The Federal Rehoboth

Great restaurant, wonderful owners and staff. Went here on recommendation from a friend, made reservations well ahead to be sure we could get in in the middle of busy summer. We showed up a little early, no problem, they had plenty of open tables at that time, but which quickly filled up within an hour...glad we had reservations! It is a smaller restaurant, not that many tables, which is why you need reservations, and why it works so well...plenty of staff to take care of each table without stressing or running about. Was greeted by the owner Ellen like we were old friends, and Todd (chef and owner) came out and chatted with us also, found out we had mutual friends! The Federal is known for it's fritters, so of course we had to try some. Had two different kinds with sauce, very tasty

Went here on NYE. Had the tasting menu. I opted for the salad with fried oysters, the seared tuna with soba noodles, the hanger steak and the pot au crème. Paired with wine: $155. Salad: greens were ok. Oysters were minuscule, over breaded and greasy. Rating: 2 Tuna: Was mealy in texture and if i had eaten them blindfolded I wouldn’t know what they were. The rest of the dish was ok. Rating: 2: tuna 1, rest 3. Hanger Steak: The steak itself was tasteless. It looked good so I thought it was because it was unseasoned. Unfortunately, salt didn’t help. The Tuscan broccoli raab was tasteless as well. Should have a nice bitter taste. It was limp suggesting it had been overcooked. The horseradish mashed were inconsistent—some bites had no horseradish flavor and others too much. Rating: 1 Pot a

We recently ordered catering from The Federal for a party of 12. Our food was amazing, delivered right on time, and easy to serve for our hungry house guests. Everyone raved about the meal. We ordered both the chicken and steak along with the delicious mac and cheese and a green bean side. We also ordered butternut squash soup and a Caesar salad. Ellen was a great help throughout the process and setup.

Fritters are the best here! The other menu items are good - but fritters!! I got corn, artichoke and apple Fritters with caramel sauce. All were good but the apple are melt in your mouth, light and fluffy and with the caramel sauce are beyond amazing. We also had the short ribs with bok choy and carrots in a balsamic glaze and the apple ginger cake a la mode. The cake definitely needs the ice cream (or actually they should offer the caramel sauce as a topper) because it's kinda dry otherwise. All in all a good meal. Definitely get those Fritters. Pro tip - if you order to go check for all of your dipping sauces. We didn't get the other two savory ones to try but didn't want to drive back for those.

Food tastes good and the food is well presented. I would have appreciated bigger sizes in sauce and some pickled vegetables to balance the fried starters. Stuff was friendly, energetic and explained the menu, it was helpful to make our choices.