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 🙂
Josh Harcus's Blog 