Best cod fish & chips we enjoyed in recent memory. Highly recommend for sure. Reasonably priced and very friendly staff.

I have to say upfront that I don't live and die for fine food and so can't always justify spending up too big on a meal. I love seafood, though, and so thought it time we ventured back to Wilsons. The food's great, no doubt about it, but the price hurt a bit. We shared a chowder which was very good, although I probably would have preferred it without the bacon flavour; at $17 - $22 the entrees were interesting but a bit pricey. Likewise with the mains, at almost $80 for a reef n beef and a wild barra, it's probably my bad for not checking the menu before we ventured out; it just cost a little more than I thought it should have. The building's looking tired on the outside but has a wonderful water view deck once inside, where we enjoyed watching the boats come and go, so the ambience is there. Good for a special lash out. read more

Wilson's Boathouse Seafood Restaurant - Seafood Near Me - Manly, QLD

I would not have been a bit surprised if Gordon Ramsay made an appearance. The wait staff made the best of a bad situation. 90 minute wait for food and then 1 order was wrong. Steak under cooked and wrong veggies. Didn't dare send it back in case we had another 90 minute wait. We actually had a laugh with another couple when their dessert ended up being served before their mains. It appears the owner stuffed up a booking and then decided to hide out in the kitchen for the evening. Might have made allowances if the owner had perhaps made the rounds and apologized but nope, no sign and we won't be back. A bit of a disappointment for a wedding anniversary dinner. read more

We decided to give Wilson's Boathouse a try by buying a voucher for their $198 Neptune Dish. We made a booking for ANZAC Day's night, we got there on time, to our shock all lights were off and despite the "OPEN" sign posted at the entrance they were closed. Phone rang out and rotten fish stink prevailed the entrance area as a welcoming sign! So much for my plans for a light-hearted birthday night!!! We contacted them the day after. One of the waitresses picked up and to my surprise, denied having been closed on that night altogether. She then acted as if all this was normal and made us a booking for the next week. On our arrival there was hardly anyone to sit us and the same waitress I had talked to showed up to sit us in a bungled ritual. Proper training cannot be part of the procedures of such a disorganized establishment, after all. Upon our request to talk to the manager, one of the waiters showed up instead who apologized and explained how they had simply decided to close on the night of the ANZAC Day just because too few of the staff had been available. Just as we expected, they had not bothered to notify the customers who had booked for the night by a simple phone call with the incriminating alibi that they had not taken proper note of the phone numbers! The waiter then offered us two glasses of wine as a gesture of good faith only to came to our table ten minutes later telling us that his offer had been refused by the restaurant manager! At the end of the night, we did not wish to ruin another night by trying to speak up to such an arrogant and blokey manager. Service was accordingly lousy, no salt and pepper was on the table, our glasses of water were hardly refilled, and our request for more lemon slices was totally overlooked. Cold marine platter contents only came with two slices of lemon and a thimble (yes a thimble!) of thousand islands sauce. No other real home-made sauce or relish accompanied the dish to refresh our palates from the flat taste and spongy texture of boiled crab and tiger prawns. If cold platter was mediocre, warm platter was a disaster! It was merely a "fish and chips" dish of the most inferior quality without any real spice or condiments whatsoever and the fish and prawn within the oil-impregnated batter carried the distinctive stench of non-marinated and stale seafood. We are only happy we did not dish out the $198 menu price. Never to be back at there and would proactively recommend friends to steer clear from Wilson's. read more

I had such a disgusting experience at this restaurant last night. I was intent to have some romance with my girlfriend, in fact I was about to propose to her, but that Neil Jedid (the owner) totally ruined it all. Here's the thing, I saw this restaurant's $89 deal from livingsocial.com, which is very appealing because we both are seafood lovers. Before I brought the voucher, I checked out some the reviews from different websites, though most of them are negative, I still wanted to give it a shot. But it turned out to be a silly decision. After I got the voucher, I made a reservation on its website and double confirmed it with a call. But when I got there, the stuff said we can't book a Saturday night using that voucher, the voucher is only valid for weekdays. After I explained to her that there's nothing on the voucher said so and it took us 1 hour to drive all the way from the south to Manly, she said she would discuss with her manager. The manager, Neil Jedid, who appeared to be the owner, was not very polite initially. Without asking what's going on, he impatiently said we can't just go there without a booking. I said we booked both online and from the phone, I think he was also not aware that his website has booking function... He then explained to me that it's fully booked for the customers with vouchers for that night and quickly flipped through the pages. Ironically, he refused to prove to me when I asked him to show me the booking records, such a liar. His arrogant attitude was also unacceptable. Besides, it was nearly 6pm when we got there, and the restaurant was still empty. Anyway, I will ask for refund the first thing in the morning and be more cautious next time. read more

We have dined here six times and have never been disappointed of all the restaurants in manly it is the jewel in the crown ,big portions

I live locally to Wilsons Boathouse and have visited the restaurant on numerous occasions over the past ten years. Sadly, my most recent visit was nothing short of atrocious. The restaurant is tied, and not in a charming way. There is old furniture plonked haphazardly at the entrance and the once linen laid tables look sad with a simple knife and fork setting, paper napkin and mismatched salt and pepper shakers. We ordered a crispy baguette with dukka for a starter and were served garlic bread. I ordered garlic prawns for my entree and received a plate with 5 prawns strewn over garlic sauce. There was no rice, no polenta and no garnish. the prawns were nice but the meal was uninspiring. At this point my wife, who had ordered the garlic prawns as an main, asked if she would be receiving the same meal and if she could have some rice or polenta served with the dish. Our waiter checked with the chef and advised that they were out of polenta (this is what the meal should be served with) so they said they would serve my wife's meal with vermicelli rice noodles. So we waited and the mains were served. My daughter ordered the eye fillet steak which was requested medium. It arrived medium rare but despite this, the meat was good. The garlic prawns however were more like a soup. The meal was appalling. I ordered the seared Moreton bay bugs. The bug meat was nice, but the meal was uninspiring. The bugs were served on a bed of shredded cabbage like substance. I worked in the hospitality industry for over 20 years and learnt one very important lesson with respect to food... people eat with their eyes first. Not one of our meals was presented with a garnish or with any flare. It was simply produce slapped on a plate. There was no care, no love, and no passion for what was being served. The service provided on the night was adequate but certainly not fine dining. Plates were carted away on drink trays and drink refills were only provided when requested. The entire experience cost me a touch over $200... based on what was delivered I should have been charged half of that. Rest assured I will not return; our visit to Wilsons Boathouse can easily be classified as the worst dining experience that we have ever had. read more

Should have followed my instincts from the rundown appearance upon entering however we unfortunately perserveered. "The owner" took our order, we ordered the $52 seafood platter to share between two adults and two kids. When it arrived the waitress could see my obvious dissatisfaction upon receiving - 2 sm whiting fillets, 6 bite sized pieces of (terrible) calamari, literally 20 french fries, 4 small (questionably) fresh prawns, 1 small bug, 1 oyster and a tiny piece of crab, along with a seriously not fresh piece of watermelon and some soggy lettuce (which we later found a hair on) - and came to question whether we were told it was a platter for 1. Obviously not! Rather than following this up with the "owner" who took the order she offered us a second platter, at $52! No thanks! We ordered a bowl of chips to ensure our children weren't hungry and received a serve, seriously no bigger than a cup, with some mayo out of a jar on the side for the bargain price of $8. BAD FOOD, BAD SERVICE, TERRIBLE VALUE FOR MONEY. read more

We've lived in Wynnum/Manly for a few years now and have heard good to average reviews about this restaurant so finally had a night out and decided to check it out. I must say the seafood basket was pretty average for the almost $60 cost. The hot side and raw oyster was well prepared and tasted 6/10 but the cold crab, prawns, and MB Bug did not seem to be the catch of the day. I realize that fresh seafood is tricky but if you are charging these prices I want the boat to have literally dropped the critters off that afternoon. I know my seafood and this was either cooked 3 days ago and/or from frozen. My wife's Crumbed Dory special of the day was quite nice. The staff were really trying but seemed perhaps new and overwhelmed even though there were only 6 tables being served. They mixed up our small menu request change but rectified it later in the meal. The bill charged us for an entire bottle of wine when we only had one glass (my wife thinks this is a conspiracy among restaurants for those who don't check their bill) and then after saying they'd fix it and wouldn't charge for the glass seemed confused in the end and kept it on the bill. We left without complaining... The view I'm sure would be nice in the daylight. Can't see much I'm afraid after dark. We won't be heading back. Will most likely be able to find a more economical, higher quality spot in the area. read more

The service could not have been much slower...and the restaurant was 90 % empty..so no excuse. 25 minutes just to make the salad starter. Very, very expensive and not at all good. To avoid at all costs. read more

This was the worst restaurant experience I have had in Brisbane. Went there today to celebrate my mother's 60th Birthday and what should have been a special family lunch. First of all, the wine we ordered was not available, and then we were told that someone's sister had gone to the bottle shop to pick up another one. (weird for a five start restaurant). But the worst was the meals. I ordered the main meal of King Prawns with Garlic lemon sauce served with sourdough and vine ripened tomatoes for $38. What appeared in front of me was nothing short of despicable - 7 small prawns, three cherry tomatoes, a garnish of rocket, and the most horrible clumpy sauce that I have ever experience. Note; no sourdough bread. The sauce tasted like off sweet lemon cheesecake (I doubt I could even achieve making a fouler tasting thing). Everyone at my table tasted the sauce, and their scrunched up faces and quick gulps of water told the story. I asked the waiter what was going on. He returned telling me the chef had decided to make a 'lemon honey' sauce instead. This is not acceptable - not at al what I ordered. No, sourdough bread, 7 tiny prawns and some crappy cherry tomatoes all for $38. No apology. No reduction in the bill. What a sham! read more

I am so disappointed ........... I agree with you Shuyao Z ....... I bought this and it is the very first thing I have purschased with Living Social. I rang up for a reservation for Sunday lunch and he straight away "said sure," then when I mentioned it was a Living Socail Deal, he put me on hold and before that said he had to check with his manager, then came back saying they are fully booked and only have Sunday nights free. I see there side, they are trying to fill there quiet times ........... but , I wanted a Sunday, Seafood lunch I didn't realise it was going to be this hard. We are from the North Side, we don't want a Sunday dinner that from these reviews are going to be disappointing. Ashame ............ I think if I was a business owner, with a great deal to get customers in, I would use that to my advantage to please them, so they will tell their friends and family and come back. Its the business that lose the point. No wonder Wilsons Boathouse at Portside went broke ! read more