An amazing fusion of Asian and Irish dishes served by knowledgeable and experienced staff. Turned up at short notice without a booking and were made to feel very welcome. Starters were Squid, Beef and bread to share. These proved to be an indication of just how innovative the Chef is. Main course was an impeccable presentation of Moules Marinère which was devoured with relish. Overall a great experience and I suggest that the Boat Yard is a well kept secret and a place to watch! On a par with some of the well known Belfast restaurants for food, service and value.
jameswH919ZV
Took my mum to the boathouse yesterday. It was fantastic. The food was amazing and really friendly staff. Great gluten free options. Crispy King prawn tacos were unreal.
DavidA11591
Great place to have food, especially when you have daylight to enjoy the view. The restaurant is located at the first floor of the Gateway, confused me first, because the sign for the boathouse is pretty small.
chivvychase
Ate here several times before the recent change of ownership.. I liked the look of the new menu but my barometer is the fish and chips and simply put it was much better before the change. Cooking in soybean oil over beef dripping (proper fish and chips) is lazy in my opinion and compromises in taste and even health it seems. Not in a rush back.
Eimear Kerr ("eem-er")
Went for a large team meal today and we were very impressed. We were able to prebook which was handy. Service was good- very attentive and helpful. Lovely friendly atmosphere.And the most important thing....food was really tasty! Everyone was happy with their choices, will definitely be back.So glad to see such a nice venue opened again.
pqvx
We are long-standing regular customers of The Boat House, and have enjoyed their food since they first opened years ago. My favourite dish has always been their “Proper Fish & Chips”. Let’s get something straight from the start – fish and chips are only “proper” when fried in beef dripping. Fortunately, the Boat House always did this. The other most vital thing is that the fish is fresh, or at least freshly frozen. Again, the Boat House scored highly here. Their fish and chips was simply perfect for years, and a real treat. So we were very disappointed when the boat House closed – and equally happy when it opened again. Trouble is, though, the previous management cited an inability to make the place pay as the reason for closing. I have been around hospitality a lot in my life, and had to wonder how the new proprietor would do better. Things in the sector are every competitive now, so really, either you have to put your prices up significantly, or cut down on the quality. We visited the place again last week, and were very disappointed to see that the new management had plumped firmly for the latter option. Firstly, it was immediately apparent that the food had been fried in vegetable oil, thus robbing it of much of its flavour. Secondly, the fish had clearly been around for a while, and had lost all its flavour. But it got worse. The cod fillet had been sliced rather thinner than had previously been the case, was not quite cooked, and was very soggy with oil. Not very pleasant. I was very hungry, and would normally have wolfed it down – instead I ate half of it, and some of the tasteless chips, with little enthusiasm, paid and left. As I said, you can either put the prices up, or reduce the quality. If you charge a little more, you may lose a few good customers, till they realise that everybody else has had to do the same as you; if you compromise on quality, you risk losing everybody. It’ll certainly be a long time before I risk another visit, I’m afraid. Very sad.
Phil Ervine
First time visiting under new ownership and WOW what a meal we had.The Sunday roast menu was delicious and all courses were great. Really good value too and the kids menu wasn’t just sausage and chips!!We will be back again soon. Thank you team Boathouse!Dietary restrictions: Lots of dietary optionsKid-friendliness: Excellent kids menuWheelchair accessibility: Lift and plenty of space
belfastim
Given a generous 4. Staff are friendly but the food is just ok. The kids did not enjoy their meal and my bang bang chicken was very dry. Was just ok.
Quest41340541722
Restaurant busy. Been several times before under previous management. Food lovely, service slow as limited staff. Will go again though.
Glenn I
We had a very tasty meal here on Sunday,great food, excellent service and very reasonably priced in today's market. My only advice if you haven't been before is not to use Google maps,as that took us to the other side of Antrim to a private housing estate
Our first visit to the Boathouse will not be our last. We really enjoyed it! Everything about it was really good considering they only reopened a few days ago. We found the atmosphere very relaxing and we weren't rushed in any way. Service was great, not in your face or inattentive but just right. The food was all very good quality and the deserts had that home made feel which you don't always get. Overall, very good and no faults and for what it's worth, totally recommended by me!
Sue Cochrane
What an improvement! Congrats to the new owners/management. A truly great meal today - Sole Veronique for me and Venison Cottage Pie for him. Truly delicious perfectly cooked food which was served by friendly, attentive staff in the beautiful surroundings of Lough Neagh. The Boathouse Banger cocktail went down very well too. We will definitely be back?
JILLM2553
Just visited tonight with daughter and grandchildren, booked in for 5.15pm on a Sunday and it was already busy. We were seated and then served by a friendly,polite young man I ordered the squid starter, my husband had the soup starter and the staff were happy enough to bring the children’s mains at the same time as our starters to allow them time to eat. Mains were battered chicken tacos, chicken goujons, venison casserole, 2childrens meals followed by sticky toffee pudding x 2 and 2x Eton mess The food was delicious, staff attentive and friendly, cost very reasonable. We will most certainly be back The only suggestion I would make to improve,would be to maybe add and extra dish or two to the children’s menu and also offer children’s portions of desserts as half the childs dessert was left as too large It is great to see the Boathouse reopen and we wish them every success Keep up the hard work, it’s fantastic
dr0fn1l
Happy that The Boathouse is back. Smarter, friendlier service than before, but same excellent cooking. All in all, an excellent evening.
Martin Benton
Decent food at a reasonable price, but what let it down was the sloppy service. Had to get up and ask for things a couple of times, including the dessert menu, which they forgot to bring after we had asked. Also, we struggled to pay.The view was great but better outside than in.
An amazing fusion of Asian and Irish dishes served by knowledgeable and experienced staff. Turned up at short notice without a booking and were made to feel very welcome. Starters were Squid, Beef and bread to share. These proved to be an indication of just how innovative the Chef is. Main course was an impeccable presentation of Moules Marinère which was devoured with relish. Overall a great experience and I suggest that the Boat Yard is a well kept secret and a place to watch! On a par with some of the well known Belfast restaurants for food, service and value.
Took my mum to the boathouse yesterday. It was fantastic. The food was amazing and really friendly staff. Great gluten free options. Crispy King prawn tacos were unreal.
Great place to have food, especially when you have daylight to enjoy the view. The restaurant is located at the first floor of the Gateway, confused me first, because the sign for the boathouse is pretty small.
Ate here several times before the recent change of ownership.. I liked the look of the new menu but my barometer is the fish and chips and simply put it was much better before the change. Cooking in soybean oil over beef dripping (proper fish and chips) is lazy in my opinion and compromises in taste and even health it seems. Not in a rush back.
Went for a large team meal today and we were very impressed. We were able to prebook which was handy. Service was good- very attentive and helpful. Lovely friendly atmosphere.And the most important thing....food was really tasty! Everyone was happy with their choices, will definitely be back.So glad to see such a nice venue opened again.
We are long-standing regular customers of The Boat House, and have enjoyed their food since they first opened years ago. My favourite dish has always been their “Proper Fish & Chips”. Let’s get something straight from the start – fish and chips are only “proper” when fried in beef dripping. Fortunately, the Boat House always did this. The other most vital thing is that the fish is fresh, or at least freshly frozen. Again, the Boat House scored highly here. Their fish and chips was simply perfect for years, and a real treat. So we were very disappointed when the boat House closed – and equally happy when it opened again. Trouble is, though, the previous management cited an inability to make the place pay as the reason for closing. I have been around hospitality a lot in my life, and had to wonder how the new proprietor would do better. Things in the sector are every competitive now, so really, either you have to put your prices up significantly, or cut down on the quality. We visited the place again last week, and were very disappointed to see that the new management had plumped firmly for the latter option. Firstly, it was immediately apparent that the food had been fried in vegetable oil, thus robbing it of much of its flavour. Secondly, the fish had clearly been around for a while, and had lost all its flavour. But it got worse. The cod fillet had been sliced rather thinner than had previously been the case, was not quite cooked, and was very soggy with oil. Not very pleasant. I was very hungry, and would normally have wolfed it down – instead I ate half of it, and some of the tasteless chips, with little enthusiasm, paid and left. As I said, you can either put the prices up, or reduce the quality. If you charge a little more, you may lose a few good customers, till they realise that everybody else has had to do the same as you; if you compromise on quality, you risk losing everybody. It’ll certainly be a long time before I risk another visit, I’m afraid. Very sad.
First time visiting under new ownership and WOW what a meal we had.The Sunday roast menu was delicious and all courses were great. Really good value too and the kids menu wasn’t just sausage and chips!!We will be back again soon. Thank you team Boathouse!Dietary restrictions: Lots of dietary optionsKid-friendliness: Excellent kids menuWheelchair accessibility: Lift and plenty of space
Given a generous 4. Staff are friendly but the food is just ok. The kids did not enjoy their meal and my bang bang chicken was very dry. Was just ok.
Restaurant busy. Been several times before under previous management. Food lovely, service slow as limited staff. Will go again though.
We had a very tasty meal here on Sunday,great food, excellent service and very reasonably priced in today's market. My only advice if you haven't been before is not to use Google maps,as that took us to the other side of Antrim to a private housing estate
Restaurantji Recommends
Our first visit to the Boathouse will not be our last. We really enjoyed it! Everything about it was really good considering they only reopened a few days ago. We found the atmosphere very relaxing and we weren't rushed in any way. Service was great, not in your face or inattentive but just right. The food was all very good quality and the deserts had that home made feel which you don't always get. Overall, very good and no faults and for what it's worth, totally recommended by me!
What an improvement! Congrats to the new owners/management. A truly great meal today - Sole Veronique for me and Venison Cottage Pie for him. Truly delicious perfectly cooked food which was served by friendly, attentive staff in the beautiful surroundings of Lough Neagh. The Boathouse Banger cocktail went down very well too. We will definitely be back?
Just visited tonight with daughter and grandchildren, booked in for 5.15pm on a Sunday and it was already busy. We were seated and then served by a friendly,polite young man I ordered the squid starter, my husband had the soup starter and the staff were happy enough to bring the children’s mains at the same time as our starters to allow them time to eat. Mains were battered chicken tacos, chicken goujons, venison casserole, 2childrens meals followed by sticky toffee pudding x 2 and 2x Eton mess The food was delicious, staff attentive and friendly, cost very reasonable. We will most certainly be back The only suggestion I would make to improve,would be to maybe add and extra dish or two to the children’s menu and also offer children’s portions of desserts as half the childs dessert was left as too large It is great to see the Boathouse reopen and we wish them every success Keep up the hard work, it’s fantastic
Happy that The Boathouse is back. Smarter, friendlier service than before, but same excellent cooking. All in all, an excellent evening.
Decent food at a reasonable price, but what let it down was the sloppy service. Had to get up and ask for things a couple of times, including the dessert menu, which they forgot to bring after we had asked. Also, we struggled to pay.The view was great but better outside than in.