What a disappointment, truly one of the worst dining experiences in our recent memory (10 years, 20?, east coast, west coast, NYC). We'd been wanting to try for several years, we'd heard good things from people we trust. Thus, it is not an understatement that we were absolutely shocked by the overly salted dishes (every one of the 5 we ordered!) and the heavy-handed preparation of each of them. Instead of fine nuances of flavors, it seemed as if the kitchen chose to pour thick Hoi San and soy sauce over each dish. Instead of herbs as described in the menu (say, for example, basil), three of our dishes had large amounts of cilantro dumped on top (with no mention of any substitutions by the server). While I ordered medium rare (and stressed to err toward rare) for the beef dish, it came as medium so I sent it back and did not request another. The ambiance I would describe as "let's party and eat some food!". The loud and social bar crowd seemed quite happy, and some of the (far younger than me) patrons seemed much happier than us (and tipsier) as we departed. The noise level was unacceptable, possibly the noisiest I've ever experienced (unacceptable because some curtains or fabrics could help). We had to repeat ourselves while talking to our server; she couldn't hear us and we couldn't hear her (or each other).There were smaller problems as well. We ordered the lobster rangoon, but the server informed us that they "always run out" for late seatings (which begs the question, why not always make more?). When asked "how is everything?", we informed the server that every dish was overly salty (so salty as to be unenjoyable and close to bitterly inedible)... and would she please let the chef know. She did not report back, nor apologize, and instead chose to mostly ignore us for the rest of our very uncomfortable time at their establishment. We chose to pay the bill and leave before our dessert came out.Although we knew that the meal would be pricey, this restaurant does not deserve to charge even half. While the overly sweet cocktail we ordered was pleasant and pretty, certainly not stand-out enough to order another.I'm sorry I hadn't read the reviews that its ownership had changed hands recently. Diners beware! My recommendation is you dine elsewhere, there are so many other amazing choices in Nantucket, especially at this price-point.
Maya Barrantes
Delicious food with nice ?
Christopher Wofford
We have eaten twice at the Pearl this summer. Both meals were solid with some dishes better than others. The most recent seating was out in the patio, which was lovely. We also got great service from Christina the somm, arriving at a fun/unusual white at a reasonable price. I would say that some of the 'old faithful' dishes (the tuna martini and the wok fried lobster, for example) could use some re-invigoration. The flavor on the tomahawk ribeye was excellent, but the meat was a little gristly for its hefty price tag. The 60 second egg/steak was excellent and the wok tossed crab noodles were the best dish we ordered. We had split decisions on the scallops (which I personally liked very much). It's definitely worth going, but be prepared to spend some $.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Wren C.
Kevin is such a lovely bartender! I had such a lovely time. The decor is so much better than it was. More beautiful, friendly patrons and staff. I am definitely coming back often...
Brendan
The renovation is spectacular, and the Pearl is definitely worth stopping by to see that alone. The 60 second steak & eggs is probably one of the best dishes I’ve ever had. But the food otherwise leaves much to be desired. Additionally, the price point is outrageous, even for Nantucket. $150 for apps and drinks is
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
larry leibowitz
The service is good, the cocktails are spot on.But the food is not great. Very salty, heavy-handed preparations.There are better restaurants on the island (especially at this rice point).
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Erin J.
Beautiful and busy. The Pearl is a very popular Asia seafood fusion restaurant. The Tokyo tots were truly unique. Small potato stacks with a caviar garnish. Also had the lobster lomein which was flavorful. Service was prompt and professional. Would definitely recommend for a unique dining experience in the town of Nantucket.
It's not as good as it used to be, but thankfully still have some of the classic dishes from the previous owners - especially the amazing salt & pepper wok fried lobster! They totally missed on the Boho cookie recreation though. I'd still go back and enjoy it, but I'm not sure it holds favorite status anymore.
Jessica Bridgeman
Enjoyed our meal! We didn't have a reservation but we were able to be seated quickly outside. Hostess and server were kind and professional. Shared a few dishes and really enjoyed the carrots and dumplings; the fried rice and steak dish were just OK. Expensive but not more so than anywhere else on the island.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Marnely Murray
Elote Fried Rice and Lobster Rangoons at Pearl Nantucket - this place is special and they are under new ownership, so it’s nice to see they have kept some legacy dishes. A splurge is the 60-second steak. Both dishes we ordered were executed perfectly.
We've been annual visitors to The Pearl for 8 years, and were thrilled to see it reopen with much of the same menu as the prior management. Sadly, although the words are the same, the taste is not.But even putting aside the prior excellence, there is not dish we tried that we would recommend. Many offerings tasted like a bottle of over-the-counter soy sauce was dumped on it, drowning out any other flavors, and the overwhelming texture was soggy and mushy.Dinner for two, just over $350 (which was expected). Here's what we got:Crab Rangoon: Nothing remarkable, and most neighborhood Chinese restaurants would win in a taste test. Soggy and flat. Presentation was poor.Tokyo Tots: Basically bread pudding in a soy sauce soup. Mushy. Why order caviar if you can't taste it? Aren't "tots" supposed to be crisp?Dumplings: Again, the sauce over-powered any other flavor profiles. Why order lobster if you can't taste it?60 Second Steak & Eggs: Bread pudding, again. Brioche was soggy and mushy. Sauce was too tart. Could not taste any of the other flavors.Wok Fried Lobster: We've been enjoying this dish for years. Even putting aside the former excellence, it was just "good". Halibut: This seemed to be the only dish we ordered that had a flavor profile you could actually taste, but the execution failed. The fish sat in the middle of a plate with a variety of flavors surrounding it, so I had to build my own taste experience on my fork. Some mouthfuls were awful (too much of this, not enough of that) and after confusion and effort, I put together some pretty good forkfulls. But rooting thru the greens, the spices, the herbs, veggies, etc. to try and recreate the good mouthful was beyond my skill set (that's why I eat out). The new decor is nice, drinks were excellent, the service was excellent, but the food was an expensive and major disappointment.
Jeff P.
I don't usually provide on line reviews but I'm compelled to respond to the recent one star reviews of this Nantucket legend under new management. We were a party of eight last night and had an excellent experience. The service was perfect from the host who seated us immediately, to the server who was honest in his assessments of the entrees and very attentive, to the sommelier who provided an excellent recommendation of an obscure Swiss wine. Everything that was supposed to be hot was very hot and everything that was supposed to be cold was cold. We were neither rushed nor bored. The flavors were strong but not overbearing. Are there better values to be had? Perhaps. But the new Pearl is most certainly a superior experience to Dune, or most of its high priced neighbors. We'll definitely be bACK.
Madison O.
The lobster pasta is to die for. The service was excellent and I had such a positive experience last night. Also the new interior looks amazing !!! So cute
Melanie
Beautiful renovation. We've been coming for the wok fried lobster since the early 2000s and this iteration was equally delicious. However, seconds before our entrees were served, our waiter informed us they were still looking for the wine we ordered. The sommelier finally delivered it when we were half way finished with our meal. He was apologetic, but it was a big let down to our overall dining experience. They should have held our meals or asked if we wanted a different bottle. I know it's new management, so I hope they improve the overall meal/beverage coordination because everything else was great.
Sarah J.
I’m honestly surprised at some of the recent low reviews of this place. We had a phenomenal dinner there on the patio and it was one of the best meals we’ve had while traveling.The service is highly attentive. We were seated right away and one of our three servers checked in with us probably 7 times throughout the dinner. The cocktails are super yummy. Food wise the tuna martini and salt & pepper lobster are to die for. My husband got the oyster appetizer and he said it tasted great. Don’t sleep on dessert either-the budino was unreal.As for pricing…well this is Nantucket and our meal clocked in around $350. Is this a lot? Of course, if you’re eating like this every meal. But for a special no-holds barred special date night in this area realistically this is pretty standard. I wouldn’t expect tater tots from the gas station to cost $50. But they don’t have caviar on them. And if you’re savvy with ordering and not getting every dessert/cocktail you notice (like I did), you could probably expect to spend half that. Overall this place was great, 10/10 all the way!
What a disappointment, truly one of the worst dining experiences in our recent memory (10 years, 20?, east coast, west coast, NYC). We'd been wanting to try for several years, we'd heard good things from people we trust. Thus, it is not an understatement that we were absolutely shocked by the overly salted dishes (every one of the 5 we ordered!) and the heavy-handed preparation of each of them. Instead of fine nuances of flavors, it seemed as if the kitchen chose to pour thick Hoi San and soy sauce over each dish. Instead of herbs as described in the menu (say, for example, basil), three of our dishes had large amounts of cilantro dumped on top (with no mention of any substitutions by the server). While I ordered medium rare (and stressed to err toward rare) for the beef dish, it came as medium so I sent it back and did not request another. The ambiance I would describe as "let's party and eat some food!". The loud and social bar crowd seemed quite happy, and some of the (far younger than me) patrons seemed much happier than us (and tipsier) as we departed. The noise level was unacceptable, possibly the noisiest I've ever experienced (unacceptable because some curtains or fabrics could help). We had to repeat ourselves while talking to our server; she couldn't hear us and we couldn't hear her (or each other).There were smaller problems as well. We ordered the lobster rangoon, but the server informed us that they "always run out" for late seatings (which begs the question, why not always make more?). When asked "how is everything?", we informed the server that every dish was overly salty (so salty as to be unenjoyable and close to bitterly inedible)... and would she please let the chef know. She did not report back, nor apologize, and instead chose to mostly ignore us for the rest of our very uncomfortable time at their establishment. We chose to pay the bill and leave before our dessert came out.Although we knew that the meal would be pricey, this restaurant does not deserve to charge even half. While the overly sweet cocktail we ordered was pleasant and pretty, certainly not stand-out enough to order another.I'm sorry I hadn't read the reviews that its ownership had changed hands recently. Diners beware! My recommendation is you dine elsewhere, there are so many other amazing choices in Nantucket, especially at this price-point.
Delicious food with nice ?
We have eaten twice at the Pearl this summer. Both meals were solid with some dishes better than others. The most recent seating was out in the patio, which was lovely. We also got great service from Christina the somm, arriving at a fun/unusual white at a reasonable price. I would say that some of the 'old faithful' dishes (the tuna martini and the wok fried lobster, for example) could use some re-invigoration. The flavor on the tomahawk ribeye was excellent, but the meat was a little gristly for its hefty price tag. The 60 second egg/steak was excellent and the wok tossed crab noodles were the best dish we ordered. We had split decisions on the scallops (which I personally liked very much). It's definitely worth going, but be prepared to spend some $.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Kevin is such a lovely bartender! I had such a lovely time. The decor is so much better than it was. More beautiful, friendly patrons and staff. I am definitely coming back often...
The renovation is spectacular, and the Pearl is definitely worth stopping by to see that alone. The 60 second steak & eggs is probably one of the best dishes I’ve ever had. But the food otherwise leaves much to be desired. Additionally, the price point is outrageous, even for Nantucket. $150 for apps and drinks is
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
The service is good, the cocktails are spot on.But the food is not great. Very salty, heavy-handed preparations.There are better restaurants on the island (especially at this rice point).
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Beautiful and busy. The Pearl is a very popular Asia seafood fusion restaurant. The Tokyo tots were truly unique. Small potato stacks with a caviar garnish. Also had the lobster lomein which was flavorful. Service was prompt and professional. Would definitely recommend for a unique dining experience in the town of Nantucket.
It's not as good as it used to be, but thankfully still have some of the classic dishes from the previous owners - especially the amazing salt & pepper wok fried lobster! They totally missed on the Boho cookie recreation though. I'd still go back and enjoy it, but I'm not sure it holds favorite status anymore.
Enjoyed our meal! We didn't have a reservation but we were able to be seated quickly outside. Hostess and server were kind and professional. Shared a few dishes and really enjoyed the carrots and dumplings; the fried rice and steak dish were just OK. Expensive but not more so than anywhere else on the island.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Elote Fried Rice and Lobster Rangoons at Pearl Nantucket - this place is special and they are under new ownership, so it’s nice to see they have kept some legacy dishes. A splurge is the 60-second steak. Both dishes we ordered were executed perfectly.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
We've been annual visitors to The Pearl for 8 years, and were thrilled to see it reopen with much of the same menu as the prior management. Sadly, although the words are the same, the taste is not.But even putting aside the prior excellence, there is not dish we tried that we would recommend. Many offerings tasted like a bottle of over-the-counter soy sauce was dumped on it, drowning out any other flavors, and the overwhelming texture was soggy and mushy.Dinner for two, just over $350 (which was expected). Here's what we got:Crab Rangoon: Nothing remarkable, and most neighborhood Chinese restaurants would win in a taste test. Soggy and flat. Presentation was poor.Tokyo Tots: Basically bread pudding in a soy sauce soup. Mushy. Why order caviar if you can't taste it? Aren't "tots" supposed to be crisp?Dumplings: Again, the sauce over-powered any other flavor profiles. Why order lobster if you can't taste it?60 Second Steak & Eggs: Bread pudding, again. Brioche was soggy and mushy. Sauce was too tart. Could not taste any of the other flavors.Wok Fried Lobster: We've been enjoying this dish for years. Even putting aside the former excellence, it was just "good". Halibut: This seemed to be the only dish we ordered that had a flavor profile you could actually taste, but the execution failed. The fish sat in the middle of a plate with a variety of flavors surrounding it, so I had to build my own taste experience on my fork. Some mouthfuls were awful (too much of this, not enough of that) and after confusion and effort, I put together some pretty good forkfulls. But rooting thru the greens, the spices, the herbs, veggies, etc. to try and recreate the good mouthful was beyond my skill set (that's why I eat out). The new decor is nice, drinks were excellent, the service was excellent, but the food was an expensive and major disappointment.
I don't usually provide on line reviews but I'm compelled to respond to the recent one star reviews of this Nantucket legend under new management. We were a party of eight last night and had an excellent experience. The service was perfect from the host who seated us immediately, to the server who was honest in his assessments of the entrees and very attentive, to the sommelier who provided an excellent recommendation of an obscure Swiss wine. Everything that was supposed to be hot was very hot and everything that was supposed to be cold was cold. We were neither rushed nor bored. The flavors were strong but not overbearing. Are there better values to be had? Perhaps. But the new Pearl is most certainly a superior experience to Dune, or most of its high priced neighbors. We'll definitely be bACK.
The lobster pasta is to die for. The service was excellent and I had such a positive experience last night. Also the new interior looks amazing !!! So cute
Beautiful renovation. We've been coming for the wok fried lobster since the early 2000s and this iteration was equally delicious. However, seconds before our entrees were served, our waiter informed us they were still looking for the wine we ordered. The sommelier finally delivered it when we were half way finished with our meal. He was apologetic, but it was a big let down to our overall dining experience. They should have held our meals or asked if we wanted a different bottle. I know it's new management, so I hope they improve the overall meal/beverage coordination because everything else was great.
I’m honestly surprised at some of the recent low reviews of this place. We had a phenomenal dinner there on the patio and it was one of the best meals we’ve had while traveling.The service is highly attentive. We were seated right away and one of our three servers checked in with us probably 7 times throughout the dinner. The cocktails are super yummy. Food wise the tuna martini and salt & pepper lobster are to die for. My husband got the oyster appetizer and he said it tasted great. Don’t sleep on dessert either-the budino was unreal.As for pricing…well this is Nantucket and our meal clocked in around $350. Is this a lot? Of course, if you’re eating like this every meal. But for a special no-holds barred special date night in this area realistically this is pretty standard. I wouldn’t expect tater tots from the gas station to cost $50. But they don’t have caviar on them. And if you’re savvy with ordering and not getting every dessert/cocktail you notice (like I did), you could probably expect to spend half that. Overall this place was great, 10/10 all the way!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5