Chinn's 34th St Fishery

First off, why do people love the garlic rolls so damn much?  It's a warmed roll swimming in a pool of garlic oil - swimming is the key word. Go to Olive Garden where it's endless breadsticks if you like crappy bread with way too much grease and garlic.

Self, don't order stone crabs at a restaurant unless the said restaurant has a reference to a Joe and has the said product in its name. This is a lesson I continue to learn since I love a good stone crab. The stone crab appetizer was not fresh. Looking back, I'm not sure why I tempted faith and ate it. When you smell shellfish at a restaurant because you think I as a funny smell, don't eat it.  Yes, I'm an idiot for eating it but when you go to a restaurant where the "jet" in fresh fish daily, a part of you thinks "it's gotta be fresh so maybe my nose is off.....right?"

The lobster bisque tasted suspiciously of chicken base in too much cream.  

Dover sole meunière deboned tableside when done properly is artful, however, the server really ended up butchering the fish though the server did ask my wife if she wanted the roe sack to be served, which I though was a nice gesture. The delicate flesh of the Dover sole was overpowered by the amount of sauced. Shameful really.

Finally the frog legs.  When given the option of sautéed or fried, my better judgment for a lighter option steered me to the sautéed.  Lighter?  In the voice of Lee Corso, not so fast my friend. The frog legs were floured then sautéed, which I have absolutely no problem with. The problem comes in when they then put the frog legs in a shallow bowl where it sits in a pool of butter, leaving the frog legs with a gloppy mess of a breading doused in butter.

I guess the Paula Deen in the overweight population of America would look at this and say WTF?  You can't have too much butter!  However, you'd be wrong. A fresh piece of fish, any fish as long as its fresh, should be complemented by the sauce and not overwhelmed by it.

Consistently good food and service. If you like seafood I think its a must stop.

I used to depend on Chinns for consistent stellar food and service - I like their long term servers but my last experience was so bad that I probably won't go back again (well maybe for 1/2 price crab on Mondays only if in a group of friends - but prolly opt out for something better). Wanted to sit at bar and have a quick bite for lunch, I was so hungry! Bartender was being frenzied and frantic about needing to print menus for dinner - the "printer was broke" - whatever, he refused to serve me but I watched him serve other tables outside the bar the entire time I was there. Lame start. Food ok - huge salad and I added a tasty crab cake but "crab cake sauce" icky mayo nastiness. The lady server who ended up helping me was real nice and professional but being put off by the amateur bartender was offensive. Regular manager man wasn't there just some young bloke walking around who didn't even say hi. Busser a walked by my dirty dishes multiple times. Keep up the groupons chinns - because with such lack luster service - you will have to keep going somehow! And wtf why were the bar tables unset with a bottle of nail polish sitting on one - that is just a big no no