Lake House Cafe - unbiased restaurant review
Posted: Sun Apr 01, 2007 4:50 pm
I believe this place was formerly known as the Lake House Deli. I heard a rumor a few months back that the place was closed but for sale. I was last there over a year ago and did not like the experience at all. As I walked down Edgewater today, I spotted what appeared to be a new sign near the street, so I decided to investigate.
The restaurant was open, and it is now under new ownership/management. To get there, you have to go into the Lake House condominium parking lot and go all the way in the back (11850 Edgewater Drive). It is a fairly small place, about the size of India Garden, but without the sardine-like feel (there is enough space between the tables). The view of the lake is very good. You can not see much of downtown from your table, for those who are into that. They have a nice patio for the smokers, and you can walk back to the fence at the edge of the cliff on the lake. I do not know if they will have patio seating for the summer.
The atmosphere was pretty decent, although I did not particularly care for the music selection. Most of the clientele was over 75, so their musical tastes may differ from mine. The only thing I would strongly suggest would be for them to do something to silence the side door when it closes, as it was frequently in use by smokers.
I decided to try a little of everything and got hot tea, mozzarella sticks, fish-n-chips, and chocolate mocha cake. The service was polite and reasonably fast. The hot tea was standard Lipton orange pekoe blend and was fine. The mozzarella sauce was good. The mozzarella sticks were okay, except one of the sticks was hollow. I assume these are premade, so they were apparently a victim of vendor theft.
The waitress offered to make it right, but I told her it was not a problem. The fish-n-chips was cooked properly. The seasoned fries with it were pretty good, made in a homestyle fashion. The fish itself was decent, but nothing to get too excited about. I did not care that much for the cole slaw, but I'm not a big cole slaw person. The chocolate mocha cake not only looked fancy but tasted excellent. They had some other cakes/pies that also looked great. The total for everything after tax was $18, so I would consider this moderately priced. It's more than a fast food joint, but it's a great price if you do not have the appetite for the prices at cloth napkin establishments like PierW or Swingos, where an entree alone can cost $27 and up. One other thing I forgot to mention was that a nice salad was included. This was not your typical boring dinner salad. It included walnuts, cranberries, and miniature tomatoes.
Doug
Disclosure: No conflicts for me, of course
The restaurant was open, and it is now under new ownership/management. To get there, you have to go into the Lake House condominium parking lot and go all the way in the back (11850 Edgewater Drive). It is a fairly small place, about the size of India Garden, but without the sardine-like feel (there is enough space between the tables). The view of the lake is very good. You can not see much of downtown from your table, for those who are into that. They have a nice patio for the smokers, and you can walk back to the fence at the edge of the cliff on the lake. I do not know if they will have patio seating for the summer.
The atmosphere was pretty decent, although I did not particularly care for the music selection. Most of the clientele was over 75, so their musical tastes may differ from mine. The only thing I would strongly suggest would be for them to do something to silence the side door when it closes, as it was frequently in use by smokers.
I decided to try a little of everything and got hot tea, mozzarella sticks, fish-n-chips, and chocolate mocha cake. The service was polite and reasonably fast. The hot tea was standard Lipton orange pekoe blend and was fine. The mozzarella sauce was good. The mozzarella sticks were okay, except one of the sticks was hollow. I assume these are premade, so they were apparently a victim of vendor theft.
The waitress offered to make it right, but I told her it was not a problem. The fish-n-chips was cooked properly. The seasoned fries with it were pretty good, made in a homestyle fashion. The fish itself was decent, but nothing to get too excited about. I did not care that much for the cole slaw, but I'm not a big cole slaw person. The chocolate mocha cake not only looked fancy but tasted excellent. They had some other cakes/pies that also looked great. The total for everything after tax was $18, so I would consider this moderately priced. It's more than a fast food joint, but it's a great price if you do not have the appetite for the prices at cloth napkin establishments like PierW or Swingos, where an entree alone can cost $27 and up. One other thing I forgot to mention was that a nice salad was included. This was not your typical boring dinner salad. It included walnuts, cranberries, and miniature tomatoes.
Doug
Disclosure: No conflicts for me, of course