TOPPER’S Tidbits

Toppers is a great place to have a quiet, relaxing start to the day. The friendly service is excellent and breakfast on the deck is hard to beat. Eggs Benedict are outstanding as is the coffee. Highly recommend for kick starting your day.

PRICEY! But well worth it for the atmosphere and the totally professional service. Went with friends who loved the food but not the exorbitant cost. All MUST go if on island.

Just stopped by for drinks after riding bikes from town and it was an absolute wonderful location! Great views and great coffee.

Disappointing was the takeaway. Yes, the boat ride over is an enjoyable experience, and love they have nearly a full bar ready for you on the hour ride. This was probably the highlight. Topper’s, known as one of the finest dining experiences on Nantucket should have a more high caliber staff. There were simple language barriers (more bread please?) things that should not occur in fine dining. The service itself was ok — not nearly the experience that we thought. Now, let’s discuss the food. The Morel Mushroom Agnolotti was in a word a «joke». We felt it was boarder line fraud to state there was Australian Black Truffles in the dish. If, and I will stress «IF» there were, they were two finger-​nailed sized pieces that not only lacked flavor, were nearly inedible. Granted, we are not in high-​truffle season, but this was so far off it was embarrassing. The other dishes were nearly unmemorable. Far too many other options on the island, both of high caliber and lower priced that I would recommend. This was an experience — once, and not again.

Food is always good! Kids menu for lunch on the deck! I like the French fries and chicken!
The lemonade is also cool and refreshing! I will ask my family to bring us again!

Food great but service was a disaster last night for our party of 7. Our 8:15 reservation was seated at 8:45. No food hit the table until 9:35. No apology no attention which translates to no management presence in the dining room. Too bad because when dinner finally arrived around 10 the food was very good. Just not worth the wait. It will be many years before we gather the strength to try Toppers again.

Another restaurant week selection of the pricy level. Our server was so sweet and very enthusiastic about the food she served. She was also attentive and speedy, which I like.
For restaurant week, Toppers offered a $ 25, three course prix menu. I neglected to take a photo of the menu itself so I can’t pull out the descriptions readily. Started with a chilled pea soup that was okay. I added a side of braised greens to supplement and found that to be much more to my liking taste-​wise. The entrée was a braised spare rib sandwich with a mountain of the best seasoned French fries I’ve had in a long time. Two thumbs up on that. Dessert was a bread pudding with caramel sauce that was hot and delicious. I was far to full to finish so I only managed half. I also imbibed with a drink called The Painkiller. No idea what was in it, but it tasted pretty delightful.
I felt like it was a nice sized portion of food for the price. I’d come back and try a burger or a steak for a splurge meal. Definitely a pleasure.

«Can I get the salad with chicken or fish on top?» «No, we can’t do that.» «Okay, then can I have the fish gluten and dairy-​free?» «Sure, no problem.»
Meal arrives on top gluten with yogurt sauce. Sent back. Replaced with a salad and the fish on top. Really?
2 stars because it’s beautiful here. Food was not very good (after all that!) Pretty poor service with no apologies or willingness to accommodate my dietary issues or those of the people I dined with. Fail.

Food is good here. Got a complimentary order of oysters to start. Extensive wine list. Very nice staff.

We dined here twice, first being lunch while we waited for our room to be ready, the second being breakfast the following morning.
Lunch: It didn’t start off so great, we had to wait 15 minutes until a server arrived and it was obvious the fellow that was supposed to be our server was more interested in the party of 8 that was coming rather than just a two top. I am thankful, though, because our new server was a delight and the one we should have originally had sounded very condescending to the other guests. The drinks, a Nantucket Mule and Elder Rose were delicious (we had several) and our meal was also very good. As others have stated, prices are possibly higher than what matched the food/​service but we came expecting this. Also, we sat at a lovely corner table out on the balcony with a gorgeous view of the bay and herb garden. I loved watching the chefs come out to pick the herbs needed.
Breakfast: It was nice to be remembered the following morning and while the choices were limited, they were still very good. Our server was extremely friendly and helpful, quick to fill my coffee cup which is always a good thing.
*One side note, they offer a shuttle since it is roughly 9 miles away from the downtown area, which is wonderful.

Took my parents out to Topper’s to celebrate some time in Nantucket. We opted to take the water taxi option, which takes around an hour. I would advise against this if the weather is not perfect or you are easily annoyed with other other’s asking the boat driver how much every house you pass cost (several different groups on our boat had these questions for the entire ride).
It was a beautiful day and we were brought to the back of the restaurant, even though the place was empty. After asking to be seated by a window my party of 4 waited a few minutes and were give a much nicer table. Overall the service was excellent, I found the food ok (there was a crunchy bit in my lobster…). But my group seemed impressed and everyone left happy. I’m not sure why they need to charge $ 11 for a bottle of water though… Other patrons seemed mostly older (55+) and high strung.
We overheard the water taxi driver tell part of the boat that we were going to get soaked on the ride home due to the winds so we took the shuttle bus back to town. This was a fine dining experience but insanely expensive for what we got.

It delivered for us. One of our best meals ever. 7 course price fix dinner was fabulous. Service was professional & attentive. Food was delicious, right size, well cooked and beautifully presented.

Topper’s is known as the nicest place in town. Like most of the Unilocalers here, I was excited to dine here with my family. We went during the second week of October, aka the «Shoulder Season.» Meaning, just about the end of the busy season.
We made reservations for 6:15, then had to move it to 6:45. They accommodated this without a hitch. We arrived at about 6:30 and realized there was only 1 other family eating there. We asked if we could go watch the sunset out on the lawn. We heard it is a legendary spot to view a sunset. They said yes, and also showed us were the lounge (read: bar) is. We got a round of drinks and headed up to the large flat lawn to watch with 6 or 7 other people. Clouds got in the way, but it was still a great experience. The moment the sun dipped below the horizon the unthinkable happened… the sprinklers turned on. Keep in mind, this is pretty much the only place on the island that has a dress code, so everyone out on this lawn is dressed up. Now they are getting sprayed and soaked. My family was in a prime location to make an emergency exit, but 3 or 4 people definitely got blasted. Once back to the restaurant, about a 50 foot walk, the hostess greeted us again, and showed us to our seats. I was surprised there was no apology. Oh well, maybe she didn’t see or hear the commotion out there?
Topper’s has a VERY extensive wine list. From the common bottles you would find at a local wine store, to the $ 5000 bottles flown in from across the globe. Take your pick. The family decided on a bottle, and ended getting about 4 of them.
Appetizers:
We got an order of the Pork Cheek, the Tuna, and the Duck Egg. The pork cheek was prepared well. It had a special mustard that really complimented it. The tuna was my favorite. It was served sashimi style, with some fruits and veggies on the side. Well played. The duck egg was poached on a bed of pasta. I honestly wasn’t much of a fan, but then again, I’m not the biggest egg fan.
Main Course:
My table got an assortment of the Sturgeon, the Beef Short Rib, and the Venison. I loved the venison, and also thought it was funny we almost hit a deer on the way to the restaurant. I hadn’t had venison in a while, so this was a nice change. Chef’s recommendation is medium rare, I went with that. It was delicious. Served with Brussels sprouts and a few other veggies. I would definitely get it again. The short rib was served sliced like a steak, a way I had never seen before. I looked like a fatty filet. It was pretty good, but I prefer more lean of a cut. The sturgeon didn’t even get shared. My mother annihilated it. Must have been good, since she is super picky when it comes to fish.
Dessert:
I got some kind of pumpkin dessert. It was ice cream, pumpkin gel, some fruits, and a pastry of some kind. I cleared the plate. It was all delicious, but never overpowering.
All in all, dinner with the other 1%-ers was interesting. We left full and satisfied. But, with the enormous price tag, this was a 1 time deal I think. Maybe later down the road, my wife and I could do it again. The sprinkler fiasco and the price tags are the reason for 1 star being knocked off.

I usually only post good reviews on Unilocal but felt the need to warn others about Toppers. We each had the lobster and it was soooo overcooked I had a hard time cutting and chewing the three tiny morsels they serve. Our rude waitress (she has long black hair in a ponytail) did her best to ignore us once we decided not to order a bottle of wine with dinner. We each had a cocktail and then a glass of wine with dinner but I guess this wasn’t sufficient. Considering the poor service and disappointing food this was indeed VERY pricey… adding insult to injury.

Just had one of the worst «upscale“dining experiences… ever. I, much like other Unilocalers, I was very excited to dine at Topper’s for my Birthday, but was very disappointed. Here is my experience:
Service was half excellent and half condescendingly snobby. My waitress was attentive, knowledgable, and warm. She is why they get three instead of 1 star. All other waiters as well as the hostesses were just rude. Also, they never gave me the a la cate menu, even though I asked for it, twice.
My starter was the sea scallop. It came with a potato pure, ox tail ragu, and a nice helping of white truffle shavings. The scallop was tasteless, as were all the other parts of this terribly mismatched dish. Oh and I have never had truffles that taste like thinly clicked cardboard.
I followed my unfortunate first with the lobster main. It was slightly more flavorful than the first dish, but nothing to write home about. It was well plated, mostly tasteless, misuse of ingredients. It seems this place is much more into presentation than making sure the food is flavorful enough to justify its price tag.
For desert I had the cheese plate. I can make a much better one by picking up a few cheeses from my local food store. The highlight of the meal was a nickel sized honey comb that came with the cheese plate.
Overall, if not for my waitress, I would have had a terrible time, but she kept bringing me their brown bread and making sure I was well taken care of.

Got the burger it was damn good, as were the fries. They accommodate gluten-​free. They bring little savory treats and Boston brown bread before your dinner and they are all great. The hamachi pizza, oysters and lobster roll were highlights.
My sister did not like her appetizer (the duck egg, I liked it because I love eating poached eggs for the choline) nor did she like her dinner (poached lobster). Some dishes were amazing and some were not good at all.

I cannot say enough about Topper’s, and the incredibly gracious and accommodating staff. My husband and I were married in a small ceremony on the island and our group of seven made reservations at Topper’s for our wedding night dinner. Six of us enjoyed the phenomenal family-​style lobster bake, and we couldn’t have been happier with our choice.
The presentation and pace was perfection, as was the champagne accompaniment (and the fact that our glasses were never empty!) The amount of food served was incredible, and the freshness of the oysters, lobster, steamers and sides was luxurious. My father-​in-​law raved about his lobster and crabcake meal, as well.
Above all, the staff made our night one to remember. Leon, our server, was unobtrusive, but with a sense of humor that had our table in stitches; our Sommelier (whose name escapes me — apologies!) was knowledgeable and very helpful with our champagne choices, and everyone else that approached the table (to clear, to order cabs, to refill waters) was pleasant. Special shout out to Leon taking the time to wash our Waterford Crystal flutes in lemon and water personally — so very thoughtful!
Topper’s truly was the perfect end to a perfect day, and my husband and I are already looking forward to returning for our one year anniversary next year!

Came here to set up for a renewal of vows and had some extra time so we got a drink and something to eat.
Drinks were great! Had the painkiller and a friend had the green pony.
Food was… okay. The tartar which a friend had was great, but another person had the short rib flatbread which had a lot of mushrooms on it which she said were not done nice. I just nibbled on fries and chips which were great.

On our trip to Nantucket this past weekend we wanted one special dining experience and we chose Toppers. The restaurant is rated very highly, but it was really the overall experience that sold it for us. It started with a really nice boat cruise across the bay, in the company of about 20 other people who were also eagerly anticipating dinner. The drinks are definitely overpriced, but it’s not often you are in this situation so you say why not.
We were greeted on arrival at the dock by the hostess, and seated right away at the outside table we had requested. The view of the water isn’t quite as good as we had expected, but it was nice all the same. Contrary to some other reviews, we found the service to be top notch and quite friendly.
We knew coming in what the menu prices would be, but I could imagine someone stumbling into this place could go into immediate sticker shock. We opted for the three course prix fixe, mostly because the chef’s tasting menu looked like too much food. My wife and I have a policy of always ordering something different from the other, so we make our own little tasting menu.
She opted for the lobster with sea urchin infused risotto and I chose the striped bass as our entrees. Presentation of both was perfect, pretty much works of art. Very flavorful and the portions were a bit larger than expected. With this kind of meal I prefer to taste each part individually to get the full effect, and in this case that was a good strategy.
Desserts were really good as well, and we were quite full afterwards, probably because they were so rich. The shot of hot chocolate will wake you right up.
We didn’t have any wine, but the wine list is huge and a bit intimidating.
After dinner we went and sat on these big cushy lounge chairs on lawn and watched a fantastic sunset. You can bring your drinks over if you’d like which makes it even more relaxing.
Finally it was time to head back on the boat. I highly suggest bringing a sweater if you are the type that gets chilled easily. They do put up the top on the boat but there is limited space underneath.
Overall it was a great experience, but definitely not something I would (or could) do on a regular basis.

For an over-​the-​top experience at Toppers, arrive by their free boat service from Nantucket Town. As of Summer ’10, the boat departs from the White Elephant at 5 p.m. and returns from Toppers at 8 p.m. The voyage is just short of an hour each way, so you’ll have roughly two hours for dinner between (plenty of time). The 5 p.m. boat has bar service; the 8 p.m. does not, but you can BYOB from Toppers. Just to be clear — you are power boating inside the Nantucket Harbor, not out in the open ocean. The harbor is very calm, so there should be no problem taking the boat — even for those prone to sea-​sickness.
Eating outside at Toppers is grand, but you must request this seating at the time of your reservation, otherwise you’ll be sat inside by default. The menu changes constantly, but if Topper’s is offering the Ceviche of Live Diver Scallop with Local Honey and Yuzu Vinaigrette when you visit, it is not to be missed. This main course is served as a sweet ceviche, rather than a citrus ceviche. Different, delicious.
If you miss the return boat, the Wauwinet has a shuttle bus to drive you back to Nantucket Town (and a shuttle to pick you up if you miss the 5 p.m. boat). But don’t miss the boat!
The sunsets from the lawn at the Wauwinet (or from the end of the pier — where there is a bench made for two) are amazing and romantic.
Enjoy!