We just went for a show here last Saturday, to see taking back Sunday. I didn't know what to expect with such a large venue, but we had a good time. We arrived a little later, and had no wait at all to get in. There are multiple bars which means you don't have to wait to get a drink. I had a white claw, along with a blueberry beer. They have a concession area for snacks during the show. Even though there were a ton of people and this was a sold out show, we were still able to be a good distance away and see the band. I've been here before for food and recommend the tater tot poutine. Pizza is decent also. read more

Buffalo River Works - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

The service has some room for improvement all around. We were a group of 8 and started with drinks. We had a beer list but when we asked for a cocktail list the waitress started to list what they had... after getting some blank stares she said "oh did you want it in writing?" Yes I think we would all like to know what's in your "punch" and "wine cocktail" you just listed for us. We all ordered something a little different and it was good, nothing great, but edible. Then after a few rounds of sangria another was ordered and when it came it was completely different... the waitress said "this one is made the right way, sorry about the others." What?!? We have been drinking sangria not made the right way... and when we tried the "wright one" it tasted soooo much better. But nope still had to pay for the other drinks! Just left our party a little underwhelmed and not really likely to return. read more

Don't even know where to start. Here on a Monday night. They are dead. We get a table for 6 and go to the bar 200 feet away. Go back for the table - they gave it away because they didn't know where we were. (Remember, it's dead!) Now they can't seat us for 15 minutes because they can't support that many patrons. (Remember - they are dead. Open tables all over!) We stand at a high top waiting in an area where there is NO ONE- they are dead. They tell us we can't stand there. Okay - we are done! Left. read more

Riverworks is cool in the summer because of the outdoor seating and people watching but in the winter it's like a high school gymnasium, arcade, and Applebee's has a lovechild and no one knows who the father is. One thing I can say is that the food is always decent. There is also a reasonable selection of beers. On the flip side, if there is an event going on (even if you don't want to go to it ex. roller derby) they make you pay to park and will try to make you pay for admission. Also, good luck getting one of the male bartenders to pay attention to you if you're a dude. I've been to Riverworks several times. I even had the pleasure of watching a concert on the other side of the river from the upper patio. It had a lot of pros and cons, all of which depend on the weather. I highly recommend the poutine tater tots. read more

Awesome space to accommodate a number of different events. It is conveniently located near canal side and other popular places in the Buffalo area. Located on the water, this huge event space has a lot of parking which isn't confusing like most other places in Buffalo. They had about six beers on draft along with canned beers, all over priced at around $8. They also had food available. I believe there was three different bars, one being upstairs. Also upstairs in a large outdoor patio with seating overlooking the water. Bathrooms located upstairs and downstairs. I came here for a concert and the sound was great. There were a lot of seating options, which is unusual for concerts like the front bottoms. Overall a great use of space in a conveniently located area in Buffalo. read more

Buffalo River Works - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

I went here with Debra R, Jose R, and a couple of people a day ago. We went to the restaurant part for lunch. I got the vegetarian sandwich. Debra R got a fish fry and Jose R got some food. The people got a beef sandwich and a vegetarian sandwich. We also got buffalo wings and a pretzel for the appetizer. The food was really good. The area has a cool look to it. The restaurant is in a big building and it has an arcade. read more

Stopped in for dinner before a concert. Plenty of seating and parking. I was worried it would be too loud because of the roller derby team that was practicing, but that wasn't the case at all. The kids loved playing video games while they waited for their dinners. The food was overall good- typical bar food. Server was on top of getting us more drinks in a timely manner, even though the bar was full due to a private party. read more

Pros: the venue is cool as hell. Tons of stuff to do and lots of activity and people watching. Our server was great. Cons: anything to do with food and beverage. The bar is SERIOUSLY lacking talent and knowledge and food is sub par. A couple examples: - I ordered an Old Fashioned... it came with fireball in it. Like HOW does a bartender not know how to make an Old Fashioned? - beers were warm. - they don't carry Malibu rum. Weird. - they don't make Moscow Mules. Huh??? Is this not a basic popular drink? - seafood pasta was pasta with shredded cheese melted on top and a few pieces of seafood. - fellow dinner guest sent back their grilled wrap because everything was raw on the inside. - calamari was cheap frozen boxed kind and super tough and chewy. Overall: go for the scenery but stick to the basics and you might be ok. This place is plain Jane and not offering any kind of quality good and beverage knowledge. read more

Best staff ever, food always fresh and tasty tons of space and room to remain healthy and socially distanced while eating drinking and enjoying friends and family...also kickA$$ Pinball tables!!! Bring your paychecks and allowance down to BRW now!! read more

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I have been here a few times and have always enjoyed it. Our food has been delicious every time. Servers always friendly. And the view is great, especially out by the river. That being said, I have never been here at night when all the spiders come out, or become noticeable. They are huge and they are everywhere on the patio. Don't look up. Huge spiders actually drop down from the ceiling and then go back up. It's horrifying. The server moved us inside to the bar and there were still spiders. I've truly never had such an experience before. Ruined the dinner and even my husband was creeped out. Sorry Riverworks, you've got to do something about the spiders! read more

I've been here several times for drinks and a few times for food. We stopped in for lunch today. Not busy at all. Mostly families with small children enjoying lunch and some of the arcade games available. Our waiter Jeff was so friendly and helpful! When I ordered on of their newer beers, the Seltzer IPA, he offered me a sample first because he said it's one of the beers you love or hate. I loved it, my fiancé hated it. To each their own. My fiancé did enjoy the Rejuvenator IPA. I ordered the angus burger with cheddar cheese and French fries. I was very impressed with the quality of the food and the prices were great. Can't wait to come back again in the summer to enjoy the patio. read more

Buffalo River Works - Riverworks Setlzer IPA - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

I have been here a few times to see roller derby bouts (go Lake Effect Furies!), but this was my first time to eat there. I had the pot roast melt. It had pot roast with mash potatoes and cheddar horseradish on sourdough bread. It was like taking a Sunday pot roast and putting it on bread. I love mixing my roast with mash potatoes so this was perfect. I didn't really taste the cheese, but it was delicious. I upgraded to the tater tots instead of chips. They don't have a lot of beer choices, but they do have their sister companies brews. I had a special beer the dominator which benefits Hasek's heroes. It was good. Definitely planning on return visit. read more

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Pavilion style restaurant, bar , entertainment for a fun filled day or night to watch hockey watch a fight listen to music Can't think of a better place to hang with friends and chill Food is good and drinks AWSOME read more

Buffalo River Works - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

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Wish I could give ZERO stars!! Worst dining experience ever! DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY HERE! Awful food, awful service. Cold and flavorless food that sits out on the bar with bugs on it before it's even served to people. Rude wait staff. I should have listened to my dear friend Alex who also had an awful experience here and told me not to go. He is still waiting for them to refund his money weeks later after they refused to give him the food he already paid for! AWFUL!!!!!!!! read more

My friends took me to my very first Roller Derby, and needless to say I was excited! I have never been to Buffalo RiverWorks for any occasion, and I was impressed. The establishment itself was really cool, and to be alongside the infamous silos was neat to see up close. Parking seemed really well setup as they did have people directing traffic and showing you where to park which is always nice. So we had a VIP table which was really quite nice for my first Roller Derby, and our waiter was really awesome. He joked with us, and was really good at his job. The only issue was he was the only waiter in our section & had a lot of tables so it took him some time to get to us at certain points. Overall the food was really good, my wife got a burger with tater tots, I chose a small pizza with pepperoni and mushrooms. The quality was good, the burger was messy but that is the sign of a good burger to me. It was cooked well, came with an abundance of pickles, and was super tasty. The pizza was good overall, maybe a few more mushrooms and pepperoni otherwise the sauce and crust were really tasty. I look forward to venturing back for another outing or two once the weather gets a little nicer, and I cannot wait to see another Roller Derby. read more

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I have been here several times for different activities, events, etc. This most recent time I attended their Easter brunch buffet with a friend. We didn't have reservations, but there was plenty of open seats in the bar area, and we decided to just sit at the bar, which was empty when we first arrived. The buffet was pretty impressive and had a lot of selections. They had half dedicated to breakfast-type foods and the other to lunch ones. Everything was hot and tasty. My favorites were the smoked salmon and carved prime rib. The bartender was very attentive and we enjoyed our time. They offer lots of games & activities, including a zip line and escape room. Very large venue for any size party. read more

We went to the restaurant by boat docks were great !! The pizza was delicious however my grandson had a grilled cheese and I had the pot roast sandwich, in both cases the bread was inedible and hard I don't know how you can screw up a basic grilled cheese !!! So I recommend the pizza but nothing with bread I hope they rectify this situation. read more

There's so much space that this amazing venue actually takes up. It's amazing and ideal for large gatherings! It's also super cute because you can drive your boat here and dock it while you grab some food and drinks. Or you can sit outside and watch the boats go by! The menu is basic Buffalo eats, done correctly. Their beer list contains a bit of everything from local to domestic to imports. We came here for my boyfriends sisters 30th bday and we had a blast! The waiter decided to concentrate on the food and they positioned us close enough to the bar where ordering our drinks separately was no big deal! All of the outdoor space is amazing. I hear they also do roller derby here on certain nights! I recommend for all! read more

Come to watch/play some sports and stay for a bite! The facility is huge and amazing for numerous activities. The food delivers in quality as well (especially for a sports venue)! The cranberry, apple, and goat cheese salad was delicious! Comes with fried potatoes on top, and who doesn't love that?!? Don't pass up a chance to visit this great venue and restaurant in downtown buff read more

Buffalo River Works - Cranberry, apple, and goat cheese salad - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

So much going on here yet so little. We came from 8 hours away to visit the area as a special gift to a teenage boy....axe throwing, Niagara Falls, zip lines, water sports, dining....and supposedly amusements for his younger siblings.....not so much. The under-age 7 obstacle course was under construction and looked like it had never been open. None of the amusement rides were open. The zip line wasn't open...the main attraction OR the two person "race." The axe throwing was also not open and once the door was unlocked, we then learned it was by appointment only. If you want to grab a drink and sit by the water, great...just be prepared to wait awhile and possibly be ignored when you belly up to one of the bars. read more

Beautiful and spacious and urban blithe all at the same time. I love the space divisions: Ice rinks, outdoor patio and stage and also indoor dining and event center. Really cool. Parking is a nightmare for a big event, if you can't get there early enough and get into the lot. We've seen one live concert and have taken the kid to a curling event. Both times we ate there. The fish and chips were good. The pizza: decent for the kind it is (not Buffalo Style). The prices were high. Not really worth going there just for food, but if your there anyway, the food's pretty good. We're not drinkers, but the beer selection looked interesting with local varieties. read more

Buffalo River Works - Fish fry, perch. A little more fishy tasting than I like. Fries were lukewarm. - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

Tried the wings at Pearl, these were so much better here. Wings were tangy and spicy. Service was good. Sat outside and not sure if they have heating fans but today would have been a good day. They did have outdoor seating and indoor but I wanted outdoor since I am from Texas. Wish they had an outdoor heater. Dressed for the weather but when sun went down got a bit more chiller and purchased a sweatshirt because I was cold. Good place to try on vacation. As I left they had band on stage inside buy social distancing was still being done. read more

Buffalo River Works - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

The zip line and adventure course were great for the kids, the craft beer and live music were great for the adults!

A real cool place to hang out and have a drink. Not your typical restaurant as you will see when walking in. Geared more for entertainment than dinning. They have a patio and bar area with limited sit down seating. The food is decent and fresh. I'm not blown away by the selection of food; however, it isn't bad. read more

Great Burger.. dont by any means order the grilled cheese sandwich for your kids though. Apparently it doesn't come with cheese! read more

Buffalo River Works - Where's the cheese???? - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

The food took an hour just for the appetizer and then another 30 mins for our food it was my moms bday we arrived at 645 and didn't leave til 930 we had little kids at the table and the server had a horrible attitude I shouldn't paid for anything great space for entertainment service and food were horrible .... And to mention I've been there several times and it use to be good read more

I've been here a few times for different events. I find that there is plenty of parking, even if it does cost $5. Getting in and out of the venue is pretty easy. The sound system is decent but they're still the opportunity to hear each other have a conversation with is the plus. The bathroom are always clean and fully stocked with toilet paper and paper towels. read more

Buffalo River Works - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

One star for the nice spot on the water and one star for our awesome server (I think he said his name was Terry). We came to meet some friends and have the tater tot poutine. They discontinued it:( But no worries, I got pork tacos, so did my friend and the hubby got fish fry. The pork tacos looked/tasted like they had been left under the warmer since the night before. Not a drop of moisture left. Unseasoned and bland. Hubby liked the fish, fries were the same as Burger King. Drinks were good. Some questionable things on the menu. Super disappointed and will not be returning until changes are made. Should have known something was up when it was practically empty on a beautiful night! read more

This place was massive and felt kind of disjointed. We found the host stand and were told we could grab a beer and sit outside so that's really what we did. They had several draft and bottled options and sitting on the huge patio looking over the rive was enjoyable. The playlist they had on made us want to stay for more than one beer alone! read more

Walking into the venue from the parking lot expectations run wild as you pass tastefully placed, wonderful iron sculptures, strategically placed hanging plants around outdoor seating areas, rock climbing walls attached to the silo's, and let's not forget the zip liners passing over you about 2 stories high, colorful adirondack chairs facing the river consumed with Kayaks, pedal boats, dinner boats and such. This venue is huge and very trendy ....so much thought went into every detail here. We passed an array of dinner tables and went inside to sit at the inside bar first....we were in no hurry to sit for dinner yet. And that's where the thought process ends. The bar area was dirty so we went to the outside location and found available seating. We sat 12 minutes and no bartender approached us. This was on a Monday evening around 7pm and there were several open seats at the bar. Any attempt to get one of 3 bartenders near us were ignored. Finally, I leaned in on the bar loudly called a passing bartender.... asked his name ...PAUL ...shook his hand and introduced myself and asked what IPA's were available.. he rolled his eyes and placed a list on the bar and walked away. Upon returning he rolled his eyes again when we asked to taste 2 different IPA's. We bought 2 and paid without running a tab. We asked for a bar menu which took 5 minutes to get because he waited on a couple who just sat down. This employee ignored us after that as well as the other bartenders....they all avoid eye contact, and no smiles on anyone.... I'd say that's a management thing. We sat and watched the bartenders interact like robots with each other and ignore any patrons unless it was to place food or drinks in front of them, collect money and then walk away....sometimes disappearing...not sure where to..as we were stumped. This was a poor experience in so many ways.... we moved our seats to a different section of the bar. Again we introduced ourselves to a bartender named Christina. We received our drinks promptly and decided to try some Appetizers. OMG... We were served the worst looking and tasting calamari that I ever had in my life. They looked like onion rings and fried in old oil... very chewy, veiny and definitely frozen...not fresh. The fish Reuben was awful. Now we sat for 20 minutes for our bill as Christina was not visible and another female and male bartender ignored us. In the meantime, a group of 6 walked up to the area where we were sitting and it was almost laughable how their many attempts to get a bartender's attention were ignored. We stood up and started to interact with the group as we waited still to pay our bill. They were out-of-town business people and we were only too happy to offer some suggestions for entertainment in the city. I was told by 2 of the gentlemen that they already knew not to eat here. Christina did return and I asked for our bill. She apologized and thanked me for not walking away.... clearly not my style to do that. NOTE: I can't see why the kitchen is so far away from the tables and bar area. They actually have to walk about 200 plus feet carrying food on a tray. This could and should be a well run inviting venue. I am told it is packed on the weekends, but if management continues to ignore their customers and serve fast food quality meals the place will be doomed for failure. Yes, Buffalonians will slowly stop eating here and they may have a travellers clientele for awhile.... but everyone eventually will wake up and stop settling for poor quality. I will return to the venue often, however, I will never eat here again. . read more

Ate here last night with a party of 12. Menu was very limited unless you wanted a beer, pizza or finger food (why bother listing "entrees" if there's ONE?). Sat down to dinner at 6:30 and weren't served any food until 8:05!!!! We had a 1 year old in our party that we ordered a side of French fries for and that wasn't even brought out early. When food came out there were extra orders, incorrect orders etc. one member of our party didn't receive food until about 20 minutes after everyone else got theirs. First and last time I'll be dining here. read more

We came to do the ropes course and stayed for the service! Kristen was our bartender and was AMAZING!!! She gave our little visitor "the best day of her life!!!" This place is the heart of the city and they have nailed the experience that service Truly represents. Amazing and wouldn't hesitate to return and bring guests time and time again. Buffalo is truly a city of good neighbors! read more

Buffalo River Works - kiddie cocktail! - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

Terrible! We ate here following my nieces dance recital. We waited well over an hour for our food and they weren't even busy!!! Maybe 15 tables were taken. Our waiter took 55 minutes to bring 2 cups of coffee, and when he did the coffee was watered down! We ordered 2 chocolate milks for the kids, and he brought white and argued with us that there was chocolate in it!! When the food finally did come, they left one of the meals off, and had make it. The food was lack luster and honestly not great. Next time we will pack a lunch. read more

Buffalo River Works - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

I've been here for a few events and the space is pretty cool. None of the events were catered but we have eaten at the restaurant. There's plenty of parking though for bigger events we've had to park pretty far down and walk. It's not bad though. I've never run an event there so I don't know what the pricing is like, but I would consider checking it out. read more

Came here on a Saturday night to celebrate a friends birthday. Parking lot was full though we found spaces in the back corner. Started with getting some food. We ordered the poutine tater tots which were AMAZING! The gravy and cheese curds were delicious but the dish also included melt in your mouth pot roast which was the perfect touch. My husband and me wished we each got our own. I highly recommend you get this! I followed that up with the pot roast melt which was a tad over cooked, not quite as melt in your mouth but still yummy! Then we hit up the curling. We had a really good time, the set up was nice and he atmosphere fun! Unfortunately it was cold and snowy so with no walls the conditions were pretty bad and it was hard for many of our party who were first timers to get it all the way down the ice. But we were assured it's not always that hard, will try again! read more

I went here for the bloody mary festival, it was my first visit. This review is for the space only as food of sorts and beverage was provided. Parking was ample and it's a pretty decent area to hold an event. The main floor is the track so now I need to get there for some derby action. I saw a concession area, a restaurant area, ice rink, uper level, even a stage area. Pretty cool the way things were set up for this event. I need to get back and check it out and see it used for its intended purpose. read more

What a great spot this turned out to be! I was in from out of town and wasn't sure about what this would turn out to be. The venue is very cool with great views of the skyline and the river surrounded by repurposed industrial buildings. I would love to come back when I have more time and try out some of the activities like Rick climbing or zip line. The food was good and I really enjoyed the tater tot poutine. read more

Buffalo River Works - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Buffalo, New York

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I don't know if this is Covid related, but I just had the worst experience of my life at this place. We were seated telling us we needed to leave within an hour and a half because they had a reservation. After taking our initial round of drinks it's took at least 35 mins to get a single drink and even try to place a food order. Miraculously the next table that was coming in no longer mattered, and we waited over 2.5 hours to get food from the time we ordered drinks. Normally I love this place and it was a go to spot for me over the years, but I think any one can attest a 3 hour time to get food from the time you sit down is ridiculous. read more

Was very pleased!! Went with a large group of ladies. We all had dinner and drinks Food was great, took brewery tour, very cool! Drinks were pricey but I thought it was a nice trip. Lots to see, awesome ! Highly recommend. read more

My husband, son, and I went for the ziplining, rope course, rock climbing, and kayaking. Their website had a special for $69 for all these events on a weekday, but when I called to make a reservation, the manager told me they're not honoring that special anymore, even though it's still on the website and why I gave it 3, not 4 stars. That really annoyed me, but with four ziplines (five, if you include the one on the rope course), we decided to go. It's more expensive on the weekend for the zipline by $10 ($35/$45). The employees were all nice and helpful. The ziplines were fun, though not very fast, long, or scenic. Maybe ziplines aren't very fast, as this was our first time doing it. It was still fun as we zipped from the highest line down to the fourth and lowest one. The third line was the fastest and the one we all enjoyed the best. For the price, you can't beat RiverWorks for ziplining prices, even with the extra $10 for the weekend. I looked up many sites and this was the best value and the most ziplines offered. The rock wall had different levels of difficulty and the people running it let us go a few times, though we only bought the one time climb for $7. They were helpful telling my son where he should move to climb higher. On his second try, he got to ring the bell. Hubs did the medium and hardest rock walls and got to the top of both, but he's a crazy good climber. The rope course, I wasn't sure if I'd like, but I gave it a try. There are a LOT of obstacles crammed into the space. More than you realize until you get up there. There are two levels, the higher being more difficult. Only one obstacle was really difficult, that I wasn't sure I'd make it across, but the feeling of the wood/metal rocking underneath you was fun and freaky. When you get to the end, you zipline to the second level and the rope course ends. We didn't go kayaking since it was too expensive for all events without the special. We also didn't buy anything to eat or drink. While it's an old, rusted, busted-looking factory from the outside, it was cool-looking when you looked around, including a garden made from the bottoms of six silos and a steel buffalo that looked like it was made from the metal from the original building. We plan on doing it again in the future. Maybe next time they'll honor the specials their website is advertising on the Internet and I'll change my stars. read more