Back Bay Boathouse — Restaurant in Wolfeboro

I was SO disappointed with our entire experience here. I called on a Thursday to reserve a table for 9 people on Sunday at 6pm for a bachelorette. I was told no problem and they took my name. I called Sunday morning to let them know the reservation had changed to 7 people and they "couldn't find my reservation". I panicked. I assured her that I had called and spoke to a young lady who had to ask her manager if they could do such a thing. The girl on the phone didn't acknowledge my comment but just said "well what time do you want to come in?" She took my name, again, and I was told there would be a table at 6pm inside. I expressed that we had requested one outside in the original reservation and were upset that not only had they lost our reservation, we were now losing that special view. She proclaimed there was nothing she could do about it and she'd see us at 6pm.

Upon arrival she, ONCE AGAIN, could not find my reservation. I had literally just spoken to her a couple hours prior. She begrudgingly sat us at a table and provided only 4 menus for 7 people and told us to share.

Our waitress was the only saving grace of this experience. She seemed a bit new but was attentive, friendly, and all around a pleasure to have. Unfortunately, we can not say the same about the food and drink. First of all, they CHARGE $5 for BREAD... for 4 small rolls of bread you have to PAY $5! I know restaurants are struggling but this is preposterous. Second, two people ordered drinks containing soda. The soda, confirmed by everyone at the table, was flat. We mentioned something must be wrong with the carbonation (we work in the restaurant industry and know that can happen). The waitress brought back new drinks after assessing the situation and those, too, were flat.

Another member of the group ordered baked haddock. The waitress was honest in her mistake and let us know she had put in fish tacos by accident. We accepted the mistake and the waitress removed that from our tab. We were certainly grateful for that at least.

The most frustrating situation, however, was with the bride to be's meal. She ordered the steak and rice bowl cooked medium. When the dish arrived at the table the steak was rare. I mean purple RARE. I love rare meat and I wouldn't have eaten that. The waitress was astonished, took it back to the kitchen, and we received it back after everyone had already finished their meals. The bride, who hates leftovers, just took it home at that point. Even then, it was still not cooked properly.

Finally, being forced to sit inside, we couldn't even have a conversation. The room was so loud that we pretty much sat there in silence trying to process everything that had happened. After our experience there, I wouldn't recommend this...

We called Back Bay Boathouse as a last resort for a rehearsal dinner for my sister's wedding. We originally were supposed to have a food truck at the venue for a rehearsal dinner but the venue told us misinformation and we were no longer permitted to do that. After calling around multiple places and venues to find a place to host a rehearsal dinner, we were either turned down or the prices were way more than we wanted to spend. Feeling defeated we decided for the price of everywhere else we could just go out to eat at a restaurant. I came across back bay boathouse and saw they had outside seating on the water which I thought would be wonderful. My cousin called them and had nothing but wonderful things to say about the manager and how nice she was (which was already promising considering what we had dealt with so far). The manager informed us that they could absolutely host our estimated 30 guest count outside and if the weather was not permitting they could move us inside. She also told us we could choose anything off the menu to have buffet style for our guests. Upon arrival they were already so nice and welcoming and had everything set up and organized outside beautifully for us. The outside deck was wonderful and was perfect for our event. We had a veggie platter, Buffalo tenders and Mexican egg rolls for appetizers and steak tips, chicken broccoli Alfredo, rolls and salad for dinner. The food was absolutely delicious!! I cannot speak highly enough about this place. We had one server handling our big group and she was so attentive and phenomenal! She kept up with all our drink orders and put up with our crazy group! The manager also checked in a few times asking different guests how everything was. I am a chef myself and let me just say this place did everything right and beautifully. Delicious food, wonderful atmosphere and attentive staff. Thank you so much for...

Have visited twice. August 2024, my wife and I shared a super lunch on the deck on the shore of the Back Bay on a perfect, sunny summer day. Couple of great sandwiches and glasses of wine—perfect lunch.

So we decided to return on Friday, June 13 for dinner on a night out. What a dismal meal. My wife had an wholly unremarkable shrimp scampi that lacked garlic, seasoning and any real semblance of flavor. Even the shrimp tasted like it was boiled and devoid of residual flavor. The rotini pasta was a plain, out-of-the-box rehydrated disappointment.

I had what I thought was a signature dish: Back Bay Chicken-an unbelievably bland, flavorless dish with a par-boiled cutlet of chicken served over a bed of rotini, bacon, broccoli and cheese sauce. (Thank God for the bacon bits!) The same “banquet-chicken” pasta that spoiled my wife’s plate, graced mine similarly. Blah, only partially exposed to the sauce. Will be hard-pressed to give that another go if we ever decide to go back. First time I haven’t cleared a plate in a long, long time—wasn’t worth it.

The staff was generally pleasant, but disinterested. We were seated promptly by the hostess, but were ignored by her as we passed to exit the restaurant—more interested in doom-scrolling on her phone than to ask about our evening or say good bye. I know these kids live on their phones at home, afterwards and in school—but on paid time? I know it’s hard to find good help, but that’s a management’s responsibility to train a young employee and set guidelines.

Great location, good bar selection, but a mediocre meal. Will probably not return...