On the Waterfront, New London, CT

While visiting my parents in New London, my mother suggested that we eat on the waterfront. “Is that the name or the location?” I asked. “Both,” she replied.

My kind of place.

I lived in Connecticut for the better part of twenty-eight years and I never fully appreciated my proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. In fact, it’s only now that I’m living in Virginia Beach that I really try to take advantage of the beauty of the ocean. So, when I went home to Connecticut for the weekend I was thrilled with the idea of dining on the waterfront.

On the Waterfront appears to be a locals favorite. It was very busy when we entered and there was a bit of a wait to get a table. In fact, at some point the hostess completely disappeared and when she returned there was quite a line of hungry patrons behind us. On the Waterfront caters to all size parties. I noticed larger parties of more than ten people as well as cozy dinners for two. They provide indoor and outdoor seating, all facing the water. There seemed to be a lot of activity around us when we were seated. The hostess neglected to provide us with menus when she sat us at our table so we just kind of sat and looked at each other until the server showed up … which took a while. When she did show up, the first thing she said was, “What do you have to do to get some service around here?” and she began filling our water glasses. I’m telling you, she really broke the ice with that statement and immediately put me in a better frame of mind. The hostess hurried over with our menus and apologized for not getting them to us sooner.

My mother had ordered carry out from On the Waterfront and she said that the food was always good. The menu was more diverse than I expected. I expected tons of seafood and not much else. Surprisingly, the menu also included salads, sandwiches, steaks and pasta. To start I ordered the Mediterranean seafood soup



This soup was filled with large chunks of fish, calamari, mussels, pasta and vegetables. If you like spice than you’ll love this. I thought it was terrific. Just enough of a kick to give it flavor but it wasn’t so hot that I couldn’t enjoy it.

As an entrée I ordered the Waterfront Chicken Salad



Have you ever seen a chicken salad in a taco shell? This was a first for me. The salad contained healthy portions of grilled chicken breast, romaine lettuce, tomato and cheese. I ate much more than I thought I would because as you can see, it is a huge salad but it was so good, I couldn’t help myself and besides, it's a salad ... so no harm done, right?

My mother ordered the Montauk Jumbo Stuffed Shrimp



Honestly, that was my first choice but she ordered it first. The shrimp was stuffed with crabmeat and it looked good. According to Mom, it tasted good too.

The kids ordered the Waterfront Cheeseburger



And the fish and chips



The cheeseburger was served with homemade potato chips that were fresh and crispy. Serving sizes are definitely not an issue On the Waterfront. Additionally, Dad ordered the shrimp scampi but I was unable to get a shot of it. He liked it but he said that he had had better. Oh well, can’t please everybody.

I loved this restaurant. It was pleasant and our server was just as nice as she could be. They advertise ample parking but I had to park about two blocks away and walk to the restaurant. I thought the prices were very reasonable. We paid the exact same amount for five people that we did for four people at the Italian place that we visited the night before. I would highly recommend visiting On the Waterfront and I hope to get back there again when I’m in town.