Nautical Whimsey

Delicious! There were 4 of us but enough food for 8. We ordered the Italian sub, fettuccine Alfredo with shrimp, chicken Parmesan and the recommended lasagna. I ate the chicken Parmesan which was fabulous. The chicken looked like tenders but was much more. The breading was just right, not too much. It was on a giant bed of pasta and marinara. My son had the Alfredo, another well cooked meal. He added shrimp and they were cooked perfect. Underneath the shrimp was huge pasta/​cheesy goodness. The subway was really tasty, hot and meaty. The lasagna was great, worthy of the recommendation. Buffet was closed but everyone was asking about it. Three «to go» boxes hold our lunch for tomorrow I’ll be back.

Best lunch buffet value in town. The food is more Sysco than authentic, but it’s always warm and served in a nice variety. Today, they had all you can eat mock lobster subs, crawfish bisque, cajun chicken pasta, red beans & rice with sausage, shrimp and grits plus a nice fresh salad bar and cookies for dessert — for $ 8. By contrast, the sandwich shop next door had a grilled cheese with bagged chips for the same cost.

I was a little skeptical at first mostly because when you enter you see the bar area and there were a bunch of bikers sitting there so I got nervous.
The «formal» dining area is in the back. It’s quite small so I don’t really see it working for a party of three or more.
The food was amazing!!! From our apetizer to desert every bite was delicious Italian heaven. Going back for sure.

We love this restaurant! There is always more food than expected and it’s always very very good! … Price is good and servers are very friendly !

If you want to be continously interrupted during your meal by an obnoxious man who was an employee off duty, this is the place to go ladies. The food was fantastic, the atmosphere, eeehhh.

We had our first official #TeamKing office lunch today. The service was super friendly & the buffet was delicious. Great price at $ 8.00/person. We will be back soon. Side note: I never liked English peas growing up… never, but I really enjoyed the split pea soup with English peas at Nautical Whimsey. Mom would be proud.

I have had dreams about this buffet and my mom and I go as much as we can. The buffet is small, but the food is so delicious and fresh that it doesn’t matter. Then again, in most cases the smaller the buffet, the better it is.
The area is clean and I love the decorations. The staff is friendly and so kind, and they’re pretty kid friendly which is a plus in my book. My one year old enjoys their chicken and dumplings the most. Plus, your glass never stays empty for too long.
This is a wonderful place to eat!

I’m really disappointed with this place. I’ve been there a couple of times for lunch, and it was okay, but a friend kept bugging me to try it for dinner because there’s a different menu and supposedly a whole different vibe.
My friend was correct about the menu, but «different» and «better» are not synonymous. If anything, the dinner menu is full of more Sysco truck offerings than the lunch buffet, only more expensive. Don’t serve me «authentic Italian» food with sauce from a can. Pasta with canned sauce, shredded cheese from a plastic bag, and a big olé piece of fried meat is not authentic Italian. It’s cafeteria-​line faux rustica, and it stinks. The friends who dined with me felt the same about their entrees.
As far as the «vibe,» well, it’s about the same as lunch, only with glasses instead of plastic cups, although two of our three drink glasses arrived with lipstick smudges on them. One of the replacement glasses did as well.
Service was not good. More accurately, the waiter was inattentive. He and a surly-​looking guy who also works there hung around the kitchen area together and did a great job of ignoring the dining area adjacent to the bar. I think the waiter knew he was setting himself up for a lower-​end tip, because he gave all three of us our change rounded down to the lowest dollar, keeping the difference for himself. (This has also happened to me at lunch, so I wasn’t surprised.) After that little move, I decided that he could keep that as his entire tip.
If I could give this place a negative rating, I would.

Stopped in here late Friday night for a meal, and was pleasantly surprised. We sat in the back of the place which in considered the ‘restaurant’ part of it. It was a nice, quiet atmosphere which I enjoyed. To start I had the Tomato & Mozz salad that had a white balsamic vinaigrette on it. The salad was fantastic. As my meal I had the Eggplant Parmesan which surprised me as it was delicious as well. The wife had the filet special. Which was pretty big for a filet, I believe the server said it was somewhere between 10−12oz, but came with a regular olé baked potato, I thought being the special it could’ve came with something a little more appealing but the wife enjoyed her meal very much. Our table also had the crab cakes which I was told were really good. After our meal, we headed to the bar and listened to the great acoustic set from the musician as well. Overall it was good experience and good food, definitely worth a stop if your in the area.

Everything on the menu looked great. The crab cakes were incredible.
We got the crab leg special, with the Italian mashed potatoes. The crab was delicious, because it was crab! But, there was a little spiciness, in the center that added to it. The mashed potatoes were dangerously good.
So, glad we stopped in. It was really the wine that drew us in, but the meal and service was great.

Really good unassuming place. Located in an alley in downtown you might miss it, but don’t. The portion sizes are outlandish do unless you’re a competitive eater plan on a to go box. The service is impeccable. We were the only ones there and the owner came out some with us and even gave us a free appetizer just so we could try it.

I’m a Californian driving through, so I wasn’t sure what I would find in Tupelo.
What I found was delicious food, at incredibly low prices (I would have paid at least double in Los Angeles), good wine, and above all, some of the nicest owners you’ll ever meet. They care about the business and their customers and it shows, from the décor to the food to the conversation.
I don’t know when I’ll be back in Tupelo, but if I am, I know where I’ll be eating and drinking, and I know where I’ll tell any friends passing through to spend their money.

They need more servers badly and the beer is served in larger and smaller glasses for the same price… wtf? But I heard the food was good… who knows. It’s like a sports bar/​Italian restaurant. Confusing…

I went with several others while we were in town on business. I had the Lobster BLT and was not impressed. The Lobster was mock. Other at the table had the Pasta Trio and seemed to like it. Very large portions. Others had the fries ravioli and Chicken Parmesan. Both said theirs was good. Personally I won’t be back because I wasn’t I
Pressed with the sandwich or the service. Very friendly but not very efficient.

I went in today for the lunch buffet. They had chicken and dressing, mash potatoes, green beans, rolls, home made fried chicken tenders and French fries, and a Mac and cheese burger topped off with great chocolate chip cookies. On top of it all they have a great salad bar. It is very reasonably priced. They also have a great dinner menue. It’s definitely an upscale environment. They have a great wine menu and live entertainment in the weekends. It took me too long to discover this place –now I’m hooked.

A friend of mine recommended this place to me and told me it was awesome. So, on our way though Tupelo I suggested to my boyfriend that we try it. Sadly it did not meet our expectations. :(I really hate to be so critical of a restaurant especially a local one, but it just really was not that good to us. Especially for the price. That and it was a pretty long wait for our meals.
He got the BLT (bacon lobster and tomato) sandwich. It was good, but so small for 8 bucks. A chicken sandwich at Burger King is bigger. It was served with chips. You don’t get to pick another side instead and you don’t choose which chips. It came with barbecue lays chips. I don’t know how you serve barbecue chips out of a bag with an «Italian bistro» dish. Lobster and barbecue do not pair well. They also served it on a cutting board. ??
I ordered the chicken parmesan. It was ok, but absolutely not worth $ 15! The portion size was more than fair, but the food itself was not impressive. It was like chef boyardee piled with LOTS of cheese and 3 chicken strips. Did not like. They also served no sort of garlic bread or bread with olive oil.
For our drinks we just ordered dr pepper. It was brought to our table in a can. This place charges between 11 – 17 per plate and they bring our drinks by the can.
I just wouldn’t waste my money on this place. It isn’t worth it in my opinion. You’re better off either making your own Italian food at home or finding an Olive Garden. It is disappointingly tacky and the food is so-​so.

I’ve heard the food is good unfortunately the 2 times I’ve been I’ve yet to get any. First time I flagged down a server who informed me they were out of what I wanted and I never saw them again. Second time I didn’t even get that far. I gave up after that. I was told by people at work to go for the lunch buffet that way you don’t have to wait for anything other than your check. I beg whoever is in charge around there to do something because everyone I know jokes about how bad the service is, that can’t be good for business.

Wow… I just created a Unilocal account while I’m still sitting here to say how amazing the veggie fettuccine alfredo I just had is. The head chef/​owner Amanda has created a very easy going and playful atmosphere and wonderful menu. I’m passing through on business and I was not expecting great food. The service was amazing. Great DJ. If I come back I won’t go anywhere else to eat. Incredible job everyone. Just wow. I hope my job sends me this way again…

I walked in one Tuesday evening. I saw no sign telling me to wait or be seated. No one greeted me. So I sat at the bar. I waited for 5 minutes. In that time I saw no host, no bartender, no waiter, no employees at all. Not even a sign saying «back in 20 minutes». Nothing. So I left.

We stopped here as we passed through Tupelo. I was first attracted to the wonderful décor-​dark wood tables and light fabrics. We could see the chef (and owner) busy in the kitchen. Our first treat was a complimentary serving of fresh warm bread and marinara sauce. I am very fussy about sauce and I will tell you this is the best I have ever had. We then decided to get the Italian Nachos. Who would have thought! Delicious, more marinara and other fresh ingredients. The chef/​owner also bought us out a bruschetta sample just because! Our main dish was a baby bella and spinach cream sauce on a bed of fettucini with fried crab balls. YUM! I asked her when I could buy her sauce in a jar and she said she is working on it. Next time I am traveling this area, I will be going back. I have never had a more personable experience and great food at the same time. Don’t miss it!