We got a recommendation from a local to try this place. Although the service was good and they were very friendly the food was mediocre at best. The thing that turned us off was the taste of the water and the smell of the dishes. I know that sounds weird but the water tasted like pond water. The steak was so so and the pasta dish my wife got was very bland and lacking in flavor. Over priced and not very good. Would not recommend!
Review Source:Steak was just marginally acceptable, but service was better. Â Pricey for what was presented.
The back room seating was very loud and quite dark. Â Vinyl tablecloth was sticky to the touch, which means to me that they need attention to details of cleaning.
I believe that two stars is being kind to this restaurant for tonight's performance. Â They have been better in the past.
It was our first time to Sandpiper, and I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. Â I was pleasantly surprised, they were very accommodating and friendly towards us and our children, though we were seated at a table very close to the bathroom, which had a suspicious door chain locked inside. Â The Lamb Lollipop appetizer was yummy and a good value, and entrees were as well. Â I had the jumbo shrimp and crab, which was excellent, and my husband had the ribeye special which was also good. Â Service was friendly, but lacking once the dinner rush picked up. Â We waited 10 mins for the waitress to check on us, just to ask for our check. Â There are plastic tablecloths, but I'm not that picky so it didn't bother me. Â And they did have cloth napkins, not paper. Â We were happy with the meal, but I feel the kids meal should be a set price, maybe $5, not individually priced. Â We will return to the Sandpiper on future visits.
Review Source:I was ready to give this establishment 3-stars until I read some other reviews and thought better. Â Good - The entrees (5 diners, all getting some seafood) were prepared very well but I thought they were on the expensive side for the ambiance of the resturant. Â Things that need Improvement - The place does not take reservations and for some reason (probably because this is a very small town and there are very few resturants to select) it was standing room only waiting for a table. Â The tables are covered with plastic table clothes and the silverware (I use that term loosely) looked and felt like it came from an army mess hall. Â Our server provided one small bagutte for the five of us. Â The house salad was very unimaginative, the dressing OK but served in a plastic cup. Â The wine list was OK but again pricey for the ambiance of the place. Â I would try other places before coming back here.
Review Source:Feels like sitting at a picknick table- complete with plastic table cloth and paper napkins. Water (and ice cubes) chlorinated to a degree where our taste buds could not tolerate it. The house salad looked suspiciously like supermarket mix, dressing the same. My soft shell crab was well fried and generously served but overall we still left disappointed.
Review Source:I've been to The Sandpiper three times since I moved to the area. It's a bit pricy, you can wait a long time for a table, but the menu offers good food and good service. The crowd tends to be the retiree set from the area, and visiting family.
The steak I had was excellent, as was the Osso Bucco my friend offered me a taste of. If you like standard American fare and seafood dinners, you would enjoy this place.
Scores (out of a possible 5)
Food: Â 3
My wife ordered the crab cake dinner ($22)  and I ordered the ribeye steak dinner ($28). Her crab cake was meaty and it had  good flavor, however, it was served only on the warm side. In addition, the potato she was served was small and the plate was bare. It was a rather sparse looking dish. I ordered my ribeye medium-rare and I got something more on the rare side. The searing looked good and the bleu cheese butter on top made for a great topping.  Overall the steak had a nice flavor.
The down side to the steak was the amount of fat on it. This was not marbling, but a lot of fat on the steak edges that should have been trimmed. The onion ring garnish was bland, but the mashed potatoes were excellent.
Service: 2.5
A reasonable amount of water refills, but no follow-up from the waitress after the dish was served. The minute I told her we did not want dessert, she produced the check.
Ambience: Â 2.5
We sat in a backroom, it had the interior of a trailer. Nothing special and somewhat tacky.
Price: Â 2.5
It was about $68 with no drinks ordered. We felt that we did not receive a $68 experience in any way. A fair price would have been $55 out the door.
Overall Value: 2.6
Average restaurant with expensive prices and a bloated reputation.
Suggestion:
Pay more attention to the quality of the food preparation and a more personable and attentive staff.
Alternative Recommendation:
Tides Inn
Evidently this was not a good "eat out" weekend for us. Â While in the Northern Neck we took my parents to one of our local haunts for dinner. Â We've been going to the Sandpiper for about 5 years, so not our first trip in for dinner. Â
No crowds on a Saturday evening at 5:30...partly due to the season and it was a bit chilly. Â Let me start by saying that the wait staff is always welcoming and happy to chat up their customers at any time. Â We sat down to a group in the back room cheering and flashbulbs flashing as a couple got engaged on the spot. Â (the Sandpiper, come on fella you couldn't think of something more romantic??)
Let me start with the good stuff - the seafood chowder was creamy and full o f crab, shrimp and clams. Â Mildly seasoned the roasted red pepper soup was quite acceptable, but the star of the bowl were the incredible chunks of lump crab which were tender and sweet. Â The salad is always crisp and the homemade blue cheese dressing is one of my favorites.
The main courses were as follows: Â prime rib - sent back and replacement wasn't any better-tough, inconsistent in doneness (I asked for rare and had a little bit among my well done-did they cook it in the microwave??), my mom's flounder was thin and soggy, my dad's salmon was fishy and overdone and my husband's shrimp were frozen not fresh. Â Needless to say none of us were pleased and there was plenty left on our plates.
I am always happy to pay premium price for excellent service and equally well prepared food, but my wallet was screaming at me as I signed off on our check...."are you kidding me?" Â This is certainly one time I should have listened to my mom and made a great home cooked meal!
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