I don't like posting negative reviews. Much rather steer you to a deserving place. If I have an issue I always contact the restaurant directly. I made 2 attempts to contact Riversbend and got nothing back. I even sent an email asking them to respond to my email. This brings me here. Essentially, I told Riversbend I wanted them to make it. Two of us went on a recent Saturday and the experience was lacking. Our apparent mistake was arriving at 3:30. We ordered a cocktail from the very nice bartender and it was very professionally made. The problem began when I asked for a menu. The very apologetic bartender said, "I'm sorry. We don't serve food from 3:30 to 5. The kitchen shuts down to prepare for dinner." The lunch menu serves appetizers, a cheeseburger and 3 pizzas. The dinner menu serves the same items but adds a number of additional choices. It seemed inhospitable to refuse food service when you are offering the exact same items in an hour and a half. The question that was never acknowledged asked them to consider keeping a limited menu from 3:30 to 5. There are literally 7 restaurants that you can coast to from here - all of them very nice. I'm left with the feeling that there is too much attitude and pretension here. At least answer a customer's question. Maybe they deserve a 5 star review. It's just too much work to find out. read more

Somewhat disappointing for the first try. Let me start off by saying it situated in a very pretty place. I made a reservation ahead of time because I thought the place might be packed I went online and attempt to make a reservation but it said there were no tables before 9 o'clock so I called and a lady on the phone said that she couldn't get me in before 830. We arrived a half an hour early and the place was less than half full, so she was able to sit us down immediately. I was a little annoyed that they made us come so late when clearly there were plenty of empty tables. We started off by ordering the focaccia which never came. Moving on I ordered the bluefin tuna which was pretty disappointing ,more like tuna soup and completely over done,For $26 It Felt like a half asked effort it wasn't that it was tasteless, it was just very odd and not particularly satisfying. Two lumps of tuna in a broth is something I've never seen before. I'm hoping things will improve and looking forward to trying once again read more

I should know better than going to a new place the week it opens. People need time to figure stuff out. That being said, this place must have rushed to open. There was still plastic on the windows and the staff didnt seem familiar with what they were serving and selling. Also my main course never showed up. 45 minutes after everyone else at our table was finished eating and the tease of 'its still being cooked...' I gave up. The view was lovely though. read more

I had been wanting to try Riversbend for some time, and finally went today, following Essex River Cruise. It didn't disappoint. What a hidden gem. My friend and I had pulled pork hash with poached eggs and delish homemade bread with their own strawberry jam. We also enjoyed our own pot of freshly made pressed coffee. The staff were delightful, as was the owner, Lindsey. We can't wait to go back and try something else. Desserts and drinks looked good, too. The views of the Essex River are beautiful. read more

Four of us decided to try the Riversbend for the first time. We agreed with the other reviews..great location..great view especially with the full harvest moon last night. Very noisy..we all left with a headache..couldn't even hear each other's conversations. Definitely needs some sound control installed. As for the meal, fried clams were definitely overcooked, pizza crust was so spongy, tough it was difficult to cut, let alone chew, overpriced cheeseburger..over cooked fries. The swordfish was about 3 oz..with very little else..flavorful, but definitely overpriced for the portion size. We all wished that they had a daily special sheet because menu is limited. Due to the noise level, we decided not to stay for coffee and dessert...Definitely would not be back..unless changes are made. read more

This new restaurant has terrific views of the Essex River & surrounding marsh. The striper dish I had was excellent - a bit too much broth, but the fish was cooked to perfection. However, the place is WAY too noisy! Not only can you not hear each other when talking, but even the waitstaff has a hard time hearing your order. My server brought me a margarita (which was god-awful) instead of the sangria I ordered (which was great.) They ran out of focaccia for an appetizer, the salad was blah and didn't have the ingredients listed on the menu, and the pizza dough was tough and tasteless. I'm sure much of this is due to the "newness" of the place and may settle out once they get their rhythm. I'll give them a little bit more time and try again. But if they can't do anything about the noise in the place, I won't be back a third time. read more

Ive been here 2x now basically for the view. Foods meh ok but over priced. The staff hostess, and servers both times were not on the ball at all. The first time we wanted a spinach artichoke pizza. It was between their lunch and dinner menu change. Waitress said we could not have that kind of pizza until dinner menu shift but we could have cheese pizza or wait 20 minutes and then she could put in order for spinach artichoke pizza. So we decided to wait. She didnt even bother to take drink order or appetizer order. She figured she didnt need to deal with us for 20 minutes even though she passed our table 8 times. She finally put in order and different staff brought pizza. There were no artichokes or spinach on the pizza at all. I asked if we got the wrong order. Waitress said no the crust had an artichoke spinach paste on it. Really? I had to wait 20 minutes to order this? Second time we went service was even worse. Sat on deck again. Place was pretty empty inside deck had 3 tables open but not bussed so we had to wait for hostess to bus a table. Then our waiter passed our table again and again not acknowledging us. He didnt even bring us water until I asked for some after sitting in the sun for 15 minutes. He brought the water but didnt ask if we were ready to order. He said heres water Ill be back later Im busy. Really? He only had two other tables each a party of 2. I watched the time. He came back to the table 15 minutes later and said Would you like any drink other than water? After sitting for 30 minutes I was mad. I said were ready to order drink and food. We ordered the margarita pizza. Took him 10 minutes to bring 2 drinks other than water. Said hed come back to refill our water. He never did. Kitchen staff brought pizza. It was ok. Over priced for the size. Waiter never checked back never refilled water never asked if we needed more drinks. I decided I just wanted the check. Bill was 28.81 for a pizza and 2 ice teas. I gave him 40.00. He asked if I needed change. Of course I did. Did he think he was getting 11.00 tip??? He came back not with change but broke my 40.00 into 10s and 5s. I had assumed he just gave me change and left a 5. For a tip and stood up to leave when I realized omg it wasnt change he just gave me 40.00 back. This left me no option but to pay 35.00. This clown wanted 7.00 tip for horrible service? Thats over 20%!! read more

We too were excited for them to open. We went in tonight, and as others have said, bar staff has no idea what they're doing. I ordered the Striper, my GF ordered the BF tuna. Both portions were the size of a brownie, and had the same "soup" accompaniment....not good......and oh yeah, $3 for bread As others said, there is NO sound deadening anywhere, so the acoustics are VERY loud, almost to the point of disturbing. The building and views are spectacular.....I really hope they're reading these reviews and trying to make changes.... read more

One star for good drinks, and one star for their mushroom soup. Everything else / food wise was awful. The dry smoked hotdog on the kid's menu was like eating the bottom of a hiking shoe that had been warmed by a camp fire. I sent it back and was charged for it. The pizza was really bad, the red sauce was sour. Too many strikes on food, plus they are expensive! Not worth going unless you are just drinking. Bring a granola bar for the walk home. read more

We were really excited to have a new and reportedly innovative restaurant on the north shore. The location is nearly perfect, providing a spectacular view of the Essex marsh; the sunset view is hard to beat. The dining room has a familiar summer camp vibe, but the preponderance of hard surfaces and lack of any sound dampening material makes conversation nearly impossible once the place fills up. The menu is limited with some interesting ideas whose execution leaves much room for improvement. Last week marked our third visit. This time we didn't bother with reservations and opted to eat at the bar and enjoyed the short-rib cheeseburgers and a few craft beers. The food was well prepared and well served. Our two previous visits were less consistent. The service staff is inexperienced and ordering and service seemed a bit of a challenge. The choice of salads is underwhelming and having tried all three we would be hesitant to try any of them again. We've tried a couple of the pizza's which were good but not excellent. The tuna and the chicken mains were both tasty but suffer a little from trying too hard. I'm all for local innovative cooking, Riversbend has the right DNA but they need to grow up a bit. read more

So glad we found this place! Beautiful view of the water, service was excellent and brunch was delicious. We had French toast, eggs, bacon, homefries, lobster roll and pizza. My 10 year old is very picky with French toast and asked if we can come every Sunday for it! The lobster roll was perfect, very fresh with the right amount of mayo. Drinks were great, we loved the Essex Painkiller made with fresh pineapple juice. We will return soon to try the dinner menu! read more

Riversbend - Creamsicle and Painkiller cocktails & orange soda. - Pizza Near Me - Essex, Massachusetts

This place is superb. Outside dining with spectacular views and the inside is warm and friendly. My wife and I agree: best clam chowder we've ever had; delicious calamari and fried clams; pizza as good as any pizza we know. Drinks are excellent and the staff and owners are all friendly and efficient. They continue to expand the menu, so an exceptional restaurant only promises to get even better. Highly recommended. read more

We came as a family excited for this place to be great and on the first visit it was perfect. Wasn't noisy, very friendly staff, space and location is beautiful. The pizza was just like Pastoral in the South End. We all raved and said we will probably become regular's. My daughter ended up going with her husband again and raved a second time about it. The third time we visited, it wasn't so good. I asked for unsweetened ice tea which I got last time and was brought a crimson tea which was not what I ordered. I thought the waitress made a mistake and brought juice but she said no it was their tea. She never told me it was Crimson tea and then asked how did I like the tea. It's like she just served what she had left without telling me. My clam appetizer with mesclun greens was horrific. The worse clams I've ever had in my life. It looked like they scraped the bottom because none were left. Tiny, greasy, hard, pebbles and a few pieces of greens. There was also cut up asparagus in it that was so salty it was hard to eat. This app cost 18.00!! If they gave it to me for free I would not eat it. I'm not exaggerating people! The Margarita pizza was awesome on previous visits. This time, no joke, I believe we got left over pizza from the day before. It was dried out and the sauce on the edge was absorbed into the crust. A clear indication of left over pizza. Horribbbbble! I don't know what happened but maybe the regular cook staff didn't show up. It was a Monday nite. Also, they didn't have the patio open and it was a gorgeous nite because they were understaffed they said. Its August people lets not waste the short time we have left. It also was extremely noisy and yet the other times it was not. Go figure. I hope to God they clear these issues because it has the potential to be wonderful. It's pricey so I need them to do better! read more

Second time my wife and I have been here. Love the pizzas and the fries are heavenly. Great ambiance and service. Will definitely be going back many times. read more

Four Greats: great quality food, great service, great cocktails, and great views!! The caprese salad with salmon was amazing.

2nd time here in a week. Great spot on the river. This time we ordered food at the bar. The rotisserie chicken was very good but only about a 6 oz serving for $25. The pizza was very overlooked ( thin and hard to slice) I saw another patron send theirs back. A bit noisy and cold with high ceilings. Would come back but be more selective in choosing food. read more

Great Service and Spectacular views more importantly the Food is awesome too... I love the Pizza and salads are great.

What an awesome new spot! We just went for a family lunch (which is daring with a 4 and 2 year old), and we ALL enjoyed our meals! My son wanted the White Clam Pizza, which he loved but I stole most of since I couldn't get enough of the clams, arugula, cherry tomatoes, "yummy bacon" and sauce. Of course my daughter wanted the Mac and Cheese, which we all fought to lick the plate! My husband got the Short Rib Burger and fries which he devoured (luckily I stole a bite and agreed it was YUM). And I had to get the PEI mussels, which had a tasty red curry, coconut sauce with mint leaves - such a great combo that I've never had before. Our server, Alison, was adorable - she offered legos to the kids and was on top of our order. Plus she picked out a great wine to pair with my meal - thank you! And it was great to see a friendly face at the bar (hi Jess!) - can't wait to return with the girls! We all voted that we'll be back soon! Thank you Chef McClelland for giving us another great restaurant option in the area! read more

Not a great experience. Beautiful restaurant but the service is terrible. Food came out in "phases" so we could not eat together as a family and much of it was cold. We let the manager know and he just took the cold food back without an apology. Stay away, unless you like being disappointed. read more

We had a wonderful meal and the waitress was terrific. They stayed open to accommodate our celebration and we were so grateful. Everyone was happy with everything. read more

Don't bother unless you go out to eat for the view. Prices high, food basic at best. Got the clams and Hojos strips beats them. Sent them back and settled for a cheese pizza which at $14 was undercooked. Oh yeah the drinks were undersized and over priced. Bad all around. Instead go to the Village or any number of other seafood joints in Essex and the area. Or The RiverVIEW in Ipswich for pizza. Your taste buds and wallet will thank you. read more

Got some kinks to work out but I will be back and hope to up the stars. Some inconsistent seasoning on food and the noise level. Super super loud. Hopefully they can do something about that. Food looked great was interesting and mostly really good. Liked the decor and setup. Waitstaff was very friendly. Few delays on drinks and some over and under salted food but i think that is normal for a brand new restaurant. read more

UPDATE: Pleased to report that this is now one of our favorite restaurants. The pizza is amazing. A pizza and a Caesar salad are the perfect combo for me and my husband to split, and the kids pizza at $11 is the best deal in town. Calamari is also great- perfect, light crunch without being greasy. The noise was dealt with by redesigning the space and removing the bar in the middle. The beautiful views remain and now lawn games keep my kids happy and busy while we enjoy the view. Yes the wait for food and for drink refills can sometimes be on the longer side, but it's worth the wait! read more

We love it here! We take our boat up the river, dock, and enjoy the amazing views of the Essex Marsh and River. The atmosphere is great. The food is very good. We love the pizza and burger. No complaints. read more

Awful service, overpriced menu and very loud. I will gladly take my family down the street to another restaurant for half the price of this place. $17.00 for a burger?? Come on!!! read more

Your review helps others learn about great local businesses. My party of 9 had dinner there Labor Day weekend I'm not sure where to begin. I guess I'll start with the good things. First, very nice view, and the interior is warm with a good vibe. The bread with the eggplant miso spread was excellent. The raw oysters were fresh yet pricey and the mussels were very good. And that's where the good ends. Now for the other side of the coin. The noise level is to the point of not being able to talk to your table without yelling. Acoustic tile are cheap and effective. The waitstaff, although friendly, need additional training, lots of training. The portions were small for the price. My girlfriend clam chowder was basically warm milk with 2 clams. HELLO.. It's Essex .. My fathers' Swordfish was dry and no clams in the sauce as the menu stated. As for me, I ordered the Short Rib Burger medium rare, it showed up medium RAW, in fact still cold inside. The staff pull in a new order, 15 minutes later, I watched it get carried around the bar twice before arriving to my table. Dinner was over. I may give it another chance, I may not. read more

Really extraordinary restaurant in an area filled with mediocre fried clam places. We had a fabulous brunch here, each dish was really delicious. The chicken hash, the autumn pizza (with pumpkin seeds and squash), and the bagel with smoked salmon were all delicious. A special shout out for the French-press coffee. We'll definitely be back! read more

If you don't try the pulled pork tacos your life will be will be incomplete and you'll always even wondering what if?

Wow, what a gem! Went with a group of friends and we got to try a lot of different menu items. My favorite was the Sea Bass! Don't miss the desserts! Can't wait to go back. read more

Has potential. Very loud, though. Food was good, but the menu is pretty limited. Would like to see more options. Atmosphere is great, but acoustics need work as others have mentioned. The owner seems like a very nice person. read more

Food is good and service is adequate. The Bend Burger was quite tasty and the Margarita pizza was delicious. We each ordered a Diet Coke. The soda was $3.50 each ( not a large amount)! We never would have gotten seconds on soda when it was offered if we had known that they charge for refills! We were shocked to see our soda bill was $14 dollars! Seriously? Could have bought 4 12 packs for that! read more

Totally unimpressed. We went there for Mother's Day. We had a reservation and were sat right away. The restaurant was about 1/2 full with a few other parties already seated. Our waitress was nice and took our drink order. We were a little surprised at the brunch menu which was very limited and not very appealing. With only pizza, burgers, eggs and basic salad offerings we were hoping for more for a Mother's Day lunch. Drinks were good. Nice beers on tap. Our reservation was at 12:30. We arrived on time and placed our meal order at about 12:45. To our disappointment or meals (a pizza, 4 burgers and an omelet) arrived an hour and a half later! And to make it worse, 3 out of the 4 burgers were wrong (missing cheese, asked for no sauce but cam drenched in it...., basic stuff). Food was average at best. BLT pizza was pretty good. Service was unapologetically slow. View is nice. Will try again in the summer for a quick bite but definitely won't go again for a special occasion. read more

Went for brunch with my girlfriends on Sunday and we had an amazing experience! The hostess sat us at a table by the windows with a beautiful view of the river and our server, Emily, was awesome (even after I spilled my drink from telling an obviously over-animated story). But the real star of any restaurant is the food and it did not disappoint! I got the Croque Madame, a ham and cheese stuffed french toast with a fried egg and cream cheese sauce on top. I had never heard of such a thing - it was AMAZING! Also ordered at our table was the Corned Beef Hash, obviously made from scratch, with huge chunks of corned beef and potatoes served with two sunny side eggs on top. My girlfriend considers herself a bit of a corned beef connoisseur and ranked this dish as one of the best she's ever tasted! From the bite I tried, I would have to agree, it was damn good! Another noteworthy bite at our table was a "bruleed" banana with blueberries that accompanies the French Toast dish- WOW was that yummy. Our table left with clean plates and full bellies. We're already talking about our return trip to try some of the other items on the menu. Oh and I almost failed to mention the drinks - very well crafted cocktails with a hearty pour! Now, who doesn't like that? I'm a bit confused by the mixed reviews on this place, I can't wait to go back! read more

The Lespalier chef is gone! Restaurant may be not as deafening as opening year, but food is mediocre, drinks downright bad, and only a few tables can take advantage of river setting. Not recommended! Oh, and that bad drink (which the bartender said he was removing from menu) appeared on our bill and was only removed after we asked. read more

Four of us dined at Riversbend last night on the recommendation of a friend. I doubt that any of us would go back again. The service was fine but the dining room is large and open without any sound absorbing material. It made the atmosphere very noisy. The decor is very industrial and the food was mediocre and overpriced. We live in an area with a lot of fabulous restaurants. Their competition does it better and for less money. The pizza was tough and the swordfish portion was tiny. The menu is limited and if you don't like your food smoked or served with goat cheese or avocado , there is not much to pick from. read more

My wife and I were looking forward to enjoying a nice luncheon dining experience at Riversbend the Sunday before Labor Day. While the location was beautiful, our experience was not. It was the service and feeling that we were not really wanted that was most disappointing. We first sat outside, only to be chased in by voracious yellow jackets, and the table next to ours toppling over onto a patron, due to wind. I am not holding these occurrences against Riversbend of course, but sitting there for 10 minutes with no service at all, only to be followed by another 5-10 minute wait inside before finally getting a server, was very annoying. When we finally did get waited on, the young man serving us, did a very capable job, so no faulting him for that. Further while we noticed, in the not very full room, a couple sitting at a 4 seat table along the marsh-side windows, when we asked to sit at an adjacent table, the manager (owner?) advised that we needed to site at one of the two seaters as the 4's were limited, again, although at the time it was not overly busy. (Which also makes me wonder why service was so slow). Again I would have been okay with this, had not another party of two come in right after we were seated, and were sat at the very table we had initially asked for. This despite there being two more two seaters open next to us on the side. They were also attended to right away by and older woman, perhaps one of the owners? I can only assume we did not have the right look or something? The food was fine, not exceptional but acceptable, although overpriced. ($14.00 for a very small serving of Farrow and Roasted veggies was out of line, and a $16.00 Burger is Boston - NY Pricing, not Essex pricing, and for that amount, at very least should have had more innovation, and more bacon). I also noticed that at a table near us, a party had left, and there were a couple of bowls of chowder left behind, largely unconsumed. I am not sure if that is a reflection on quality of the chowder, but seemed odd at the time. As I am a "foodie", and I dine out quite often, I know what service and attentiveness levels should be, and they were sorely lacking for us today. I understand that everyplace has an off-day, and I am normally not one to go on Yelp and try to ruin a fledgling restaurant's reputation, preferring to provide direct, constructive feedback, and I initially contacted them via their email link, as well as messaged on Facebook. However they never bothered to reply, which tells me how little they care about customer feedback. Although my wife did not want me to do so, I would have raised these concerns directly while there face to face, with the owner, had he still been around when we exited, but had left the front room, and was no where to be seen, no was the older woman I had noted as front of house.. I would like to say I will return and give them a second chance, as it is a very nice spot for outside dining with a view, assuming they can get the yellow jackets, and wind issues under control, but I highly doubt I will, given how we were treated, and their complete lack of response.Our experience at Riversbend was well short of what should be expected form any restaurant, let alone one with fining dining aspirations. read more

This area has amazing landscapes but sadly no area restaurants really have a window into them, until this one. Perfect place to sit out on deck, enjoy the great egrets in the tidal pool and watch the boats go up and down the river. Plus a nice lawn outside for kids to play while you enjoy drinks. Great place to have cocktails, beers, burgers, hand cut fries and chill and enjoy the view. Recommended. read more

The food and restaurant location are both great - problem with front desk - we called in advance for reservation on Sunday evening, made the reservation, got there in time and told they gave reservation away- 30 minute wait even though multiple open tables - finally convinced them to let us eat - restaurant never filled up while we were there - too bad because we like it otherwise! read more

Guys. This place. Amazing view, incredible staff, really good food. I brought in a group of 14 for lunch today giving the restaurant only 30 minutes notice. And they nailed it. This is my second visit and it was even better than the first. I ordered calamari, bread, and shrimp cocktail for the table and it was inhaled and delish. I got the lobster roll for the second time, and it is perfection - and you can get it with a salad instead of fries. My guests got sandwiches and salads and loved them, while my colleague got a delicious looking pulled pork pizza with a nice thin crust. We didn't have time on our business lunch for dessert. The last time I was there we had some great crafty cocktails which were a hit. My guests raved about lunch and everyone stopped to take pictures on the way out. Our waitstaff today, Emily, was absolutely outstanding. This is my new go-to place for business lunch in the area, but coming at night would be even more fun. I would give this 4.75 stars if I could. The only thing that would make Rivers Bend better is if they did some dishes with local seafood. Especially for out-of-towners, but I suspect they are staying away from that because everyone else nearby already does it. read more

Caesar salad with salmon was bang-on. The bread service was incredible. The views were spectacular. Totally surprised at the negative reviews. Had a great experience. read more