The Barking Crab
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Overall Rating: Not So Sick (69 out of 100)
88 Sleeper Street
Boston, MA 02210
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Phone: 617-426-2722
Located along the Fort Point Channel, The Barking Crab offers up a spectacular view of the Financial District in the casual atmosphere of a coastal clam shack. Unfortunately, abysmal service and progressively worsening seafood leaves one with the impression that The Barking Crab is a wildly-popular restaurant that may be entering the throes of decline.
Our History at The Barking Crab
Our fifth visit to The Barking Crab was on a Friday night at 9:00pm.
Appetizers
Appetizers range from $8 to $14 and include fried calamari, mussels, Jonah crab claws, fried clams, steamers, fried sweet & spicy beer battered shrimp, and barking crab cakes. A selection of soups and salads are available for $5 to $10. We opted for the Jonah crab claws as well as an order of fried clams.
The Jonah crab claws disappointed. We expected large chunks of sweet crabmeat; we didn't get it. After smashing open a crab claw with a rock, the last thing you want is sparse, bland crab meat. While we enjoyed the fried clams, there weren't nearly enough for two people. Our waitress inexplicably down-sold us from a large portion to a small portion.
What happened to the peel & eat shrimp?
Rating: 6.7
Main Dishes
Entrees range from $12 to $24 and include fish & chips, pan seared salmon, baked scrod, grilled ribeye steak, and platters such as fried clams, fried scallops, and fried oysters. Crabs and lobsters are available at market prices. Sandwiches are available for $8 to $14, including a cheeseburger, a lobster roll, and a crab salad sandwich. Sides range from $2 for coleslaw to $5 for onion rings. Normally, we stick to the fried platters, but on this evening, we explored two "specialties": the baked scrod and the pan seared salmon.
The pan seared salmon fillet was served with a red pepper relish that smelled like wet dog and didn't taste much better; we can't remember enjoying salmon any less. The dish included steamed rice, black beans, and bok choy. On the other hand, we enjoyed the scrod's delicious almond crusted topping.
Our recommendation: go with the fried stuff.
Rating: 6.6
Drinks
Historically, The Barking Crab served only beer and wine, but a full liquor license is on the way. An alcoholic beverage menu presently features 17 mixed drinks ranging from $5 to $8, including a margarita, a sea breeze, and a Bloody Mary. Draft beer is available by the cup or pitcher. Affordable whites and reds are available by the glass or bottle.
Rating: 8.2
Service
The bartender held patrons in open contempt. Pouring a drink seemed like a huge inconvenience. No matter how nice the customer, he found a way to showcase the huge chip on his shoulder.
Table service offered little improvement. Bus staff surrounded our table like vultures, twice trying to clear half-finished plates, and once succeeding in swooping away a quarter-filled wine glass.
Crab staff seemed bewildered regarding the restaurant's transition to a full liquor license. The bartender left us with the impression that no mixed drinks were available. The hostess explained that all 17 mixed drinks on the alcoholic beverage menu were available. Finally, our waitress told us that roughly half of the 17 mixed drinks were available. Huh?
This place could use a good housecleaning.
Rating: 3.8
Ambiance
At The Barking Crab, it's all about the ambiance. The half-indoors, half-outdoors shack is perfectly situated on the Fort Point Channel, offering sick views of the Financial District. Crab traps intertwined with white lights, mermaids, buoys, rock music, and loads of beer transport you to sea.
A word of caution: if you plan on hitting The Crab on a Friday or Saturday night, get there early. Otherwise, you may wait over an hour to be seated.
Rating: 9.4
Et Cetera
Trivia: Live music is played on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays.
Reservations: Reservations are accepted for parties of six or more.
Parking: The Barking Crab offers free parking in a small lot. Additional parking is available in an adjacent lot for $10 per hour and $3 for every half hour thereafter - with a maximum charge of $19 until midnight.
Dress: You may dress casually.
Hours: The Crab serves food seven days a week from 11:30am until 11pm.
Labels: Not-So-Sick, Seafood, The-Barking-Crab, Waterfront
