Bethany Boathouse — Restaurant in Delaware

I wrote a very positive review of The Bethany Boathouse three years ago.

Wow, have things changed!

We were greeted by a sign that read, " Must Be Seated By Hostess". Looked all around and finally had to ask where is the hostess stand located? It was tucked inside the crowded bar, not out in the open view. The hostess was absolutely cranky & miserable. After the very gruff greeting, we were seated. Our waitress was the only saving grace for our visit. Her name is Alyssa S. Alyssa was very attentive, pleasant and always showed up at exactly the right time.

We had the nachos and quesadillas. The nachos serving size was half of what we had during previous visits. The quesadillas were bland and again half of what we were use to receiving.

A very large portion of their menu, including our order, has items smothered in a grotesque cheese sauce. This God awful cheese sauce kept both me and my wife up all night with upset stomachs.

The drinks were expensive and watered down.

The Bethany Boathouse had entertainment last night, Saturday June 9 2022 @ 17:00. They started 35 minutes late. This duo is normally excellent but something was seriously off with their main speakers. The house speakers (the speakers ones that actually worked) sounded great.

A huge thank you to Alyssa S. for her efforts.

The Bethany Boathouse was an all around fail last night. It's hard to believe that this place is owned and operated by the same owners of The Cottage Cafe.

We might return in another 3 years.

The Bethany Boathouse along with Bethany Blues are no longer on our list of must visit...

Came here for dinner on a Friday night and enjoyed live music with dinner and our friends.

The atmosphere is cute and it’s staged with items from a boathouse. The bar was a bit packed and people used the table for their drinks even though they weren’t sitting with us. We asked to be moved and there was no issue.

The Green Tea crush had way too much OJ in it and it overpowered the other flavors. Suggest instead asking for Jameson, Peach schnapps, ginger beer and a splash of sour mix. Our crew had the crabcakes (broiled) with coleslaw and waffle fries, chicken nachos, jerk chicken with veggies and rice and the lighthouse salad.

My husband said the crabcakes were good but he wished they broiled them a little longer. They were cooked through and hot but still a bit gooey. The coleslaw is creamy with a nice tang to it. The waffle fries were nice and crispy as well.

The jerk chicken was a 0/10. The chicken was marinated in spices but had no flavor and was dry. It was tender but that’s all it had going for it. The veggies seemed like frozen steamed veggies also bland. The rice was mush and pretty spicy for me. I couldn’t eat it which was unfortunate because it’s the only thing that had flavor.

The nachos were HUGE! Definitely enough to share with 4 people and too much for a single person even if for dinner.

The salad was a basic salad and the red onions were very strong but overall good salad and ranch dressing.

We’d come back as overall we had a nice time and enjoyed the acoustic music. It wasn’t too...

We recently patroned Bethany Boathouse on a rainy day after Labor Day. The restaurant was merely a third full. We were excited to see fish and chips on the menu with a description of the fish being breaded as it's frequently battered instead. For the simplicity of things, I ordered on behalf of my husband and I by stating, "We would each like to order fish and chips" (as I pointed to my husband and then myself). When the food arrived, only one plate of fish and chips arrived. Apparently the server misunderstood that "each" meant we both wanted our own meal, and instead, thought we were sharing. It was an honest misunderstanding, but when the server argued and stated that we claimed we were sharing, I was turned off by her attempting to pass the blame by lying. After our table was halfway finished with their meals, the fish and chips that I ordered initially arrived. What further turned us off was that the fish was NOT breaded as the menu claimed, but instead was battered. Additionally, it was MORE THAN APPARENT that the battered fish was deep fried ahead of each order and then reheated in the deep fryer prior to serving. It was mostly batter with very little fish, and again, was quite obviously cooked in advance and reheated. While no compensation was offered for the initial error, overall the prices...