The Boathouse

Reviews

• Sfo B.

  star star star star star_border 6 June 2026

  A popular place not far from Harvard square. Came in at 10:15pm with a colleague, the kitchen was still open, and the staff was very courteous.
  
  There was a good selection of beer and the price was average. We got Octoberfest on tap, which was okay, and ordered salmon burger and fish and chips, both of which were good.
  
  Will likely to come back again.

• Wendy H.

  star star star_border star_border star_border 5 June 2026

  The wait was so long and the food wasn't worth it. The wait was close to 45-1 hour. The atmosphere is pretty loud and it's so dark. The shepherd's pie was okay. I feel like I'm eating salty mush.

• Grace Y.

  star star star_border star_border star_border 3 June 2026

  I've been here a few times over the years, usually when my mother comes to visit me. I remember thinking of The Boathouse as a solid option for a simple dinner, but on my most recent visit here tonight, I was kind of disappointed. My mother and I ordered buffalo wings to share; she ordered the sausage and mash; I got the garden salad with chicken.
  
  Firstly, we had to wait an absurdly long time for our food. When the buffalo wings came, they tasted kind of dry and like they were previously frozen - then wait, what? All the pieces were of the drumstick variety and not the midsection variety! Eight in eight were drumstick. Not even a single midsection piece! We called the waiter over to ask about it. I said, "You know how there are two different sections of a chicken wing?" His response: "Eh, sometimes." What?!?! Anyway, we explained our disappointment to him, he checked with the kitchen, and ultimately he returned to let us know that their whole stock was predominantly of the drumstick variety, so there was nothing they could do about it. We returned the dish to the kitchen.
  
  My salad was rather disappointing. The field greens were kind of wilty, and the grilled chicken tasted like something I could get in a Harvard dining hall. Honestly, I've had better salads at sweetgreen. But I guess it was cheaper than sweetgreen, which runs over $10 a pop. Here it was $5 for garden salad, $4 extra for chicken.
  
  Lastly, the ambience is also extremely dark. It's hard to read the menu or the receipt.
  
  I don't want to come back, but because options for dinner are lacking in Harvard Square, I don't want to speak too soon. Sad. Sad indeed.

• Zhaorui D.

  star star star star star 28 May 2026

  Nice wings and burgers and fries. I did not know that the burger was so big and I could not eat any of those wings. The guy kindly got wings wrapped up so that I could take them away. lol

• Anne K.

  star star star star star_border 14 May 2026

  My boyfriend and I found the Boathouse through Yelp and it did not disappoint.
  
  We went on a Tuesday night and had no trouble finding metered parking and getting a seat at the bar right away.
  
  The fish tacos are the best I ever had. The chipotle cream sauce adds delicious flavor to the dish. My boyfriend ordered the steak tips which were cooked to perfection. I ordered the fish and chips, which also were great and not overly fried.
  
  The restaurant itself is pretty small, but the nautical theme embraces a cozy New England feel.
  
  Downsides: Small food menu, only 6 beers on tap