Port City Club

We brought a group of 8 for dinner Sunday night. The place appeared to be under staffed and our waitress appeared to not be well trained. Orders were not keyed in correctly and nothing came out as it was supposed to. The food and experience was below average. I’ve eaten here in the past and really enjoyed it which is why I’m giving it 3 stars instead of one.

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to Port City Club in Cornelius, North Carolina.
This lakefront restaurant is located on Lake Norman, where you can drive, walk or boat to your meal.
Dora here. How have we not discovered this gem sooner? What a glorious day for sitting outside! Everybody else agreed with us. Port City Club offers generous seating inside and three different levels outside, including one covered. What a gorgeous, relaxing setting for any meal.
For my meal, I chose the Lobster and Shrimp Roll. Maine lobster, poached shrimp, scallion, basil, and mayo served on a New England style split roll. Huge and meaty with just the right amount of mayo, this sandwich was outstanding and matched any meal that I enjoyed during our visit to Maine.
Dora here. I opted for the Port City Club, grilled chicken, bacon and smoked Gouda on a brioche roll. Delish! Tender, moist, and jazzed with a garlic aioli, I’d definitely go back for a repeat.
The service was attentive, friendly and flawless. Not once did our tea or water glass drain, and every time a server walked by, used items were scooped from the table with a smile. It’s the perfect location for brokering business deals, families with active children, and couples looking for a romantic setting.
We rate this restaurant 5 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving outstanding food. ~Ernie & Dora Hiers, Fiction Faith & Foodies Blog

I came here the other day and sat inside, I’ve heard about this place but had never been. It was late at night so it made if difficult to view any of the scenery around us/​outside, but the food was great and the service was good. It was much bigger than I was expecting but the décor was kinda nice and calming.

Excellent food. Lunch is a little weak but after 4 pm dinner is served. Try the lobster mac and cheese

This place is a little hard to find (at the back of a residential area), but it’s a phenomenal location: waterfront, with boat docks, several large dining areas, 2 bars, a big patio, and a beach lounge. I can’t understand why they don’t do more with events and marketing, because Port City Club has enormous potential. They should seriously consider hiring an event manager and reaching out a bit more. Halloween party? Trivia night? Charity events?
All the servers are very nice, friendly, and gracious. Some of them seem pretty new to the job, but that’s easily remedied by time and training. The food is usually very good, especially the appetizers. My only real complaint is the very slow kitchen. The food is great, but it always takes quite a while to get to the table (even for a 2-​top). Otherwise, it’s been lovely every time we’ve been here, and we will definitely be back.

This place deserves a great review. The are very accommodating to all types and sizes of parties. The location has amazing waterfront views, sandy beach lounge, covered and uncovered deck and great interior atmosphere.
The bar selection is great and not overpriced like you’d expect. The menu is diverse with great options from seafood and steak specials to burgers, flatbreads and sandwiches. The bison burger is delicious. Great appetizer selection as well. The great part about it is it is truly everyone’s meeting place so you can come off the boat casually or dressed to the nines after a formal event. Groups can usually take a little longer on service but that’s expected when some order specialty dishes and others order a sandwich. Try the trio dips while you’re waiting.

I have to say, the fish tacos and the atmosphere are the best things about Port City. Service and other dishes are mediocre at best. This was my third visit and the service is always so so. A little disappointing.

Lobster and crap roll. French fries. Food is good. Water front. Cool atmosphere. Service is good. I will be back

I had a friend recommend Port City Club today. After seeing these reviews I was extremely hesitant to dine here. What a mistake that would have been. One of the memorable lunches of a lifetime. From the Oysters & Shrimp Cocktail, to the Lamberger, Fish Taco (Mahai) and the yellow fin tuna our party of 3 enjoyed every tasty morsel!
We topped it off sharing the Coconut Cake to die for with a couple of hazelnut cappuccino’s that would put Starbucks to shame!
Caitlin was our server and she was attentive, helpful and friendly all in one!
Bravo to the entire experience!
If you’re even close to this place, all I can say is get here!
We will definitely be back!

Great view. Good service. Appetizers very good. Diver scallops. A bit old tasting the risotto was glue. The longer it sat the firmer it became. At the end it like a large softball that I
Was glad wasn’t inside my tummy Great View!!!

I am not sure why this place does not have higher ratings. Going through town we had a party of 36 and they handled us quickly with ease and courtesy. The food was great, there is a lot of variety of the menu. Out table had crab toast and Calamari Fritte to start with. Both were fresh and tasty. Dinner was Tuna steak, eggplant Parm, Filet and all were great dishes that we would order again.
The Eggplant Parm had 3 large pieces, with a crunchy texture and tomato sauce. The eggplant was on top of a decent size bed if linguine that was well flavored and fresh.

Time and time again, we have been to port city and have NEVER been disappointed. From the service, to the food, atmosphere, and overall experience,
Port City has never let us down! We live relatively close to this restaurant and also have a boat closely stored near this restaurant. When we take the boat out for a nice evening out, their docks are not only clean, but serviced by a staff person to help us tie up to the dock. They have ample parking, and always make you feel welcome when you walk into the door. Their service is impeccable and definitely something starting restaurant business owners should take note of to ensure a successful business. I would definitely, without a doubt, encourage people to visit Port City. Experience it yourself. You won’t be disappointed.

We wanted a date night on the water for the romance factor and the beautiful sunset. It was a very hot night mind you but when the people inside are fanning them self I realized it didn’t matter if we sit in or out, we sat out on the covered deck which over looked another uncover decks hat if you wanted an umbrella they would get you one, which over looked a sand area with what looked like a nice waiting area with padded rattan chairs, everything looked like a restoration hardware pic, very pretty to look at but here it goes I am 5’2 and my chair couldn’t reach the table so I had about a 10″ gap between me and the table and the chairs are completely hard wicker with no padding what so ever so after about 10 min your tuckus and back start to hurt! The small ceiling fans are a bit useless since the ceilings are about 15′, they have long drape in the sides of gigantic open windows but they are for show not to actually block the setting sun.
Our waitress came over pretty quick, asked us if what we would like for drinks and then proceeded to leave, I called her back with an excuse me and she came back I had to ask her about the specials and her name. They were out of two of the local craft beers that we really love so we tried an unfamiliar and it was just ok.
Everything we ordered to eat came within 5 – 15 min of ordering, very questionable? I ordered a grilled chicken Cobb salad and balsamic dressing, I could not change the grilled chicken out for anything else like salmon or shrimp even if I wanted to pay so I was told icicle only add it to the chicken salmon and chicken don’t sound right in a salad to me! I also ordered the crab Mac and cheese which was very good. My hubby placed his order about 15 mins after I placed mine of half a Rosemary roasted chicken and a cold orzo pasta salad and his came out no kidding in about 5 min! We were like should he eat this! He said It tasted as though it had been sitting under a heating lamp not hot thru, I didn’t dare taste it it smelled great thou. My salad came out 10 min after his meal and my chicken was luke warm. Everything looked very fresh on my salad but as thou it was pre prepped and refrigerated. For dessert we tried the key lime cheesecake which was a good size for two and pretty yummy!
This restaurant has a good price tag as far as entrée prices and I will say for the class of people that filled the place I expected better service and much finer fresher quality of food. I would probably come back for apps and drinks but not to dine.

I love Port City but tonight there was no air conditioning. The fan above us wasn’t working either. There were 8 of us and we were sweating. It wasn’t even crowded. The waitress said «sorry»! Very disappointing!

I’m rating this restaurant before I even have dinner. We’ve been here multiple times and I chose not to critique the poor service the last time we were here… hoping it was just an off night. Tonight we had a reservation for 7 people and were seated right away. After sitting for 10 minutes without seeing a server, I had to go to the hostess stand and ask if we could at least get some water. Our server finally showed up, did not introduce himself, did not greet us, did not even smile. We had to ask him to tell us the specials and I finally asked him if he would please tell us his name. I would highly recommend you not be seated in Rob’s section because you are in for a wait with a server with NO personality. I have never felt so unwelcome at a restaurant.
I am amending my review a little. While Rob did not start speaking to us until we were almost through with dinner, he did, at least, start acting like he liked his job. Having said that, the food was delicious. The table ordered crab toast, calamari and chicken livers for appetizers. All of them were terrific (well I didn’t try the livers on principle but those who did loved them). The Halibut special was so good as was the Club, the oysters on the half shell and the salads with the fried oysters. We keep coming for the food! I wish we could be as enthusiast for the service.

Amazing place, twice now I’ve been here. The food is 5 star, and the process are that of any olive garden (if not better) the drinks are rich, no watering down. I will be back.

We had a wonderful time at the Port City Club! The place is huge, but we made a reservation so we could try and sit outside. They aren’t on Open Table so you will need to call to make a reservation, but we got right in. You can’t reserve the outside patio, but they give preference to those that make a reservation. I would definitely recommend sitting outside. The restaurant is right on Lake Norman so it offers a great view while eating some amazing food.
Our waitress was top-​notch. She made us laugh from the beginning and didn’t make us wait to order any of our food or beverages.
Now onto the food. We ordered two appetizers, the oysters and the lump crab. The oysters were Blue Point and were wonderful. I would definitely recommend getting those if you are an oyster fan. The lump crab was not as good. It came with this mayo sauce that was too overpowering for the crab. They also didn’t serve the crab with any chips so it was a bit awkward to eat on its own.
The main courses were very good. My boyfriend had the special fish of the day which was the Snapper. It was very tasty. I had the Mahi Mahi which was good, but not as good as the Snapper.
As for sides, we had the Lobster Mac and Cheese. Oh my goodness. This was amazing. It is absolutely worth the $ 7 up-​charge.
We were especially hungry that night and decided to splurge on dessert, so we got a cheesecake with some kind of Snickers topping. If you are in the mood for dessert, this is a great choice. I’m a bit biased though because I’m a huge chocolate person.
Overall, I was very happy with my restaurant experience and would be back!

Our first visit to Port City Club was a spur of the moment, «hey, we’ve never tried this place» kind of thing. My wife had a coworker who said it was good but as much for the summertime, sand in the toes on the lake part as for anything else.
Our experience was a combination of hits and misses that left us thinking, it’s ok and we may give the place another shot come spring/​summer. Here’s the rundown…
We started with a crab toast appetizer which was tasty but some of the crostini were burned, some were under-​toasted and one was just right. The cheese on top was just meh and had been melted and then left to sit and harden a bit too much before serving.
The wedge salad was fresh iceberg, with bacon and diced tomatoes served on a chilled plate with some very good blue cheese dressing. It wasn’t perfect though as the menu said served with crispy onion straws and there were none to be found. My wife had a house salad which was mixed greens with some too sweet pomegranate/​orange vinaigrette.
For entrees, I had the lobster and shrimp roll which was served, as it should be, in butter toasted split-​top rolls. The two rolls were packed with filling (more shrimp than lobster) that was dressed nicely and topped with arugula. I asked for no fried capers but they arrived covered in them which was a bit of a pain. My wife had spaghettini with a giant meatball in the middle. She loved that the pasta was fresh made and the meatball was good. She would have preferred more sauce but overall, it was good.
That’s it on the food side. Generally good but not great and we definitely liked all the variety on the menu and feel that is a plus that would help us come back. It also may lead to the good not great on some of the food though. It’s hard for a place to get so many things just right.
The service was definitely friendly, a bit overbearing and on the hard sell side and without full grasp of the menu items (see above paragraph for a possible cause). I don’t need to hear a full rundown of 3 of the 8 or so apps, just pick one and be done. Also, the tables where we sat are VERY close together so when he would stand between them his crotch was almost on the edge of our table and his butt on the table behind. Thankfully, there was nobody sitting to the butt side. Just a little off-​putting.
A longish review, I know but there was so much variation that it felt warranted. Like I said, we will surely go back but, truth be told, if the meal was exactly the same in all these aspects, the second visit would likely be the last. Too many other great and consistent options to risk $$ on good/​great/​inconsistent.

I wanted my entire review to say «Go here. Just go here.» But i suppose i’ll have to expand on that…
This place is awesome. The décor is gorgeous, its right on the water, and it has so many different «feels» to it. It really has something for everyone. The main dining room hosts a huge sprawling bar and high end finishes. As you move away from the main floor twoards the window, you get some funky upohlstered chairs and smaller tables. Move onto the first level of the indoor/​outdoor porch and you get another bar, rustic furnishings, and an overhang so you arent completely outside. Then… you get to the true outdoor seating. And wait… its not over. The last area is ON the sand, right on the water and hosts comfy outdoor couches, small fireplaces, and its right on the water.
We stayed for drinks and apps. Service was right on, the apps (lamb, tuna, dip trio) were fantastic. Too bad I was just in town visiting because i would love to go back for dinner. It would be my favorite spot.

Last time I went and had a Oyxter Po Boy, it was horible. They have changed Chef’s and when we went today, it was very much better. Same comments fro the rest of our party.
My Daughter-​in-​Law had a Lobster Roll. My Son had a Lamburger and my wife had the Crab Cake Sandwich and all enjoyed their meal.
Décor is still not much changed from the previous restaurants that have been in here but there has been some modest updating and some of the flat screen TV;s have been removed which opens up the space somewhat.
Our service was not all with it today. He did a good job upselling the desert menu only to find that most of the items he promoted and we ordered were no longer available. When it came time to settle the check, he brought us a check for the non existent dessert we tried to order and not the four entrees. Had to flag him down to get that straightened out.
It’s much improved but has a way to go to improve enough to rate more stars.