Stripers Waterside — Restaurant in Norfolk

Extremely Disappointing Experience During a Milestone Weekend

I made a reservation well in advance for a party of 9 during graduation weekend. The process itself should have been a red flag—when I called to book, I was left on hold for over 15 minutes. Once someone finally answered, she admitted she had forgotten I was on the phone because a large party had come in. While I appreciated the honesty and understood the circumstances, it reflected a lack of organization.

The day of the reservation, I called to ask if there was any possibility of pushing the time back slightly—just in case. I was told very firmly that it wouldn’t be possible, which we respected. But when we arrived 15 minutes early, we were told our reservation couldn’t be found and that the restaurant was fully booked. After several minutes of confusion and back and forth, they agreed to seat us and mentioned that someone named Mya had likely mishandled the reservation. Not ideal, but we were hopeful things would improve.

What gave us hope was that what appeared to be the manager, Christa, was assigned to our table. To streamline the process and be mindful of the staff’s time, we placed our full order up front—drinks, appetizers, and entrées. However, we waited over 25 minutes without any food or drinks. I finally approached the bar, where I was told that kitchen staff had called out due to graduation weekend and that they were extremely short-staffed. Again, we understood—after all, we were celebrating a graduation too.

Unfortunately, the food arrived completely cold, as though it had been sitting out for quite some time. The calamari and wings were especially disappointing. Still, we chose not to complain, given the earlier explanation. But the issues continued. Our drink orders had been entirely forgotten—despite reminding Christa several times. The Rockefeller oysters had to be sent back, and one of our guests received only their hush puppies because the fish sandwich hadn’t been entered at all. That dish was eventually boxed to-go, but it felt like an afterthought. My own food was also served cold, and I finally had to request it be remade.

What was perhaps most frustrating was how the situation was handled. Before we could even express any feedback or concern, Christa told us unprompted that “the only thing” they could offer was a free dessert. That phrase—“the only thing”—felt dismissive and rehearsed, as though they were fully aware of the poor service and had decided ahead of time how little they were willing to do to make it right. It wasn’t about the dessert—it was the tone and implication that our experience, despite all its issues, wasn’t worth more than that.

Even the complimentary dessert wasn’t handled with care. After giving us a list to choose from, she returned to say they were out of what we had selected. Then, she forgot to bring it altogether until we reminded her again. At that point, it just felt like insult to injury.

To end the night, the process of splitting the bill was drawn out and frustrating. Christa attempted to split the check four times and got it wrong each time, further delaying our departure. While she did remove a few items, the experience was already marred by disorganization, cold food, and missed expectations at every turn.

We understand that restaurants can have tough days, especially during high-traffic weekends. But this wasn’t just about delays—it was about a consistent lack of care, attentiveness, and accountability. Graduation is a once-in-a-lifetime moment, and unfortunately, our celebration was overshadowed by an avoidable series of missteps. We left disappointed, and I hope management takes this...

just dont order the sunday brunch buffet! brought my son there for brunch on his 21st birthday, he really wanted to go to waterside. chose steamers based on their seafood menu.

the good: floor to ceiling glass; there are no bad views of the waterfront. service was excellent. very good scallops on the brunch buffet, possibly the best i've ever had. lightly flavored, cooked perfectly. the small pork roast (tenderloin maybe?) was spiced just right. it was so tender, you could cut it with a spoon. very impressive!

the not-so-good: only 1 staff member served the buffet; several times we had to just stand there with our plate in our hand, waiting for the server to finish with the person ahead of us. poor coordination; why wasn't there a 2nd staff member ready??

the breakfast buffet ran $30/person. for that, i expected much, more more. instead of scrambled eggs, they offered dried up, overcooked quiche squares. most of mine ended up on the plate, headed for the trash can.

tried the fried rice with, of all things, capers. ew. no one wants rice to be hard and crisp.

belgian waffles; a huge disappointment. hard around the edges, heavy, dried, lukewarm at best. somebody beat the batter with a vengeance. pancakes? one look and i said no thank you. the menu said there were muffins and danish. either put out both or change your menu; no danish.

whoever is charge of making the muffins needs to take a basic course in baking. were the muffins reheated from frozen? leftover from last sunday's buffet? that would explain the texture; dry, heavy, crumbly. next time, try some tahitian vanilla in your batter.

the menu also mentioned an omelet station, which was the primary reason our party of 6 chose the buffet. when we asked about that, we were told the staff member in charge didn't show up at work that day! so this restaurant only has 1 person who knows how to make an omelet??

we paid $240 for a brunch that should have run, at best, $12.95 a person.

we aren't tourists; we live here. and if you want locals to come back, you'll need to step up your game. we don't want discounts on our meal. we don't want apologies. if you're going to charge a high price, make sure it's worth it.

right...

Tried Stripers for the first time during Norfolk Restaurant Week (August 2020). Compared to the other participants, they only offered a $35, 2 Course meal with 2 options: BBQ Ribs and Fried Rockfish. The Ribs came with Crab Mac & Cheese and we ordered Bread Pudding as the second course. The Rockfish came with Jicama Slaw and Carribean Potato Salad and we ordered Carrot Cake as the second course for this meal. We ordered one of each for take out, due to the Pandemic.

The Ribs The Ribs were a bit tough and the BBQ Sauce used tasted like something straight off the Kroger shelf. The Crab Mac and Cheese was tasty, but reminded me of Velveeta Mac and Cheese with a bit of Crab added in. Altogether, I would give it 2 out of 5 stars. The Bread Pudding was at least tasty and I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.

The Rockfish (one of my faves) I typically target restaurants that serve Rockfish during Restaurant Week because it is ALWAYS delicious...That held true until THIS time. The Rockfish was undercooked (still had Pink and Red), cooked in some parts and mushy in others (due to being undercooked). It had 0 flavor; the fish was not seasoned and had just been dredged, coated, and dropped in oil. The Jicama Slaw was OK at best, it was a bit dry; and the Carribean Potato Salad had too much of an ingredient or two (maybe Curry). So much so, that it tasted like a Musty Armpit (no other way to put it.). Collectively, I would give it 1 out of 5 Stars. The Carrot Cake was tasty, but could have been store bought. I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.

In conclusion, I am surprised that a seafood restaurant would serve seafood that was so underwhelming and undercooked. It was definitely not worth the $78 that I spent ($88 with tip.). In the end, we had to cook the Rockfish and Ribs ourselves, at home, to make them enjoyably edible. Not what I envisioned when I ordered and I will not visit this restaurant again. I should have trusted my gut and gone back to Freemason Abbey, as I did 3 other times during Restaurant Week. Freemason Abbey's food was exquisite and the Ribs there...