Stockholders Restaurant, Weymouth, MA

Yesterday was Paul's birthday, so the girls and I wanted to take him out to dinner.  We weren't wanting to go into Boston or go anywhere that would require a drive of more than 15 minutes, so we kept our restaurant search local.  Luckily, there was a restaurant right down the street that we had heard some great feedback on, and, since it was a steakhouse, it was a perfect fit for Paul's birthday dinner, as he loves a good steak.  So off we went to Stockholders Restaurant.

We had 6:00 pm reservations, and we arrived at the restaurant promptly at 6:00.  We were seated right away, as there were still many tables available.  Our table was right in front of a large fish tank, which Ellie and Maggie were enthralled with, as it is stocked with the same variety of fish that are in Finding Nemo.

Our server came over promptly and took our drink orders and told us about the specials for the night.  After we perused the menu, she came back to take our orders.  Maggie ordered her usual pasta and marinara sauce from the children's menu, which surprisingly also came with french fries.  Ellie ordered her new favorite menu item, a Cesar Salad with steak.  Paul chose the 14 ounce as poivre New York sirloin with embedded peppercorns while I went with the pan seared scallops over a creamy lobster risotto.

After ordering we were presented with a basket of bread and crackers, along with olive oil for dipping, and cowboy caviar, which is a kind of black eyed pea salad.  The bread was a little stale, but the cowboy caviar was a nice, unique touch with the crackers. 

Our entrees arrived promptly.  Maggie's pasta was perfectly fine, but what can you do to pasta?  The french fries were very tasty.  I don't know if they were hand cut, but I hope they were, as Maggie's dish cost $9.95!  As do all the children's menu items.  A little pricey for a kid's menu, considering the range of choices aren't any different than what you would get at a casual family restaurant.

The salad portion of Ellie's meal was also perfectly fine, but the steak on top must just be the kitchen leftovers, as it was grisly and tough.  Almost inedible.

However, Paul did enjoy his steak.  It was tender and well cooked (medium).  He did state, however, that he wished he had ordered it with the optional presentation of peppercorn sauce instead of peppercorn encrusted, as the pepper taste kind of overwhelmed the dish.

My scallops were very good.  They were cooked perfectly and had a very nice sear to them.  The accompanying risotto, taste wise, was also good, however, as I pointed out to Paul, it isn't a risotto.  It was clumpy and sticky and did not flow on the plate.  I would have billed it as a cheesy lobster rice, and not risotto.  A little false advertising.

We did not order dessert, as I had earlier in the day dropped of a cake at the restaurant which they were kind enough to serve to us after our meal was done.

Service was pleasant, although quite slow, which was surprising as about halfway through our meal, the restaurant filled up and there was quite a large crowd waiting for tables.  Once we were served our meals, it was a long time before the server reappeared to check on us.  When we finished our meals, it was a good 10 - 15 minutes before our plates were cleared and another 10 minutes before the cake was presented.

All in all, our night a Stockholders was fine, but nothing ultra special.  I would consider giving it another try in the future.