Boathouse Restaurant

My wife and I made reservations for 10/25/2008 at 6 PM. We called from our hotel in Duluth and were given good directions, arrived on time, and were seated immediately. We ordered 2 glasses of wine. The wine was not very good and we asked to send it back and get something different. At the end of the meal (delicious trout and elk dishes), we were surprised to be billed for the bad wine. The owner came to our table and was very rude, refusing to take the charge off our bill. I've absolutely never been treated this way in any restaurant in my entire life. His attitude completely ruined what could have been a very nice evening. We will never eat there again, and cannot recommend it. The better choice would be The New Scenic Cafe a bit north of Duluth. Pros: Good food Cons: Bad wine, rude owner/manager more

Just don't. Several people in the Duluth/Superior area suggested this was a good place to eat, but don't be fooled. This was the blemish on an otherwise delightful couple of days of dining in the area. While the location right on the lake shore was nice this was a pretty awful dinner experience. Despite our reservation a table was not held for us, then the table that was finally cleared for us was given to somebody else. We were served bad wine and the owner made us pay for it anyway and the service overall was slow, disorganized, and prone to mistakes. While the wood-grilled trout and mushroom pastry were both decent, they were accompanied by unremarkable sides and dull desserts and by no means made up for this truly disappointing dining experience. Sadly, the best part of our visit to the Boathouse was when we left, never to return (at least the drive across the bridge back to Duluth offered a nice view). Avoid this place like the plague. Pros: Nice location on the lake. Cons: Poor service, the owner made us pay for bad wine, and the food was unremarkable. more