USS Chowder Pot IV

I like the food, but the service was Horrible!!! waited for 45 mins to an hr to be seated for a party of 2. When seated we waited over 20 mins before a waitress came to us. The other ppl that was seated after us, got their drinks an appetizer… Finally when a waitress came to us she ask for our drinks order so we figure why not just put order in since we had so much time to look at the menu. After asking for our entrée, she tell us they ran out. And instead of letting us know ahead of time what they are out of, we keep asking for other things an of course she said their out of it. And her attitude was just stank! Really if you guys don’t like your job or have personal issues don’t bring it to work. Some waitress there need a lesson in customer service!

WinterTaste of Hartford — Four course meal for only $ 20.16. Awesome food, atmosphere and fun.

Loved it! Amanda was flawless and fabulous. Would come here again, and again and again. They gave us so much bread and it was awesome. Food was delish !!

Chowder Pot is an interesting place for seafood. I’ve been coming here since I was a kid and the reputation and respect for the place has seemingly changed over the years. At one point it was revered as a top seafood destination in the Hartford area and commanded a pretty high prices for menu items, but that was back in the 90s. Since then, although I didn’t eat there very often, I do know the prices have gone down quite and a bit and I hear from people in the know that the quality has too. To me, they do something very good and some things ok. I have yet to have a bad experience here but I have had some pretty good ones. For starters, they make GREAT baked stuff shrimp casserole. It’s their seafood stuffing that takes it over the top and I just love adding a bit of lemon juice to it. Just awesome eating. Everything else I’ve had from here (swordfish, pasta, salmon, fried clams, etc.) has been very «middle of the road,» Although they’re not as expensive as they once were, I don’t like paying above average prices for average food. Ironically, I would NOT recommend the fish chips from here. I had them and would arguably rather Friendly’s version. The fries were soggy and disappointing. The fish, although fresh, tasted as if the chef did not believe in seasoning at all. But I repeat, the baked stuffed shrimp is special. On my last visit, my neice ordered the kids mac and cheese and it was larger than every adult entrée that came out alongside it. I’m tempted to give it a shot on my next visit. Just look at the picture… you may not blame me. :_​All in all, Chowder Pot is akin to Red Lobster. Decent seafood but perhaps a pinch overpriced

Hearty, yummy, comfort seafood. Nothing artisanal or gourmet, but well cooked using good ingredients (that I could tell). Friendly helpful service from what looks like some of the hardest working wait-​staff I’ve ever seen. Try it out!

I love seafood. So, I venture out to Chowder Pot IV for my favorite dish there… prime rib! A generous portion of nice rare meat with au jus and horseradish sauce on the side. Yes, I love the shrimps, the libstets, the barramundi… but this is one great prime rib dinner. Wonder if it is cowfish?

The hubby & I frequent the chowder pot IV usually on week nights. When you walk in, it feels like an old sea shanty. I think it’s fitting and I enjoy the down to earth casual feel. It’s a typical ocean fishing theme complete with comfortable booths & subdued lantern lighting with a mid to low noise level. The music is kind of old Muzaky orchestral stuff, thankfully it’s kept at rather low volume.
The portions are huge, but there is always a lighter choice for a lot of the meals! I’m watching my calories tonight, so I order catch of the day barramundi, and you can also choose the cooking method of broiling, blackened Cajun, teriyaki, etc. it comes with two sides and I get plain baked potato & butternut squash.
Our server last time was inattentive and distracted, but that’s unusual. This time we get Melodie, and she does well by us. She gets us our meals exactly the way we ask. The hubby is an eater & likes his 14 oz prime rib very rare. It’s perfect (check photo) & at a seafood place?!
They have my favorite dessert special key lime pie with graham cracker crust! Alas, I’m too full to get it. But… We’ll be back!
Price point is a bit high for such a casual atmosphere, but we really enjoy it here so we keep coming back!

Not the best seafood I’ve had but not the worst. USS Chowder isn’t the most glamorous place. Outdated from the inside out and the parking lot is bigger than necessary. Not a place you automatically think of introducing to friends to impress them. You think «do they really serve seafood at this dungeon? The food better do it justice.»
What was the best?
–As said in almost every review – complimentary loaf of honey drizzled bread is to die forrr. Comparable to Red Lobster’s infamous cheddar bay biscuits. Had to say this was the highlight of everything.
–Very filling because most dishes will come with choice of two sides like fries, sweet potato fries, salad, coleslaw, bread, vegetables, rice, baked potato…
What was alright?
–Fried calamari wasn’t so bad either
–Baked Stuffed Shrimp (house specialty) – jumbo shrimp tail stuffed with famous seafood stuffing
–Lobster Bisque
What was «eh»?
–Lobster Pot Pie – filling was like the lobster bisque but not enough lobster for the $ 15 worth considering it was lunch price (dinner is $ 19)
–Lazy Man’s Lobster – mostly filled with only tail and claw meat (not recommended for fans of the head)

New Year’s Eve and my anniversary, Rosa was amazing. Food was good as always. Fried lobster and escargot very good but the service was above and beyond.

Let me start by saying that this place was terrific at one time. It used to take an hour + just to be seated. The portions were generous & food was fresh. We’d always leave the place with full bellies & lots of leftovers.
Well sadly, things at the CP have changed for the worse. The prices increased, the portions shrank & the food is no longer as tasty as it once was. The two scoops of $ 18 Maryland crab cakes I ordered were so bad that when I brought some home for my dog, she turned her nose & ran away. She may be scarred for life!
It is apparent that they have cut corners to increase their profit margins. And that’s typically a recipe for disaster. If any restaurant in CT needs an emergency visit from Chef Ramsey, it’s the once great Chowder Pot. But even would have difficulties bailing out something that’s declined as much as the CP has.
I truly hope they can turn things around. Until then, save your money and buy a box of Mrs. Pauls.

Food was awesome and so was the price. My issue was with the customer service at the bar. Bartender flirted shameless with my husband while I was sitting right next to him. I was literally ignored or treated with disdain all while my husband was worshipped. I was called sweetie, sweetie pie while he was referred to as as sir.

This was my second time eating at the USS Chowder Pot IV. While I was there, i had a seafood salad, and the portion was huge! The dish came in a sized entrée salad that came with lettuce, tomatoes, olive, carrots, jalepenos, cold boiled shrimps, chilled blue crab meat, and lobster meat with your choice of salad dressing, and i went with caesar. The wait wasn’t that long as it was on a Monday night there. They have a huge space inside along with a big waiting area, so I presume they host a lot of big events/​parties here. All in all, I enjoyed my last two visits there, and will definitely try to come back when I’m in the area for work trips.

Usually when I am in the area for work I go over to Main Seafood, but wanted to try a different place for seafood this time.
I had the clam chowder which was delicious; large pieces of clans and the potatoes were not all mushy. The bread was crusty on the outside with a honey butter topping and soft and warm on the inside. It was lobster Monday so I had the lazy man’s lobster with the stuffing. My lobster was a bit over cooked so it was rubbery. There were large chunks of lobster and the stuffing had good size pieces of shrimp throughout. My co-​worker had the lobster pot pie which he said was really good. Overall not the best seafood I’ve had, but not horrible.

Another seafood restaurant that meets all of the typical seafood restaurant stereotypes. Strategically located near waters you wouldn’t dare swim in, old fashioned nautical theme, primarily inhabited by baby boomers, and lobster tanks near the entrance. While I doubted the reviews citing bad service, reading led to reality as our server was vastly forgetful and not very present on what seemed like a slow Sunday evening.
For appetizers we ordered clam chowder which was mediocre at best, cold flavorless lobster claws, and surprisingly good oysters. While there was no mignonette, the cocktail sauce sufficed with a generous squeeze of lemon. Very good oysters.
For mains, we ordered the house favorite baked shrimp, and the clams casino. The baked shrimp had its moments, but ultimately lost us with the extremely chewy bits of of rubbery stuffing and random shrimp shells hidden beneath the chunks of seafood stuffing. The clams casino stuffing was delicious and complimented nicely by smoky pieces of bacon. However, the clams were so overdone, they had turned to rubber and were nearly impossible to chew or swallow.
Since I love seafood, I will be back to try more of the menu and determine if the Chowder Pot has any standout dishes.

The honey butter bread alone is worth coming here for. They give you a loaf of warm bread with honey drizzled on top. I could eat three loaves by myself! Every time I have come here I order the lazy man lobster which is chunks of hot lobster with a side of melted butter. It’s already picked for you so you don’t have to go through the hassle of breaking the lobster and pulling out the meat yourself which I love because I’m lazy (no pun intended). It comes with a salad and potato and coleslaw. Prices are reasonable and food is great. Chowder Pot is my favorite seafood restaurant in the area.

Still a nice place to unwind & dine whenever I visit Hartford. Seafood was SUPER fresh, and the staff was friendly. Service was FAST while sitting at the bar!

Some of the best oysters you can get away from the dock.
It’s a wonderful steakhouse that specializes in seafood, which usually has a huge line out the door. They always have great specials if you can ignore the price tags attached. Otherwise expect to pay top dollar for some impressive portions.
On holidays they don’t take reservations so first come first serve, which suits me just fine but a lot of people will find issues with that sort of policy.
As for my trips there, I’ve never had any real issues with service or food.

Ok so let me start of by saying this place smells like a bowling alley. I don’t think there is anyway around that. The bar is okay but dated. The uniforms are extremely lame and embarrassing, Is the chowder good, yea i guess… Are other dishes good? Well when your second best dish is a steak one hmmmmm not really sure that you are a great seafood restaurant… Service is in a word god awful, people are either rude or short but usually both. This is trollville if i ever saw it. Not sure what else to say, extremely dated, smelly, nice place to pee…

Amazing food, good service… what more can you ask for?
This is a long overdue review so let’s get straight to the point.
I got a red sangria to start. To be honest I didn’t quite like it. Switched to some beer after, and I was set.
I got their ever famous Clam Chowder, which was delicious. It was totally worth the drive! It had a thick, rich consistency with great flavor. Clams were fresh, soup was just too darn good.
The escargot was amazing. It was atop mushroom caps smothered in this buttery garlic herb sauce that added ooomph to this appetizer. My friend got the stuffed mushrooms that were stuffed with crabmeat and a cheese filling that were delicious too! If you wanna try something adventurous, go for the escargot. If you want something classic and rich, stick with the stuffed mushrooms. Either way, you won’t regret.
For my main meal I just got the PEI Mussels as my meal (it is an appetizer). I wasn’t so sure having them with tomatoes and basil, as i like my mussels with just a simple buttery garlic wine simmer. However, these mussels did not disappoint! First of all, the portion of these bad boys was incredible! For the price, it was an easy steal. Second, it was delicious. It was cooked with fresh ingredients, and the quality of the mussels were high. The tomatoes and basil sure added flavor and it left me stuffed.
The service was good. The bartenders helped us out in picking the food items and were very patient with us because we stayed there for a long time (we were waiting for the rain to stop… It was that one horrible winter day with black ice all over I-​95 and bad accidents). This place was accommodating and made me feel comfortable the whole time. A good place for seafood and chowder!

I’ve never had a bad meal here and the bread with the honey-​butter is delicious! The salmon salad is my favorite (tuna salad is good too if you’re a tuna fan), and the prime rib is excellent if you can get it before they run out. The martinis are fabulous as are the calamari, steamers and lobsters if you’re looking for that. My dad visits from NC annually and insists we come here each visit as the food is consistently good. Also, they don’t take reservations but on a Friday or Saturday you may want to call ahead, find out how long the wait is and get yourself on the waiting list before you head over!

I had a phenomenal eating experience at Chowder Pot IV. Ironically, I ended up there by happenstance, given that I was staying at the Hartford Hotel & Suites next door and was too tired to find a place to eat elsewhere.
Here’s what makes this restaurant top-​notch:
**FOOD**
If you like lobster, be sure to go on a Monday night, aka Lobster Night. They serve Monday-​only lobster dishes and also lower prices (slightly) on lobster dishes available every day.
I was incredibly hungry and so I ordered the lobster bisque and the «Catch of the Day» (in my case, Mahi Mahi, which came with two of these sides: fries, coleslaw, vegetables, baked potato, rice).
First things first, the sweet butter bread (baked fresh and fast and served on its very own bread board!) is phenomenal and (as it turns out) incredibly filling. Even just half of the bread and the piping hot (and absolutely delicious) lobster bisque was enough to satiate me… which surprised me, given how hungry I was.
By the time the Mahi Mahi arrived (at the perfect temperature and balance of flavors), I was nearly full. Needless to say, I brought the leftovers home, convinced that even Chowder Pot’s reheated food would taste delicious.
**SERVICE**
If the service I received from Jayne K. is a reflection of the service one always gets from Chowder Pot, then I can confidently say that it doesn’t get much better than this. Jayne was incredibly professional yet 100% down-​to-​earth. I felt like I was getting personalized service at a 5-​star restaurant.
Jayne was also great in getting my food served quickly and was conscientious in asking how I was enjoying my meal. I didn’t have to wait long for the check, either.
Furthermore — and this may seem completely insignificant — Jayne was incredibly considerate in the way she prepared and laid out the boxes to put my leftovers in. The fact that she put such care and thought into such a minor task proved to me just how much the little things matter when it comes to great service.
Needless to say, I tipped generously, which, being a cheapskate, never happens.
**ATMOSPHERE**
I love the look of this place: overall dim (mood lighting) yet bright enough (with a lamp at each table) to not make eating an eye-​straining task. The aesthetic design really embraced the «out to sea» theme without being tacky, with each table being an enclosed case of sand, shells, and «treasure».
The music, too, was very nice: instrumental versions of well-​known songs at a volume that was neither inaudible nor overbearing. Overall, the perfect eating environment.
**COST**
I was going to give this place 4 stars, until I looked at my check. I was UNDER-​charged for the quoted price of my meal! Given that I took home enough leftovers to make another meal out of it, I essentially got 2 restaurant meals for less than $ 13 each!
Highly recommend seafood lovers check out this place.