Lantern Restaurant & Grill

We dined at the Lantern Saturday afternoon (29Jul17) and enjoyed the casual food and selections of beer while taking a break from our bike ride. On the other hand, we were frustrated by the disparaging attitude of the host who refused our request to park our road bikes close to our table on an otherwise empty terrace. We have eaten at Harbour Town before, enjoying the experience with our bikes close at hand and safe from theft. This time, however, the rude treatment leads us to conclude we won't return.

We went on a Wednesday night. Make a reservation before going if you want to sit on the patio. The patio is very sunny. Great view on the lake. The service was quick and the server answered our questions. He was friendly. I had the salmon. It was very good.

We tried to have dinner at the Lighthouse. The host did not greet us when we entered, he looked like we were an inconvenience to him and were interrupting whatever he was doing on his phone. He said six people was a hard number to accommodate even though there were empty tables that sat four. You can never get a second chance to make a first impression. My first impression "don't bother trying to eat here" .

After spending the morning with my family exploring Warsaw Caves, east of Peterborough, Ontario we stumbled upon the Lantern Restaurant at Harbour Town. We were following signs from the main road and were expecting a bar with a menu. We were pleasantly surprised to find a welcoming building with air conditioning inside as well as outside tables. Everyone in my large family enjoyed lunch. The food was fresh, freshly cooked, and nicely presented. Chilled water with cucumber slices was appreciated by all. One of the few places I've been to in Ontario that makes a good hamburger. The family favourite was the garlic dipping sauce that came with the French fries. Absolutely delicious. We enjoyed a selection of craft beers. Our server was tops in suggesting brews that matched our wants. A lovely surprise and right on the water.

First this restaurant enjoys a million dollar view, perched over the lake and a patio that is the nicest situated for miles around. And the menu is full of interesting choice and the chef largely delivers. But service lurches along like its opening day with mistake after mistake, so casual becomes sloppy. Nothing that some fine tuning couldn't fix but right now it's efforts to deliver fine dining in a truly gorgeous setting fall short.