Rick's Cafe Boatyard-- Incredible Ambiance, Underwhelming Food

I'm not in the mood to be funny, so suffice to say that the title above says it all.  You may stop reading now and I won't be bothered in the slightest-- The only joke I have ready to incorporate into this blog entry is in incredibly poor taste when you consider that we went to Rick's Cafe Boatyard, 4050 Dandy Trail in Indy right after attending the funeral of a family member.  Linda had a great sense of humor, though, so she probably wouldn't be offended if I put the joke in, unlike much of the family... sorry folks!  Anyway, because of that event we were like an atheist at his own funeral-- all dressed up with nowhere to go.  (Get it? Huh? Huh?)  So, I wanted to  eat somewhere we would feel more comfortable formally dressed since that doesn't happen very often. 

Rick's seem to fill the bill, what with it's beautiful locale overlooking a marina on Eagle Creek Reservoir, a blue and white sort of expanded Cape Cod-style building with white cathedral ceilings inside along with white exposed beams.  The woodwork in the dining room is exquisite, and the brass railings of the room dividers were all decorated with lighted garlands and wreaths for Christmas. There is valet parking available during the busy season, as well as outdoor dining and live entertainment.  The servers were attentive and the food came out very quickly. Here ends the good part.

The Little Woman and I ordered off the lunch menu.  We shared the Rico's Dip appetizer, a sort of Southwest-style layered dip of a few chicken chunks, Jack cheese, green onions, tomatoes, and (I think) some cilantro. with tortilla chips for dipping and a small cup of salsa on the side.  The ingredients were fresh, but it could have used more flavor, like jalapenos, banana peppers, I dunno, something.  Then the lunch entrees came:  TLW's Fish and Chips were edible but kind of a disaster.  The tasteless armored coating on the fillets required a knife to penetrate in order to reach the actual fish.  She opened them up and scooped out what little fish was inside the same way she would've eaten a baked potato.  Her fries had been blanched-- cooked on the outside but soggy and almost raw on the inside.  My Louisiana Blackened Catfish was cooked well, but there was so much seasoning on it that it formed a solid coating on the top of the fillet and was reeeally salty, but not so much that I couldn't eat it.  

I will say the Shrimp Etoufee Rice upon which my catfish rested was well-seasoned and quite tasty, and our pitcher of Winter Sangria was delicious although not terribly potent, alcohol-wise.  Overall, the food was borderline okay but well below the quality you'd expect from a $$$ establishment. Maybe the atmosphere and live entertainment will be enough to bring us back in the Springtime? Hmm... I dunno.