The Hawke — Restaurant in Lambertville

We've been regular customers of Inn of the Hawke in Lambertville for over 5 years now, eating there as frequently as twice a month. We like the atmosphere (especially the outdoor garden area in nice weather) although it can get noisy inside at times. The menu changes very frequently which is both good and bad. On the good side, it means that there is generally something new and enticing on the menu; on the bad side, if there's something you really like/enjoy, you're likely never to be able to get it again. Over the years, we've found the food to be good (not great, but certainly quite acceptable) and the prices to be reasonable, which is why we've come back many times. But our last two visits have been totally unsatisfactory. A couple of weeks ago, one member of our party ordered the Fish & Chips...a generally quite acceptable choice (and one that stays on the menu always). When he bit into one of the pieces of fish, he encountered something hard, inedible and noxious. He was so grossed out that he didn't want anything else to eat. Well, at least they didn't charge us for that dish. Tonight we decided to give them another chance. It was a mistake. First of all, we had to wait over an hour for our meals to be delivered. Their excuse: there were two large parties which caused the kitchen to be backed up. Obviously they had a problem--but that should not become our problem and it did. What's worse, when the food finally came one member of our party was presented with a Portobello Mushroom sandwich when what he had ordered was a Pork Loin sandwich. They offered to replace the incorrect order, but by that time it was too late...the rest of us had finished our meal and none of us wanted to sit there any longer. They obviously didn't charge us for the wrong order. But the whole experience left a bad taste in our mouths (except for the one person who didn't get anything to eat and thus had no taste in his mouth). We generally like this restaurant, but two unacceptable experiences in a row will make it difficult for us to return. These folks need to get their act together if they expect to continue in the...

Went here with a party of six recently. A problem that all restaurants suffer - noise level. Oh well.

Our waiter was pushy. Pushing for a drink order, pushing for the appetizers, pushing his (long) list of "specials", some of which were on the menu. Seems like the bartender (not really the waiter's fault) was a rookie. Among the six of us, five ordered cocktails. One was a Cosmo, one was a cognac. After the order, the waiter came back and asked the Cosmo guy how he wanted it...frozen, shaken, stirred, straight up, or room-temperature. Sorry, but that's just plain weird. Then he asked the cognac guy - same questions. What? No, cognac is served in a snifter, sorry.

Anyway, the appetizers were generally good. Sausage-stuffed mushroom caps and camarones were good, a nice thai-styled spicy sauce on the camarones. The Cob salad was so-so, but I've never been impressed by a wedge of iceberg lettuce.

My entree, a Filet Mignon was cooked just as I requested - medium rare. It had a nice crispy crust on the outside and was very tasty. It was not exactly hot when I got it though. I'm sure it sat for a little while before being brought out. Side of potatoes were plentiful and tasty. Another diner had the pork chop, which was massive, tender and he enjoyed it. Two others had halibut, which they also enjoyed.

The six of us shared the (10) mini-donuts with a caramel dipping sauce for dessert.

Three times during the evening, various diners were brought a celebratory birthday "candle", which was more like a Roman Candle. And three times, the ceiling smoke alarm went off. Each time two of the wait-staff quickly grabbed menus and started fanning the detector until it silenced. Note to the Hawke: Try something a little less spectacular, with less smoke.

I mentioned that the waiter was pushy, and of course, he pushed us again towards the end - clearing plates (removing) silverware in the process - and "Can I close out this account?" a few minutes later. I hate that!

Out the door, tip included, one cocktail and one glass of wine each. The bill was...

I gave this place two chances before making up my mind. My second visit sealed the deal. I dined regularly at inn of the hawke which was at this same location for over 20 years. Never even noticed a problem with bees while eating outside. The first time I went to The Hawke (different restaurant/owners) tons of bees circling the table, so much so you could barely eat your meal. Second visit, bees again but not as many bc it’s colder. Then I realized why - the hawke uses this overpoweringly fragranced table cleaner in between guests. It is so perfumed with lavender fragrance, not only is it nauseating to smell while eating a meal but it also lingers & attracts the bees! Why use a heavily perfumed cleaner in a dining area while patrons are eating? I’ve never ever smelled anything like that while dining at a restaurant. My first visit I thought a neighbor was doing laundry, and I thought it was odd because at this same location, I’d never smelled it before while eating outside. As soon as we were seated the second time, I smelled it again, and then saw that purple spray bottle being used next to us.

On to the food, first visit -burger was unimpressive, fries were very good and hot. Second visit- onion rings were good, overpriced shrimp taco special was underwhelming, but it took very long for our food to come out, so I started eating right away without really paying attention. When I went to eat the third taco I saw a hair in the food. It was mixed into the cabbage slaw and was not mine. Instantly turned my stomach. I told the waitress and she offered a new taco but I said no thank you, my appetite’s been put off by that.

Brings out the bill-no discount given, not even a $1 off the taco that I couldn’t eat, so we paid $20 for an order of tacos with hair in it. That’s disgusting to me. I will note that I’m not a Karen & tipped her 20% because she was a very good server but this visit left a bad taste in my mouth literally and figuratively, and I won’t...