Boathouse Kitchen & Swan Dive — Restaurant in Cicero

My wife and I came with another couple to try the place out on a sunny Monday night for dining outside. We had the option of eating at the outdoor bar beside the hostess stand where they had live music playing [just an acoustic guitarist doing covers] and you place your order at a counter and then they bring the food to you (like at a McAlister's) or eating on the back deck facing the water where the live music is piped through their speaker system and you have typical table service, which is the option we chose. To be honest, the primary lure to even consider eating here is for the location itself with having a view of the water while you eat. So full disclosure, I am probably awarding at least a 1/2 to a full star from my rating above based on this dining feature that can't be found at most places.

I ordered the Fish Tacos ($14) with fries and my wife went with the Shrimp Tacos ($15) with Brussels sprouts. My 2 fish tacos included grilled fish that came with slaw, pico de gallo, and guacamole. They tasted fine, but not something I would crave to have again. The tortillas disintegrated with each bit, so I wound up eating half of the filling with a utensil after it had fallen. The fries were fine as well, nothing special. My wife's 2 shrimp tacos were lightly breaded and had some sauce on them that I have to admit tasted pretty good. Flavor-wise, they seemed to be the better option. Her Brussels sprouts were OK, they were cut in varying sizes and had similar variance it how well cooked they were. Her primary disappointment since she is pescetarian was that she asked if they were cooked with bacon, to which our waitress said "no", but then bacon bits seemed to be present when she was eating them. I also had a Peanut Butter Busted Knuckle ($8) since they had it on tap and my wife had an Angry Orchard ($5), but it was only in a bottle. The other couple we were with did a pepperoni flatbread that looked like it could have been cooked longer and a shrimp roll that looked like a whole lot of bread roll.

So overall, we paid $44.32 +tip for a nice outdoor experience near the water with a decent but not great meal. The food itself probably wouldn't bring me back, but dining on the water might. If you're into live music while you eat, that's another feature...

First review:

A few weeks after opening, we called about placing a carry out order. They told us they weren’t “officially” doing carryout just yet (just one before us) but it was a slow Thursday night and they said they would be happy to oblige. We ordered the fish sandwich and the tenderloin, with fries on the side. The fish sandwich was huge, with a good breading and plenty of tartar sauce on it. (They were happy to give me two extra sides of tartar sauce, but we didn't even end up needing it) The tenderloin appeared that it might have been pre-frozen, but it was a very good size, and still delicious when I got it back home. In fact - it was big enough that I had to cut it in half and make a double-decker. They also gave us an entire to-go container full of their fries, which was a nice surprise.

Second review:

We came in to eat on a busy Friday night, and still only had a wait for about 5 minutes. During that time they happily greeted us, gave us some free frickles, and got us some drinks from the bar while we waited. This time I got the BBQ Cheddar Burger, and my wife got the Fish Tacos. Both were absolutely perfect, and we ate every bite on our plates. Drinks were very reasonably priced and always full. Service was top notch, from the front door to cashing out.

I’ll admit, after eating at other Don Hall’s restaurants for years, my standards were already set a bit high. After losing Castleton Grill I was worried we wouldn’t have another opportunity for huge Bloody Marys and Hall’s Prime Rib - but now there’s hope again! While this location isn’t “officially” in the chain of Don Hall’s restaurants, it’s owned and operated by a family member, and that’s good enough for me. Their attention to detail, customer service, and quality speaks for itself, and they have YEARS worth of experience to back it up.

Keep an eye out for their red envelope specials, if you dine in they will give you a red envelope to bring in next time. The server will open it for a chance to win free appetizers, dinners, multiple meals, etc.

We can’t wait until the menu expands and we get even more delicious options - just don’t forget about...

Took a drive today and saw the boathouse. Indoor and outdoor dining w live music on the reservoir. Dined nside w Kate as our server. Good attitude, good service; hit all the spots you'd want your server to provide. I ordered the cicero sampler w grouper, shrimp, hushpuppies, fries, and slaw; accompanied by tartar and cocktail. I asked if the grouper was fresh or frozen; it was frozen. I've had frozen grouper before, but this seemed to be a pre- breaded panko product that lacked any flavor. It was pretty boring and a turn-off. Shrimp seemed to also be a frozen pre- breaded panko product as well. Hushpuppies were fresh and hot as well as fries. Coleslaw was wet but not mushy; although it also lacked any flavor or seasonings. It's bad to say that the hushpuppies and tartar were the best things in this $23 entree. I wouldn't have minded paying more for better products. I expected way more for the money. Julie had a breaded chicken sandwich with fries and thought it was just ok for i think a $16 sandwich. Asked Kate about the key lime pie; a favorite of ours, and she said it was popular. Took about 8- 10 minutes for it to make its way to the table. Garnished with some type of whipped topping and lime garnish. Whipped topping was flavorless and seemed like it was the bottom of the can: as it had no body. Sorry, but that was the worst key lime pie we've ever had. Dont know if it was house made or bought product, but the topping of the pie was nasty; we scrapped it off. The key lime part was just as bad, having barely any lime flavor. For the money we spent; i can tell you we won't be back. I mentioned to Julie that with my food background; i know I'm Judgemental when it comes to food, she not only agreed with that, but she also...