Overall Food Service Noise Bathrooms Value

Blackwall Hitch

/ Updated on July 17, 2020
Overall
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Service
Noise
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Rehoboth's Blackwall Hitch is in the ocean block in the old Irish Eyes/Greene Turtle location at 52 Rehoboth Avenue.

Before we begin I want to remind you that, like many local restaurants, Blackwall Hitch's menu changes like the winds and the tides. So use the gallery images and the descriptions as a guide only!

We always start with the Shrimp Blackwall, attractively presented in a cast iron dish. Yes, shrimp are shrimp – but the star of the show is that sauce. It's a magic mixture of white wine, garlic, scallions and (of course) butter, and it is delicious. I asked James to please deliver a few gallons of it to my house, but nobody has shown up yet….

We also kicked off the evening with Hitch Medallions. Think rumaki, but with white meat chicken rather than livers. The bacon was appetizingly crisp, as it should be. (Undercooked bacon is a sign of kitchen carelessness and is like eating an earlobe.) The presentation was made even more colorful with a bed of roasted corn salsa. Take a look at this one in the gallery. It's a very generous portion and could serve as a semi-light main course. Another very nice and rather unusual appetizer is the lemongrass chicken soup. Think eggdrop, but with an attitude – and a wonton. It's loaded with chicken and all sorts of goodies.

The Scallops & Risotto entree consisted of four large scallops on a bed of perfectly cooked risotto redolent of mushrooms and parmesan. The dish was drizzled in a nicely intense balsamic, which added the right amount of acid to counterbalance the earthiness of the risotto. I ordered the Santa Fe Wrap. The promise of blackened chicken breast, greens, avocado (lots of it!), tomatoes, cukes, carrots, onions and that corn salsa sounded too good to pass up. Of course, a little shredded cheddar didn't hurt either. Contrary to what you might see on Facebook, I rarely eat the second half of a wrap or a sandwich. (There's gotta be SOME control….) I finished both halves of this one. It's a panoply of taste with a nice textural interplay between the greens, carrots & cucumbers and the softer avocado and chicken. I'd get it again.

One of the most impressive presentations at Blackwall Hitch is the Pork Shank entree. It stands erect, proud and tall, with fallin' off the bone meat very nicely done. It rests on a bed of linguini moistened with a delicious jus. Like spicy? Do not miss the Shrimp & Grits. The generous portion offers lots of sausage and shrimp in a potent and aggressively spiced sauce. This one will fill you up for sure. Go ahead – order another martini. On our last visit, I ordered the Shobb Salad (see? I DO order salads!) Think cobb. but with snow-white crabmeat, chilled scallops and shrimp. The dressing will certainly get your attention. Seafood lovers who want to eat sort of light: This one's for you!

The burger struts its stuff topped with a tangle of onion straws and several slices of bacon. The roll is nicely toasted and properly soft in order to cradle the burger as it wishes to be cradled. Fried Green Tomatoes are kicked up with a nice aioli and a firm yet flavorful crust. Remember the old seafood house appetizer – sweet rolls – that nobody does anymore? Well Blackwall Hitch pays homage to this ancient tradition with Monkey Bread. Pinch off a hunk and go at it.

The Flaming Saganaki appetizer was quite flavorful, but our particular order needed to stay a little longer under the salamander. This dish requires that the cheese have a bit of a crust. It's really more of a texture thing, but next time I order it I'm asking them to leave it in for just another minute. Burned cheese rules. There. I said it. If you like your pizza crunchy, then you will like the flatbreads. I stick with the traditional with sausage and some cheese. Strange things on top of pizzas are a scourge of mankind. Well, maybe feta and pineapple – every so often. OK, and sopressata.

I have to tell you about a must-get on the dessert menu. DO NOT MISS the Pineapple Upside Down Skillet Cake. I usually frown on these sorts of cakes because they are often cloyingly sweet. This one was not. In fact, the flavor that dominated was a soft vanilla and nutty, brown butter. The presentation should be a floor show: Our delightful server Elizabeth Madeline arrived with the skillet and a plate. She expertly inverted the skillet without launching the cake across the room. Once it was deposited onto the center of the plate, she drizzled thick, warm and buttery caramel overtop. Check out the gallery for a step-by-step sequence of photos depicting this rather impressive performance. The cake was not too sweet, as I said, and the edges that had been around the perimeter of the pan were slightly crispy. This thing is a winner and a bargain for $9. Order it to split.

I took my obligatory walk around the room (pretending to look for the rest room, but I know I'm not fooling anybody) and other plates that looked good were the Lemongrass Shrimp Noodle Salad (this one's a main course) and the Crab Cake Sandwich. We've been to Blackwall Hitch several times, and things run consistently smooth.

Blackwall Hitch is at 52 Rehoboth Avenue. Hours are 11 – midnight, Sun thru Tues. 11 – 2am, Wed thru Sat. LIVE MUSIC Wed thru Sun. They serve a rather lavish Sunday brunch. DO CALL in the off season to check the entertainment schedule and the hours.

For more info, check out their Facebook page: www.facebook.com/BlackwallHitchRehoboth/

See their RB webpage here.

Take a look at the sample menu by clicking here.

Off-season Specials & Hours

Specials & Moods change quickly. Always call a restaurant first.

pp = per person.
BOGO = buy one, get one.
Bloody = bloody mary.
domestics = American-made beers (e.g., Bud).
imports = foreign beers (e.g., Heineken).
Rails = non call-brand alcohol.
Prix Fixe = one set price.
Mains = entrees.
Margs = margaritas.
Chix = chicken.
AYCE = all you can eat.
Lite = Miller Lite
drafts = draught beer.
Early Birds = arrive before a certain time.
Apps = Appetizers.
bottles = beer in a bottle.
à la carte = order off the menu (no prix fixe).
crafts = micro/artisanal brews (e.g., Old Leghumper Lager)

52 Rehoboth Avenue

302-226-0550

Sunday
OPEN 10 -9
Sunday Brunch Menu starting at 10!
LIVE jazz music during brunch on the first Sunday of every month!
Monday
11:30 - 9
Tuesday
Open 11:30 - 9
25% off entrees
Wednesday
Open 11:30 - 9
Happy Hour All Day!

Thursday
Open 11:30 - 9
Dinner for 2 only $50
Friday
Open 11:30 - 10
Prime Rib & Shrimp Dinner only $26.95!
Saturday
Open 11:30 - 10
The Rehoboth Foodie

About the Author

"My goal is to promote Rehoboth Beach dining while remaining honest and impartial. I don’t gush unless a place deserves it, and I don’t pull punches, either. With so many good places to eat around here, it just doesn’t make sense to waste the calories — or the money — on anything less." View all articles written by The Rehoboth Foodie

Add Your Comment
  1. Avatar Tom Schwab says:

    My wife, sister and I dined here in June 2021. The overall experience was very mediocre. My wife had the most pathetic salad I have ever seen in a restaurant. A tiny cup of under ripe strawberries was brought out after the main salad was served. So called balsamic dressing appeared to be plain oil misted on the lettuce. The chicken she added was overcooked, dry, and burned in parts. A few canned peas showed up at the bottom. I had fried shrimp platter which was run of the mill. My sister exclaimed her flatbread (truffled mushroom) was good. We understood the current worker shortage. Our server was good, but would have benefited from a pair of roller skates. Will think twice attending this restaurant again.

  2. Avatar Nancy says:

    I don’t post many reviews. Only when exceptional is discovered. My family (3 adults and 2 children 3 and 1) showed up on a hot late June weekday seeking lunch. At 11:30 am we were met upon entering to “you are a little early but come on in”. Wow! One, they accepted this unsightly group AND it was before their 12 pm open. Once seated, we got the ROYAL treatment. Crayons, smiles and humble service. Food was EXCELLENT and they were constantly checking back to see if we needed anything else. Like I said, I don’t do reviews except when they are really worth shouting it out to the world. Patronize this place! Yummy and they deserve it!

  3. Avatar Char says:

    Hubby and I had dinner here last night and it was fantastic! Started with the zucchini frites, very good. Hubby had the shrimp & grits and I had the crabcakes. The presentation was beautiful and shows a chef who cares about and loves what he is doing in the kitchen. Everything was excellent, from the service to the food. We will definitely be back!

  4. Avatar Leslie says:

    We were very disappointed with the food. Flatbread pizza was overcooked, tough, and almost tasteless – I’ve had better flatbreads from the grocery store freezer section. Salmon BLT was on focaccia bread that was too stale/dry and tough to bite through even as individual pieces after I was left to eat the filling with my fork. And the $8 side of asparagus that we presumed could be shared by two was exactly six very small and overcooked stalks. If we hadn’t been with friends we would have sent it all back. We very willingly go to restaurants that are as or more expensive as this one (which is pricier than most around here in its same category), and we’re never expecting giant “American” portions at good restaurants, but I’m never ok with spending even half of what we spent on food that was this unappetizing/overcooked/stale. Only the fries and cocktail were of the quality I expected. Definitely will not return.

  5. Avatar Janice Cohen says:

    I was excited about a new restaurant in Rehoboth but not this one. Bartender and server were great. Hostess was really unprofessional with zero knowledge base of how to handle customers. Had a reservation at 9, arrived at 845 and was seated at 9:20. They were very busy. WE ordered immediately, inquiring about which appetizer we could get quickly. 30 minutes later they brought crab dip stating they were out of the zucchini frites. okay???? Hmmm
    By 10pm we still did not have our dinners, the seafood medly and the mahi tacos.
    At this point we decided to just leave and cut our losses. We couldn’t even find the crab in the crab dip. We were stressed out and “hangry”
    To sum it up. This restaurant had beautiful fun atmosphere with a mixture of young and old. However, appeared short staffed and unprofessional. I can’t really judge the food because we never got our order.
    I won’t go back. To many great restaurants in Rehoboth.

  6. Avatar Jack says:

    We took our New Zealand visitors to the Hitch last Sunday for the Jazz Brunch Buffet. There was no jazz, only piped in oldies. The Maryland Crab Soup was dominated by claw meat. The “fresh fruit tea” had diced canned peaches in it. The service wasn’t much better; I had 3 used plates on top of one another before our waitress asked to take them away. The omelet station had an untrained cook who handed me scrambled eggs with veggies in it. What a disappointment.

  7. Avatar Rita K says:

    I’ve eaten there twice. Opening day had mussels and fried zucchini. Both great. Ate there June 11. There were 6 of us and none of us had a good meal. Chicken lemongrass soup with dumpling arrived with no lemongrass and no dumpling. Just plain chicken soup. Two people had lobster rolls. Each roll had a tablespoon of lobster at most! And it was the scrawny part of the lower claw, the piece that has no flavor. Soft shell crabs were so so. Alcoholic drinks had a mere trace of alcohol. We had other dishes and all were either bland or not as described on the menu.

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