My BFF and I were having cocktails at the Sagamore when we first got to town and our server told us to have dinner at Pavilion. It was a beautiful night and he said it is considered the best restaurant in town. We were stoked. The restaurant sits right on the lake. Unfortunately, it was packed and we sat on the lower level in the partially screened area... i would have preferred outside, but it was going to be a long wait. It was very clear after about 15 mins, that the kitchen and servers were having a rough night. Drinks arrived in a timely manner. Apps took an additional 25 mins. (we got soup and salad). While we were waiting, we noticed families with children getting antsy. We were served well before a table that had been seated well ahead of us. One gentleman actually came up to the manager and complained about how long they had been waiting. The manager could be seen from our table in the kitchen trying to help out with service and expediting. Our waiter apologized profusely to us for the hold up with our food. When it did arrive, it was very good. I had the lobster bisque and it was quite delicious. For dinner, it had the shrimp & scallop rice bowl that came highly recommended and my friend had a cold seafood platter. My scallops were cold and 3 of the 4 shrimp on my plate were so over-cooked, they were chewy. I have worked in a restaurant, and it has made me very understanding that these kinds of night just happen. But as a customer, that was disappointing. The flavor was delicious, just the timing of the kitchen was off... bummer. There is one other aspect to the meal I want to point out...the lower level seating area has a ceiling with recessed lighting that houses spiders. Many of the lighting fixtures on the walls & the ceiling had an elaborate web and a resident. Now, I get it.. the benefit of having these spiders is that there were virtually no other bugs nipping at you while you are enjoying the fresh air. (spiders are a real cheap bug security system. and I can appreciate that, bc i hate mosquitos.) However, if you are even remotely creeped out by spiders, their presence will add some anxiety to your dining experiences, as it did to another customer, who screeched and jumped up from the table, swatting at her head, nearly on the verge of tears and left the seating area. Granted, this was a bit of an over-reaction... she's 120 lbs, and the spider was you know, 1cm... maybe an ounce... but it was disruptive to the mood of our meal. And then it made me obsessively aware of the 8-legged friend who was hovering above our own table. You could see customers at other tables suddenly looking ceiling-ward to see if their own resident spider was going to repel down and join their dinner table. So, anyway, if you go, make a resey... ask to sit outside... and just spray a little Off on yourself before you go. And i hope that you have a night when the kitchen is in full swing... if it is, then I think could have a 4-star yelp experience. read more
