The Pirates' House — Restaurant in Savannah

This was recommended by the party we were traveling with as being “great,” so admittedly our hopes were high. Ultimately, the best parts about this restaurant had little to do with the food and more to do with the experience. I’m all for themed restaurants, outfits, parties… this place didn’t disappoint in that! I would say the food is odd and slightly above average for some dishes. And we tried a lot of the menu!: Fried calamari, shrimp gumbo, corn cakes with blackened shrimp, kid’s meal hot dog and fries, and a filet. Oh, and the cornbread little muffins are pretty yummy, but I was hoping for honey instead of marmalade that they give. The fried calamari is unlike any I’ve had - it is covered in a pesto butter sauce and served with a side of marinara larger than the serving of calamari! I couldn’t finish it all because of the rich sauce, and calamari is something I seldom leave in a plate. Calamari should be the item to shine on a calamari plate, not the sauce and marinara. If you need that much, something is missing in your breading. (My brother joked we should ask for a side of spaghetti since there was enough to make another dish.) The filet was huge (8oz) with a yummy brown sauce. I only had a bite, but it made me second-guess what we ordered. The gumbo was not my favorite - very acidic with a the roux seeming to be mainly tomato-based and slightly unbalanced. Again, I was missing a mixture of flavors with some layers. Another dish I hardly have leftovers of when I order, I passed this on to another in my party. (The shrimp was really well-cooked, however, but it was tail-on. Just FYI!) Corn cakes someone else got were large, and we all discussed if we’ve ever had corn cakes that look like pancakes (really big and flat). She ate them all, so I’m guessing they were good.

The restaurant I would say is super kid-friendly as far as the seating goes, but the treasure chest full of dumb-dumbs to grab after dinner was a hit. As was the pirate hat you could form out of the menu after ordering! The hotdog was a “no” from my daughter (very oily), but my son ate it. To be fair, I’m pretty sure he did that to get more fries. The fries were good but cold! I was surprised.

The server seemed to be busting his behind. He was kind but slightly frazzled. I don’t know how many tables he might have had, so I certainly didn’t hold it against him. He was also quick to get everything we needed (aside from a chair - they miscounted how many we needed and I had to stand for a while, waiting), and he really did deliver good service.

The gift shop upstairs is a nice way to wait for an available table, though everything is way overpriced. Of course. (A kid’s XS shirt is $28. Stuffed turtle that looks like it’s from the dollar store $12. Stuffed turtle that looks like it could be from Target $20.) It’s still fun to look around!

It was raining, but the outside is pretty sweet! We didn’t realize that there was parking to the side of the building, so we paid for street parking out front. Pretty easy and a dollar an hour. All in all, I’m not sure I would go back for anything I had, but I might try the filet and/or the French fries. The atmosphere is fun, but don’t expect your experience to be...

If your menu advertises "The Best" anything, a food connoisseur, like myself, will always be highly skeptical of its claim.

Let me begin by saying that if you wants good food at an affordable price with a great ambiance.This is not the place for you!

Enter this rustic restaurant in which reservations that were made were honored, and we were quickly seeded to our table. The problem with that seating is that it took us all the way to the very back of the restaurant, which resembled a old crypt like setting. The positive of that is that I was able to see my vehicle from outside, the negative is that it was very, very cold, and because the restaurant does not have any Central heating or cooling. Small ceramic heaters were placed in that area. Even though I am very welcoming of cold weather, my significant other is not and needless to say, the heaters did not do their job.

The server, who explained the specials on the menu did not go into detail with one of the seafood specialties, which was supposed to be halibut, but ultimately was rainbow trout. What was stated was that it came with a example crab cake, but when my spouse receive turmeal it was lump crab meat that covered the rainbow trout. Her fish had more of a gamey taste that wasn't fresh whatsoever. If you add that along with the fact that the meal was night typing hot, I think that was a recipe for disaster.

I ordered what was dubbed the best honey. Pecan fried chicken in georgia!! What I received were several pieces of chicken that were not fresh. Seemed dated with no crunch or flavor profile, with the exception of a sloppy drizzle of honey and serb. Layton pecans scattered all over the chicken. The vegetables that accompanied the check-in. Weren't the best? And neither was the the finger link potatoes, which I could tell we're not home made, but from it a box mixed.

Whenever you visit an establishment for the very first time. First impressions are always long, lasting impressions. And the impression that was left on me and my wife suggested that this would not be a place worth visiting in the future.

I know that everyone has their own flavor profile and taste buds. But considering that I am a New York City guy with South Carolina, southern roots that has traveled across the world. Eat in at Michelin star restaurants and every place in between. I can safely say that. Speaking on eating different types of food would constitute me to have some type of expertise in this field.

There are much better places in savannah, and the low country that offer a plethora of inviting dishes that tintalize the palate and leave you satisfied wanting more the next go around. This is one of the places that do not make the cut.

One caveat that I would like to add is that the only thing that was worth the experience of dining there? We're uh, the homemade cornbread muffins, an apricot jam, which were pleasantly appealing to the nose and to the taste buds. It's a shame that we're only able to be offered two of those, and there pre made biscuits again, felt like an abysmal attempt at southern...

GOOD…BUT NOT GREAT…

Let me start off by saying I usually love the Pirates’ House. We have come here multiple times, and we have always had a good time and enjoyed our dinner and drinks with family and friends.

We decided to go again tonight to celebrate an occasion, and the celebrant had never been, so we thought why not take him there.

The history of the Pirates’ House to me is very interesting, and I love the atmosphere and history behind it.

We made reservations for 6:30PM, got there a little early, and were immediately seated.

The temperature was a little warm and humid in the restaurant, but not intolerable.

Our waiter was very attentive, and brought us our menus and water very quickly.

He took our drink and appetizer orders very quickly as well.

The drinks were great. We had four frozen peach daiquiris, two Chatham County Artillery Punches, a Scofflaw IPA, and a Skull Crusher.

For appetizers, we had the Savannah Crab Dip and the Low Country Spring Rolls. The spring rolls are usually better. These seemed a little dry and stale, like they had been sitting under a heat lamp for a while. The pita bread was a little stale as well. The crab dip was tasty though.

For dinner, we had two Shrimp & Grits, one chicken tender basket with fries, one Seafood Harvest Platter, and one of the Blackened Snapper meals.

I had very fond memories of their Shrimp & Grits from previous times I had dined here. This time around, however, was an exception. The grits were a little bit too gritty, and were not as smooth as they had been previously. Like they were dried out. The sausages seemed a little dried out, and the presentation was not as good as I remembered it. It seemed like it had been sitting under a heat lamp for too long as well. My daughter had the same meal and said the same thing.

The Seafood Harvest Platter was great and a ton of food, which was actually too much for my wife to eat. But she thoroughly enjoyed it.

The Blackened Snapper meal was very good as well, but the collard greens had too much vinegar and the stems should have been removed.

The bill for all of this with a 20% tip came to $347.06. Had the meal been how it was previously, I would not have minded paying this amount.

This time around, however, the Pirates’ House was disappointing. The Shrimp & Grits were so underwhelming that I might not have them again at this restaurant.

We will probably come back to the Pirates’ House the next time we are in Savannah, because we like the ambience, and usually the food is better. However, I feel that tonight was definitely a step down from our previous experiences there. (Is this the new post-COVID norm for restaurants??)

For those thinking about eating at the Pirates’ House, I can tell you that tonight‘s meal was not their best effort, and they are usually better. I hope that this is not the new standard for them, and tonight is a one off, but only time will tell. It is worth checking out this restaurant, and hopefully you will have a better experience than we...