Mattakeese Wharf Waterfront Seafood Restaurant — Restaurant in Barnstable

I had an incredibly disappointing experience at Mattakeese Wharf Waterfront Seafood Restaurant today, and I feel compelled to share it.

I arrived around 3:50 p.m. with a group of 9 adults and 2 young children (both under the age of 2). As I stood near the hostess stand, I witnessed an older woman—who later identified herself as the owner—speaking harshly to a young hostess, questioning why she would seat a party of 11. This made me hesitate, but I approached and politely explained that we were a group of 9 adults and 2 toddlers. I acknowledged that it was a large party and offered to split into smaller groups. Her immediate response was, “No, we will not take you.”

As I walked away, I heard her taking two reservations: one for a party of 5 and another for 4. Confused, I returned to the stand—by then the older woman had walked away—and spoke to the young hostess. I reiterated that we were three separate families, willing to be seated at separate tables, far apart if needed. She agreed and took our names down for three tables: one of 4, one of 3, and another of 4.

Shortly after, the older woman returned, saw me, and rushed over, saying, “I’m the owner, and we will not seat you.” The young hostess attempted to explain that we were splitting into smaller parties and understood we would not be seated together, but the owner began yelling at her again. The hostess, clearly frustrated and upset, asked for a moment and walked away.

At that point, it became painfully clear that the refusal to seat us was not about the party size—but about who we were. I believe, without question, that we were being discriminated against because we are people of color.

I was deeply disappointed and told the owner I no longer wished to dine there. If she truly is the owner, it is even more disheartening to know such discriminatory behavior is coming from leadership. No one should be made to feel unwelcome or inferior, especially in a place that claims to offer...

Avoid this place by all means if you are a person of color or have a darker skin tone.

When I arrived with my wife and two daughters, we were given the furthest table away from the water and the view, even though I clearly asked the owner for a table by the water. There were three empty tables right in front of us, and even the young hostesses tried to explain my request to the owner, but she still insisted we sit at the worst table near the exit. I immediately felt discriminated against but decided to let it go.

As soon as we sat down, the waiter overheard me speaking another language with my 7-year-old daughter and immediately asked, “Where are you guys from?” I answered, “Canada.” She pressed further: “No, where are you originally from?” I replied, “Egypt,” and she loudly went on a rant about how she thought we were Brazilian, and how “Brazilians are flocking here now.” She spoke so loudly that it embarrassed us and even dragged the table next to us into the conversation, asking them, “Where do you think they are from?” My wife and I were extremely uncomfortable with this rude and unprofessional behavior. The waitress (named Karen) clearly reflected the same discriminatory attitude as the owner.

To make matters worse, we ordered two of the most expensive dishes on the menu—the 2-lb baked lobsters at $78 each. The total bill came to nearly $300 for two adults and two children, which would have been fine if the food had been excellent, but it was extremely underwhelming.

I don’t care about the price; what matters most is how customers are treated. No family should have to endure this kind of discrimination...

Have eaten here three time this summer, and no plans to ever return except for just a beer or cocktail, for one simple reason. Most of food is average to mediocre. The sea food is bad. What do I mean? My wife ordered the oven roasted Salmon. We specifically described to the waitress how we wanted it cooked, if it were a steak it would be medium rare. It came well done. I ordered fried clams, and did not describe how I wanted it cooked because I wrongly hoped they would know how to fry clams. The clams were dark brown, heavily battered and so over-fried they were inedible. The waitress stopped to ask how we were enjoying our meals and we gave her our honest feedback. She was very apologetic, but we told her it was a kitchen problem not a service problem. We asked for our bill and left our uneaten meals. To her credit she took our two main courses off the bill, but we tipped her the full amount.

If I were to give them some Advice it would be to significantly reduce the number of items on the menu that require any cooking. Go to any fine dining restaurants and you will not find long lists of menu options. But most importantly train the cooking staff how to properly fry, sauté, bake or broil all seafood. The biggest problem at many restaurants on Cape Cod is that seafood is generally overcooked losing all the delicate flavors of seafood. Unfortunately Matareese is...