Avoid Elizabeth's Restaurant on Thames Street

It seems Elizabeth is from another planet in that her very eclectic and interesting looking restaurant is not all it%26#39;s cracked up to be.

We happened upon the restaurant in the middle of busy Thames street and peeked inside last year on a trip to Newport. The restaurant was closed but we were intrigued by the eclectic-Victorian decor and the descriptive flyer outside the restaurant. It was closed at the time so we didn%26#39;t have an opportunity to see the menu, but put it on our MUST SEE list for our next Newport visit.

So, planning to dine there over the weekend of August 29th I called ahead for a reservation. This should have been my first red flag. The answering machine greeting is Elizabeth who asks you to leave a message with your reservation - which will not be confirmed - but implores you to show up because it hurts her business if you do not. Okay, I can understand this. Then she suggests that you BYOB as she does not have a liquor license - ';Good for you, bad for me';... although I love a BYOB it was kind of a strange way to put it I thought.

So our reservation set (we think) we show up on the evening of August 29th. We stood in the doorway ignored for a few minutes. We were seated by our waitress who promptly opened our bottle of wine and provided a bag (placed in the center of the table) to put the unfinished bottle in when we left (again, kind of weird).

The menu consisted of several pages of meals - all for 2 people at prices of $89.99 and up. The menu also stated that additional plates would be provided for a third diner for $25 and there was a $3.50 PER PERSON corkage fee!! Since we had our 14 year old daughter with us, I asked if there would be any additional food provided for the fee of $25 and the answer was NO. As it turns out there was plenty of food but I think that $25 is a bit high for sharing a $90 meal and no other options available for a single diner.

Now for the meal....

We ordered bouillabaise. Here is what we got: a HUGE platter (all the meals are served this way) with a pile of vegetables, a pile of onions/peppers/sausage, and a mound of spaghetti with tomato sauce, and the bouillabaise. The ';bouillabaise'; was a mound of small bay scallops, mussels, and a few small-medium sized shrimp in a very sweet white sauce with apples and topped with melted mozzarella cheese. Also on the platter were Elizabeth%26#39;s ';famous'; garlic breads - 6 1/2 bagels topped with onions, peppers and mozzarella. Yes, you read right, 6 bagels on this platter!!!!

The meal was not much better than garbage. Alot of ';filler'; for a hefty price!! Elizabeth has a lot of nerve calling it bouillabaise and charging such a high price for something that probably cost her less than $5 to make.

Don%26#39;t be tempted by the ';reviews'; on her flyer or the awards it %26#39;says%26#39; she received. Elizabeth is a crazy, eccentric lady making alot of money on cheap, crappy food. Oh, and even though her flyer says credit cards accepted, she only accepts cash (which was a surprise to the people at the table next to us).....

Avoid Elizabeth's Restaurant on Thames Street

Interesting review....I%26#39;ve never eaten there, and can%26#39;t really think of any of my friends either, which is strange because of it%26#39;s location and ';unique look'; I guess I always felt a weird vibe about the place, the flyers, the hours, etc....I guess she%26#39;s trying to make up for the fact that she doesn%26#39;t have a liquor license and is charging lots of money for her food.

Avoid Elizabeth's Restaurant on Thames Street

Check out the reviews she%26#39;s gotten on this site. Backs up everything the op has just stated, and I%26#39;m amazed this place has managed to stay open.