Very disappointing. The “garden “ is very overgrown and uses cast off furniture. Servers tried hard but clearly has limited training. Neither of our dishes was cooked as requested. At $50 an entree I definitely expected a much higher quality experience. Wine options were very good but definitely don’t think it is worth the money
debbie williams
DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY or EXPERIENCE at THIS RESTAURANT…We had the worst dinner experience this past Saturday at Chillingsworth Bistro and Tavern in Brewster. It was my birthday and my husband made reservations for a party of 6. We had last been there during Covid and the food at that time was fair but we chalked it up to Covid. The waiter was a man who said he worked there for 13 years. We all ordered appetizers, I had tuna tartare which was just ok. Moving onto dinner: 2 people in my party had the angel hair pasta with lobster in a creamy base ($41)- there was 1 piece of lobster in the dish, when the people in my party told the waiter, the waiter took the dish and came back with it and said the amount is preportioned to have 6 oz of lobster and basically dropped the bowl back down in front of them without any changes to it. I looked at it There Was No Lobster!!!!!!! I had the special which was filet of sole in a tomato base with some kind of pasta beneath it. The Sole was rolled up(1 piece) The inside was totally uncooked, asked the waiter to come over and look and he said it was flakey ( the waiter had an answer to everything to try to shut us up) my father-in-law had the duck which came out once again undercooked and tasteless!!!With all these complaints brought up to the waiter never once did the manager come over. The bill was over $475.00!!!!!!I called the restaurant when I came home and spoke to the manager Julie, she was nothing more than unconcerned and said she knew about our complaints ( but never came over). I said we were so very disappointed over this entire meal and what can she do for us and she replied we can’t do anything….. What????? I said at least return a portion of our money in which she replied I’ll ask the owner and get back to you on Tuesday. Tuesday evening I received noooo phone call so I called her and she had an answer that someone at our table said something derogatory (of course the meal was subpar)and she would do absolutely nothing for us and we should part ways. Unfortunately we didn’t see all the negative reviews before going to this restaurant or we never would have. So please think twice before spending your money or evening there.I would have expected a phone call from the Owner (McDonald’s would have been a better experience than this.Long winded but necessary
Jonathan Bernstein
My God, this place was SO awful. Took a party of six for my wife's birthday.This place used to be great but no more. One star is actually too many stars for this restaurant. Despite our obvious displeasure with our meals the waiter could not have cared less. Overrated and overpriced. This place is living solely off of its legacy. Do not waste your money. I never write reviews (one way or the other) but between the high prices and the low quality of the meals, this place was just "offensive" (all around).
Lisa Vetrano
We had our rehearsal dinner at Chillingsworth. It was AMAZING! They have some of the best food not only on the Cape but in Massachusetts! Nitzi, Anna, Katie and all of the staff at Chillingsworth were so very helpful. If you are planning an event here, take their advice; these people know how to put together a wonderful menu.Dietary restrictions: We had one vegetarian in our group and they were eager to accommodate.
stephen zanotti
We sat outside on the lawn. The food was delicious and the waitress let us go at our desired pace. Highly recommend the beet carpaccio salad and halibut.
Christian Grund
Recent review- place is a complete dumpPEOPLE NEED TO KNOWStopped in for Mother’s Day.There wasn’t a single thing that was positive with this place. In fact it was a horror show looked like a dump from the outside on the inside it was like someone’s house. The lights were flickering they were reluctant to fix it. The service was fast but the waitress was rude and unfriendly, she seemed like she was teint to rush us out. The food was utterly disgusting, I got the chicken and mashed potatoes. Chicken was completely undercooked and tasted like freezer. The mashed potatoes were weren’t even mashed, and were also undercooked. The salad that came with it has dirt in it and The prices were absolutely insane nothing below 32$ for an entree with meat. 300$ for three people with no drinks.
Dave Villandry
Old Cape Cod at its best. The bar side is our favorite, but if your in the mood for fine dining on the restaurant side you won't be disappointed. The food is outstanding! I recommend the pasta with lobster. Large pieces of lobster with delicious pasta. Also the salmon toast as an app was a pleasant surprise. Cheryl had a Cesar Salad and the crab cake. All very good!!The service is one of the best attributes of this establishment. Kathleen is a manager that will help out in any capacity needed which helps with speed of service. However everyone's treat is Kerry Lee, a waitress with the best smile, personality, and service you could ever ask for.Kerry Lee makes Chillingsworth a step above in your dining experience.This is a unique restaurant experience you should try.
larry b.
Incredible dinner in a most adorable setting with outstanding service. My fav was the pistachio crème brûlée. The warm olive app is must!
Linda W.
Tonight we had dinner to celebrate a successful surgery.. All started well and the food was exceptional but the service simply was abysmal. Our waitress all but disappeared after taking a wine order to go with or entrees and never came back. We had to hunt down a knife after our salad plate was removed so we could eat one of the entrees. We took a knife off another table that was set for dinner and our water was never refilled as well. So as wonderful as the food was we have elected to give the experience a D-. Someone needs to be a lead overseeing the staff during the dinner service. It's will be awhile before we head back.
Donnie M.
From hockey-puck steak to lost credit card... - Outdoor seating looked like someone's backyard (Where's the rake?!) - Dirty seat "cushions", which were basically pads; the same that my father-in-law uses to protect his knees when he weeds his garden - Waitress was frenetic - waitress noted that the restaurant was understaffed and made our table feel as if we were an inconvenience to serve - We we're forced to put our entire order in at once, which we usually don't do to avoid being rushed. We were told that the food would be "perfectly timed", which resulted in our entrees coming out just as we were barely finishing our appetizers. We were indeed rushed. - Two orders of mussels: one bowl was very sandy - My mother-in-law ordered the steak special medium-rare but it came out well-done. It also could not be re-ordered because they ran out of the special so my mother-in-law had to settle for the halibut, which she didn't really want. During this process, the waitress suggested that my mother-in-law had indeed ordered the steak well-done instead of recognizing the mistake. - When it came time to pay for the meal, the steak was comped but the replacement halibut was not, which was surprising considering how long the second meal took to come out. My mother-in-law ended up eating alone, an experience we expected the restaurant would want to make-up for, along with the botched steak, by comping the halibut in addition to the steak. - At some point during our time at Chillingsworth, the waitress encountered a dog that was brought by a couple seated further away from us. She knelt down, pet, hugged, and scratched the dog before getting up and continued serving other tables. - During the payment process, my father-in-law used his credit card to take care of the bill. The waitress came by to pick up the card and we sat for an abnormally long time waiting for her to return the card. She eventually came out asking if we were all set. We told her that we were still waiting for the credit card to be returned and she insisted that it was given to me. I had already left with my wife, who had had it at this point. This led to many phone calls asking if I had the card, which I didn't. It was only when my mother-in-law went into the restaurant when she discovered that a bartender had been holding the card. Apparently the card had been returned to a different table. When that table didn't recognize that card, they had their server take it back (thankfully), who then left it with the bartender. The most irritating part of all this was the blame that was placed on us, similar to the overdone steak, for something that restaurant should have taken responsibility for.
Absolutely fantastic restaurant. Every visit is a worthy experience. The food is a subtly new age take on classic dishes, utilizing local ingredients where possible. A must stop dining destination when in the Cape. Also, Fergus is the best!
Amy F.
The food at Chillingsworth is excellent. Flavors, dinner entrees, drinks, all of it is delicious. The only challenge we have is the experience of making reservations and arrival. We have arrived a few times, having made a reservation, and they can't find it. They struggle and can't seem to figure out how to problem solve. A couple was in front of us with this same issue and it took them almost 10 min to finally say they can in fact be seated. There was plenty of seats available and nearing the end of the night. Train the host staff on how to manage the process and solve problems and you will get 5 stars !
Rachel Z.
Where to begin? I had been wanting to come here so my husband and I made a reservation for our anniversary. We ordered a Bibb lettuce salad and the lettuce was legit brown. The escargot was so bland that it tasted like it was sitting in pools of water rather than garlicky butter. I order the beef tenderloin cooked medium rare and it came out well done. By this point the food had been bad enough that I didn't feel guilty sending back a dish...however the waitress soon informed me that the tenderloin was cooked in advance and then reheated to order. So, since it had already been cooked to a state of well done there was no way to give me a piece that was medium rare. Suffice to say that it was an incredibly disappointing experience and we will not be back.
BabciH
We were so looking forward to a lovely dinner celebrating our friends' wedding anniversary. I made the reservation by phone & when I was asked to choose the patio, bistro, or dining room I answered dining room & the person with whom I was speaking said "OK -- the Antique Room". I agreed commenting that wherever they consider was their main dining room. We arrived promptly at the reservation time & the hostess proceeded to seat us in the Bistro, & at a table nearest the door & hostess stand. It was incredibly noisy, a bit cold from the entrance opening frequently, & tight on space. When we asked about the dining room, we were told the menu was the same in both. We explained our objective & dissatisfaction with our table & asked why they were not honoring our reservation. They responded that the other dining room was full & told us the person who takes the reservation just passes that info to the hostess station. This made no sense -- we could see our name on the reservation book separate from another that we assumed was the Bistro. As you can imagine we were very disappointed & somewhat confused. We also began to wonder if there was some sort of discrimination afoot since one member of our party is originally from Asia. It was too bad we had not read the previous reviews. There was one mention of the lack of getting seated where you reserved prior to our visit. Since the manager was unable to do anything for us, we left to find another place for dinner (not easy on a busy summer evening) & were richly rewarded by our dinner at Pecorino's, one town over In Dennis.
Erin D.
First time diners and we were thoroughly impressed not only with the delicious food, eclectic ambiance but the AMAZING staff! KerriLee was our server, she was not only friendly and accommodating but extremely knowledgeable. She told us about the history of the restaurant and made wonderful food recommendations based on our preferences. We had the privilege of meeting the owner! We look forward to our next visit hopefully soon.
Very disappointing. The “garden “ is very overgrown and uses cast off furniture. Servers tried hard but clearly has limited training. Neither of our dishes was cooked as requested. At $50 an entree I definitely expected a much higher quality experience. Wine options were very good but definitely don’t think it is worth the money
DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY or EXPERIENCE at THIS RESTAURANT…We had the worst dinner experience this past Saturday at Chillingsworth Bistro and Tavern in Brewster. It was my birthday and my husband made reservations for a party of 6. We had last been there during Covid and the food at that time was fair but we chalked it up to Covid. The waiter was a man who said he worked there for 13 years. We all ordered appetizers, I had tuna tartare which was just ok. Moving onto dinner: 2 people in my party had the angel hair pasta with lobster in a creamy base ($41)- there was 1 piece of lobster in the dish, when the people in my party told the waiter, the waiter took the dish and came back with it and said the amount is preportioned to have 6 oz of lobster and basically dropped the bowl back down in front of them without any changes to it. I looked at it There Was No Lobster!!!!!!! I had the special which was filet of sole in a tomato base with some kind of pasta beneath it. The Sole was rolled up(1 piece) The inside was totally uncooked, asked the waiter to come over and look and he said it was flakey ( the waiter had an answer to everything to try to shut us up) my father-in-law had the duck which came out once again undercooked and tasteless!!!With all these complaints brought up to the waiter never once did the manager come over. The bill was over $475.00!!!!!!I called the restaurant when I came home and spoke to the manager Julie, she was nothing more than unconcerned and said she knew about our complaints ( but never came over). I said we were so very disappointed over this entire meal and what can she do for us and she replied we can’t do anything….. What????? I said at least return a portion of our money in which she replied I’ll ask the owner and get back to you on Tuesday. Tuesday evening I received noooo phone call so I called her and she had an answer that someone at our table said something derogatory (of course the meal was subpar)and she would do absolutely nothing for us and we should part ways. Unfortunately we didn’t see all the negative reviews before going to this restaurant or we never would have. So please think twice before spending your money or evening there.I would have expected a phone call from the Owner (McDonald’s would have been a better experience than this.Long winded but necessary
My God, this place was SO awful. Took a party of six for my wife's birthday.This place used to be great but no more. One star is actually too many stars for this restaurant. Despite our obvious displeasure with our meals the waiter could not have cared less. Overrated and overpriced. This place is living solely off of its legacy. Do not waste your money. I never write reviews (one way or the other) but between the high prices and the low quality of the meals, this place was just "offensive" (all around).
We had our rehearsal dinner at Chillingsworth. It was AMAZING! They have some of the best food not only on the Cape but in Massachusetts! Nitzi, Anna, Katie and all of the staff at Chillingsworth were so very helpful. If you are planning an event here, take their advice; these people know how to put together a wonderful menu.Dietary restrictions: We had one vegetarian in our group and they were eager to accommodate.
We sat outside on the lawn. The food was delicious and the waitress let us go at our desired pace. Highly recommend the beet carpaccio salad and halibut.
Recent review- place is a complete dumpPEOPLE NEED TO KNOWStopped in for Mother’s Day.There wasn’t a single thing that was positive with this place. In fact it was a horror show looked like a dump from the outside on the inside it was like someone’s house. The lights were flickering they were reluctant to fix it. The service was fast but the waitress was rude and unfriendly, she seemed like she was teint to rush us out. The food was utterly disgusting, I got the chicken and mashed potatoes. Chicken was completely undercooked and tasted like freezer. The mashed potatoes were weren’t even mashed, and were also undercooked. The salad that came with it has dirt in it and The prices were absolutely insane nothing below 32$ for an entree with meat. 300$ for three people with no drinks.
Old Cape Cod at its best. The bar side is our favorite, but if your in the mood for fine dining on the restaurant side you won't be disappointed. The food is outstanding! I recommend the pasta with lobster. Large pieces of lobster with delicious pasta. Also the salmon toast as an app was a pleasant surprise. Cheryl had a Cesar Salad and the crab cake. All very good!!The service is one of the best attributes of this establishment. Kathleen is a manager that will help out in any capacity needed which helps with speed of service. However everyone's treat is Kerry Lee, a waitress with the best smile, personality, and service you could ever ask for.Kerry Lee makes Chillingsworth a step above in your dining experience.This is a unique restaurant experience you should try.
Incredible dinner in a most adorable setting with outstanding service. My fav was the pistachio crème brûlée. The warm olive app is must!
Tonight we had dinner to celebrate a successful surgery.. All started well and the food was exceptional but the service simply was abysmal. Our waitress all but disappeared after taking a wine order to go with or entrees and never came back. We had to hunt down a knife after our salad plate was removed so we could eat one of the entrees. We took a knife off another table that was set for dinner and our water was never refilled as well. So as wonderful as the food was we have elected to give the experience a D-. Someone needs to be a lead overseeing the staff during the dinner service. It's will be awhile before we head back.
From hockey-puck steak to lost credit card... - Outdoor seating looked like someone's backyard (Where's the rake?!) - Dirty seat "cushions", which were basically pads; the same that my father-in-law uses to protect his knees when he weeds his garden - Waitress was frenetic - waitress noted that the restaurant was understaffed and made our table feel as if we were an inconvenience to serve - We we're forced to put our entire order in at once, which we usually don't do to avoid being rushed. We were told that the food would be "perfectly timed", which resulted in our entrees coming out just as we were barely finishing our appetizers. We were indeed rushed. - Two orders of mussels: one bowl was very sandy - My mother-in-law ordered the steak special medium-rare but it came out well-done. It also could not be re-ordered because they ran out of the special so my mother-in-law had to settle for the halibut, which she didn't really want. During this process, the waitress suggested that my mother-in-law had indeed ordered the steak well-done instead of recognizing the mistake. - When it came time to pay for the meal, the steak was comped but the replacement halibut was not, which was surprising considering how long the second meal took to come out. My mother-in-law ended up eating alone, an experience we expected the restaurant would want to make-up for, along with the botched steak, by comping the halibut in addition to the steak. - At some point during our time at Chillingsworth, the waitress encountered a dog that was brought by a couple seated further away from us. She knelt down, pet, hugged, and scratched the dog before getting up and continued serving other tables. - During the payment process, my father-in-law used his credit card to take care of the bill. The waitress came by to pick up the card and we sat for an abnormally long time waiting for her to return the card. She eventually came out asking if we were all set. We told her that we were still waiting for the credit card to be returned and she insisted that it was given to me. I had already left with my wife, who had had it at this point. This led to many phone calls asking if I had the card, which I didn't. It was only when my mother-in-law went into the restaurant when she discovered that a bartender had been holding the card. Apparently the card had been returned to a different table. When that table didn't recognize that card, they had their server take it back (thankfully), who then left it with the bartender. The most irritating part of all this was the blame that was placed on us, similar to the overdone steak, for something that restaurant should have taken responsibility for.
Restaurantji Recommends
Absolutely fantastic restaurant. Every visit is a worthy experience. The food is a subtly new age take on classic dishes, utilizing local ingredients where possible. A must stop dining destination when in the Cape. Also, Fergus is the best!
The food at Chillingsworth is excellent. Flavors, dinner entrees, drinks, all of it is delicious. The only challenge we have is the experience of making reservations and arrival. We have arrived a few times, having made a reservation, and they can't find it. They struggle and can't seem to figure out how to problem solve. A couple was in front of us with this same issue and it took them almost 10 min to finally say they can in fact be seated. There was plenty of seats available and nearing the end of the night. Train the host staff on how to manage the process and solve problems and you will get 5 stars !
Where to begin? I had been wanting to come here so my husband and I made a reservation for our anniversary. We ordered a Bibb lettuce salad and the lettuce was legit brown. The escargot was so bland that it tasted like it was sitting in pools of water rather than garlicky butter. I order the beef tenderloin cooked medium rare and it came out well done. By this point the food had been bad enough that I didn't feel guilty sending back a dish...however the waitress soon informed me that the tenderloin was cooked in advance and then reheated to order. So, since it had already been cooked to a state of well done there was no way to give me a piece that was medium rare. Suffice to say that it was an incredibly disappointing experience and we will not be back.
We were so looking forward to a lovely dinner celebrating our friends' wedding anniversary. I made the reservation by phone & when I was asked to choose the patio, bistro, or dining room I answered dining room & the person with whom I was speaking said "OK -- the Antique Room". I agreed commenting that wherever they consider was their main dining room. We arrived promptly at the reservation time & the hostess proceeded to seat us in the Bistro, & at a table nearest the door & hostess stand. It was incredibly noisy, a bit cold from the entrance opening frequently, & tight on space. When we asked about the dining room, we were told the menu was the same in both. We explained our objective & dissatisfaction with our table & asked why they were not honoring our reservation. They responded that the other dining room was full & told us the person who takes the reservation just passes that info to the hostess station. This made no sense -- we could see our name on the reservation book separate from another that we assumed was the Bistro. As you can imagine we were very disappointed & somewhat confused. We also began to wonder if there was some sort of discrimination afoot since one member of our party is originally from Asia. It was too bad we had not read the previous reviews. There was one mention of the lack of getting seated where you reserved prior to our visit. Since the manager was unable to do anything for us, we left to find another place for dinner (not easy on a busy summer evening) & were richly rewarded by our dinner at Pecorino's, one town over In Dennis.
First time diners and we were thoroughly impressed not only with the delicious food, eclectic ambiance but the AMAZING staff! KerriLee was our server, she was not only friendly and accommodating but extremely knowledgeable. She told us about the history of the restaurant and made wonderful food recommendations based on our preferences. We had the privilege of meeting the owner! We look forward to our next visit hopefully soon.