Joey C’s Boathouse

Food was okay. Speciality tacos were a little pricey and did not have much flavor. Mediocre at best!

I was very disappointed in my experience here. I had the unfortunate luck to have the most miserable waitress out on the dock, for myself and two friends. She was verbally upset that we had ordered drinks at the bar before being seated (which the hostesses suggested that we do since we had an hour wait for a table). We recieved a text for our table within twenty minutes, but then had a hard time leaving the bar with our drinks. We had to settle our tab before moving to a table– since they would not transfer the tab away from the bar.
Once we were seated and ordered appetizers (which she told us to do since the kitchen was so backed up because it was busy), she told us we could not sit on the dock because the table was reserved for people ordering dinner, not just appetizers. We told her that we had tickets for the live music event (stage was in front of us) and she said it didn’t matter. She made the rest of the night difficult and had us waiting over twenty minutes for our second round of drinks but was very quick to bring the check once we tracked her down and asked her for it. She then quickly went to another table of her friends to chat for about 5 minutes before coming back.
Even when we were leaving there were multiple tables open and no one was waiting for tables the entire time we were there. Safe to say, we will not be coming back.

So my future wife suggested we visit the boat house again tonight. We love the food but last visit was no so great. Tonight, a Wednesday night after a long day of work it was the last thing I wanted to do.
We drove around the parking lot trying to find a spot. Eventually we were successful. Walked up to the door and the patio/​dock was packed. It was a beautiful night.
We were greeted and seated. Within a few minutes our server Dawn was ready to help us. We ordered a picture of sangria to start. So much faster then last visit. It was like a different ball game. We placed our order and enjoyed a great meal. Again we love the food.
For a night out during the week it was a great experience and all within an hour we were in and out. We could of stayed but they took care of us along with the other tables is such a great manner it totally changed our out look on this restaurant.
Thank you for a great dinner, epic service, and the best peanut butter pie I have ever eaten. (Love peanut butter).
We will return. Thanks again. Everyone should give them another try. It seems as though Joey and his crew are working it all out very nicely.

First time at this location and will definitely return. Awesome atmosphere on the patio by the water. Meagan was our waitress and was awesome. We got the El Gigante nachos and beware they are exactly that. It brought a lot of attention from people of how large this appetizer is but was so good. We only ate less than half and took the rest to go but they put so much bbq chicken on it that you can make a couple sandwiches out of it. Very cool place.

Such a huge improvement since it first opened. Joey listens to his patrons and does his best to act on their suggestions. Great atmosphere. We were waited upon as soon as we sat down. The food is excellant. I have a gormanders club and believe me this is good food. Enough food to usually have a bit to take home. Very obliging. By the size of the crowd Saturday about 5pm this restaurant is a hit. Now if they would only improve their cosmopolitans I would be here every week. No where to go but up up up Joey! Good luck to you and your great staff.
BU

Nothing like being completely ignored. Beautiful day and we sat at the outside bar. No acknowledgment for 10 minutes. We almost left. The bartender finally gave us menus and then left without taking our drink orders. We had to flag her down for everything we wanted. She was not happy that we were eating at the bar. Food was okay, not great. Loved being outside but will probably not return because of the rude service. A shame too because this could be a great place.

I absolutely love the food and drinks at Joey C’s. Stratford (and much of CT!) is a food wasteland… that is not the case here! The flavors are fantastic, the menu is exciting and I am drooling thinking about those margaritas. I would literally change only two things: the salsa is not liquid… it is salsa crudo. Why not offer a more American style salsa too (for kids and kids at heart?) And the chili con queso (at least the day we had it) was the saddest thing I ever put in my mouth. Bland is an understatement. If I am ever told they change the recipe, I will try it again… but it’s CHILI con queso! It should have chilis in it!

Love love love the location. The white sangria was just ok — very pricey for a small pitcher $ 24. We stopped in for lunch and got the queso w spicy shrimp & mussels for an appetizer. The queso was ok — they don’t give you much shrimp. The mussels were good. I got the lobster roll and it was amazing. I would definitely got back for that and highly recommend it!

Very good food, helpful options if you are eating Paleo or gluten free. Just about everything on the menu is gluten free or can be. Their gluten free buns and rolls are amazing, and I mean as good or better than regular rolls.
Overall the food all tastes good and you can tell that attention has been spent on the flavor combinations. There is definitely a chef in the back that cares about his product.
I recommend the SOS burger, with grass-​fed beef. You will not regret it. And try one of their infused tequila shots!

I waited to check this place out, because of the mixed (mostly bad) reviews. We were seated right away and given options where we wanted to sit which was great. The location is awesome, but for some reason no restaurant can succeed. We waited a while for our server, a good 10+ minutes for our drinks. The restaurant was not busy and with two bars that is NOT acceptable. Our app was definitely forgotten. You scoop guac into a bowl and add some chips not too difficult. The food was great at first, then immediately felt like rocks in our stomachs. We all felt sick after. Needless to say we will never return. This all boils down to bad management. Hopefully for their sake someone helps them get their act together.

As a loyal supporter of Joey C’s, being one of the few barbecue places in Connecticut I can enjoy on odd weekends, I was very excited when I heard that Joey C’s was making another location. I thought it a good idea to head over there one spring night with my family.
This place is unbelievably satisfying. The location is nice, right on the water with a great view of the bay. The food is delicious, cooked just right and made with extra care. I had the SOS Burger, a delicious amalgamation of angus beef and buttery lobster. You heard me right, LOBSTER. The service was friendly, and definitely pleasant. You could tell that they enjoyed their job.
I cannot stress enough that is was a satisfying experience and I will definitely come here in the future.

Finally got around to checking this place out for an early dinner (4pm) yday. Had read some reviews and expected slow service so wasnt surprised. Took 15 minutes to get our water (place was not busy) but the service was better than the food. Best thing we had was the pico de gallo and guac with chips. Both pretty good. The krabby patty (crab cake sandwich) was pretty bad, all you could taste was Old Bay seasoning. Second, the child meal of pulled pork and mac and cheese was awful. Not sure what cheese they use (goat combo?) but not even the adults liked it. The black beans had so much cumin that was all you tasted. In the end ($ 100 for 3 adults and 1 child) we all decided they had someone in the kitchen that has no idea how to cook, pouring spices instead of seasoning with them. Sad as a nice location on a summer day on the water. Will not be going back.

Arrived today around 4pm and the place was very inviting. Lots of natural light and plenty of great space when it gets just a little warmer.
Nice selection of beer on tap and a wonderful Sauvignon blanc that I typically don’t expect with this type of place.
Food was awesome and I am one to find something slightly wrong w most things! My biggest problem was not knowing what to pick off the menu because so many items sounds delicious.
Happy hour has a nice selection of $ 5 apps. Ordered a turkey chili taco (omg), chicken taco and wings. Wings were about an 8.5. Good sauce, right amount but could of been slightly crisper. I’d get again though.
Gf and I split the burger that had blue cheese and it was honestly one of the best I’ve had in CT. Medium rare plus was perfect, juicy and could taste a little char. And the fries were sooooo good. Very seasoned and plenty of em.
Really considered the cannoli ice cream sundae but I was too full.
Based on other reviews I wasn’t expecting a great experience. Hopefully it wasn’t a fluke but I think this place is here to stay for a long time!

Got turned away from Off the Hook (wasn’t happy how we were made to feel) so we ended up at Joey C’s because my daughter’s wanted to try it out. (see my review of our first time here).
PLEASANTLY SURPRISED.
We were seated within 10 minutes, place was jumping so no issue. Waitress was over and taking orders within another 10, no issue. Great start.
Then, our App’s come out, delicious. We’re happy, then… Almost 10 minutes later (see the theme) our dinners arrive. 4 people at a little tiny table about ½ into our appi’s look at the runner and say: uhhhhhhhhhhhhh…
To the warming lights they go. We get them back about 15 minutes later, soggy, kinda warm but def not dinner hot ready to be served.
Oh, well… It was a good start.
Food overall was very good. I will go back again.

I have been here numerous times since they have opened hoping they would get their act together and today I was disappointed with both the food and service yet again. The service was extremely slow. We had a party of six and the restaurant was not busy and we found ourselves waiting almost 15 min for our drink order to arrive, took for ever to take our food order and actually arrive. The chips and salsa for the table took about 15 min to arrive too. The folks that ordered the burgers to be cooked medium got them well done. I ordered the tuna tacos that was supposed to have «fresh» guacamole and the guacamole served on it was brown. The only thing that was actually good was the blood orange margarita– it had fresh squeezed juice!
This has been a consistent experience every time I tried this place. I love their sister property in Milford and was hoping this place would get it together and they have not. I am done wasting my money there and this was the last time I will dine at the Boathouse!

Firstly we were seated not far from the large bar crowd which made the restaurant very noisy. we ordered the cheese dip with chip which was salty but tasty. However our entrees were brought out way too soon and we barely got to eat the dip. My hamburger was marginal — with a square slice of American cheese on top. Lots of fries and they were good. My husband has the ribs and said he enjoyed them. All in all a pretty poor experience and we won’t be returning.

Not a very good experience. We patiently waited for a table on the patio which took about 20 min. We didn’t mind the wait since it gave us time to look at the menu and enjoy the view. Once seated, the service was pretty poor. I understand it was extremely busy, however, we had a difficult time getting refills on our drinks. We ordered nachos for an appetizer. They came out within 5 minutes of ordering. That wasn’t the problem. It then took our waitress 30 min to take our dinner order and our food took another 30 – 45 min to come! Once we got our food, 1 of the orders was wrong and 2 were cold and the servers serving the food were very confused and scatter-​brained (that’s being nice).
I got the Mac Daddy (pulled pork over Mac and cheese) which was extremely salty!!! My mom got the chicken and steak fajitas which she ended up not eating since she thought it was salty as well.
Overall, I would pass on this place and probably won’t be back! Poor service, food was below average and prices were very high! Not worth it!

Best place in Stratford ! Great service and view of the water. Food is over the top delicious. Get the Brussels sprouts w bacon or buffalo nachos! The pepperoni nachos are great too.
The owner and his wife and managers are caring and actually give a damn!
This place is good for all occasions.
Totally ask for Morgan the waitress– she was the best!!!

Great product and location but they need to work out the kinks with the new computers and staff — the plates went to a few wrong tables before they made it to the right one and our food was luke warm by the time it made it to us. Judging from their past locations this place will shape up and hopefully be the restaurant that sticks in this location which has been a revolving door for years.
I really look forward to coming back here and changing my review from three to five stars.

Came here for Happy Hour with a friend and we were excited to try a new place! They have outdoor seating and a big dining area with cute décor. We took a seat at the bar but sadly our experience was annoying and slow. They had just had their soft opening and were working off of a limited menu. Our bartender was nice and informative and took our food and drink orders. But once we received our food and drinks she never checked in on us again.
The drinks were good and are $ 5 during happy hour. The food was bland and mediocre. I had the calamari and was confused to find there was no dipping sauce, only a drizzle of some house sauce right on top. My friends ordered the wings which were lukewarm and lacking in flavor. We were hungry and didn’t finish our meals.
The best part was getting our check and having to wait about 15 – 20 minutes for one of the THREE bartenders to notice. Credit cards were sticking out and had the check holder right at the edge of the bar. Then we switched the check holder to make it stand and see if that helped, FYI it didn’t. We called a bartender over and then they charge everything on one card when there were two in the check book.
Hopefully they get better, I really wanted to like this place.
Oh and the TV’s are really high if you’re at the bar. Like break your neck sitting in the front row of the movies high.