1812 on the River by 1812 Brewing Co. — Restaurant in City of Watertown

We have been long time patrons of Maggie’s. We have enjoyed it so much we decided to have our wedding reception there last weekend. I had began speaking with the event coordinator Jenna Redding. At some point she left and no one attempted to get a hold of me, I waited weeks for a response. Cameron Pierce then took over for Miss Redden. We met with him and decided how everything would be set up. Then when I called two weeks prior to our event I was given to someone else to speak with, Nikki, not sure her last name, due to Cameron not being around. I was a little concerned details would be forgotten (we also kept things very simple and small) and she went through everything assured me she was familiar with our event and that everything would go off without a hitch. The week of our wedding, Nikki informed me we could stop in anytime to decorate that week since they had no other events before ours. I let her know we would be there Thursday. When we arrived Thursday, not only were things not set up for our event, it was absolutely FILTHY. The floors, tables, bar, and bathrooms were dirty. Absolutely disgusting. They sent up the maintenance man, who told me he did the set up and had no idea about our upcoming event. We went through how everything was supposed to be set up. He assured us it would be ready for Friday. When we came back Friday things were still not ready. Some things were clean and beginning to be set up. Still much more needed to be done. The same maintenance man was sent up and confused as to why we couldn’t decorate. I explained to him we needed the tables ready so we could decorate. So he puts the linens on the tables for us to decorate. Only to find out later that the tables were dirty still that he covered with clean linens. Therefore the linens were dirty. I pointed this out to him and he proceeded to clean our main table and put down more linens. Again assuring us it will all be ready the next day which was when our reception was to be held. Were things done at reception time. Yes, only because my bridesmaids showed up that morning to make sure things were done. They arrived, things were still dirty and left out. Some linens were still dirty probably due to being out over dirty tables. We kept our event small, only about 50 people, but we only had one person running our entire event. One person putting out the food, one person cleaning up the plates, and that same one person running the bar. My bridesmaids had to finish cutting up the cake for our guests. When I spoke with Cameron about my issues with our event, telling him everything that occurred because apparently he had no idea even though this is supposed to be his area to run. He not only was rude, but argued with me about the fact that it was done by reception time. Which I informed him was only because my bridesmaids made sure his employee did their job and got it done. I expected and apology and a discount on our bill. He very snidely told me I obviously have a number in my head and asked what that number was. I informed him that I did not have a number in my head but I expect an apology at least and we absolutely deserve some kind of discount, we pretty much made sure their employees did their job. In the end he thought a $50 discount was sufficient. Needless to say I will not be returning to Maggie’s again. And I certainly don’t recommend planning an event there. Correction after closer inspection of our bill we actually received no discount, they only corrected a mistake of charging us two more burger bar meals rather than kids meals. So they corrected that and gave us no...

We arrived, as a table of four, at around 2:30. There were a few other tables occupied, but the place was mostly empty. There were several employees working - cleaning and prepping mostly.

As our first time there, I was sincerely dismayed at the attitudes and service of the staff - speaking of our server in particular, but I'll round up to include the others. We were at a high-top in front of the bar; besides taking our order, delivering our food and delivering our bill, we did not see the server again at all. I would have liked a refill (as would most of the table) of our drinks during our meal; the bartender was cleaning the bar over and over again, and made herself a milkshake and was talking to other employees about it. Not once did any of the employees in our vicinity offer to get us refills or even smile in our direction.

Our server didn't smile at us once during the entire meal (or while seating us); when the bill was taken, under a cash transaction, there was about a seven to ten minute wait while she went between two registers, chatting with another employee. There may have been an issue tendering the bill, but it shouldn't have taken that long - it was cash.

I get we all have bad days - but the employees just didn't have an enjoyable persona, and if I was paying for the meal, the tip would have meager at most (luckily for our server, she received a tip that she did not even deserve by a different table member).

On the plus side, the food was fantastic. I had a buffalo chicken sandwich substituted on a ciabatta roll and it was delicious. The other persons at the table received various types of burgers and fries. The melted "cheese" was nasty but that's such a small part of the meal that it doesn't matter when it comes to the main meals themselves. Everyone who received a burger thought that it was fantastic. The plating was clean and appeared upscale; the fries were served in neat little miniature fry baskets. Other than the weird cheese, the meals were great (my ciabatta roll was upside-down, and I assume that it was done to not make the roll soggy, but it made it harder to hold in the chicken! Again, not a big deal).

So, TL;DR: Great food (5/5 stars) and crappy service...

What a great place to eat! They have it all, from the bar, to the food, and truly awesome views... If any of that sounds fun, you may want to give it a try! With a menu that offers options, flavors, and attempts to check every box, this is a place even a picky eater can really enjoy. This food is GREAT, the PRICES are a bit tough. Their Lobster Mac is around $23/plate, and apparently this is a jump from $13/plate. I understand and believe it was worth it, but without a lunch time or daily special, it's probably something you may only get once.  The cheese sauce for their Mac N' Cheese is some of the best I've ever tasted, with a creamy, salty/sweet , bold cheese flavor... you'll want it again and again. As a person who adores a gourmet Mac N' Cheese and delicious Lobster, their Lobster Mac is the best I've ever had! I wish I would've gotten a picture, the presentation is great! Just a bit too much to go back to for seconds and thirds!!! Who knows, maybe in a year they'll have a midday / lunch special! The Fish Taco's (fried) are super excellent as well, coming very highly recommended by travelers as well as locals, they didn't disappoint. Lastly, the Ranch and their south-western BBQ joint style menu items round out a great experience for a foodie and casual eater! There's something for everyone here, and even if you're a picky adult, you'll find you something here.

Pros: good selection, exceptional food quality, original flavor, great staff, great drinks (huge on tap collection), and great location/atmosphere.

Con's: The prices ( let me explain). Outside of the Lobster Mac, their prices are SUPER REASONABLE... $12 all the way to $23  is quite a jump... and we were told it just happened.  They say the Lobster Mac is their staple,  and I believe it,  just wish that they had a special or something... not only do I think ppl would visit again just for it, but they'd probably spend more time/ money there. It just felt like within all this greatness... they've marked up one of their most popular dishes and it makes eating here on a travel budget less likely/ fun.

It's great,  if you can,  try them out.  You'll love the riverside view and food,  just prepare...