Dolphin’s Cove Marina

Having read some of the previous reviews, I can see where the disgruntled customers are coming from. But, perhaps owing to the circumstances when we were there, I choose to see the glass more than half full. We came in by boat for Father’s Day lunch and the outdoor deck and some of the interior was quite busy and got busier. By far, the majority of the clientele is Portuguese and it is a popular place with families on Sunday. They were certainly enjoying themselves. We came intending to eat heartily drink some wine and enjoy the sunny afternoon. Hence, if the service was slow, we didn’t notice but, come to think of it, the service was very attentive and friendly! But, even if it wasn’t, remember folks this is a Mediterranean culture where time is not as neurotically measured and managed as some would like. We all had the grilled quail and oysters to start and lobster (boiled except for one fried Portuguese style served on a bed of linguine) to follow. They were just fine and yes, it was a bit messy but we were dressed for it. By the way, where can you get grilled quail nowadays? It was a nice surprise and tasty. The lobsters might have come from Nova Scotia but that’s not exactly reason for demerits. Finished with some very fine espresso and, after a couple of bottles of crisp vinho verde, our only concern was our heightened risk to navigation on the way home. Yes, I would advise steering clear of the brown sauce and yes, the lavatory could use some redesign but the reception could not have been nicer from owner to hostess to waitstaff.

Went for some good seafood on the way to the marina. Mistake. Got fried scallops and they have the distinction of being the worst scallops we ever got. French fires were even bad, felt like we were bothering the staff for help. not sure how they stay in business.

Do I have to give one star? The worst place to have seafood ! Where do I start ?! How do u sever seafood and u don’t even know what Maine lobster is? They come out with raw clams with 2 lemons? I ask do u have sauce horseradish sauce? No clue? She had to ask then they bring sauce it’s solid frozen ?? My lobster that I asked for broiled comes out steamed ! NO BUTTER,’!!! She was gonna give us the butter u put on bread ! Oh the best part is the staff is devouring food as they stand while on duty ! This place is a hot mess!

Great seafood, but needs better service.
Space — Has both indoor and outdoor seating. AC is usually turned way up inside, so bring a light jacket if you don’t want to freeze. If you plan on sitting outdoors, I’d recommend wearing some mosquito repellent.
Service — Waitress was friendly but service was slow. Bus lady also seemed really cranky. The table next to us asked for napkins, and she took the semi-​used napkins from the end of our table and handed it over. Service definitely needs improvement.
Appetizers — Fried calamari was nicely battered with hearty pieces of squid underneath. Garlic clams need a little more pop of flavor.
Twin Lobster Tails — Out of the six, there were two reaaally good one. It would’ve helped to have lobster bibs and utensils at the beginning of our meal as opposed to at the mid-​point.
Paella — Nicely plated on a lobster shaped platter but on the salty side. Lobster, clams, and shrimp from the paella also didn’t taste as fresh as I would have liked.
Fish with Coconut Milk — Best dish of the night. If you’re looking for something light, this is a great option.

For the prices that this place charge one would expect great service sadly I got the complete opposite. The food was over priced, the service was extremely slow and their was only 5 couples in the restaurant so that is unacceptable… I could only imagine how service is on a full house. For a seafood restaurant the food tasted as if I brought lobster at McDonald’s it was horrible. They gave me the wrong cocktail and when I called them out on it I got attitude. When I go out to eat I go out for the service the food and the experience if none of that gets met I might as well stay home and cook at my house. I most definitely will never return to this over priced dungeon again. I wouldn’t even give them a star at all if the app would have let me post without it. I advise bringing along a stomach settler in your purse because this is a disappointment.

Very disappointing food. My fish was supposed to be served in a lemon butter sauce, it was drowned in a pool of oil with a wedge of dried out lemon on the side. It did not taste fresh. It was supposed to have come with green beans, but came with what was clearly a mix of frozen broccoli, cauliflower and carrots with a spongy texture and no taste. My date ordered his seafood platter with fra diavolo sauce, it came with marinara sauce instead. When we mentioned this to the waitress, she did not offer to replace his meal, she brought us some red pepper, about ten minutes later. It’s really too bad because it such a great spot, right on the water with gorgeous views. The staff was nice, but service was so slow, and the food was just so bad. I would not recommend unless you just want a drink on the deck.

This place has come back from all those bad reviews that were from the past.
I couldn’t ask for anything more fit for a fine dining experience for my mother and myself for our 10 year reunion after I left for the Army.
Maybe it’s because I’m from Alaska, but the price is reasonable for fresh food that was both appealing to both my eyes and my pallet.
Only criticism is probably that there was one one waitress serving 4 tables so we didn’t get the quality attention we would at fine dining, but I’m not complaining.
Oh yeah, the bathroom probably needs some upgrading, but it’s still clean.

Unfortunately, this place fell short in the food category. We tried the garlic wings, capresi salad and the Brazilian clams. Everything was under seasoned. The wings and clams had similar flavor profiles. They both had a brown gravy, which tastes a little wierd. Because the wings were in this gravy, they were soggy. I couldn’t taste the garlic. I’ve never had a capresi salad with onions. This salad was loaded with them. The mozzarella was low quality.
Let’s talk about their service. It was very poor. Our drinks took a very long time to arrive. At times I felt like the waitress forgot about us. We had to solicit another waiter just to place an additional order.
It took a very long time just to get our bill and even longer to process our credit cards. There was no excuse for the poor service because the place only had about 15 patrons while we were there.
The inside restaurant looks very nice. They also have a full bar. What is great about this place is their view. The marina along with the long island ferry can entertain you while you wait.

This restaurant is okay. I would change everything and make it a fast seafood/​bar hangout. They don’t even have Fish & Chips??? What? Unbelievable that a seafood restaurant does not offer this item…

Haven’t seen a review for this place in a while but my wife and I discovered this year and have been back a few times.
The lobster traps are outside so they are fresh. Great grilled rib eye and great views of Long Island Sound. The place could be great but needs a Robert Irvine style intervention.

We have been coming to Dolphin’s Cove off and on for the past 20 years, relying upon good fresh seafood at a fair price. Lobsters have always been the hallmark of this place, due to what its location at what used to be the center of the lobster trade for the Western Sound. In 1999, lobster mortality was close to 100%, which effectively ended the lobster harvests that Dolphin Cove relied upon. That meant the end of locally sourced seafood for DC. But DC has always tried to deliver good value for its dinners: only a few years ago it would offer a mid-​summer twin lobster dinner for $ 25
Lobsters (and essentially everything they serve at DC) is no longer longer sourced anywhere near the ramshackle deck that hangs over Bridgeport Harbor. Calamari is straight from a frozen bag. The same for empanadas. Paella is a soupy mess comprised principally of yellow rice with some over-​cooked small shrimp and random shellfish.
Which brings me to the prices. In a year when lobsters are in a well-​publicized glut, leading to RETAIL prices of $ 3.99/lb, DC still has the nerve to charge $ 27 for what was perhaps a 1 lb lobster with a side of french fries. Even a Michelin-​starred restaurant would not have the temerity to attempt this markup on its ingredients, and DC is as far from a Michelin-​starred restaurant as one could imagine!
In short, DC has gone from what used to be a somewhat charming dockside restaurant serving good seafood at a fair price, to an at best mediocre over-​priced waterfront dive that lives off its past reputation. Others may praise it as the best restaurant in Bridgeport Harbor, but that is an easy win given that it is the ONLY restaurant in Bridgeport Harbor. It is sad to return to DC to see how much has been lost.
Skip this restaurant, and try Whelk (in Westport) or Rowayton Seafood to the west.

Just had the most disgusting, rancid, gray, horrifying lobster imaginable. It was like they imported it from waters around the Fukushima power plant. Not only that but I asked about it and everyone from the kitchen came out and insisted I was wrong. It was gray. stringy, and there was disgusting green gooey stuff right at the base of the tail. I’m just sitting here waiting for the food poisoning to kick in though I only ate one bite. And they made me pay for it!

This place needs a complete overhaul. Our waitress was new and totally unfamiliar with the Portuguese menu and the rest of the help ignored assisting her. An array of house plants all over this place like it was someone’s home located in the dining room and bar where one would put drinks. This place needs Gordon Ramsay desperately. I went with friends who came for the lobster. The 2lb lobster was $ 23-​$ 27, but the rest of the food here is questionable in freshness, quality and cooking skills highly lacking. I ordered the Portuguese clams and chourico appetizer. Having just returned from Macau I was excited. The dish was prepared with mahogany clams that were tough, chewy and disgusting, the sauce was a mélange of tomatoes, unseasoned glorified mess. The sauce was not red, but looked like it had been sitting in some fridge for months and ladled of this dish. My husband ordered the seafood in a white sauce. The lobster came in a murky white sauce with again tasteless shrimp and scallops. Our friend ordered coffee that was served ice cold. I tried to look in the kitchen and was not impressed. This place lost its luster many years ago. I canceled my clam and pork dinner and sent back the appetizer. I was starving and my friends were eating lobster, so I ordered an empanada. I figured this would be fine. This again was burnt, overdone and the filling was chopped steak again lacking freshness and flavor. Beachfront location with tremendous potential with untrained or uncaring staff and management. The waitress said she had to speak to someone about my dish to remove from bill. Upon leaving went to bathroom. It was dark, with minimal lighting and I just left. Scary, what lies behind that kitchen door is a mystery and I caution diners, this place is a dump, except for its fresh lobster and grilled quail. The bar had old signs, garbage, dysfunctional and utter lack of cleanliness. They serve you on lobster plates from another era. One of the owners walked around with complete lack of caring, with no eye contact with diners. This is the 2^nd Portuguese establishment I’ve visited in Bridgeport that should just close its doors; immediately.

My boyfriend found out about this place a week ago, when he was driving pass. We looked it up online and decided to give it a chance. The atmosphere is of a italian restaurant. The service is ok, but the food is great. I had your simple dish of fried shrimp and french fries. And my bf had the seafood penne, which i sampled and it was great. I didnt give it 5 stars because it was missing something that i just cant put my finger on.

I have been going here for years. I never have been disappointed, whether it’s lunch or dinner. My fav is the Steak with egg on top in a brown gravy and yummy potato slices. Lobster is always fresh, the garlic shrimp app is awesome.

of all the portigese restaurants in bridgeport, this place is the best.
the food is decent. seafood is fresh. my favorite is the paella. lobster is good too, as is the classic steak and eggs.
the best thing about this place is the view. come here on a nice summer afternoon and eat out on the deck over looking the long island sound. love that ocean breeze and smell of salt air.