff who were running around crazy - or perhaps trying to do something about the floor they were all slipping on (we did see some dropped food as a result of this). Anyway - I have no plans to return any time soon.

aquadocton · 07-08-2008, 08:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeredithBay

I have given the Lobster pound a try 3 times. This last time our entire table of 7 vowed we will never return. I have NEVER been treated so poorly in my life at a restaurant. Not only did we feel like we were overcharged for our drinks and appetizers, but a person at our table ordered Fried scallops for $15.95. On our bill they charged us for baked stuffed scallops for $21.40, we asked if they could take care of it considering we didn't order that. The manager came over, laughed, and said "are you really complaining about $5? Sorry there is nothing I can do". We were astonished. The food and drinks are overpriced and that manager was absolutely beyond rude. Where do they get off charging people for something they didn't order and then saying "too bad". Appalling.

Meredith Bay,
I didn't see a date anywhere in your messages. Did this happen at the "new" Lobster Pound which opened in June or the old one?

06-07-2008, 11:50 PM	#1
michael c Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 94 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts	New Lobster pound While I understand your frustrations with how long it took and the food good/bad.. The only point I will make is that ,unless you own a restaurant [ not worked at one or have a brother who works at a restaurant ] you could not begin to believe how complex it is... It is very important that we don't pass judgement on this place for at the VERY LEAST 2 months. They opened with a limited menu ,which says " we want to be open but we are not quite ready ,but we will open in a limited capacity now and please give us a little time and we will work out all the kinks in our new place. It is my guess that these new people probably have about 3.5mil invested here and they deserve a little break here . Restaurants are a lot like a new car . If you buy a new car and when it went through assemly line ,EVEREYONE did their very best ,,their best work ever and the car went out of the building 99.9 percent perfect, your new car will still have 13 things wrong with it.. That is how many parts there are in todays cars and restaurants are quite similar ,believe me . I will wait until july 4th and try them a week later ....by then the kinks will be mostly worked out . I went passed them last nite,Friday nite around 9:00 and there were at least 75 cars there. Again ,tonight at 9:45 at least 100 cars. Your right , they will make a lot on the booze and because of the location ...these people have deep pockets and there is no way that they will acceppt anything less than 100 % from their employees ,,lets give them some time ,K? __________________ " Wisdom does not always come with age...sometimes age comes by itself ! "

06-08-2008, 12:55 AM	#2
Irish mist Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 686 Thanks: 128 Thanked 85 Times in 49 Posts	I'm sorry you had a bad time there....but God, give it a month or two. They just opened up on a limited basis. They seemed to do everything possible to address your concerns. I don't get the rage ? Last edited by Irish mist; 02-27-2011 at 11:17 PM.

06-08-2008, 09:32 AM	#4
Pricestavern Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Valencia, Spain (formerly Rattlesnake Isle) Posts: 389 Thanks: 135 Thanked 142 Times in 82 Posts	Won't Return Either My wife and I went there last summer and ordered crab legs. What we recieved were various broken crab leg pieces and not many of them. Entirely disappointing. Unless we hear from numerous sources that this place has turned around, we won't be going back.

06-08-2008, 10:22 AM	#5
Liquorish Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Medfield Ma & Meredith Nh Posts: 93 Thanks: 8 Thanked 14 Times in 12 Posts	Gotta Give it a chance To even compare this restaurant with the " old " Lobster pound is unfair. New owners deserve a fair chance. Not having eaten there yet you really have to give some time to work out the kinks. Yes these people have lots of money invested, the area certainly needs new blood. Let's all give them a chance, I can't wait to try it a little later in the summer.

06-08-2008, 02:38 PM	#7
sa meredith Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 986 Blog Entries: 1 Thanks: 32 Thanked 352 Times in 137 Posts	my two cents... Before stating my opinion on this subject, I want to say that I docked at the Weirs last week, and took a walk up just to check the place out. And I must say, I am looking forward to many a beer out on one of their two decks (looked like two levels, anyway). Certainly looks like it will be a great place to hang for a couple hours, and I'm sure it will be at capacity plus plus during motorcycle week. That being said... I am closely connected to the restaurant business, and, in fact this restaurant recently opened a location in the lakes region. What they did to minimize the "kinks" (and this may be standard in the industry, I'm not sure) was this...they had two "mock" openings. All managers, owners, and certain employees were encouraged to invite up to 6 people at a ceratin time to come to a soft opening....the only thing different between the real opening and the soft opening was at the soft opening, noone got a bill...everything was comped. Free. Even booze. (which would violate state laws, so a tab was actually run for all drinks, the the head C.E.O. payed at the end of the night). The goal was to have a full house, with a full staff, on two separate occasions. It was explained to me, that, although it is very costly, the fact that you only get one shot at a first impression is the only thing that matters. So, when they opened to the public they were well prepared (and, of course brought some experienced help in from other locations). It would seem to me, that in a location where you have to make the bulk of your income in a three to four month span, your margin of error is tiny. Let's face it..the Lobster Trap's location will keep it busy all summer all by itself. But in less than peak times, they will need to have a reputation of a place that is worth the drive. I feel for them, as a certain number of kinks in normal, but you really should be well prepared for an on slaught of customers at that location if you open in the summer time. And that, actually, was another point I just remembered about the other restarant I spoke of...they were certain to be open by late winter/very early spring, so when the crowds arrived, all employees knew their roll, and played it well. I'm sure things will get better for The Lobster Pound, and look forward to going there myself...hopefully they will not disappoint too many people before things are running smoothly.

06-08-2008, 01:03 PM	#6
brk-lnt Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: South Down Shores Posts: 1,944 Thanks: 545 Thanked 570 Times in 335 Posts	OK, you should give them a chance. But nobody forced them to put out the "Open" sign. If they say they're open and are willing to take peoples money, then I think it's reasonable to expect that you will at least get a halfway decent dining experience with a good portion of food. Sure, the restaurant business may be hard, many of us here likely work at jobs or in industries that are "hard" or "unforgiving". Still, our customers expect to get a good product and service for their money. If you can't hack it, find a different profession.

06-08-2008, 07:13 PM	#8
jetskier Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: North Reading, MA and South Down Shores Posts: 855 Thanks: 58 Thanked 183 Times in 114 Posts	We will give it a shot, but... I clearly understand that a new undertaking might involve a little debugging, however, it should be pointed out that this is an unforgiving economy and this type of restaurant relies on a very discretionary expenditure. In addition, the market appears quite seasonal. So, my sense is that they better sort things out quick; there are still a number of restaurant choices in the area. I would love to see a quality lobster restaurant at the Weirs rather than having to hoof down to Sandy Point when the urge presents. So, we will give it a shot, but hopefully we hear some positive postings in the future. Jetskier

06-08-2008, 08:09 PM	#10
hazelnut Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 1,348 Blog Entries: 3 Thanks: 508 Thanked 462 Times in 162 Posts	Lets give them a chance. The reality is I am hoping and PRAYING that these people succeed. Weirs needs this place and as a long timer I really wish them success. I will most definitely visiting this place over the summer even after reading this negative post. Please don't get me wrong, I sincerely appreciate the post and information from vmartino and I think we should all feel the same. It sets a level of expectation that we can all use to our advantage when visiting this establishment. If we feel things are going "wrong" we can use the info here to nip it in the bud hopefully. Anyway, I applaud the owners for the renovations to the property and I hope the work out the kinks this summer. We all have a limited resource of restaurants to visit by boat and I was hoping this could be a new choice. Good Luck to the owners and I hope they are smart enough to read this forum!

06-08-2008, 08:20 PM	#11
rick35 Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Bear Island/Merrimack Posts: 807 Thanks: 58 Thanked 203 Times in 130 Posts	Won't be back A friend was visiting and I thought it would be a good time to try out the Lobster Pound. We were told when we entered that it would be a 30 minute wait. That's not unreasonable so we waited inside the door for our table. After about 15 minutes I noticed that four nearby tables were open so I asked the hostess about it. She told me that the were not seating people as the kitchen was running behind. About 10 minutes later she called our name and the other hostess came over to say the kitchen was an hour behind. They were going to seat us and drag us on for an hour. Luckily for us the hostess was honest about it and we chose to find somewhere else to eat. While I understand that it takes time to get a restaurant running the season is not that long and you better not take two months to get it right. There are too many restaurants looking for your business. We won't be back this year. Maybe if the forum feedback improves we'll try them next year. Rick

06-08-2008, 11:42 PM	#12
mets3007 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 170 Thanks: 3 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Not surprised Not shocked 1 bit I remember eatting at Nadia's ( same chef) and the kitchen was always slow on busy days and same thing tables empty that were not used because they were falling behind. Its been an issue before and its an issue again hmmm not blaming the chef some the evidence shows something towards that the issue could be the kitchen and the same person who ran Nadia's kitchen is in charge hmmmmm.

06-09-2008, 06:14 AM	#13
idigtractors Senior Member Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 248 Thanks: 6 Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts	My wife and I went on Saturday the 7th around the 7ish hour. From the time we went through the door things went down. I'm not going through it all as most everything has been mentioned in previous threads. All I have to say, they will not see us again and I can't see how they will make it. Oh, bye the way we did get up and leave as the food was about to arrive.

06-09-2008, 11:23 AM	#14
Shore Driver Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Tolland CT Posts: 194 Thanks: 20 Thanked 31 Times in 25 Posts	This is disappointing, but not surprising....they clearly have some kinks to work out. I will not ruin things for myself by going there in there in the first month, since I have high expectation and wish them to succeed. Bike Week is going to be a real problem by the sounds of it.

07-06-2008, 06:45 PM	#17
MeredithBay Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Meredith Posts: 3 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I have given the Lobster pound a try 3 times. This last time our entire table of 7 vowed we will never return. I have NEVER been treated so poorly in my life at a restaurant. Not only did we feel like we were overcharged for our drinks and appetizers, but a person at our table ordered Fried scallops for $15.95. On our bill they charged us for baked stuffed scallops for $21.40, we asked if they could take care of it considering we didn't order that. The manager came over, laughed, and said "are you really complaining about $5? Sorry there is nothing I can do". We were astonished. The food and drinks are overpriced and that manager was absolutely beyond rude. Where do they get off charging people for something they didn't order and then saying "too bad". Appalling.

07-06-2008, 09:45 PM	#20
MeredithBay Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Meredith Posts: 3 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	This is not "bull". I wouldn't waste my time complaining about somthing if it wasn't serious. I am a huge believer in supporting local business, and actually never have complained or posted anything negative about anyone, but this blew me out of the water. I have never been treated so poorly in my life. I have 7 others that will agree, actually 8 including the poor waitress that offered to pay for the wrong meal herself after her manager refused to help us.

07-07-2008, 07:02 PM	#27
Overlake97 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Gilford Posts: 246 Thanks: 147 Thanked 58 Times in 42 Posts	I agree with SA Meredith: more info is needed. If they really served "fried," but charged for "baked stuffed," there is no way you should have paid the higher price. If you were served the baked stuffed...said nothing and ate it...and THEN complained about paying for it..well that changes things slightly (I guess the customer could have assumed the 'baked' was LP's version of 'fried'). Also, you say you were overcharged for drinks and appetizers; does this mean they charged you for more of these than you actually ordered and/or received? Or that they charged more than the menu's listed price? In either case (plus the baked stuffed case) a restaurant cannot FORCE you to pay for food you did not eat/receive or charge you more than the menu price. If paying cash, just deduct the amount overcharged from your payment. With credit card, just tell them how much to charge the card. I don't think they can charge more than you state. If so, just don't sign it. Finally, you can always pay with a credit card, then call your card company and have them refuse payment. I think this still works.

07-07-2008, 09:05 PM	#28
MeredithBay Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Meredith Posts: 3 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	No, of course we didn't make the waitress pay. In the end the money wasn't the issue, it was the fact that you order something and get charged for something similar, but that you didn't order. Actually Overlake97 i said "we felt like we were overcharged for drinks and appetizers". What I am saying is the appetizer portions were tiny and expensive, and a pitcher of sangria was cheaper by the glass than by the pitcher, which we thought was unusual. Be a sceptic if you would like, but I have never had something like this happen to me at a restaurant period.

07-08-2008, 03:58 PM	#30
Heff Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	They must be doing some things right since there was a 2 hour wait Saturday night! Has anyone had an positive experiences??? The outdoor 2nd floor patio is a nice addition to the area!

07-08-2008, 05:08 PM	#31
sa meredith Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 986 Blog Entries: 1 Thanks: 32 Thanked 352 Times in 137 Posts	as said before... Heff... I believe it has been stated earlier in this thread... If a new restaurant isn't full full full at THAT location, on a warm Saturday night, in July, there would be a major problem. They are going to be full in July thru mid to late August by simply unlocking the doors. Now, I believe the impression they make during that time will determine how successful they are.

07-08-2008, 05:26 PM	#32
krm Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 39 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	buckets! Been twice, they serve a good bucket of beer with good view hopefully the food will catch up to the good view. It would be a shame if you could not go and enjoy the view bc they went under.

07-14-2008, 12:15 PM	#33
COWISLAND NH Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 35 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	There getting good! Well we went back Friday night. It was great. The service, food, & live band were all good (w/ fire works!!). I'm glad we went back. Had the lobster, crab legs and buff chicken.....yummy. I encourage everyone to give it a try...we will be regulars now!

07-20-2008, 03:52 PM	#34
tricia1218 Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: MA/Paugus Bay Posts: 155 Thanks: 31 Thanked 4 Times in 3 Posts	We went there on a Wednesday night and all I can say was the waiter was nice and the calamari was good, other than that I would not go back for dinner, maybe drinks. One of our group ordered Shrimp Fradiavlo and it tasted like spagetti O's sauce, I ordered the scampi and there was no flavor at all, it was like a water sauce with shrimp, another ordered the steak tips and they were cold. I like to give places the benefit of the doubt and read the reviews here before and thought they just need time to work it out, in this case they really need to step it up in the kitchen because the food was not good. There was a little wait for our food and even that I can let go if it is worth it, this was not worth it.

07-21-2008, 01:45 PM	#35
Paugusbaby Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 15 Thanks: 2 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Sad to report. . . I had dinner at the Lobster Pound Saturday night. We have waited a bit to give them time to work out the kinks I have read about here. Things started off good - we arrived at 8:05 and were told there would be a 20 min wait - it was exactly 20 minutes! It was down hill from there. We were seated right across from teh kitchen - which has no doors. I must say, it did prove interesting to watch the servers slip and slip dangerously all over the place while 3 to 4 men (who appeared to be either owners or managers) sat there and did basically nothing. Our waitress came over and appeared less than thrilled to be there. She took our order. I ordered the rib eye steak with a baked potato and was told they don't have "baked" they have "grilled" and I knew right away what that meant - they bake them all ahead of time and then cut them and half and grill them when it's time to be served. Oh well. My BF ordered the steak tips. I asked for dressing choices for my salad and, reluctantly, was told of several choices other than the "house" (and go the distrint impression it's an issue). Then the waiting began. Both steaks were ordered medium rare. . . after about 45 minutes (OH - and we ordered sodas when we got there and they were NEVER refilled) I finally had to ask if dinner was coming - she said she'd check with the manager. She came back and said our food was in like for plateing and it would be 3 to 4 minutes. All you steak eaters out there can feel my pain - obviously our steaks were done and sitting there - although "resting" it means they also continued to cook. The waitress then went on to tell us what a horrible night she was having, people were stiffing her b/c they were not happy, etc. My mom was a waitress and I do not hold kitchen issues against the server - but this one was less than friendly. ANYWAY, our food came. The steak was quite good. Not $25.00 good - but not horrible and cooked nicely. The steak tips were mixed. Some were well done and others were medium rare (as ordered). The potatoes were as expected - warm but hard near the skin. Presentation was zero. I think the worst part was watching those four gentlemen just sit there. The should have been walking around chatting with customers - or helping their poor staff who were running around crazy - or perhaps trying to do something about the floor they were all slipping on (we did see some dropped food as a result of this). Anyway - I have no plans to return any time soon.