Usually has live music, lots of fun and good energy. Drinks are priced well, the bucket options are very fun. Nice place to go out for some laughs and dancing. read more

I'll have to update my review after having food there, but for now this is just based on the bar. We stopped in the Saturday night before Halloween, so the place was hopping and decorated in Halloween decor. Love, love, love the French Quarter feel of the place! We grabbed a table upstairs and went to the bar for drinks. They have a pretty good selection of beer. The piano players were fun and entertaining. We'll definitely be back. read more

If you're looking for fresh seafood with authentic Cajun flair, you've come to the WRONG place! My coworkers and I found this place on Yelp and thought we'd give it a try. After all, it's just up the Mississippi from Cajun country. I decided to order a dozen raw oysters and the crawfish etouffee. The oysters were a big mistake. Seriously...what was I thinking? This is a landlocked state. It shouldn't have surprised me that they weren't fresh (they had a very fishy smell...fresh oysters should just smell salty like the ocean, and nothing more) and weren't shucked correctly (they should slide freely from the shell...instead I had to scrape them off with a fork, which led to some less than savory butchering of said oysters). I'm surprised I didn't get sick, honestly. Crawfish etouffee is usually very flavorful, spicy, and rich. It's a tomato-onion-pepper-based stew (usually with crawfish or shrimp) served over rice. This was stew-esque, for sure, but it lacked flavor. It just tasted like tomato sauce. And the crawfish itself was really tough. And if I'm being picky, and I am, it was served with a small portion of rice mixed in...really just not enough. I couldn't finish it because it just didn't taste good. If you're just looking for a good beer selection (maybe a couple you've never heard of before), then this is your place. But eat before you get there...or just snack on appetizers. Seriously...terrible food. Chez Marilyn across the street is head and shoulders above Ragin Cajun...go there instead! read more

Ragin Cajun Piano Bar - Crawfish etouffee. By far the worst I've ever had anywhere. - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Alton, Illinois

Ate here for the first time on a Friday night. The service was good. They were short behind the bar so our waitress was busy helping. She did a good job. The menu was small. The food was good. We had stuffed mushrooms they were amazing. The apatizer took awhile to come out. The wife had the Etouffee. Was really good. I had the Voodoo Chicken sandwich. It had good flavor but could used a little more heat. The music started at 8 was very entertaining. What keeps this from being a 5 star is the decor. Needs to be updated. Overall a great experience. I would recommend this place to a anyone read more

Ragin Cajun Piano Bar - a plate of food - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Alton, Illinois

What a fun night out!!! I have never been to a piano bar, let alone dueling pianos! These guys don't know everything, but they can sure make it funny when they make stuff up! We did not get food, but drinks were not too high and the bartender was fast. The ambiance was AWESOME but I do love me some Mardi Gras, this is a good place to cure my itch during the off season. read more

The absolute worst service of my entire life. We had a group of 4 at dinner rush on a Friday night and the waitress had one other table. She seemed new or inexperienced and made some mistakes but that was all ok. Then we went to pay the bill. I had a $50 gift certificate that was to be used on $100 or more purchase which I showed the waitress prior to ordering. The bill was brought and the only problem on it was a whiskey for $5 and "rocks" for $1. We asked about why there was a charge for ice and was told they put a little more whiskey in it and that is how they make them. That was ridiculous and the manager explained it all in a rude tone. They ended up taking the $1 off and the $50 gift certificate but told me she was just being nice by taking the $50 off. Then a 20% gratuity was added to the full price of the meal. That is when the manager started yelling at us and telling us she would not take that off. I usually tip 20% but there is no where on the menu that says party of 4 has a 20% gratuity added to the bill. The manager was yelling and rude the whole time and refused to take it off. We ended up paying it and leaving and will NEVER go back. I would not recommend this place to anyone any longer. This was a great place at one time, but that time has passed and the management should not be rude or yell at their customers. I guess there is a reason why we were one of the only tables there for dinner rush on a Friday night. read more

Ragin Cajun Piano Bar - the receipt - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Alton, Illinois

My steak was flavorless, the chicken was dry, and the drinks were watered down. BUT THAT'S NOT ALL... Our party of four used a groupon that we received as a gift to discount our final bill at Rajin Cajun. The manager, Sandy, applied the discount but also added a $22 mandatory gratuity to our $50 bill. We questioned the manager, and she refused to remove the gratuity charge from the check. She was very rude to each member of our party who approached her (even calling names), inspiring our server to apologize for the matter and for her behavior. As a former waitress, I am always happy to give generous tips- especially when they are deserved. However, This matter aggravated my group of friends- and became the subject of conversation with others all evening. SO MANY REASONS TO STAY AWAY! read more

Stopped in this evening to have s beer and a glass of wine. We weren't hungry so we didn't eat. The atmosphere is interesting, rustic. Lots of wrought iron. Great music and very tasty beer and wine. The menu was eclectic for Alton, Illinois. There was a lobster bisque I want to try someday. There was lots of seafood on the menu. No shrimp and grits ;-(. Have to go back. It was a bar hopping kind of night. Will be back for sure. read more

So many things to say about this place, so many things that I love. 1. This place is HUGE. You have a large seating area out in the front then you walk into a dinning area to your left and a bar to your right. If you continue straight you will hit a water fountain and see steps going upstairs. Upstairs has it's own bar and you can look downstairs. 2. On the weekends they have dueling pianos. 3. They are always come up with new drink creations and have almost any beer or alcohol you could ever want to try. Trust me, being from St. Louis you cherish a place that has everything. 4. The food is Cajun but they have a variety of different items. I really love their sweet potato fries with honey mustard mmmm. And if I'm not mistaken I think they serve food until 4-5am. 5. They are open for every block party and are always full staffed with two bars inside and usually a beer stand outside. 6. There is always something going on there...bingo, themed parties, pool parties in the winter,etc. 7. I love the feel of the place. It's a combination of all used, unique, antique, and southern decor. They even have a piece of an airplane in there!! I'm always finding something else that I notice each time I visit. 8. The employees. I don't know what it is there but the employees love their job, everyone is so nice, the management is fantastic. And if you pay attention you will even see regulars helping out and clearing tables. It's like every ones a family, and that's hard to find. I love you Ragin Cajun. Best Piano bar in the St. Louis Area, and definitely what Alton needed. read more

Ragin Cajun Piano Bar - Patio - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Alton, Illinois

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I have given this place two stars because of the great atmosphere. This place has great potential, but they need to improve their customer service skills. VERY long story short, we waited 45 minutes after sitting down to be offered a drink, then another 30 minutes to order our food, a further 50 minutes to receive our food. Now, being July 4th and this restaurant is close to the water and the local fireworks display, they were overwhelmed with business, which they obviously did not expect. I can understand that they did not expect so many people and that they had only employed one wait staff for the entire restaurant, so she was overwhelmed with work. However, if she has apologized even once for the delay instead of becoming belligerent when we asked where our food was, this review would have been 4 stars. We understood that they were understaffed. It happens. It wasn't her fault, but her attitude was most definitely her fault. The food was tasty, but cold by the time it was served to us. The restaurant had an amazing atmosphere, with a pianist who was very entertaining. The wine is currently half price - great value. The staff - incredibly rude. read more

The top of our list was DEFINITELY the WHITE CHOCOLATE BREAD PUDDING, simply dropped from heaven! The ambiance is eclectic, comfortable and festive, including the booth set in a plane and the faux windows set against a brick wall and the mosaic in the women's bathroom. If the men's doesn't have something similar take a peek in the women's it's gorgeous. I can't wait to go back on a busy evening with live piano playing! They also have outdoor seating. read more

We made a late night stop here to meet up with some friends who live in Illinois. It's a big place with a fun atmosphere. There are two floors and a patio. The front of the bar is cool; there are different types of seats, including a set of airplane seats; there is a big chandelier over the pianos; there are drunk women on the second floor dancing to the songs and flashing the crowds (intentionally or unintentionally); there was the homeless guy without teeth walking around holding a beer and trying to strike up a conversation with his garbled talk; there is a pool table on the second floor that's sloped to one side and not really useable but it's there if you don't care about keeping scores. When I'm at a bar, the one thing that really irks me is the lack of seating. I don't want to stand around all night or dart for the first stool available. You won't have that problem here. It's got a ton of comfy seat options. I did not have food this time but next time I'll have to try some of these cajun favorites that others have raved about. Overall, this is a great spot to stop by and get a few drinks if you find yourself on the east side of the river. read more

I give Ragin Cajun two stars based solely on the piano portion. If I could rate the food and the piano playing separately, I would: Piano - 5; Food - 1. I'll admit, being mostly from New Orleans, I am probably a harder judge, but I chose to get something simple b/c I think it's fairly hard to screw up: Red Beans and Rice. As soon as the plate was set in front of me, I knew something was amiss. It looked like a tomato dish! Since when does authentic red beans and rice have tomatoes? I counted the pieces of sausage (half of a "slice" counted as one piece) and there were THREE total pieces in my beans and rice. Also, the term rice is used very loosely, I think there was only about three tablespoons of rice in the dish. My friend ordered french fries and they were so salty you could barely eat them. However, to be fair, I would come here for the piano playing and singing, and the drinks weren't bad. The atmosphere was great... so if you want to drink and sing and have fun, good choice. If you want to enjoy authentic Cajun food, bad bad choice. read more

An undiscovered gem in the heart of Alton IL. Great place to eat and drink and take in the atmosphere at the outdoor patio facing the main strip. Super nice! read more

Ragin Cajun Piano Bar - Hanging with family at the Ragin Cajun, sipping on a small bucket of hurricane! - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Alton, Illinois

We haven't been here for quite a while but I am very glad we tried it again. The crawfish etouffe was excellent. The entertainment was a little loud but very good. All in all a great evening read more

Good Riddance, Ragin Cajun. We had always enjoyed this restaurant, which is why we were so excited to eat there Saturday night for a friend's birthday. The piano player was fantastic, but even his fun humor wasn't enough after waiting two hours for our food. And having our waitress forget part of our order, failing to refill drinks, and snarling at us along the way. We had arrived at 7:30 and didn't receive food for two hours... Our group was starving and hypoglycemia was setting in (at least for myself!). When our tepid pasta arrived, we asked to have the salad removed from the order since we hadn't received it. The waitress then yelled at us, and we asked to speak with management. Management failed to resolve the salad issue, or even apologize. She just stood up for her waitress and argued with us. We requested to have the gratuity removed from our bill, and the request was denied. These people should not be working in food service, or with customers period. And there are too many great restaurants in Alton to waste your money on such a hateful, disrespectful establishment. We will take our hard earned money to the kind people of Chez Marilyn's, Tony's, Bossanova... Anywhere but Ragin Cajun. read more

Worst service I've ever had at a restaurant. They charged for ice in my Jim on the rocks and because I complained they charged 20% tip on our order. Will never visit this restaurant again. read more

I've been coming alot more to Rajin Cajin this past year, oh so much fun! The food is awesome, the service is some of the best in town, no joke! I love the piano performances but I kinda wish they would also get other entertainment too not just piano, but its still alot of fun. This place is super fun though to hang out in,.....and its HUGE! Upstairs, downstairs outside on the balconey...my favorite place in A town! read more

My husband and I stopped in to get a bite. We have eaten here before and although a limited menu it has been relatively consistent. We ordered Voodoo Wings and crabcakes. The wings were raw. We were informed the oil wasn't hot enough and they were making another batch for us which we declined. They assured us we wouldn't be charged for another order, which honestly, we were not going to pay for raw wings in the first place. We were never asked if we needed anything else including anothef drink. Will not go back. We are very disappointed. read more

Went to Alton looking to eat at Fast Eddies since it was an extremely nice day out and as expected it was beyond packed. So we went to 3rd st. Alton (downtown) expecting there to be outdoor seating everywhere and Ragin was the only one to have it set up. This place has super fun architecture, pictures, art, and is open with a balcony all the way around the top to a deck off the front. The menu was packed with delicious, New Orleans styles of food. Salmon sandwich, sweet potato fries, and voodoo wings were all beyond delicious and splitting it filled up two, so the portions are more than considerate. I'm honestly looking forward to trying out the menu. Also partaking in the nightlife that looks like it would be more than fun on the inside; considering we ate outside and had to walk inside to give ourselves a tour. Nice place, honestly awesome food, and fun employees. read more

My sister-in-law was having her bachelorette party here this Saturday evening so I was basically persona non grata - I only stopped in long enough to gulp down a Coca-Cola and lose my cellphone near the entrance. I am giving this place 5 starts based on the ambiance and the fizzy coke they serve but mostly because they found my cell-phone... thanks so much. The drinks looked pretty standard but the menu had stuff on it that I definitely want to try - I'll hit you guys up next time I'm in town - ok? Oh - and thanks for finding my cellphone!! read more

I first came out here with friends from work for a 4am breakfast alcohol soak up. Turned out to be an amazing spot right on 3rd st. They have a great selection of eats. And the Voodoo Wings are a must try!! They also have a small massage area, great before or after your meal. Chris and Aaron the owners and every employee there are extremely nice and really do appreciate your bussiness. Live full pianos and a cut out section of a plane with outdoor and bar seating in the heart of downtown. You just can't go wrong with this place. Whether your out for just food or out on the town a bit late and need a relaxer and some wonderful food this is a prime time spot to go! read more

Quite a while ago my girlfriend an I tried this place for dinner. The service was slow, but we just thought they were understaffed. A couple of months later we tried again, with three friends. Once again, they failed to impress. We asked a waitress about a table to be told there was a wait, then she walked away. The manager was seating others a few minutes later, and we had to ask him to be put on the list (waitress dissapeared). We went upstairs for drinks, and were seated at a table outside. Waitress showed up, took drink orders, then took 10 minutes and three trips to bring drinks. Upon finishing our drinks, another waitress approached, appologized for the delay, the other waitress is really busy, tells us specials, takes our order. We waited most of an hour for our food. The table next to us was also upset about the wait, asked to speak to a manager, and were treated very rudely. At this point we were ready to leave, as salads hasn't even come out yet. Both waitresses continued to walk past our empty drinks, and when we asked another one for more she said "just a minute", then took the orders for two tables near us and went inside. When our first waitress returns to take drink orders., one in our party ordered a "special" drink the other waitress expained, but this one had no idea. They tried to justify the terrible service by explaining there are only 3 waitresses working (the same 3 from the first visit). Food is good, and the one waitress is really on top of things, just overloaded. This appears to be an everyday occurrence, not a one time thing. Great for drinks and they have a good thing going, but terrible execution. Probably my last time having dinner there...but, we got a deal from Groupon and thought that $15 for $30 was worth one more shot. Third visit... Saturday night, about 10pm, there were 2-3 people at the small bar, and about 6-8 seated at 3 separate tables. We arrived just behind a group of 10. No live music. Apparently one server working. The sign says "Please wait to be seated" but we had to stop someone and ask, then were told we could just sit wherever. We had the same waitress as a previous visit, after talking with her, she's been there since the beginning and they always seem to be understaffed. She also said there is no live music on Saturdays because the guy has another gig on Saturdays. How does that work?! My salad was half wilted, some of the lettuce had broken down to slimy. I sent it back and told them I did not want another one. Again the entree was good. I had a draft beer (seasonal) and it came in a plastic cup and was warm. I want to like this place. I really want to, but they just can't get it right. They have a great location, theme, and the place has a great feel (outdoor tables, small bar up and downstairs, upstairs balcony, all in the entertainment area on 3rd St.), but they absolutely fail at the execution. read more

Ate lunch there today. It was delicious! I had the sweet bourbon glaze grilled chicken. It was very tasty, side of perfectly prepared green beans and wonderful sweet potato waffle fries. Everything was great! Fair prices too. Topped it off with a delicious white Chocolate bread pudding. Will definitely go again. Oh and btw as far as it being just up the river from Cajun country...yeah, only 700 miles. read more

Have been here 3 times since the restaurant opened and have received either poor service or poor quality food each time. Last night was the best, though. Came here with 3 friends (we are middle aged). People were in the bar but in the restaurant there was only one table of people eating, all other tables were empty. We waited by a sign that said "please wait to be seated" for several minutes and then took a table near the sign to wait for hostess or server. Server came by to wait on the one table of customers in the restaurant but never came over near our party. After 15 minutes I sought management in the bar. The manager acknowledged that the server was ignoring us on purpose because we had taken a seat at one of the 15 empty tables without permission. As he put it "we don't like rule breakers" - but said he would seek her out and speak with her. Witnessed him going to talk to her, she did look in our direction but then turned around and went upstairs, never to return - at least in the few minutes it took us to realize we really were going to be flatly ignored till we left. Apparently there are no second chances at this restaurant and management sides with servers who have unstated rules for customers. Really a shame as my group of friends and I really try to patronize our local businesses and have frequent out of town guests who love to go downtown Alton. Would have been so embarrassed to bring out of town guests to this restaurant only to be treated like preschoolers getting the silent treatment. read more

We stopped here after a drive to view the fall colors on the river road and were surprised to learn that the restaurant was out of their chicken wings which were the first item on their menu and were their specialty with three different levels of heat. In addition, the server was extremely slow and rude. The reason for two stars instead of one is that they serve a good Bloody Mary, although ours were served without the salted rims that we requested. The Cajun chips were also good but took about 30 minutes. read more

The Ragin Cajun is really a 4.5, I just couldn't justify giving that 5th star. The best thing about the Ragin Cajun is the late night dinner menu. You can order a full meal at 2am. Nothing beats a late night pony shoe, grinder, or giant plate of cajun alfredo pasta. They also have specialty house drinks like hard lemonade. read more

My wife and I had an early dinner here. The decor is laid on pretty thick and looking around kept us entertained. The food was just awesome. I had a chicken sandwich with "Voodoo sauce"... I asked the waiter to describe it and he couldn't really. I took that for him just not knowing what he's serving. However, he was right. I've never had anything like it. It was understated, but an amazing, unique compliment to the sandwich. My wife cleaned her plate, which rarely happens. The food was high quality and reasonably priced. It was a mystery why we were the only people in the place at the time... My only guess would be their inexplicable use of Top 40 pop music BUMPING at 5 p.m. That was the only unpleasant part of out experience and I'd imagine would turn a lot of diners off immediately upon entering. read more

Great food, fun atmosphere and the staff always takes excellent care of me! Can't say enough good things about this place over the years. Darryl and Sandy always go above and beyond no matter how busy it is. read more

They have amazing food, and extremely large portions! I love coming here. The service is always great too, and who doesn't love live music? It's a great place to have a good time and some drinks, but it's also a great place to have a dinner and a glass of wine. Highly recommend coming here if you're looking for good food and a good time in Alton! read more

This place rivals the French quarter when you factor in price location etc. this will be a great option when you can't get to the French quarter for the office season. Prices are reasonable atmosphere is kind of funky and cool check them out read more

We had lunch here on a Saturday afternoon. Our service was great. I ordered the Lobster Bisque soup to start with. The flavor was great but it wasn't as hot as soup should be. I then had Fried pickles. I was very happy with them. I love the spears and they are hard to find. Most people serve the pickle chips that I'm not a fan of. I then asked my waitress what her favorite sandwich was on the menu. She replied "The Bourbon Burger." I ordered that with a side of roasted potatoes that she also said were good. The burger was great. She was right. The potatoes were not so good. They had zero seasoning on them. Not even salt. I think I would go back and give it a try again during dinner hours. The dark and gloomy atmosphere is not ideal for lunch. read more

Open late, tasty food. Interesting decoration, and you can go hipster-spotting, a rare activity outside of St. Louis proper. One time they didn't cook my chicken strips, but they comp'ed my meal and I didn't die, so that's cool. I like the balcony. I wish I had more interesting things to write in this review. Consider this a failure on my part and not the restaurant's. read more

Went here a couple months back and it was just pure awful. The service was slow. Took well over 10 minutes just to actually see a menu. And did I mention that there was only one other table of people in the place? The oysters were absolutely disgusting. They were all fishy smelly and tasting and were filled with grit. Literally picking grit off of your tongue. NASTY! We ordered 2 entrees and I can honestly say that the best thing on either of our plates was the garlic bread that came with my pasta. Neither of us finished our meal and in fact the leftovers of mine that were packed to go got pitched into the trashcan right outside the door. Do yourself a favor and do not eat here!! read more

A really fun and unique atmosphere. Try something cajun, of course! The jambalaya was great and the Bloody Mary was the best I ever had.

My husband and I went to this "restaurant" in Dec. 2019. It was horrible. There was only 2 other people dining there. IT WAS FREEZING COLD. There was a loud woman crying and yelling into her phone the whole time we were there, which they did nothing about. She was not dining. The staff didn't do anything about her and we had to get another table. Our appetizer took at least 20 minutes. The bisque smelled and tasted like rotten fish. The pasta was so bad that my husband almost spit it out. It STUNK. We complained and waited 5 minutes for the manager then when she came she had to leave to write up a new ticket. She didn't return. So we left a 10 on the table for our appetizer and tea. The tea tasted like it had vanilla extract in it. No piano playing even though the pianist was there. The people at the bar were extremely loud. Don't go. There are a lot of decent restaurants in the Alton area. We headed straight to Tony's which was packed, but had wonderful service and food. read more

Had dinner yesterday evening. Great decor cool atmosphere, but the food while not terrible wasn't what you would hope. The red beans and rice have a tomato based sauce thst was too sweet not like anything I've ever had in louisiana and the etoufee didn't have enough crawfish and what was there was rubbery. The prices are very low but I would pay more for better food. read more

We went on Saturday 2/23/13 at 6:30pm. It was our first time. Got a booth and saw the chef checking on tables and came to ours. We asked for recommendations since it was our first time. He said bourbon steak, pasta and for sure the bread pudding. Service was SLOW but that gave us time to soak up the environment. Hubby got steak, I got voodoo chicken sandwich (cajun chips were awesome) and of course bread pudding. At 8:30pm music started and so did the fun! The whole place was singing. We will be back, might have to order the voodoo wings to go :-) read more

It was my 21st birthday weekend, and I had looked forward to going to the Ragin Cajun all month. I knew I chose the right place when it took 40 minutes to get a seat, because it was just that popular. When we sat we ordered our drinks and food quickly. Then, two hours go by. We finally get our food after barely seeing our server the entire night. I asked to speak with the manager just to see why the food took so long, and she sent out the chef...? He was mad at us and proceeded to curse at us. The server comes back a half our later, and I asked why the manager was so rude and she then told us that was the chef. So I asked a second time to see the real manager, and finally he comes out. I told him about everything that happened and he said that did not sound like his staff "but, if it did happen, that's unfortunate." We said we were not going to come back and he said, "Well, I was going to offer you a round of drinks but since you're not coming back screw it." So, needless to say I would not recommend a place that would treat someone with such disrespect throughout an entire night. read more

Piano is good but service is terrible. Food is mediocre and the menu has been pared down to nothing. Went for the last time over the weekend. We sat at a table with 2 other couples. The waitress was was extremely inattentive and when we got our check, she decided to charge herself a 20% tip because we were a "larger party". We all asked that this assigned tip be removed because no where did it state this as a policy. It was removed from 2 of the 3 checks, the "manager" said she could not remove it from the third check and we would have to call the owner the next day (they would be closed). She then said "so you took up a table all night and now don't want to tip?" We are all very good tippers - when the service is good, and we do not like to be surprised by a waitress assigning herself a tip she thinks she deserves. We have been here before with a group and this was the first time this happened. After the treatment we received, we will never -never- go back. read more