The Chateau

The food and service was excellent. There is an amazing view overlooking the lake behind the restaurant.

I am not one to complain or give a low review, but after my family’s experience here I feel compelled to warn you. There are just too many other great restaurants around to spend your well earned money at this place. If you do go here, and you end up with a waitress named Sandy, RUN, don’t walk, out. She ruined what should have been a wonderful evening out with my family. Absolutely no customer service training whatsoever. We are nice people, my husband was a past waiter so we are always kind and tip well, because we understand that job. However this woman was atrocious. I had to ask for my ginger ale 3 times. She charged us for drinks we never had. My mom asked for water without a lemon, and of course it came with a lemon. The food literally took over an hour to come out. This is the thing — we understand mistakes happen (even though there were many), but when we would ask politely again or bring it up, she got angry, as if we were bothering her. She literally would run by our table, ignoring us when we would say excuse me (all my mom wanted was ice in her cup of full water — no ice). Honestly I could go on and on. To top it all off, I did say something to the Manager as we were leaving, very respectfully, because I thought they should know (since they never came by to check, even though they were well aware we were having a bad experience). Well this Manager (and I wish I caught her name — short hair) could not have cared less. She listened, but my family and I could read her face that she did not care. Now I see that this is just the culture there. People that do not care about your experience. It’s sad– I will never go back, and will be sure to spread the word around as well. Not surprising to see the negative reviews. Terrible experience — worst one yet.

I saw the 3 stars and I was a bit scared that the food and atmosphere would be mediocre. However, I think the folks around here are a tough crowd. The food was tasty, the staff friendly, the prices reasonable for the atmosphere and location. So what makes it a 4 star instead of 3? The view! You are sitting on the edge of a lake teaming with wildlife and a panoramic view. Lighten up folks. I have traveled the world and this is a pretty good place for food and atmosphere.

This place is king for the good old classics. You can’t go wrong when ordering the chicken parm or the toasted raviolis. Don’t expect any new dishes when going there. The lake front location is very nice!!!

I went out with my boyfriend and Michele was our waitress. For some reason she did not like us. We put soup in first and asked for a few moments instead she decided to ignore us as she paced around the entire place even shooting a dirty look at us from the bar. She walked by me and I said excuse me and she kept going. I did ask for booth over a table? Is that not polite? Anyways, I’m like where’s the soup? My bf was like where’s the bread? Finally she’s just standing arms folded and I said can I place an order. Michele goes to put the order in. Meanwhile another waitress pulls two cold French onion soups with no spoons out of thin air not coming from the kitchen but from a tray they had been on for awhile in the corner. My bf said he saw them sitting there but didn’t think they were ours. I ask for a spoon and nothing for a good 5 mins. Ok — ? we spilt without a scene and got Chinese. What happened to the château? Why is this employee so hostile?

My families absolute favorite Italian restaurant in the area! Everything on the menu is excellent never disappointing!!! wait time is average. I have two children with allergies and they are on top of it making sure that safety is first priority.

Usually have great experience here — they tend to seat non reservations first and have reserve rations wait a little bit. Last night our waitress was awful!!! We waited approximately 10 minutes to be acknowledged by waitress — 15 mins for a drink order. When we finally got our drinks — one mixed drink was wrong. Katie walked away and eventually made her way back only to bicker that she saw them make the drink and it was right. We finally got bread and butter shortly before our food came out. The Alfredo sauce on the chicken broc ziti was like cloudy water! It was awful!!! Katie did not come back to see how our meals were so when she finally came back everyone else was finished. After being told the Alfredo was like cloudy water with no taste. She again went on the defensive! Eventually she agreed to take plate back to kitchen. $ 18.00 for this plate and your going to argue!!! Surprisingly our desserts and check came very quickly — her shift was over and she was heading home! Due to the other people with my party she received a decent tip but why would we think she would say thank you when she wouldn’t get another drink or have a meal replated!!! Very disappointed in the service — keeps going down!!!

The Château is still very old school in their look and menu, in my opinion, not much has changed. The food is good to ‘just ok’ at times, but the one thing this location has going for them is the beautiful view of Winnecunnet Pond. My most recent visit was for a baby shower and everything was very pleasant for a luncheon. I’d suggest a revamp/​update if anything, it would be nice to see this old family business thrive again.

Came here again for a large gathering, (birthday party). Service was good, food was good. I ordered the eggplant parmesan with penne… It seriously was excellent!!! More I come here, more I like it. Zero complaints. Overall, great experience as usual. Keep up that good stuff!!!

Just moved to the area so my husband and I thought we would try this place right down the street. We were VERY disappointed in our lunch today. My husband got steak tips, mashed potatoes and broccoli. He said the broccoli was boiled so it was soggy and no flavor and we could have made better steak at home. My fish and chips were a 5 out of 10. Fish should have been cooked longer, the butternut squash was good, the roasted potatoes were inedible. NO flavor whatsoever. The food was SO expensive compared to the quality and what you would find at other places. They don’t offer lunch on Sundays, only dinner… way to get more money out of people. We won’t be going back, very disappointing.

Went to Château Restaurant yesterday. Two seafood entrees — wonderful. Everything cooked to perfection. Excellent service thanks to Allison. Everything was served hot and prompt. View of the lake added to the calming atmosphere. Not our first time, definitely not the last.

We returned here recently to try them again. Once… this was one of our «go-​to» places, now it’s on my avoid list. Unfortunately, my GF wanted to go here. We arrived at the «sunset» special dinner time, about 4:00. The place was empty, but I could see people buzzing in the backroom preparing for an event. I don’t think anybody was seated at the tables I could see. We sat in a booth which was great, because I know the insects are mostly on the porch area. We ordered antipasto, lasagna and roast chicken. We have had the antipasto salad many times, it USED to be good. Antipasto salad comes and… wow…this thing is NAKED! Lettuce, sliced boiled ham, domestic salami, and domestic Provolone? cheese, 2 mushrooms, 2 slices of tomato, a few olives, a few pepper pieces and 4 (yes 4) round 1/​16″ sliced red onion rings. I’m not talking about a WHOLE slice of onion, I’m talking about just ONE ring. Are you kidding me? This was the most pitiful antipasto I’ve ever seen in 62 years!!! I told our server (Patrice?) the salad was lacking some ingredients, she blew us off and said «we have a LOT of new help in the kitchen, so they probably forgot some stuff». She didn’t offer to get the stuff they forgot… pepperoncini, tuna, anchovies, etc.
Waste of $ it was, better antipasto at Papa Ginos for a LOT less $$$. The restaurant is getting busier, I can see 2 servers now and more tables filling up. For some crazy, unknown reason, the hostess is seating OUR server’s tables EVERYWHERE, not in one section only. So… now she is disappearing often, totally out of sight, 40 feet away. She is also going in the back room where they are preparing for the party for long periods of time. Now the next server shift has begun, so there are like 8 servers just standing around joking, it’s crazy. The other food was ok, we order coffee and 2 chocolate mousse for dessert (included). The server comes with the check, the mousse and coffee is on the check. Then «Shazam» she leaves again. We get her back over, show her, and she says she «always forgets about that and adds the desserts and coffee on». Wait a minute… she works the «early bird» shift, finishes at 5 and «always forgets» to comp the desserts + coffee? Wow… that’s crazy. This place has unfortunately slipped from an average rating down to a poor rating. The combination of service, higher prices, and lack of love in the food is the reason. I hope I don’t have to go back soon…

The food was absolutely delicious. The toasted ravioli are a must try. The portions were pretty good, and the service was amazing. The view on the lake only added to the ambience. If I lived closer, I’d be a regular.

We went here for dinner on mother’s day. They had no idea what they were doing. We had a reservation and said we were still waiting for 2 people but they didn’t even direct them to the table once they got there. After waiting 10 minutes at the front while they tried to figure out what party they were looking for, they just walked around and found us on their own.
Then the survice was super slow. They were out of butter knives. She was reaching in front of everyone and somehow also making us pass down all the plates and everything. It was a mess. We were also told they couldn’t split checks so we would have to figure out how to split it on our own after.
The food was decent. Multiple orders were incorrect though. One was med well instead of med rare and one had the wrong side.
It was a disaster.

Ugh… what an amazing waste of money!!! Pre-​made food and not even GOOD food! Had the Italian combo with toasted ravioli, veal parm and fettuccine alfredo. The veal was lukewarm, the fettuccine was awful: bland and tough. Only the toasted ravioli was good. My boyfriend had chicken parm, toasted ravioli and a meatball. Pasta does not come with it. He ended up with food poisoning. The only positive in the experience was that our waitress, Mavilra, was excellent.

We found the place on our travels. Its by a lake that gives it a nice view. Alfredo was great. The angle hair with meat balls is really good too. I like eating here & my Blue Moon was very cold. I’ve been here three times so far it’s been great.

Went here because my daughter wanted Italian food for her birthday. I am not a fan of this chain having been to the Norwood location (they served us a basket of bread with open, used butter packets in it — guess they’re into recycling) but figured I’d give it a shot. The people were nice and the service was good, but my food was not. I got scallops and grilled veggies. The scallops were very overlooked and the veggies were the opposite– there was a piece of carrot that was about 3″ long and ¾″ diameter — I’m no chef but I think it would take s really long time to cook that that way. I hate sending things back because it never seems worth it so I didn’t …I thought it was WAY overpriced as well. Hopefully won’t try another location either.

I gave this place 3 chances to earn my regular business and they struck out each time. They’re very close to my house and the parking lot is always packed. Maybe their brand of slow service, soggy cold food, and high prices (for the quality of food you get) is attractive to some customers.
First experience–
Ordered take out. A large pizza and a few sandwiches. We were told a half hour, but I picked everything up 25 minutes after ordering and everything was cold. Not room temp. Cold as if it had been taken from the fridge and left on the counter for 20 minutes. We reheated everything at home, which for 6 people took forever. It would have been faster and less work to run to Hannaford, buy my own pizza supplies, and make my own pizza and sandwiches at home. Also would have been ¹⁄₃ the price. Very disappointed.
Second experience–
Ok, so takeout was a no go. Eating in must be better, right?!
Nope. Went out with a party of 4. My pasta was mushy, overcooked. My meatballs were cold. The sauce was questionable and only warm on the top. I’m not hard to please with Italian food and surely penne and meatballs is such a basic Italian staple that any Italian restaurant should be able to do better than the frozen meatballs I heat up. I have never felt so betrayed by a pasta dish in my life.
My family ordered Chicken Marsala and chicken parm (both were room temp! There’s no way they cook this food to order) and a fish dish. I don’t remember what it was, as I’m not big on seafood. We also ordered drinks. No one was happy with their cocktail or their meal. The service was on the slower side, and we didn’t see our waiter for a long stretch after our food came. Maybe that was his way of avoiding the «this came out cold» problem. After an $ 85 bill, we all left feeling unsatisfied. We went to Wendy’s. I kid you not. We spent $ 85 on dinner and went to Wendy’s to wash the bad taste (and experience) from our mouths. Our cheeseburgers and fries were acceptably warmed.
Strike 3–
Why go back after 2 bad experiences? We were hungry and had unplanned company. So we ordered out again, this time dinner entrees instead of pizzas and subs. They told me 35 minutes. Nope, I learned my lesson last time and I didn’t want cold food again. I left 15 minutes later. The food was ready when I got there and felt warm. I’m not sure how warm it would have been if I showed up 20 minutes later like I was told.
Finally! A chance to try their food warm. And… We were all disappointed again. Our company politely said their meals were fine. I didn’t believe them. They didn’t eat most of their meals and said they’d bring the leftovers home. I’m not going to even bother to list what we ordered here because by this point it doesn’t even matter.
Unless there’s a secret menu that I don’t know about, I’m not sure how this place even stays in business, never mind fills its lot.

Ordered take out ⁷⁄₂₃. Family grille dinner with chicken and steak tips.
I will preface this by saying we have not ordered this take out dish in about a year, but it used to be our favorite. Based on the experience a few days ago we will never order take out again.
We received 4 small chicken breasts an 8 small pieces of sirloin tip. Steak was chewy and had no flavor. Barely fed a family of 4.
No vegetables were included, just a loaf of almost stale bread. And it was $ 48.00 for the dinner.

July 5, 2014
Mom and I have been to The Château in Norton twice many years ago. I had also ordered takeout from the restaurant when I was working in the next town over. The food wasn’t memorable, but the restaurant was pretty nice and had a great view of Lake Winnecunnet. We decided to give The Château another try. As excited as we were pulling into the parking lot, we left in quite the opposite state.
We ordered two delicious drinks — a mint mojito ($ 8) and an «After 5» martini ($ 8.95). Katie brought over a basket of Scali bread which was soft and delicious. Both Mom and I found ordering a little difficult because there is just SO much to choose from (click here to view the menu) that it can get a little overwhelming, but we finally narrowed things down. For my entrée I chose the fried Ipswich clam strips, but I was told they were out of all things clam. I was looking forward to some strips, but I ordered a Caesar salad ($ 8.99) with fried buffalo chicken ($ 3) instead. Mom ordered broiled scrod ($ 17.99) with a side of spaghetti with meat sauce ($ 1.99). We also decided on a half order of their famous toasted ravioli ($ 4.99).
Katie walked away and we started in on the bread. Before we could even spread the butter over the first slice our toasted ravioli arrived. Katie said something in a joking way like, «They were bored back there.» Um … ok. Now normally when you get a half order of something there are about six items on the plate. Not here. We got three ravioli. That’s all. Three good looking ravioli with some marina dipping sauce sitting in the center of a half empty plate. Since Mom was getting pasta with her meal, she sacrificed one ravioli so I could have two. They were very tasty and stuffed with cheese, but soft and a little difficult to cut. This was our first indication that the order of ravioli had possibly just been heated in the microwave. They would have been amazing if they had been fresh, and for $ 4.99 it just wasn’t worth it.
Our lunch arrived at a more appropriate time than the appetizer did. Everything looked good. Katie told me that they had to put my buffalo chicken on a separate plate because there was just too much of it to go in the salad. What she meant was that there wasn’t enough lettuce in my bowl, so rather than drown them in buffalo chicken, she’d put them on a plate to make me think that I was getting more for my money. I removed the melon, strawberry and pineapple that was sitting amongst the leaves and put them to the side. I took three strips of buffalo chicken off of the plate, noticing the whole time how limp they were. I prepared my salad (I like to chop everything up in tiny bits) and dug in. Although it was flavorful, it was nothing special. After only a few minutes, my lettuce began to wilt and my chicken — which had an extremely spicy buffalo sauce — got even limper. I think perhaps the «fried» description on the menu should have read «boiled with breading.» Or perhaps they were microwaved as well. The free fruit seemed fresh, but my food was definitely not worth the price.
Mom’s fish was «meh.» In fact, she didn’t care for it at all. She ordered scrod, which can be any white fish, but in this area it is usually cod. She should have asked, because what she received was a nondescript fish complete with black skin on the bottom running the full length of the fish. She’s never had a piece of scrod with skin on it before. It was really off putting. The taste of the fish was mild, but the temperature was on the cool side. It actually got cooler toward the middle of the fish, again indicating that everything coming out of the kitchen was either being microwaved or held under a heat lamp. Normally Mom scoffs up scrod, but she didn’t even finish half of her fish. As for the spaghetti with meat sauce, it was cooked nicely al dente and the sauce was good, but nothing special. It closely resembles what Mom makes at home with a jar of Ragu and some ground beef. And let’s not talk about the fact that this particular dish cost $ 19.98. Ugh!
After we were done with our meals, we decided on dessert. Mom chose the grapenut pudding ($ 3.50) and I went with the hot fudge brownie sundae ($ 4.50). Both desserts arrived quickly and looked great. Overall we both enjoyed our desserts and our drinks the most out of everything.
Katie finally brought over the bill. She was an excellent server and was very attentive. Both Mom and I were quite irked when we saw that our total was $ 66.24, but we wouldn’t have been so annoyed by the bill had we enjoyed everything and had the food been freshly made and worth the price. Perhaps if the menu wasn’t so large, the staff would be able to prepare fresh items instead of heating up dozens of options just in case people order them.
Overall, our trip to The Château turned out to be overly expensive and disappointing. They really need to unplug the microwave and get cooking!