Tavern by the Sea — Restaurant in North Kingstown

I was hoping to have a nice evening out with my girlfriend but this place ruined it. We come after the movie and sit around 8. I was very displeased when someone didn’t even greet us or ask about drinks until after I said something 15 minutes later It also didn’t help that they stuck us in a table in the very back corner of the deck by the bar. After waiting another 15 minutes I reminded our waitress that we had actually ordered drinks and finally got them. Another 10 minutes past that and we got our very subpar appetizer of the “Maryland” crab cakes. I’m from Virginia meaning I’ve had good ones (would not recommend from here) I decided if we hadn’t gotten our food for another duration of time we’d leave since I wanted to treat my girlfriend to something and this restaurant only made me very angry and short tempered. I asked for the check and paid for the app and left. I spoke to a manager who was just as useless for the wait staff and offered nothing to fix the problem. After working in the food industry you learn some things and there really isn’t an excuse for how bad the service was and for being completely forgotten and partially ignored since when I tried talking to someone they’d all just look away. After leaving I got in the car and went to Newport creamery which far outshined the awful service and experience of this restaurant. If you haven’t gone I hope you get a better time than we did. But I wouldn’t recommend wasting your...

I usually do not write reviews, but we had such poor service here that I felt the need to share. This was our first time at this restaurant, and we were looking forward to a nice evening by the water. We found this place on Google, where it came highly recommended.

Upon arrival, everything seemed promising. For a hot summer evening, we were expecting a 30-35 minute wait, but to our surprise, we were greeted and seated quickly. I went to use the restroom immediately after being seated and found there was only one restroom, resulting in a long wait, which was fine since I was making small talk with the other customers waiting in the same line.

When I returned, the waitress greeted me with a rude "Finally, what do you want?" Despite her attitude, we decided to place our entire order at once. I also asked for a drink menu and she took a deep breath and said well we have a full bar so just tell me what you want and we ca make it. She gave the impression that they did not have a drink menu. The food arrived and tasted great, but we had to flag her down to get ketchup. She never returned to check if we needed anything else, such as more drinks or refills on our water, or to ask how everything was.

As we were leaving, she walked past us without a smile or a goodbye, but just gave us a side glance. It was a nice night, and the restaurant was not super busy. The food was good, but the service...

I am a pretty easy guy to please. This place gets by strictly on its location because of the tourists. I have been twice. The first time we sat at the outside bar. When you order, the bartender leaves to go inside and place the order and then leaves again to go get the food. The result is really bad service. She was never there. The second time I just ordered a beer and a burger. The waitress brought me a very warm beer. One sip and I called her to the table and returned it. She didn't want to take it back saying all of their beer was warm. Finally, the owner came out with the same warm beer and poured it in a semi chilled glass. I would have left if it were not for the people with me just wanting to get something to eat. I can honestly say this was the worst restaurant I have ever visited. The staff and owner are actually rude. Their prices are high and the food is nothing special. Save yourself some grief and head south for a few more miles to The Willows where the food is great, the beer is ice cold, and they actually appreciate your business. I have a boat docked less than a half mile from Tavern By the Sea and would rather eat at a gas station than dine...