Everything other than two things was great. However, these two things were a big deal... 1. It was really cold. I get it that it is Wisconsin and it is cold but I know from my profession that it doesn't matter what temperature it is--if you are paying attention you can make the temperature right for your customers. We asked for the heat to be turned up and it wasn't. I wore my coat the whole time. A manager was walking around and should have noticed that I was wearing my coat and two of the hosts were even wearing coats. This is a clear sign that the temperature needs to be adjusted at all costs. 2. The bathroom had an overpowering smell of soap or perfume or something that made the entire restaurant smell like a urinal cake. It was very distracting and if it weren't for the Vikings game I would have left immediately. read more

This is the Hudson version of the Freight House. Nothing great, nothing offensive, nice patio for summer drinking.

Last night we went to dinner, and it was wonderful. We started with the green beans and brussel sprouts, and both were tasty. The complimentary focaccia with rosemary is so yummy. It comes out warm, and is so good! I had the salmon salad, it was incredible. It had this great vinaigrette dressing, tomatoes, and asparagus. My sister had the walleye sandwich and vinegar fries. She said both were awesome. My two friends ate the chicken sandwich, and the Greek pasta; both enjoyed their meals. Our server, Kirsten, was the best! We never waited for a refill, and she was attentive without being annoying. Lastly, the atmosphere is cool with a cozy four sided fireplace in the center of the restaurant. Highly recommend!!! read more

Worst, over priced experience of my life. An important evening for us, spoiled by a loud, raucous female cutomer, annoying everyone with her sick laughter. We complained, but management did NOTHING. Guess her $$$ is more valuable to them than the rest od the customers. Several we know who were there agree - we're finding better dining elsewhere. read more

Good but very very over priced for the little ypu get and its ok food not the greatest it could be better....

This review is for service alone. Went in on a beautiful summer day wanting to find somewhere with a great patio. Pier 500 definitely has that, however you are not allowed to enjoy the main patio overlooking the river during happy hour. Instead, you are relegated to a section of the patio overlooking the parking lot. Deciding to forego happy hour to enjoy the view, our experience only went down from there. When our server realized we were only there for a drink to enjoy the weather and not for dinner, she decided to ignore our table for a majority of our time there. Some of our neighboring tables were populated by the baby boomer crowd enjoying full dinner and our server had no issue checking back with those tables many times. After just one drink, we decided to get out of there. Now the issue became corralling our server for the check. Once we got her attention, she basically threw it at us before moving on. With a career in hospitality, I am usually pretty forgiving for service issues, but this one went beyond horrible. Needless to say, I will never be returning! read more

Food was great ! The service was great! Only thing I found distasteful was one of the younger hostess's was wearing an insanely short dress and I could see her butt when she bent over to clean tables . read more

Got there at 7 p.m. Waited 15 minutes for outdoor table. Got seated and waited 20 minutes for server to bring a menu. Waited 30+ minutes and finally another server finally came to take our order for app & entrees. Waited 30+ minutes and the server brought us each a slice of bread. Waited 20 more minutes and saw people who were seated only 20 minutes earlier getting their food, what the hec It was now 9 p.m. - 2 hours later - and they had brought us no food aside from a slice of bread, so we left. Walked up to San Pedro Cafe (which is where we wanted to eat but didn't want to wait hour and 40 minutes for a table) and sat at the bar. The owner of Pier 500 was sitting 10 feet away from us eating at San Pedros. Enough said right there. Anyways we enjoyed the food at San Pedro's and won't ever go back to Pier 500 for dinner. read more

Ordered a burger which came with caramelized onions on it.Grabbed an onion to try and they were cold. Asked waitress if they could heat the onions. We were seated right by the kitchen and I watched the cook grab the onions off my burger with his hand, throw them on grill for a minute and put back on my burger. I have no idea how clean his hands were. I scrapped the onion off. Sorry but it grossed me out. I told waitress and manage what I had seen. I won't be returning! read more

This was a fun place I wasn't expecting to find in Hudson. I think this side of the river has been undergoing a change to attract an upscale crowd. The place was really nice inside and we decided to have dinner outside. The walleye was great and I was actually impressed with the presentation and flavors in the sandwiches. I can see this place as a nice place to hang out for drinks at night and a great place for lunch outside in the heat! read more

This restaurant has amazing food, great atmosphere and awesome wait staff! I got the Thai chicken flatbread, mediteranean pasta and my boyfriend and I shared the chocolate fondue-- everything was presented well and very flavorful. The view is also beautiful and I would highly recommend! read more

I am being a bit more stingy with my 5 stars, this place probably deserves it. I had a great meal here, a couple drinks outside (it was cold, a bit rainy, and windy so we ate inside but, they have an absolutely gorgeous patio. They had great iced tea, I had the Ahi Tuna Appetizer, great stuff followed by a Philly Sandwich, they had a lunch fish taco that looked pretty good as well.... Great service, about twice as expensive as a subway lunch, great location (other than the Hudson part but, right across the street from the River), fantastic patio and interior and good service, good food. read more

Went for lunch during a trip to see the fall colors. Service was quick and friendly. This must be a local favorite. This place was packed! The lobster bisque was good but cold. Cocktails were okay. If I am in the area in the future I might give it another try but would not make a special trip read more

So impressed with this place! After our 4th visit I asked to speak to a manager to share some positive feedback regarding how much my our family enjoys the food and service here. I have 3 and 5 year old daughters who are gluten and dairy intolerant. My wife and girls order and share the rotisserie chicken which is locally raised and antibiotic free, cooked over burning logs which you can watch cook in the restaurant. I flip flop between the Prime Rib and their ahi tuna or grilled salmon healthy bowls. The cool thing about this place is they have a menu that will take care of healthy workout gym snobs AND Cave man meat eating barbarians. And it's all delicious! Hats off to Katie and the rest of the management team and staff members who are delivering great service and some seriously good eats!! read more

Went to Pier 500 on a Sunday afternoon with friends. Great food and location is beautiful, situated on river. Ate out on the deck on a perfect sunny day. Service could have been a bit more attentive, i.e. shouldn't have to keep asking for coffee refills and seconds on the Sunday brunch. Overall I'd recommend it for the outstanding food. read more

Best cheese curds around (the bar ones), and a chicken wild rice soup that I get every time. Never had a bad meal there

We went here to celebrate my husband's birthday-and it was good. We ate on the patio, which was a little chilly and windy. They might want to invest in those little heaters, because it gets a little cool on the water. We sat in the bar for a little while, and then had a nice dinner. They brought an ice cream sundae out for Tim, which I thought was nice-and thank God, they don't sing to you! read more

Favorite place in Hudson ... great brunch and pm happy hour and alfresco dining. Get a table on the riverside on the deck. Great cheese curds, nachos, salads.... Good value friendly service easy parking well organized. Stop! Come in... read more

Great place. Good beer selection and the burgers were awesome. The location of the patio facing the St. Croix River can't be beat on a relaxed fall evening. Easy to see why it is so highly regarded. read more

Went to Pier 500 Sept 10 with the family-8 people and was seated on the patio. Was there to celebrate our daughter's big 50. Arrived around 3:45 pm and was seated. Son ordered the entrée- pork chops which arrived way over cooked, very dry, thickness about 1/2 inch thick, myself and daughter-in-law ordered parmesan cheese coated walleye, and the cheese was thicker than the filet of fish, wife ordered the health salad and it came with 3 shrimp, just a little larger than popcorn shrimp, daughter and granddaughter ordered prime rib and it came with a goodly amount of fat. Son-in-law and I ordered coffee and it arrived barely room temp. Service was so-so and had to request the silver ware. For a five hundred dollar bill, one would expect more. Have been there over the years and have seen the food and service go down hill. Only thing that was nice was the view, but it was not worth five hundred dollars. If I could give it a minus, I would read more

Not worth the price. Don't understand people's obsession with this place. Food is average at best. Tap selection is boring. So they have a patio, big deal. Service was just alright, bartender didn't know very much about the menu. read more

You will never have a better brunch!!! Best ever French Toast with strawberries and their "secret recipe" maple syrup!! The hash browns are to die for too!! Served up with scrambled eggs, nice big juicy sausages and just cooked right bacon!! All you can eat so we are all stuffed like a turkey!! A Mimosa and a Bloody Mary rounded out our perfect Valentine's Day morning!! read more

My favorite restaurant. Love the healthy bowls when I'm watching my calories. Love the brie cheese curds when I'm not.

We waited about 35 mins for a table outside which was 15 mins shorter then what we were told. So that was nice. Food was delicious. Walleye bites were really good. Service was good. The atmospheres was nice. The patio was very nice. Recommend for a nice night out. read more

Hit this place up the other night on the way back from the 17th Annual Running of the Llamas in Hammond, WI. If you're ever in the MSP/Hudson/River Falls/Hammond loop area, definitely check out the llamas event. That thing is oddly amazing and perfect, especially to see a bunch of people in Greg Jennings jerseys watching Andean animals run down a street in a small Upper Midwest Town. Now, as for Pier 500 ... it's good. It's not amazing. Stone, which I think opened up kinda recently down the street, is better (better food/better beer selection). I went to Pier 500 around 4:30pm on a Saturday. It has a really nice view of the St. Croix, but ... the crowd is very baby-boomer-ish, and some of the food is a little overpriced. They have good smoked gouda nachos, but they're $12. Even in MSP proper, you could get that app for about $7-$10. Their tap list is alright but not amazing; probably the best thing they have is Spotted Cow. They were pretty flexible with sports on the outside TV; they have a small bar outside among a primarily-table area (people eating food), and the small bar has about three TVs. The bartenders working outside were totally flexible to put on any game, as opposed to just MN/WI/ND area athletic events. Someone requested an Oregon game, and it was flipped right on. I liked that; you don't always see that at small town bars. read more

We had a great meal with attentive service. The peanut butter bacon burger, bloody Mary's, lobster grilled cheese and oh, the housemade pickles. Wow. Talk about yum. Def will be back read more

Great patio and bar are. Extensive food options. Healthy choices available along with indulgences! Great happy hours. Service every once in awhile short or not helpful. read more

Just had a birthday lunch there for a very special person. Food and service was outstanding! Appetizers were the best I've ever had! Choices were many and hard to just pick one. Wild rice soup...excellent! Topped off with a decadent chocolate cake with ice cream and topping. Can't wait to go there again!! Reasonable and worth every penny! read more

Good food, great atmosphere on the river but a little overpriced. Brie cheese curds are unique and delicious tho!

We drive through Hudson a lot on our travels to visit family and this was the first time we stopped for lunch on a gorgeous Sunday this July. We chose Pier 500 because of the excellent reviews. There was an event happening in town making it impossible to find a close parking space. Meters in town run by app, not coins, which is upsetting. We parked 4 blocks away where we found the first spot available (metered or un-metered) and enjoyed the weather on our walk. The restaurant is situated close to the river, but a park and a street are in between you and the water. Still the best views in town, but the street can be loud, especially when motorcycles go through revving their engines. We were seated quickly and our server was sweet. Their Sunday brunch menu is heavy on the breakfast items and has limited lunch items. The girl who brought our food (a different girl from our server) nearly dumped my plate in my lap, tilting the plate enough that I had to catch my sandwich and fries with both hands as she set it down. It was a simple mistake, but not 1 apology. My husband's burger was ordered medium and came well done. Common mistake in average restaurant. My Monterrey Chicken Sandwich was very good. And at the suggestion of our server, we ordered their Salt & Vinegar Fries. Neither of our plates came with the flavored fries. Not a hint of Salt or Vinegar. We asked our server for what we ordered and she brought us a plate of regular fries again. Again, not one apology for the mix-up. Either their Salt & Vinegar fries have no flavor whatsoever, or we were given regular fries twice. Very disappointing. Three stars for the ambiance only because it really does have the best views in town! read more

My wife and I always love the food and atmosphere when we go to Pier 500. One of my favorites is the walleye. I am a good cook, so I can be pretty picky when it comes to paying for food at a restaurant...I don't mind paying for it here. We have had some questionable service at times, but overall the waitresses do a wonderful job. The menu changes enough to keep it interesting and the bar has a decent selection of tap beers. read more

Going downhill. 20 minutes at table before we even got water. Pork chops were dry. My wife's favorite restaurant is no longer at the top of the list. read more

Tonight was our 3rd time at Pier 500 and have to say it was not like it was in the past. Our waiter was not friendly. Didn't tell us his name, only came to check on us one time, after we told another waiter we needed more drinks. It took us an hour to get our food. We had our kids with us. They each ordered off the kids menu but my daughter wanted a side of asparagus so with her $4 kids meal she got a side of asparagus for $7 (yes, SEVEN). Almost double the cost of her meal! We'll be trying somewhere else next time we go to Hudson. read more

Good food and service but absolutely pathetic way to nickel and dime customers. They had listed soup as a side with the lunch/dinner entries but we were blind-sided by the check when they charged additional $$$ for the soup as a side. It was not disclosed anywhere in the menu, nor was it mentioned by the waitress. Terrible business practice. read more

We sat on the patio for Sunday brunch. My wife had the cheese burger which was delicious! I had the walleye sandwich with coleslaw. The walleye was great and the coleslaw was delicious. The service was top notch as well. read more

The food is great here! I had the Paschetta wrapped chicken and my brother had their chicken meatball pasta dish. Two amazing dishes...I would definitely visit again! read more

The views and the food are incredible. We have enjoyed lunch and dinner on their deck many times as well as special occasion dinners inside. Highly recommend their steaks and specials. It is reasonably priced for the Twin Cities as well. We're headed back in a couple of weeks to take some out of town guests. read more

Two words "Sunday Brunch". Simply delicious. I have been here many times for brunch and have never been let down. Try the patio seating over looking the St. Croix. read more

The food overall was great. Tried this place for the first time today and was disappointed in the customer service I received. My group consisted of 3 adults and 3 child (two 5 year olds and a 1 year old). We were seat very quickly, however, the location they had assigned for us was in a poor location with no shades with the sun shining bright. After sitting about 5 min at this table, my group soon realized we would not be able to continue to with the sitting arrangement. We had noticed multiple tables with openings and proceeded to ask the host for a new seating arrangement. To my disappointment, they had made excuses such as our party being too big to fit the other table which consisted for only 5 sitting arrangement. I had informed them it would not be an issue for us, since my 1 year would not need a chair and would either be seated in her stroller or on my lap. They again refused to move us and told us we could either sit inside or stay where we were to accommodate our group. There was plenty of room outside with no guest waiting. It was a beautiful day outside and the main reason we had chose this restaurant was because of the balcony seating arrangement. I again stressed that we had kids and would appreciate a table in the shade for comfort dining. We were again told no and given very poor apologies from both the hosts who didn't seem to care about the comfort of their guest. After sitting down at the table, the waiter had approached us and asked if we needed anything. We voiced our discomfort with the seating arrangement and again asked to be moved. Without hesitation, he had wiped down a table next to ours and had us in a 5 seating table inside of the shade. I wish I would have caught some names so that I may voice my disappointment to management for proper training with the employees who had refused to accommodate our simple request and applaud the waiter who was putting the customer first. Due to that action alone, we left him a good amount of tip. read more

The Food is amazing! The service is young and inexperienced! There is always a ton of staff on hand but they still are not up to par in the service aspect. 4 stars is based on their food alone read more