Holy Moley! Decent meals at Matakeese Wharf

[CapeCodGuy]

We heard that Kenny, the chef at Matakeese in Barmstable Harbor of 26 years, had finally left for other opportunites. This has gotta be a good thing we think, so we take our visiting relative for dinner last Friday night. In the interest of full disclosure I must admit I've always had a soft spot for the room and its view as I waited tables there one summer during college. Kenny had stared cooking there the summer before I got there, and his skills were generally adequate, never spectacular, and sometimes fell far short of the mark. The new chef is "Eddy" and at first tasting ,is a reasonable improvement. The food is still never going to be featured in a Michelin guide, but is now a notch above the past. We sampled a terrific clam chowder that was honestly the best chowder I've had in several years. House salad was fresh mixed greens with carrots, onion, cukes, and grape tomatoes. Wedge salad was typical preperation. Dressings tasted homemade verses the old Sysco tub versions. Rolls we upticked, too. I had the Ciopino which was cooked perfectly with cubes of sword and halibut, clams, shrimp and sea scallops in a tasty broth. My wife had a filet of beef that was cooked as ordered with crisp green beans, and baked potato. Our guest had grilled swordfish with homemade salsa. All basic fare but cooked well. The ingredients seemed to be of higher quality than in past visits. The prices are high given the simplicity of the food, but portions are reasonable, and let's face it, one pays a premium for the view and setting. Service was both friendly and efficient. Nice to know one can go here and get a decent meal.

[ShelT54]

We had a nice lobster dinner last Friday. Service was attentive, appetizers of littlenecks, lobster gazpacho and caesar salad were good too, as was the breadbasket. No complaints.

[c oliver]

I detest cucumbers but Jimmy, the bartender, considers himself a connoiseur of gazbacho and thinks theirs is very good.

[CapeCodGuy]

Spent an hour at the bar tonight and thanks to the recs here enjoyed the experience. The lobster gazpacho was a bit bland until I saw a bottle of tabasco on the bar and gave it a dash or two. I swear it transformed the soup enhancing all the flavors of the tomatoes, onions, etc. I was very impressed with the amount of lobster in a cup as I had two whole claws, and quite a bit of knuckle and tail meat. Tasted fresh picked and delicious. A value, IMO at $7.00. I also had the Cod Bites. What you'd expect, fried small pieces of fresh Cod. It was cooked well and a good sized serving for $9.00. The sun was setting, yet the place was only about 1/3 full. Sad to see as it's a place that used to pack them in. Worth a stop for the view alone. Order the right things and it's a notch above what it was in years past.

[CapeCodGuy]

Good to hear. I suspect if you order correctly, a fine meal is available. Your experience bears this out!

[c oliver]

We ate there (at the bar each time and for lunch only) three times over ten days and liked it alot. The first time we had the fish and chips which was a large-ish filet of cod that had a light breading and then pan-fried (I'm making that up but I think that was the treatment). Really good. The next time we had fried clams and loved those also. But we're from the Left Coast and every clam we had out there was great in our book. A *neighbor* at the bar insisted we have one of his stuffed Quaihogs and again we really liked it, having nothing to compare it too :) And the last time we were there with Scargod and his SO. I remember she really, really like her chicken salad wrap. Honestly, S-god, I can't remember what YOU had. Bob and I shared (always share) a half dozen oysters and the fried cod "bites." I've honestly never had an oyster I didn't like and these didn't disappoint. And the cod bites were REALLY good. Got a ton of them, they were big and cooked perfectly.

As Scar mentioned, Jimmy the bartender is a treasure. AND he makes the best Bloody Mary I've ever had. I always think I'm going to like them and they disappoint. Too tomatoey, too spicey, not spicey enough, etc. REALLY good. Nice wines by the glass and local (and other beers)

I can't address dinner since we didn't go for that but hopefully it will carry over. We look forward to returning.

[Scargod]

Went here a few days ago and had a great experience, if for nothing more than the camaraderie at the bar. It is a unique setting and a great harbor view. Well worth going for at least a drink served up by Jimmy.
We had a great lunch there with the Olivers ("C oliver"), and the bartender, who might pass for a Kennedy, is a hoot and a good waiter! They have a good beer or three on tap.

[ciclista]

This is good to know! I've always had a soft spot for the place (well, the location) and this is good news that the food is decent!

[CapeCodGuy]

Sadly, our second try was a disaster. Admittedly, we only sampled a few apps with cocktails on the deck (which is so lovely its a shame they can't serve great consistant food). We ordered the previously terrific clam chowder and it was, less than terrific. Not awful by any means, just not special either. It got decidedly worse when the quahogs arrived. Two huge stuffed clams, no problem there. Covered in the same gooey "butter sauce" that almost everything at The Bee Hive is covered in. We later find that the new chef at Mattakeese is from, you guessed it, The Beehive. The stuffing consisted of mostly moist cubes of white bread, chopped clam necks, and chewy linguica. Bland and truley inedible. We ended with the new house made pizza. The house uses a Boboli crust. 'Nuff said. Total damage with two glasses of wine....$50 plust $10 tip and we went home to have a sandwich.

[AGM_Cape_Cod]

That is so disappointing. I was so hopeful with your original post. The sad thing is that because of the location it will still do great business with tourists so the fact that the food is awful won't matter to management. Thanks for taking one for the team.

[seaville]

Thanks for the reports. Looks like the place still may be good for a sandwich and a beer at lunch. A nice way to end a walk on the beach or along Commerce Road.

Has anyone tried the seafood place next door. I saw it for the first time as I was walking in the area this winter. Looks like fried food and outdoor seating only.

[phelana]

I ate next door..I had a decent lobster roll...please note, this was last season in the late spring.

[CapeCodGuy]

It's called Osterville Fish ll and it's okay. Not great, but the fried fare is as good as many others on the Cape. The broiled food lacks however. It's a great spot after a walk on the harbor or Commerce. I usually go for a clam roll with fries for 12 dollars. A fair deal for a decent roll. Onion rings are fairly good too. But I'll always miss Chef Ralph, the previous owner, who is a master at his craft.

[Afar]

Ah, the "master at his craft" is now busy running The Mad Platter, next to Blockbusters in Mashpee. Ralph cranks out wonderful Italian bread daily and offers a terrific buy on his signature food. Chef Ralph is busier then ever.

[AGM_Cape_Cod]

That is good to know. Thanks.

[c oliver]

Thanks for the updates. You had originally recommended to me to have a drink only there which we did on Tuesday. We'll stick with that as we loved the bartender Jimmy.