My husband and I stopped in here for drinks and appetizers before a show. We weren't greeted by a hostess at the door, but we asked the bartender if we could sit at the bar since it was pretty empty, and she said sure. It took a good 10 minutes after that to get a cocktail and food menu even though there were plenty of waitstaff everywhere. The bartender took our drink order after another 10 minutes (a cocktail for me and a beer for my husband). It took another 10 minutes for our drinks to come (meaning we were sitting at the bar close to 30 minutes before getting a drink), which is crazy considering the place was only at about 50% capacity. My drink was quite delicious, but they brought my husband the wrong beer and he was never able to get the attention of someone to correct it. While we sat, we also asked a waitress, a busboy, and the bartender to order food, and all three told us they couldn't help us, but someone else would be over. Long story short, we never got to order any food even after being there for close to an hour. When it was finally time to leave, we asked both a waitress and the bartender for our tab, but neither brought us one, even though we were literally sitting at the edge of the bar next to the register. I finally ended up standing at the register and waiting for someone to cash us out. When I got the bill, I was surprised to see there was an automatic 20% gratuity. They also charged me for a more expensive drink than I ordered. I thought the automatic gratuity was a bit deceitful given this wasn't listed anywhere on the menus and the service was pretty terrible. The ambience would be nice if we could have received some service, and the menu looked like it would be good... but I guess I'll never know what that crab butter tastes like. Hopefully this place gets its service staff sorted out, as there is some potential here. read more

While my only visit to rider was a unique one, everything i tried from the New Years prefix was amazing! Hearty portions, really flavorful. The seafood tasted so fresh and all the meat we had was really tasty. Can't wait to come back and try more of the real menu! The staff was so awesome! Even with a crowded room they were more than attentive and on their game. It was wonderful to be there and that feeling definitely radiated out of the staff. read more

We had a fabulous Christmas Eve dinner at Rider. Definitely don't miss the pull-apart rolls with crab butter...yum yum yum. I didn't know crab butter had been missing from my life. I also loved the crab toast (yep I am a huge Dungeness fan) and the oysters (served with three different house-made sauces). My favorite side was the beet salad -- so flavorful and a great compliment to the rest of the meal. The only thing I didn't love was the trout fritter ball, although my husband thought they were really good (I tend to not love fritter-style items in general). Our group tried several of the cocktails and liked everything; I particularly liked my husband's mezcal cocktail (I forget the name). The space is great -- very classy with rustic touches. I loved the open fire hearth where you can watch some of the cooking magic happen. I will definitely be back for a date night dinner sometime soon! read more

We were staying at the hotel and came here for brunch and also one night for some light bites and drinks before we went out for the night. Oysters were good and the fries with the dipping sauces were awesome! Yes this restaurant is a bit pricey for the smaller portions u get but I thought it was pretty good. Since we were not super hungry - 3 apps was the the perfect amount for us...but usually 3 apps is enough food for more than just 2 people... We also had a salad with squash, pumpkin seeds and a creamy dressing on the bottom that i really loved. Brunch was even better than the bar fare! My sister got an amazing toast with crab and avocado and I really enjoyed my frittata! Our server for brunch was very patient with our group and very genuine in her food suggestions which i appreciate! My only other complaint would be that my cocktail was a tad too sweet the night before, but i know that is really just personal taste preference. read more

What an AMAZING meal. Everything we ate was spectacular. As a group we had a lot of dishes, here are the highlihgts: Starters: -All of the oysters were fabulous, especially the Shigoku. -I HIGHLY recommend the ahi tuna tartare -Rockfish crudo was also tasty, but I prefered the tuna -Pull-apart rolls -- WOW, so incredible. Who knew that crab butter could be so good?? Mains: -The chinook salmon was the BEST salmon dish I have EVER had hands down. As a native Seattlite, that is a BIG compliment seeing as I have had a LOT of salmon in my life -Pea and crab ravioli - so complex with so many components that all blended seamlessly together. Fabulous Desserts: -Lemon & Lime tart with Italian meringue: I had more than my share of this one. Perfect blend of sweet and tart -Donuts: wow I could eat so many of these, especially with the rum caramel sauce! They clearly take pride in showcasing fresh ingredients that you may find peculiar but taste amazing. HIGHLY recommend a visit. read more

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Great food, hands down one of the best burgers. Excellent fries, I mean really, really good. The beer selection was decent and varied. My wife and I really enjoyed the atmosphere and decor of the Rider. The wood grill is awesome! The reason I cannot give it five stars is due to poor service. Great experience from the time we walked in, were warmly welcomed, got seated quickly, and were able to order beverages. Then we waited longer than needed for our drinks to arrive and by then we were ready to order. The wait for the food was not too long, but once we received our food, our server had to be tracked down to get our bill when we were ready to leave. There was no check-in to see how the food was or if we needed anything else. Summary: The server took the orders, gave us our drinks, and gave us our bill, nothing more. I may go back, but really hope the service turns around. read more

What a gem. Great menu, great service. The rolls and crab butter are amazing!! We also enjoyed a ribeye, cioppino, fries, and oysters!! Nice wine list too... All local. Go eat here!! read more

Great ambience and location. Hostess was very kind and welcoming. Food was extremely flavorful as we indulged in several shell fish dishes. The clams were in a slightly spicy curry style sauce with some sausage, a pleasant surprise. The cioppini (sp?) was a great mild flavor with bursts of tarragon from the grilled bread that accompanied it. Crab toast was super fresh and light and packed with crabmeat. And the desserts didn't last long in the table. Overall great service and food and would definitely return. read more

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The clams were great! Clams with spicy sausage and toast bread that you'll need for dunking. Want to get back for happy hour. read more

Rider - American Near Me - Seattle, Washington

The other day I walked by this place and saw lots of people having lunch there. So I came back for something light a while later. It was afternoon so my friend and I only had burgers & herb fries, but both of them were really great! Also the atmosphere was quite relaxing. A good place to chill out with friends. read more

Rider - American Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I should have believed the rating. I went for happy hour and I got the grilled oysters. They were cold and mostly raw. Flavor was good. Bread was hard. I couldn't even finish the oysters or the bread. I also got a mule- it was fine. Not served in a copper mug like a tradition mule. I feel like if you advertise it for happy hour, you should put it in a copper mug. I'm being picky but I like my mules in mugs- that's half the fun! read more

Downtown Seattle has been desperately needing something exactly like this. I stopped in last night and sat in front of Craig at the bar. He walked me through the menu and together we picked some great options. The pull apart rolls with crab butter and the kohlrabi salad were highlights for sure. While enjoying my food we talked whiskey and cocktails. He made me some amazing bartenders choice cocktails and told me the history of some wonderful liqueurs that they had. I would highly recommend making sure to sit at the bar top, in front, or as close to Craig as you can. I've always loved getting to watch a bartender work and he was no exception to that. You won't be able to miss him, he has a big red beard. The other staff I interacted with were all very nice and professional. For only being open the short time they have been I feel like they are hitting all the right things. I will be making this place my go to bar for sure. read more

My husband surprised me for our Valentine's Day dinner and to be honest I wasn't super excited about his choice, boy was I wrong! It's too bad that this place has such mixed reviews, our experience was amazing! The interior of Rider is super trendy, love the decor. For V-Day, Rider offered a prix fixe menu with 4 courses, each course was meant to be large enough for sharing between two people. Appetizer: Baywater sweet oysters with a cucumber granita and cilantro plus glasses of champagne. Salad: a mixed squash salad with burrata, chicories, and black truffles. Main course: 45-day dry-aged Painted Hills 22 oz. Prime ribeye steak with Dungeness crab mashed potatoes and collard greens- the prime rib was cooked perfrct. Dessert: dark chocolate torte with toasted meringue, candied almonds, fried mint, and good leaf. Our service was great and every dish tasted exceptional. I'm excited to come back and try their other dishes soon! read more

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A memorable dinner. Every bite on the tasting menu was delicious. Presentation was beautiful and the staff couldn't have been nicer. Don't miss this restaurant if you are in Seattle. And wear pants with an elastic waist band. read more

Rider - American Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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We came here twice while visiting Seattle and it was really good. They were open Christmas morning which was great but the service was a bit slow that day. I ordered the all American breakfast and it was so delicious. Potatoes were yummy, eggs cooked just as asked and sourdough toast was good. What stood out was the bacon. How could they make it such thick cut but still melt in your mouth?? We came back the next morning just for the bacon. My son had a bacon cheeseburger and it was pretty large, he had to take it home. My husband had the braised pork sandwich and it was so tasty. I'd order that again if we were here longer. I ordered the same thing both days (American breakfast) and if I was here another day I'd order it again! read more

Do to shortage of staffing, the service was not up to par. The food itself was tasteless, uninviting and overpriced.

Fantastic restaurant! The layout and decor is spectacular. So too is the service and food. We shared several plates and there was not a bad one in the mix. Standouts were the trout, herb fries and cauliflower side. Also a great place for mocktails! The bartender was able to craft some custom drinks based on my wife's flavor preferences. Quite impressive!! Cannot wait to visit again! read more

I'm in town for the night and staying at the hotel. This is the best meal I've had in months. I had the duck 2 ways and it was amazing. My server was FANTASTIC. highly recommend. Wine and cocktails were on point as well. Edited to add: they do charge a service charge so that better go to my server because that garbage affects my tip read more

We celebrated my daughter's birthday during their weekday lunch. Open Table reservations were easy to make. The atmosphere was cozy and welcoming. Ti was our server. He was very attentive and friendly making the celebratory lunch very special. He had a great sense of humor too. He recommended the Squash and Kohlrabi salad. He did not steer us wrong. It was enough for two to share. The Hostess Kat recommended the cauliflower steak sandwich. So good. Generous portion. The market fresh fish sandwich was light, fluffy and very flavorful. The yummy apple "pie" alamode birthday dessert was not disappointing. We will definitely dine there again Can't wait to try the happy hour read more

My first time here. Food was freakin awesome! A bit in the pricey side but I think worth it. The duck was succulent. The steelhead was very flavorful and cooked to perfection. Portion size was reasonable as well. The dessert was as big as the meal! Share a dessert with a friend. They were so delicious though too. Coming back here for sure. read more

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There is much to like about Rider. My wife and I went here before a play at the ACT. Our waiter asked how much time we had and made sure our appetizer and main courses provided ample time without feeling rushes, leaving plenty of time to walk to the theater. We shared a shredded kohlrabi salad appetizer which was unique and quite tasty. My wife had the halibut and I had the grilled steak. Both were cooked to perfection and were nice sized dishes. We each enjoyed a cocktail, hers quite dramatic in a clear pineapple glass. My only complaint is that the price was far more expensive than other places that I'd choose ahead of here. For two cocktails, one appetizer and two main courses, it was $185. read more

Rider - American Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Decided to go to Rider for dinner before the symphony tonight. Arrived and sat at the bar just a few minutes before 6:15pm. It was 6:30 before the server acknowledged our presence. Something I was at first willing to over look since it was busy. Server finally comes and takes our drink order and we request menus for dinner. At 6:40 drinks finally arrive and still no menus. So another almost five minutes for that. Server gives us a few minutes to review and we place orders for three appetizers. A salad, a soup and some fries. People at the bar come and go. The seats next to us order. Their food comes, still no food for us. Server acknowledges our food is still not out and on her way to check on our order stops at the seats next to us and reviews the menu with them. Server comes back a few moments later and remarks she can't believe our food is not out yet but nothing further. Finally at 7:40 we requested the check for our drinks since it is obvious food is not coming and we now have to leave for the symphony. The worst part of the whole experience was that when the server brought the check she had a handful of excuses about how the food should have come out and the kitchen said it did but clearly it didn't when in reality I think given her erratic behavior before we even ordered I think she forgot to put our ticket in. Had she checked on our food one of the two earlier times she recognized there was a problem, then we would have had time to eat. It was only three apps that should have taken mere minutes to prepare. Long and short we paid $55 for three drinks, which given the experience we had, we probably shouldn't have had to, and left still hungry. I work in hospitality locally and I have given numerou recommendations for Rider to Seattle visitors. I will no longer be doing that and seriously questioning whether I'll be returning myself. Update: Returned to Rider a couple weeks after my original review and had almost the same type of experience. I don't know what has happened to leadership at this restaurant/bar but it is quickly sliding downhill. I was disappointed to learn today that the same day I visited Rider for my return visit, a party of five individuals all came down with Norovirus like symptoms and the health department shut the restaurant down. While I did not get sick, primarily because my food never came out again this time, it will take some time and new leadership before I return to eat at Rider. Quite disappointing for what was not too long ago, my favorite downtown restaurant. read more

Has a rockfish crudo and the stone fruit ricotta toast. Tasted like they grabbed the wrong seasoning and dusted the toast with cumin. Rockfish crudo tasted more like watermelon rind than anything. Worst part was there were only two of us there for happy hour and our food made it to us before our drinks (beer and cocktail). I did make conversation with the chef about the smoked pork belly we saw hanging and he gave me a sample of the bacon that was to die for. Go for the bacon and nothing else! read more

rider is the perfect balance of what the Pacific Northwest has to offer! Simplicity at its finest with fresh seafood delivered daily. Locally sourced and seasonally had picked by the chef. The wine selection is out of this world not to mention there happy hour is on point! With only being open less then two weeks I'd say this place is definitely working it's way through the hiccups of a brand new restaurant a lot smoother then I've seen before the service staff genuinely strives for customer satisfaction which is hard to come by these days! Keep up the work rider team read more

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Terrible service from the snotty, couldn't give less of a sh*t blonde bartend.

Loved our first experience at happy hour at Rider and will definitely be coming back! The service was excellent and the staff very attentive! The kohlrabi salad was out of this world and I could eat it every day for the rest of my days! The crab scotch egg was decadent and delicious and the pull apart rolls with the crab butter were devoured in about two seconds because they were Sooo good! I am looking forward to coming back soon to try the full dinner menu! read more

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Great food. Love the atmosphere. The smell of the wood grill permeates the bar to give it a warm welcoming feel. The duck was cooked perfectly with pairings that were so thoughtful. The bar has an excellent selection of wines and really great variety of different spirits. read more

A place that lost its way I used to love Rider, the bar side. But they've slipped. Badly. My last experience was the nail sealing the coffin. When you wait at the bar for service, and all the bartenders are trading war stories with each, frustrating enough. And when they finally decide to stop impressing each other. And acknowledge patrons whove been trying to get someone's attention, they state, "Oh sorry, last call wa at 10:30". Of course, it's now 10:35 ...8 minutes after the war stories began. Too many great bars in Seattle to be saddled by this "Rider" read more

Decent place for happy hour. Heavy seafood influence. Decent spread and interesting offerings. Was upset to see that the actual menu is much more expensive than what they posted online. Crab scotch egg: good but would not get again for the price and stingy crab layer. Pull apart bread with crab butter: bread delicious but butter did not taste like crab. Fritters: good but forgettable. Pork poutine was great but a bit on the pricey side. The fries were delicious and next time I would order those alone with the burger which the bartender said was good. I appreciated that they had interesting nonalcoholic drinks. Thought the housemade celery soda was tasty. They ran out of persimmon soda - would have liked to try that. read more

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What a neat new place down town! Didn't realize I was attending their grand opening - my husband and I were walking by and noticed the romantic lighting and open kitchen from the outside. We were greeted warmly as soon as we walked in and the place smelled so good- like real wood fire. The atmosphere is upscale yet relaxed. Drinks were unique and tasty. The food was similar - totally new flavors and combinations, definitely try the kohlrabi and the carrot pasta..sooooo good!! Price point is what you would expect for a restaurant in the city. We can't wait to go back!! Buying gift cards for the family for Christmas! read more

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I've walked by this restaurant countless times. You can smell the wood fire from the street. Once inside, the atmosphere is somewhat sterile and simple. The amazing smell makes up for the lack of ambiance created by decor and staff. The staff seamed inexperienced and fell short of the included 20% gratuity. I witnessed the cook eating while cooking food, and I'd normally deduct 5% of the tip for this questionable practice. The food itself was disappointing. I had their burger and it lacked any hint of actually being grilled on an open fire and the meat was overcompensated by onion. My wife enjoyed the simple and fresh Avocado toast. I would have found the toast overpriced, but it was a win versus the burger. I personally will continue to choose capital grille for the food this restaurant should be providing- based on price- they seem to be completely unaware of the competition. You"d have a more flame broiled burger at Dairy Queen for $3 versus $22 read more

My boyfriend and I were really looking forward to the new place in our area. What a disappointment! The prior not so positive reviews are spot on. SERVICE: While the servers are nice, they seem to be soldiers executing the chef's orders. Good thing we asked about the tasting menu, because apparently the chef requires 2.5 hours to serve you 5 dishes. Sadly, there's no time savings in ordering off the regular menu! The chef seems to have many rules delivered through the very inexperienced wait staff. Last I checked, we're not in Paris at a top restaurant... very VERY pretentious overall. FOOD: delicious but VERY SMALL PORTIONS. It's offensive how small the portions are, and I don't eat that much. DRINKS: delicious PRICE: way too high for the experience and lack of substance. The automatic service charge should not be instituted at a place that doesn't present the standard of service. read more

Came here for lunch with my best friend. We both had a salad. Place is super cute. Food was ok. Service was nice. Wish my Cesar Salad was more tasty. read more

Rider - Looks really pretty , but needs to be more tasty - American Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Menu is full of complicated choices and too many spices competing for your palate. Mediocre service

Meh, food has no flavor that excites you and it's definitely overpriced. Service is apathetic and inattentive. I have nothing else to say and that says it all. read more

We attempted to make reservations on line and apparently it didn't work. We had a party of four and arrived just before 5, although the place was completely empty the hostess stated she could only seat us at the bar in the middle of the restaurant. This was ok. We ordered drinks and waited until 5 to order, our server, Gabriel (I only learned his name as it was on my receipt) was nice initially but when we tried to get his attention to order food he literally walked by our table a half dozen times averting his eyes. When we finally had to verbally get his attention he was rude. He came back to take our order and when the food came out my co-workers chicken came out raw, he took the chicken off but made no apology and didn't offer to comp the rest of his meal (2 sides of which he only ate one as he didn't like the other one either). When it was time for the bill he did not separate the tickets like asked and then ran my cc for $60 more than the total..exclaiming that it was the machines error, not his, but also exclaimed that he had to manually enter it..hmmm...anyway after dropping off the correct ticket flippantly and rudely said "enjoy Seattle"...I will never go back, nor will I ever recommend this place. read more

I have been wrestling with this one for a bit and have come to the following conclusions. 1) Nicely designed and laid out space. I LOVE the open kitchen with wood fired grill! 2) Food was close to above standards. Overall really good but there were a couple of mis-steps on seasoning. Plating was done well and for the most part I enjoyed everything. 3) Service.......I don't know exactly how to describe this. It wasn't bad, it was just slightly off. I can't put my finger on it...it just wasn't up to the level of what I would expect. This place seems to be shooting for an above average to high level food experience so I would expect a little more from the service. 4) So corkage was $50 for the magnum. That is absolutely above market. Most place will charge $35 for a magnum, a price which I feel is reasonable. I am in the wine industry and asked if my corkage could be waived at which point I was politely declined. No problem. The problem comes in here.....If you are charging me $50 for corkage on my bottle I brought, you best treat it properly and not make me cringe when you open it. I didn't mention anything at the time, because I did not want to embarrass my server, but she freaking butchered my bottle. There is obviously a lack of training in the wine presentation here. This particular bottle has a simple wax enclosure over the cork The server sounded like she had never seen it before so I advised her just to go through the top as with a normal cork. I had to sit there and watch a rather painful manipulation of the bottle and had a particularly cringe worthy moment when I saw my cork snapped off halfway. I gave instruction on how to get the remaining cork out and then accepted the pour....mind you, my glass and the glass of at least one of my guests had wax in them because the server didn't know that she should wipe the bottle top before pouring. Is any of this a huge matter? No...but when you charge me $50 for corkage and then destroy my bottle of carefully stored wine....you have a responsibility to waive the corkage fee. I can promise you that there was at least $50 less enjoyment out of that bottle as I tried to fish wax out of my glass. I may come back once more to see if anything has changed, but these mis-steps usually come from the top down. I hope the manager checks on these reviews and takes this info to heart. With a few minor changes and training, this could be a really great place! read more

I don't really like to dine by myself but I popped in for dinner last night while staying at Hotel Theodore. I am so glad I did. I had such a lovely evening. The food was absolutely perfect. The wait staff was attentive and friendly. Thank you read more

This is a true 5-star restaurant. The food we ordered sparked so much emotion and curiosity, the pictures speak for themselves on how delicious the food was. Great service too! read more

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Cute spot and busy however we were here for their NewYear's Eve dinner and had very slow service and the food was not as amazing as charged. We were here not by choice for a whole 2.5 hours for a four course meal. read more