Deluxe

I normally wouldn’t do this, but I am going to anyway… read the following:

Deluxe:  “Best in Wilmington!”, “Most Romantic”, “Best waitstaff”, etc.

Go to their website and you can read more of their “reviews” and rewards that they have received.

Honestly, I do not know how they have received these different rewards.  They did have an excellent waitstaff I will give them that, but the rest seem a little bias.  The food here is very good, however, it is not as good as is raved about.  For a dinner for two I walked out spending over $90.  One glass of wine each and split entree.  I was completely prepared to spend that much, but I thought that the food should match or exceed the dollar amount in value.  My date and I had some Calamari as an appetizer.  The Calamari was very good.  Lightly battered and fried the chewiness had a very good compliment of crunchiness.  Plus the Chef’s sauce that came with the Calamari was very sweet and tasty.

Then to our entrees: Soft shell crab.  Very good, not exceptional.  The food was tasty, but it was prepared as I would expect it be prepared.  I do not mean to sound snubby, I just feel like if I am going to spend a high dollar amount on a meal and it has been considered “best in wilmington” the food needs to be exceptionally delicious.  It should be so good that I do not pay as much attention to the dollar amount I just spent, while I am leaving my check.  I could be wrong, but I thought that was the goal fine dining restaurants strive for.

Wine was good, but wine is wine.

Overall, I would say that if this place lowered its dollar amount, they would have a lot more cliental.  It is nice, but even the artwork is not very fitting. The atmosphere reminds me of some nicer cafes that I would frequently visit in Chicago, but not “best in Wilmington”.

Riverboat Landing

Riverboat Landing has the location! Nestled on the corner of the end of market street and Water St.  It is in plain view of the old historic water fountain, and on most nights the horse-drawn tour guide has several horses parked a few yards away.  On the water side of the restaurant there are little 2 person seating booths that are on the second floor. These alone are worth an hour wait.  These booths look over the river walk, you have a clear view of the battleship, and the river lazily seems to drift by.  During this particular visit my date (Sara) and I were just wanting to get a couple of drinks and some appetizers.  We ordered the flatbread Scampi and Arancini, which were mushroom fritters.   The Arancini was extremely delicious, they were prepared to perfection.  The plate comes out looking very elegantly and then when one of these round luxurious lumps of lightly fried cheese and diced mushroom is cut into the sweet aroma and steam pours out.  To compliment the fritter the restaurant lets the fritter simmer in this sauce of tomato base, but with a few sweeter tastes thrown in.

The disappointed fell in two areas.  The waiter that we had, Mike, rushed the order and our small table was crammed full of plates.  I would have liked to stay and sit longer, but the second disappointment kicked in.  The Scampi flatbread, tasted rather plain.  Neither Sara, my date, or myself were impressed with the taste.  I then regretfully dismissed Sara’s comment about the shrimp not tasting quiet right.  Finishing most of that flatbread soon became my worst nightmare.  We had to hurry out of the restaurant, because I was beginning to feel ill.  The rest of that night and some of the next morning continued with some of the most agonizing pain I have felt in a long time.  The undercooked shrimp cause me to have some of the worst food poisoning.  Needless to say that was our last encounter with the Riverboat Landing.  I did call the manager, Paul. He was extremely proactive and reassured me that he was going to compensate us for mine and Sara’s (oh did I mention she also had some stomach pain) discomfort.  He also stated that the whole shipment of shrimp was going to be thrown out.

Overall I would recommend this restaurant. The atmosphere and location are wonderful. I would stay away from the shrimp and request to not have Mike as your waiter 🙂