Chowder House

My wife and I just left this place and were very pleased. We were walking around the town and had a sudden craving for clam chowder. We walked right up to the bar (which is an old boat that had been converted - very cool) and ordered clam chowder and a couple of local beers. The chowder was fantastic - everything we expected in a harbor-side Maine chowder, and the beers were good. Our bartender was friendly and the atmosphere was unique and cheerful. For what we wanted - cool atmosphere, good drinks, and killer chowder, this place hit all the marks.

Beautiful seating on the harbor. Hubby loved the clam chowder, though it had too much spice for me. I couldn't really taste the clams due to the spice. They begrudgingly allowed us to bring our dog in. They try to push diners with pets to the bar stools. Wish places would understand pets are more comfortable when owners sit closer to their level. It helps avoid confrontation with passing pets.

Save your money!!!!! We ate dinner at the Chowder House last night and the food was terrible with the exception of the grilled cheese,which was OK! I had an artichoke,spinach parmesan patty melt and all they did was put the artichoke dip in a hot dog roll with lettuce! There was no melt to it! When I told the waitress,she acknowledged that the food there was just "bar food!" The clam and corn chowder was not good even with a "clam base" My friend said the potato salad was not bad! I do not recommend the Chowder house to to anyone!!!!!!!!

Waited hour and a half for food from a harried (but apologetic) server. Clam chowder looked promising, but once I dug in found it lukewarm and half-filled with very large chunks of potato. Although Chowder House had nice outside deck with view, in an area with many options we'll try someplace else next time around.

My husband, son and I decided to try this resturant, as we were walking by today. We sat down and the first thing we noticed was the very limited menu. But, we were hungry and it was lunchtime, so we decided to give it a shot. We order our drinks and they come in a 3 inch plastic cup, but I was still trying to be optimistic. We ordered a cup of soup and chips and guacamole. The soup was good, nothing special. It was the same with the quacamole. In the mean time we ordered our food. Our food came out and I looked at my burger and right away I knew it was raw by looking at the very pink bun. I cut into it and blood poured out (this is not an exaggeration) it was pretty bad. So, the waitress walks by and my husband tells her, "we need this burger to be cooked well done, please." The waitress was nice enough about it and took the burger back to the cook. In the meantime, I tell my family to go ahead and eat, I didnt want their food getting cold. So, we waited...... and waited and finally, she brings me another burger. It was exactly the same as the first one. Blood just poured out and the bun was soggy and pink. Now, I am really upset because my family had been finished eating for quite some time and I didnt see a point in returning it again, just to have them keep bringing me raw meat all day. So, I asked her to take it off my check, she agreed and asked if I wanted anything else to eat? I said, no. We paid our check of 55.00 (and some change) and left. We got to our car and I asked to see the receipt. They had charged us 2.25 for those very, very small drinks and 9.95 for a cup of soup.They did take my meal off of the receipt, but honestly for what we recieved, it wasnt worth it. My sons grilled cheese was literally a bun with melted cheese. My husbands haddock sandwich was good, but not wonderful. Mind you, these are just sandwiches and a small bag of chips. No fries or sides with them. So, we got 2 sandwiches, 2 cups of soup, 2 drinks (I had water)and some chips and quacamole for 55.00!? That is just ridiculous and that is despite the serious "screw up" on my meal. I am just talking about the poor quality and quanities of food for the outrageous prices. Now, about those 2 raw burgers...I am pretty sure it is illegal to sell ground burger that raw. I know the U.S Drug and Food Adminstration warn agaisnt these practices, due to food poisoning and Ecoli. All of this being said, I am pretty sure they thought we were not from Maine. Boothbay is a huge tourist getaway, so they probally dont care how they treat thier customers. They probably dont care about the quality of thier food, due to minimal likelyhood of return and "word of mouth" is slight in tourist towns. WRONG.. we live in Topsham Maine and you better believe we wont be back. And I will tell everyone that I know, to beware of this place. I am absolutely, positive that there are better places to spend your money on a worthwhile meal and experience in Boothbay. So, my advice is to go somewhere else! Dont waste your time here, its just not worth it.

We just left this place.... my friend and I were super excited about getting real lobster stew. What we got was a cup of milk with some lobster pieces- just awful. A cup was $9.99. Tasteless! We also order the Mac n cheese with lobster. Kraft would have been better. The lobster was not fresh and the Mac and cheese tasted like a five year old made. Very disappointed! There was no one in main dining room- clear indicator. It would have been wiser if they just said we are not ready to serve. The Mac and cheese was $23. Shame on them For charging such unfairly for a terrible meal!

Let me start by saying I never send things back or write reviews. We began with an appetizer of salsa and guacamole. The menu described it as housemade. The waitress then revealed they are not back there chopping avocado. We were not sure how else they house made it. When it arrived we were disappointed to find out it was wholly guacamole found at any local grocery store. As for the salsa it was also clearly store bought. Next I ordered a spinach artichoke and parmesan melt. I expected a grilled cheese of sorts with some artichoke and spinach. I received a cold hot dog roll with spinach and artochoke dip on top. All that being said there is a cool boat bar to have a drink.