Shield's Tavern, Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia

 This weekend I was in Colonial Williamsburg for a family trip. It was a very cool experience, with everyone in costumes and all.  During our trip we ate at a few different restaurants, some good and some which we didn't enjoy as much.  Shield's Tavern was one that we thought was just okay. The restaurant's only light source was candles, and there was no air conditioning (We were supposed to be in the 17-1800's). All of the waiters were in costume, and some were even playing music on guitars and violins while singing! Unfortunately, it was a cold evening, because it was pouring rain outside, but the candles and the food kept us warm.

Shield's Tavern

   There were quite a few options on the menu, and a couple of them looked pretty good to me.  I ordered the special, which was haddock with a crab cake (and a side of potatoes), but because I thought I wasn't going to be able to eat it all, I asked for a half portion.  My brother ordered the pork shank because he loves any and all pork dishes.  He also ordered the half portion as well.  Our food came out pretty quick, which surprised me, because there were quite a few people in the restaurant. Now my brother's plate in itself looked like a full meal, even though it was a half size. Mine, in comparison, looked like an appetizer. I had what looked like a half of a crab cake, and a

Crazy small portion... (My Haddock)

VERY small amount of fish. My side of potatoes looked bigger than the fish itself. My meal did have a little bit of revival, because it tasted good. The fish was cooked well, and had some pretty good seasoning on it. The crab cake, however, was only okay, it was a little overcooked, and did not have enough seasoning. The potatoes were crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, just how I like them. Considering the fact that my mom had also ordered fish, but I ordered a half portion, and hers looked at least three times bigger than mine, I was a little annoyed. My brothers dish was really good, tender meat with a really great sauce. All in all, good food, but the portions were totally messed up.

   All the waiters were really nice and made sure that they were able to fulfill our every need. They were very knowledgeable about the menu, and were able to tell you what everything was like.  All in all, this restaurant was pretty good, but had a very big problem with portion sizes.

   As always, I will be rating the places I go on my Cookie Counter Scale of Cookieness, with one cookie being a burnt, old, stale, nasty oatmeal cookie, and ten cookies being warm, gooey, melty chocolate chip cookie (my favorite) goodness. My Cookie Counter Ratings for Shield's Tavern are:

Food: 6 Cookies (because of the crazy portion problem and unseasoned crab cakes)

Service: 8 Cookies

Atmosphere: 7 Cookies

Shield's Tavern Information: http://www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/do/restaurants/historic-dining-taverns/shields/