Cajun gumbo was great. Was spicy but not over the top. Lobster bisque was to die for. Very good service, pleasant staff and beautiful view of the Licking River. I will be back. read more

The food is great here. Make a reservation on the weekends. The sampler platter is really good if you can't decide what to get.

This place is awesome! We only go on special occasions because it's so pricey but when I go I get the sampler with the chicken, steak, and shrimp. It also comes with red beans and rice and gumbo. Make sure to get the alligator appetizer, it's the best thing on the menu! read more

Literally the best steak tips I've ever had in my life. The service was spectacular! What a great little tucked away place!

I went with a friend to have dinner on a Thursday. I sat at the bar and had their hurricane. I didn't think rum and fruit juices would go together but to my surprise it was delicious! I had a side salad to start with and it looks exactly like what I saw in the website. I was checked on often and everyone had a smile! My dinner was the gumbo. For me it had a nice flavor. The sausage in it was delicious. It was a little to spice for me. I asked for water which came immediately and my cup always stayed full. My friend ordered the shrimp scampi. She loved it! I ordered the alligator to go for my son who really wanted to try it. He loved it because it taste like chicken. The reasons I give it a 5 are because when they thought I didn't like the gumbo they truly wanted to fix me something. It was just spice. Everyone was pleasant. The bathrooms were clean. The atmosphere was personal. My friend and I had a good time!!! read more

Miss the old building, which was what made it so cool going there as a kid but let's be honest, that place was scary. New building is nice with a great patio area overlooking the licking river. Actually it might be my favorite patio space in the city. Still same great menu that takes me back. If you are in wilder you gotta check these guys out read more

Best chicken I ever had. Fried oysters were delicious. Sit on the deck. The view of the river is gorgeous!

Great place! We took a short trip to Newport on a whim and wanted some seafood. This place did not disappoint! The alligator was delicious. My husband had the sampler and I had the gumbo. Both were plentiful with food and taste. Kids weren't left out- they had chicken fingers and a sundae for dessert. Our waiter was great, kids loved joking with him. I'm glad we went earlier as opposed to later with the kids. It was starting to get busier and more lively as we left. It's nothing special from the outside, but inside and food wise it's great! read more

Good food, cozy (sometimes loud) atmosphere, just a little over priced to be honest. And wish there was more to the menu.

Quaint place... food was really good! I haven't had and Etouffee so delicious since New Orlean's Mardi Gras years ago. The Sampler and crab cakes were also a delight! It was worth the drive! read more

This place has some of the best Cajun food around. Got the combination plate and alligator for appetizer. Lots and lots of flavor. Did not have reservations but got lucky and got a table in the scenic area next to the balcony. Service was friendly and server was knowledgeable on all counts. read more

Having served in the Air Force At Kessler AFB in Biloxi, MS I am used to good Cajun Food and that is what we found at Knotty Pine On The Bayou. My wife doesn't like spicy food and the have enough non-Cajun for the timid so those of us that enjoy flavor can have it. :). Since this was our first visit to Knotty Pine On The Bayou I decided to go with the Cajun Sampler to try a variety of their products, gumbo, red beans and rice, steak tips, Cajun chicken, & saluted shrimp. It was enough food for two people. The environment was clean and inviting with friendly, knowledgeable staff. All in all this was a very good experience and we will be back. read more

In our backyard and it's so, so good. I particularly love the red beans and rice here as well as the sidewinder fries. Love Knotty Pine!

Was staying in Wilder, KY for a conference and the hotel recommend it. The service was outstanding and our server was very nice. We had the peel and eat shrimp as an appetizer and they were delicious. I had the special for the night which was Sea Bass (cooked in a lemon garlic sauté) and it came with a side salad, red potatoes with a cajan seasoning and amazing home cooked green beans. My guest had the Cajan combo which came with shrimp, chicken and steak. It was served with gumbo and red beans and rice. All the sides were amazing! Everything was seasoned perfectly. If I am ever back in the area I would defiantly go back. It was a GREAT meal! read more

Went with a large group, who were delightful. The waiter was engaging. Had the large étouffée. Flavor was good. However, had to hunt in the bowl of soup for the little salad shrimp and there was no crab in it. Another of our group asked for the sausage that was supposed to be in her dish and the waiter brought it out to her in a separate bowl. Was accommodating to the group, but cant recommend the food due to the price and skimping on ingredients ( I make better at home). read more

We can go to any restaurant in greater Cincinnati, but will always return to Knotty Pine. They serve traditional cajun/creole food as good as you will find any where in NOLA with large portions at a reasonable price. Atmosphere is rustic, but not shabby. You just can't beat it or find food like this anywhere elsewhere in greater Cincinnati. Love it! There is a reason that this place is always busy, even during the week. Make reservations when possible and don't forget to order the gator! read more

Love this place! Amazing food and service! Also amazing view overlooking the river with KY hills. The food always taste fresh. I leave here full every time we visit. read more

Made reservations for a high top table (due to physical condition). Arrived on time - nope, no high top. Manager/owner then came over and said "We can't save high tops - have to reserve them". Told her we did - walks away - plenty of tables to sit at - huge disappointment both in the treatment and reservation joke. read more

I was visiting from out of town from the FL Panhandle where we have quite a few transplanted cajuns. That being said I was pleasantly surprised by the gumbo. It had good heat but wasn't overspiced. Key lime pie for dessert should have been skipped. I have had much better from a grocery store. read more

My husband and I had New Year's Eve dinner at Knotty Pine and, as always, the food was delicious. I had the Sea Bass and potatoes and couldn't have been more pleased. I only gave the restaurant 4 stars because there were 4-5 children seated at the bar, so we weren't able to enjoy a drink before dinner. I am not sure, but I think it might be illegal in Kentucky for children to sit at a bar??? Regardless, I find it tacky when parents think that is appropriate. read more

Red beans and rice are really good! Also their unique salad dressing mustard onion brightens up a salad for a person not particularly interested in eating greens. However, if greens is something you like the collard greens are an option not found everywhere. We took our our-of-town visitors from Arizona who enjoyed the neighborhood atmosphere and the river view. Will be retuning for the extraordinary opera cream cake! read more

First of all food was amazing, but the woman bartenders were so unpleasant. No smiles and you could hear them talk rudely about their customers.They also brought our food out in a timely manner and like I said food was amazing.We all have bad days or nights at our jobs but please don't take it out on the customers. read more

Went to dinner with family March 3. Had a Groupon that had expiration date of March 3. Management said it had expired at midnight the day before. The manager ( Courtney) was extremely rude and should be fired - told me I had 2 months to use the Groupon and and I should not have waited so long - wth. I will never be back and will make sure I let everyone I know be aware of the situation. read more

If you want to relax on a deck, eat delicious gumbo with a glass of wine or a cold beer while Dixieland music plays in the background, this is your kind of place. Love the gumbo, crab cakes and shrimp! And I never come without ordering their delicious bleu cheese on my salad... it's worth the extra couple bucks! read more

Fabulous meal I never expected along with talented bartenders serving great variety of bourbon well mixed. New Orleans cuisine with seafood specials along with excellent variety of other entrees is their tour de force. This is an exciting restaurant one should try! Only slight negative was slow service but we were there on Mother's Day so the crowd of patrons will test any place. read more

Food is delicous. Beer selection ok. Prices Good, Service Fair. Atmosphere is good. Will definately return.

Had a fantastic first time experience here!! Staff was so friendly and accommodating, gumbo was fantastic!! It's a new favorite for me!

I am a New Orleans regular. Took a group of 10-15 on a busy Saturday night. Normally a recipe for disaster in most restaurants. Not here. Service A+, Servers A+, Food incredible from Steak to Gator.....Packed house, and we were handled better than I could have imagined. I am not big on posting reviews but....In this case...If you have not been there...Go there....Soon. read more

Last week I would have given this restaraunt 5 stars. Today I'm giving three because of how inconsistent and rude the staff has been. I have called 4 times in the past week to get a carryout order and was told every time, that they are too busy to do carryout orders. What restaraunt is too busy to do a carry out order? Especially when every other restaraunt in the tristate area is accepting them. Its certainly not because they are busy. Is the staff incompetent? I would say so, considering how rude the hostess was when I called each time, but especially tonight. She acted as if she shouldn't be bothered with my phone call. She was argumentative and difficult. Someone who clearly doesn't need to work with customers. The food here is great and we are long time customers, I just wish that they were more consistent and accepted carry out orders as they have before. read more

Showed up slightly early waiting on friends and glad I did because you will need a reservation. However, Jessica the hostess was absolutely amazing in accommodating my party once they got here. The food was of course amazing!!! But the service was above par! Thank You Jessica! read more

I'd been to the Knotty Pine on a couple occasions with groups and was seeking something different for my boyfriend's 40th birthday. He's a seafood lover and an excellent cook, so it's hard to find a unique restaurant serving up fresh seafood and flavor in this neck of the woods. (SWO/NKY) Knotty Pine exceeded our expectations. I made a reservation for 22 people and the staff (Owner Kathy & GM Zach) allowed me to bring in balloons earlier in the day so they could have everything set up when we arrived. In addition, they even added fresh flowers to all of our tables for a really nice touch. They made everything so easy! Our server, Kathy, was excellent. She was extremely attentive and with such a large group, I was impressed with how quickly the food arrived and in sequence with appetizer - salad - entrée. Although the entire party was full of seafood lovers, I am not, but I was really happy with my ribeye steak. It was a nice thick cut of meat and seasoned well. I chose to have it blackened and ordered it medium, both perfect and I received a flavorful, juicy, steak. The gumbo was a huge hit! Both the traditional and seafood gumbo are a staple, although we were not fond of the red beans & rice (some ordered a larger portion as an entrée). They weren't what we expected from a creole establishment. Nonetheless, salads, collard greens, dessert and especially the service was exquisite. I'm grateful to the staff for making this a memorable event and would definitely return and suggest this establishment to other groups, as it's a fun, inviting atmosphere. read more

I recently visited their after finding a deal on groupon for essentially half off. I took my mother who let me try some of her food. The prices weren't too bad, service was great, but the food failed to satisfy our rather high expectations after hearing countless recommendations that Knotty Pine offered the best creole food in the Tristate. We started with the crab cakes, which were a mixed bag. The ratio of crab to breading definitely was more than satisfactory. However, the seasoning and way they were fried were quite vanilla. Nothing particularly special or noteworthy stood out about them in comparison to places like Bonefish, Pappadeaux, or McCormick and Schmick's. I ordered crawfish etouffee, and while quite flavorful and fairly delicious it didn't satisfy what I was expecting out of an etouffee. The flavor profile and consistently were exactly what you'd expect out of a gumbo. It didn't have the buttery aftertaste nor thick consistency that you'd expect from a traditional etouffee. My mother's friend shrimp were great, but there are countless places around the city that offer great fried shrimp and very few that offer great creole food and our visit to Knotty Pine did not solidify them as the local creole mecca that we had hoped. We both highly preferred the offerings of the creole chain Pappadeaux, though the prices at Knotty were a bit more reasonable. read more

service here was outstanding! brought the family on a friday night (wifey, 5 year old, 3 month old). everyone on staff stopped by the table, checked our food, our experience, drinks stayed full and replaced (wifey's wine). the food was very good. however, i cannot speak highly enough about the service. this is worth the trip, but damn! that was a great meal also! read more

My family took my mom for a dinner out on Grandparent's Day. It was a spur of the moment decision on a Sunday evening about two weeks ago. The weather was nice, but there were NO tables outside on the HUGE deck which overlooks what you can see of the river below. Not just no tables available, but no tables at all. We were seated after a short wait and struggled to hear each other over the volume of chatter in the restaurant. It was really loud. There were several tables occupied, and I'd heard good things, so I was looking forward to some good cajun food. The menu looked promising and the specials sounded good. The high prices indicated the food would be top notch. Not so much. I got a pan seared fish special. The breading was mushy and the flavor of the fish was just average. The red potatoes that came with my entree were the best part of the plate. My garden side salad was drowning in ranch dressing. My husband's red beans and rice were pretty good, not great. My mom's gumbo was so spicy she couldn't finish it. Our waiter was visibly sweating - not appetizing and the service was S-L-O-W. He tried to make up for it by treating us to dessert. My husband opted for the Opera Cream Cake, but it tasted totally store-bought. Definitely would not have paid for that dessert in a restaurant. All in all, very disappointed since I'd heard good things about this place, but won't be going back. read more

Over rated. I tried this place twice and was not impressed either time. Maybe my expectations were too high. The food was okay and over priced. The room is open and very loud. We could hardly have a conversation with out yelling at each other. I tried a cocktail which noted it was made with fresh juices. It tasted like Hawaiian punch. Not impressed. read more

The only bonus was the atmosphere. The restaurant had an authentic country feel. The waitress was very good, but the food took a while to arrive though the restaurant was not busy. The food was not good and quite over priced. Their red beans and rice was as far from Cajun as you can get. It looked like a can of kidney beans mixed with salsa and a small amount of rice. What a disappointment. read more

If you love good Cajun food .... Then this is the place. The scallops are incredibly good !!!

Very pleased with our experience here. We had dinner here this evening with our son and his girlfriend. It was a Saturday evening, we had six thirty reservations. The place was full but we were on time and they sat us immediately. The service was very good. The staff was very attentive but not to much. Drinks came quickly and appetizers were soon to follow. We all four had different entrees and we were all very pleased. The food was all prepared very well and tasted great. We shared several desserts and we will for sure be going back! read more

Really not a fan... did not live up to its hype.. the food is okay but not great... and at the price they charges it should have been pretty darn good and not just okay. We sat out on the balcony which was great. However, the inside was VERY noisy to the point of being uncomfortable. read more

Went on Sunday evening with a group of 10 at 5 p.m. We sat at the bar for a couple of drinks and then were seated at our table. Our waiter Mike was fantastic. All the food came out timely, hot and correct. Our party had a variety of foods from seafood to steaks. No complaints from anyone in our party. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to my friends. read more