Martine's RiverHouse Restaurant — Restaurant in New Hope

When you get to the river, turn right.

Having been advised to give Martine's a go, we made reservations in advance and arrived on time, hopeful to enjoy a meal along the Delaware. Sadly, the best part of the experience at Martine's was the river view (with live music, BTW!).

The disappointments began on arrival as the host seating patrons was less than cordial. Not the friendly face and happy demeanor one would want serving as the introduction to guests, he was in no particular rush and seemed off-put that he had a job to do with people now arriving. After being seated inside with a view facing the river, we were greeted by our server. We ordered waters while we reviewed the menu options. The waters arrived, one in a dirty glass with food on the inside and out, the other with a small bug floating in the water. Our server returned to take out orders and she was informed about the need to replace the drinks. A brief apology and about 5 minutes later and we had new waters in clean glasses, and were prepared to order our food.

One special that evening was a hangar steak dish, which was ordered. The second meal was the Scottish salmon. We also ordered the house-made ricotta toast and the hand-cut fries with aioli. There were no breads or other snacking options available while we waited for our meals. The apps came out with disappointing fanfare. Neither presentation would be considered "fine dining", nor were they worth writing home about: the toast lacked flavor and the fries were... fries (a large helping of ketchup was offered with the same sized dollop of aioli).

The wait for our entrees was about 35 minutes, during which time, our server only stopped to remove our appetizers; she failed to notice our empty water glasses and we each had to request more water when the entrees arrived. Both while waiting for our food, and during the meal, our server was less than attentive, not once returning to check on our food preparation or dining experience. During our wait, we took in the ambiance and found both the decor and the atmosphere lacking in cohesive style or vibe. Martine's appeared to be either between looks and trying to decide what to wear, or a mishmosh of accoutrements that failed to compliment each other. The was no real theme to the venue and it certainly didn't scream with style.

As for the food, itself, the hangar steak was flavorless and smothered in a sauce to attempt to season the steak somehow: this did not have the desired effect. The "nest" of potato stix served no artistic purpose and, as an accompaniment for the steak, was a weak side, at best. Likewise, the salmon was not seasoned (neither salt nor pepper was placed on the table, though I'm sure this was a precaution due to COVID-19), and was drowned in a sauce similar to the steak. If the goal was to offer mediocre entrees and flavorless meals, the mission was accomplished.

After finishing our meal, we saw one final opportunity to salvage the dining experience by ordering dessert (as this was one of the menu sections that enticed or sweet-tooths prior to booking our reservation). Having finished dinner and not seeing our server during the meal, it was no surprise that she did not return until almost 10 minutes after our entrees were set aside. She took our dessert orders without any charm or engagement, and did not return until 15 minutes later with one peanut butter pie and one chocolate mousse. The pie was nice, though not outrageous. The mouse was rich, but not flavorful. The server's timing woes continued as we waited for her to return and to bring the check, though this did provide additional time to gaze upon the Delaware River.

Given one star for the view of the river, and the other for the desserts (though middling, they were better than the entrees), Martine's did not live up to billing and is far from fine dining. Interested diners should note the waterfront upon arrival and, in my opinion, seek the walkway up the stairs to the right of Martine's. This will lead you towards Stella's and true fine food and dining on...

I truly don’t post reviews, but the experience I had here with my fiancé and his family was bizarre! We were testing the place out for a possible option for a 40 person rehearsal dinner for for our wedding later this year. My future mother in law is gluten free and vegetarian as well as has a nut allergy. I had noticed the dinner menu didn’t have gluten free vegetarian options but the lunch menu did. I called ahead and talked to a John on the phone and he assured me that they could accommodate to have the gluten free vegetarian option (which happened to be pasta) available and so we made a reservation for that evening.

When we arrived we were seated and waited at our table for about 10 minutes before being helped. We noticed no one had received food or a couple of people were finishing up, but at that time no one we could see was eating. There was only one waiter in our section and he was trying his best to keep up. When he did help us my fiancé ordered the scallops, his mother the GF pasta option (I was told would be available), his father the halibut and I ordered the Ratatouille. We also ordered the calamari, Tuna Niçoise salad and fried green tomatoes for the table. Reminder we were trying to test out the menu for our rehearsal dinner.

The waiter, who I felt bad for and I realize was just the messenger, immediately told us there was no Gluten Free pasta option. I told him I had called before and told him who I talked to , he left to talk to chef to confirm. He came back and told us there was gluten free pasta but it wasn’t prepared and so couldn’t be an option. At that point my fiancés mother had nothing on the menu she could eat. The waiter, feeling bad, said he would check again. He came back and said the chef was checking on it but then said “another thing”….that the halibut was out and that my fiancés father would need to pick something else and said they did have swordfish in the freezer and it could be prepared the same way. He changed his order to the scallops. The waiter also said the salad was no longer available so we just canceled that. We were still trying to figure out what my future mother-in-law could eat when the waitlist came back and said “I have some more bad news”. He motioned to a couple tables down and said they had just ordered the last Ratatouille and it was now out. I told him I would switch to the porkchops, at that point he told us that the chef wasn’t going to prepare the gluten free pasta even though it was available. At that point we decide it was best we leave.

I understand things happen and there are at times perfect storms. I in no way blame the waiter, but the establishment itself to allow all this to happen. Truly an unwelcoming and a train wreck of an experience. Needless to say we won’t be having our rehearsal dinner there. We were there for about 30 min and didn’t receive a drink or food. So just a warning before depending on this place for a meal or...

I was very disappointed in my last visit at this place. I found hair in my dish and told the waiter. The host showed up and said he will remove the the dish from my bill. I was not planning to have desserts, but he offered one for inconvenience. The rest of the meal was not the greatest either, the grilled chicken on the salad was dry and had no flavor. I did not complain about it. The desserts were offered to us by the waiter. To our surprise a second desert was served to us by the waiter as it was his favorite. When I got the check the dish with the hair was still on the bill, and the waiter explained that the desserts they gave us were to cover for that dish First off, I was not planning to order/buy any dessert at all that day, but it was offered to us for the inconvenience. So whatever the host instructed the waiter, and the waiter followed the advice very naively, was a kid's game to me and makes for a bad management and service. Regardless I tipped the waiter over 20%, because that is my norm or bad service, and this time it was even selfish service. Maybe the host and the waiter thought this guy with a funny accent doesn't know how to read the bill and they could just do anything with the bill and I wouldn't know. That is very insulting to me. I have spent some 14+ years in this business in the past, and what the host and the waiter did is uncalled for and bad for business. Tables in the patio are rusted, food has no signature taste and my incident says a lot for the management. Normally I tip 40% when service is great, so my tip of 20% is for bad service. Just wanted to put this out there since most of the folks tip 20% (no pun indented).

I guess my experience explains why this place was half empty when other restaurants in New Hope had one hour wait.

Never...