Riverhouse Reef & Grill
| Address: | 995 Riverside Dr, Palmetto, FL 34221, USA |
| Phone: | +1 941-729-0616 |
| Site: | riverhousereefandgrill.com |
| Rating: | 4.3 |
| Working: | 11:30AM–9PM 11:30AM–9PM 11:30AM–9PM 11:30AM–9PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–9PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 7
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Karen A
We recently took a family vacation from NE Ohio to Bradenton, FL. We searched for a restaurant that would meet the varying tastes of the 10 adults and children in our party and found the Riverhouse. We were very excited to have dinner there, as we were impressed with customer reviews and the menu was perfect! We were told that we should make a reservation for Thursday, as on Friday they were expecting a large convention and it would be crowded...so we made our reservation for Thursday as instructed. When we arrived, the atmosphere was relaxed and inviting...we were seated right away. We were impressed with the views and were excited to sit outside after dinner to enjoy the live entertainment scheduled for later that evening. Unfortunately, it did not take long before we were regretting our choice of restaurant. Our waitress took our drink orders and quickly hurried off across the restaurant to attend to the other tables to which she was assigned. She brought back our drinks then told us she would be back to take our orders. She returned a few times, only to rush off without taking our orders and kept stating "Ill be right back". Eventually, she took our orders for appetizers. By the time our appetizers arrived, our drinks were empty. She dropped off our appetizers (which were really good!!) and hurried off again, even though one of the men in our group called out for her so we could refill our drinks...he was ignored. We waited for quite a while. When our waitress didnt return, we went to find the manager to ask her to find someone to either replace our waitress or help her. (We were a party of 10, after all). The manager stated she would send someone else to help her. Another lady came to our table and took half of the groups drink order then walked away in mid conversation. At this point, we summoned the manager again and stated we were no longer interested in having dinner here and we would like to pay for the drinks we had and leave. By this time, we had already been there about an hour...and our dinner orders had not yet been taken. The manager apologized and asked us to give her a chance to make things right. She personally took the rest of our drink orders and I asked her if she could please clear the dirty glasses and plates from the table (as we were pretty cramped as it was). She said she would...then never did. We waited for about another 10 minutes and by this time, the restaurant was pretty full. Several tables around us were complaining to their wait staff about the time it was taking to get their orders taken as well. After we had been there for an hour and a half, with no dinner order taken, we paid for our drinks and appetizers and left. We ended up going to Outback Steakhouse...and had phenomenal service that Riverhouse staff could have learned a thing or two from. We were disappointed with this experience, as we were truly excited to try this restaurant! Im sure the food is amazing, judging by the appetizers we had. Unfortunately, we could not get past the service aspect that was so seriously lacking.
B
B H
So gross!!. This was the most disappointing meal I have ever experienced. The calamari was brittle and old, the fish and chips were beyond disgusting! The fish was dry (hard) and the batter was like homemade catfish batter that tasted like chicken. My kids chicken strips tasted like fish. I went here based on reviews and I dont know how anyone could say that this restaurant was over 1 star?? My bill was $87, I didnt eat the food, I still had two big strips of fish, didnt touch my coleslaw and ate about 3 French fries. I told the server I just couldnt stomach it, I honestly tried. He laughed. He didnt even offer to discount my bill by a few bucks. I didnt ask, because I shouldnt have too? The food was not eaten. So disturbing. Worse restaurant I have ever been too. Tragic, dont waste your hard earned money.
IV
Ivan Kaminsky
Fantastic experience starting with the "limosine golf cart that took us across the boardwalk. We sat outside overlooking the water and were catered to by Mariah who never let our glasses get completely empty. Margaritas and wine were $4 and appetizers $5 during happy hour. Mariah brought us some complimentary bread with cinnamon butter - delicious. She recommended the ribs and kickin chicken which came in generous portions. This chicken does have a kick so brace yourself. Ribs were awesome. Washrooms were exceptionally clean. They have large fans for hot weather and heaters for cooler nights. I almost never write reviews but this place deserves a plug. We are snowbirds from Canada and this has become our favorite place. We are going to visit every week.
A
A Private User
The view and the location of the restaurant is great. The atmosphere is very comfortable and casual. The service was not as great as the food. We attempted to make reservations via phone but no one answered after several attempts. When we arrived, there were three people at the front desk standing around but served us promptly. Upon being seated, it took awhile for the server to come to our table to ask for our drinks. The service was mediocre- we were asked immediately after our food was served if everything was okay and then never checked on until we finished. We were not offered desert or given specials, all information had to be asked. I think that the restaurant relies on the food to precede the service.
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Kevin Lo
We like coming here from time to time. The restaurant has a nice view, and often has coupons in the local coupon packets that come in the mail. Its a fair walk down the pier to get to the restaurant, and if its too hot a day, or you just dont want to walk it, theres a golf cart shuttle that makes the run for tips. The happy hour specials 3-6 are a pretty good deal. We just ate all appetizers for dinner one night, it was fun. The green goddess shrimp was very tasty. The ribs were surprisingly good too. The outside of the ribs had a little crust, but the inside was still tender and it really did come off the bone easily. The mahi mahi bites are nice and light. Not too much salt or oil. Yum Yum.
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A Private User
first of all I am not a picky eater, however, my son and i went there. the location is very nice and our server, was nice but at the end of the meal was embarassed by the quality of the food. we ordered calamari and it was rubbery with no taste. the sauce was ketshup. his salad was saturated with salad dressing the greek salad was ok. I had the snapper and it was covered in a cheese sauce and was cold. the vegtables were ok, the rolls out of a bag. his fried shrimp was terrible, how can you screw up fried shrimp? we had key lime pie which was a mix and the crust could not be broken, it was concrete. $50 for a bad meal. they must survive based on their location.
VI
Vincent Cobelo
I live on the Manatee River not far from this restaurant and there isnt another on the water including Mattisons that we dont go to by water. If you are in the area this is a must restaurant to experience. By land you will take a walk past boats and yachts or take a golf cart from the parking lot to the end of the pier. There you will have a vista of the river and at the right time a great view of the sunset or dolphins frolicking about. Drinks are not cheap but reasonable because they are poured EXCELLENT. Food is creative and plentiful. Even the meatloaf is great if you try it. Service can be great or just good depending upon what is going on.
