Bowen's Landing

I wanted SO badly to love the food here. I read the reviews, checked out the menu online, and got excited to drive an hour away to eat here. Unfortunately, the meal disappointed on nearly every level. For the price, this broke my heart. First, my husband had to send back his sweet tea because it was unsweetened; then he was served ranch dressing with his salad rather than the vinaigrette he ordered. Our onion ring appetizer had good flavor, but the breading fell off of each one completely when they were picked up, leaving us with naked onions and crumbles of breading to consume separately from one another. My daughter’s cheeseburger was just that, a burger with cheese, on a bun. No lettuce or tomato, no condiments. Just meat, cheese, and bun. That wouldn’t even have been as bad if the bun wasn’t TWICE the size of the hamburger patty. The patty was literally 2.5” across. My husband said his Alfredo was ok, though a bit bland and nothing special. The real tragedy, though…. Oh the real tragedy was my meal. My baked potato was undercooked, but whatever. The grouper, though… it shattered my heart. I love grouper, but this grouper was much more fishy than grouper should be, and it had so much salt on it, it was inedible. Please understand: I am someone who LOVES salt. I eat things saltier than most people. I add extra salt to nearly everything. But I added NO salt to this, and it was OVERWHELMINGLY salty. I didn’t think I would ever sit down at a meal I found too salty, but tonight, I surely did. The only redeeming items on my plate were the lobster sauce and three tiny pieces of shrimp (yes, three PIECES, not three whole shrimp) that topped my sad, sad grouper. I tried to power through eating the fish and potato, but I literally could not. And did I have an opportunity to mention any of this to my server? No, no I did not — as I never saw her after the food was delivered until she brought our $70 check, sitting it on the table with a quick mention of “no rush” before disappearing as quickly as she had appeared. Her overall demeanor was pleasant enough, but she was certainly not attentive or interested in asking how our food was. I’m just so incredibly disappointed to have been repeatedly let down from the moment we got our drinks until the moment we got our bill.