Really cool local treasure! Atmosphere is fun and the food is excellent. Signs say food wait could be 1 1/2 hours when busy. We were here at lunch and had our food within 15 minutes. The shrimp basket was yummy and the hush puppies were the best I've had. I definitely recommend this jewel. read more

My friend took me to Riverside Café while exploring St Marks. It had such a small town feel which I really loved. It's a large restaurant that has a roof, but most of the walls are open so you can see the River. They had live music playing on the other side of the restaurant which I thought was really cool for early evening. Parking was interesting, there was a sign outside to park wherever you could, no marked stalls. I was such a tourist and took a picture of the sign LOL. You don't see stuff like that in San Diego. We sat at a table that was closest to the water, we could hear the music but it wasn't so loud that we couldn't hear each other. Our server was SO nice and attentive. Poor thing had lost her voice but she didn't let that stop her from checking on us and maintain a great attitude the entire time. I really liked her. I ordered the Burger...it was OK. Nothing fancy about it and the patty was pretty dry. I wasn't impressed with the food, but I don't really think I was expecting to be...it was more about the location and the company J There really isn't anything in San Diego similar, and I think that's why I liked it so much. I would definitely go back to enjoy a beer, but don't think I would order more than some French fries or something to snack on. When I was in the restroom, there was this shallow bowl with some white pasty looking stuff in it...I was so confused LOL...I asked my friend and she said that it was salt, so people could get the fish smell off their hands...I think that's so interesting LOL. It's nice to get out of my SD bubble sometimes and explore! read more

See all

Food is sub par and the service is hit or miss. I think they need to clean up and revisit their menu.

This week we traveled 3.5 hours to visit friends that live in St. Marks. We treated them to lunch at the Riverside Café. We will never return. All the rail and separate inside seating were taken, so we sat at a table under the 'Tiki Bar' side. We ordered our drinks (water and tea), that took way too long to be served. Once served, before our friend could take a drink, a plop of 'bird poop' landed in his drink from the birds perched overhead in the rafters of the 'Tiki Thatched Roof'. Ho disgusting in that!!! We moved to another table while the birds were pooping on the tables next to us. This was well within the confines of the 'bar/restaurant' side of the establishment. We managed to locate a table that was not in the direct line of 'bird poop bombs' from overhead. The food was cold by the time we finally got it and was sub par! When we left, we ran into Stan West, the owner. We complained about the birds pooping on tables and customers food and drink in a designated dining area. His response, 'it's their home'!!! I suggested putting up fishing line as I've seen in other establishments where I live (a much larger and nicer coastal community), and it works!!! His response, 'it doesn't work'. Yet, he does have fishing lines strung up on the other side. This, by far, was the most disgusting experience we have every had at a dining establishment. We will NEVER return and cannot recommend this establishment to anyone. Cooter Stew across the street would be a better choice! read more

Love the view on the river and fact that we can pull our boat out back but the wait to get served was long and of course getting our food took over an hour, which is normal. The most disappointing was the small meat portions. Fish sandwich had 2 small pieces and had almost half the bun left at the end. Philly steak sandwich was the same. Yummy but disappointing. read more

Great atmosphere and key lime pie. Their shrimp poboy is pretty good. A little more flavor would make it excellent. Definitely a great place to go on a spring weekend to get away from Tallahassee. read more

This restaurant is AMAZING! It's rare to come to an establishment and get amazing service, and a personalized experience. This restaurant runs on family! The service staff not only were 10+ year employees that have upmost respect for their owners and but also an understanding of their clientele. John and Rachel made our experience so inviting and pleasant that we docked up again 2 hours later just to say hi! Definitely worth a stop if you're boating in St Marks! read more

We had a great afternoon at the restaurant. The server , Susan, was outstanding. She tended to all our needs and was there asking us if we needed anything before we could ask. She went above and beyond with her service. We have never had someone like this. It was our lucky day. I would highly recommend this place. Great views and easy boat access. Ask for Susan. read more

This place has a nice location on the St Marks River. They built a large dining room under a thatched palm roof. I love the breezes and the view. I didn't love the numerous signs letting us know that we'd have to probably wait 11/2 hours for our food. Like it's a badge of honor or something. They don't appear to be hiring any additional staff to improve the food wait times. The waitress was very pleasant and kept us awash in decent bloody Mary's until food arrived. Food itself was meh. Dry overcooked fish, a salad reminiscent of a fast food restaurant down to the packets of Newman's own dressing. I mean we were starving and a little drunk so we ate it, but, honestly they should try to be better because our little slice of paradise needs a couple of decent places to eat less than an hour away. We'll probably give them one more chance and go back on the weekend for the live music, bloody Mary's and try the food again to see if maybe they have realized that the kitchen and its proper staffing is critical to a restaurant's reputation and ultimate success. read more

Just had a delightful, albeit expensive, lunch here. Ordered a dozen raw oysters, grilled crab claw basket, and seafood gumbo. My husband had the grilled chicken sandwich, and we got a kids' meal to go. The grilled crab claws were a little dry, but better with a squirt of lemon juice and drawn butter. We also shared a bucket of beer + one. It was chilly but sunny so it was very pleasant when we sat in the sun. Note that there were many other less expensive options on the menu, but I really like raw oysters and gumbo, but that wasn't enough to fill me up. I passed on the homemade key lime pie, but I was tempted. read more

Just outstanding from the crab claws to the oysters. A very relaxing environment to enjoy a cold beverage while viewing beautiful scenery. If seafood is not your thing try the black & blue chicken and sweet potato fries. read more

Riverside Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Saint Marks, Florida

Well tried it again 2 weeks ago and Hd improced greatly.but today i ordered a chicken sanwhich and it took 30 minutes. No apllogies other than the statement, "we are not known for our speedy sevice". I gues they had to catch the chicken out back and kill it. read more

I don't know how this place stays in business. I've eaten here several times because the location is great-right on the river-but the food is usually pretty average at best and service is hit or miss. The bathroom is disgusting. I went last night and our server was rude--just handed us menus without saying a word, returned 10-15 minutes later to take our order, came back to deliver our food, and didn't return until we were done. I asked for the check and after waiting awhile, gave up and stood at the register until she came over. I asked her for a water to go and she said "that's going to be awhile because I'm really busy." I told her never mind and she walked away to the bar area to get it. By this point my young son was getting restless and I was fed up so I left. I've waited tables for years and understand how it is to be really busy but that's no excuse for a crappy attitude. read more

Nice riverside seafood joint with most dining under an authentic Seminole Indian 'chikee' (open thatch-roof shelter). Great fried shrimp basket. I had a blackened shrimp po-boy - very good. read more

Not a value for the cost!! And took forever for our baskets to come out. Three of us. No other customers for a long time. Sweet tea was good. read more

Is there a way to give negative stars? It's like someone went through all the effort to build a place on the water and just kind of gave up. This place is crying out for Gordon Ramsay to give it a make-over. Obviously there are some operational issues, when the waitresses are running around frantically, the manager is no where in sight, and there are long aggressive pauses at the kitchen window. The bad management trickles down to the kitchen and the over all experience. St. Marks is a speck on the map, and there is so much potential with this location. Until someone finds a passion to run this restaurant the way it should be, the one-star reviews will keep coming. read more

Omg. I had such a wonderful time. The food and the atmosphere brought me back to my younger years when I grew up in Florida. I'm so happy that I happened upon this place on my journey. The food and the people are awesome. If you get the chance and you are in a deserving frame of mind, you will love it. As I did. read more

Such a fun experience while in town visiting family. Who wouldn't enjoy the atmosphere and entertainment of a good ole country spot in town? You seat yourself upon arrival and a server will greet you. They are dog friendly & let me just say we saw the CUTEST bloodhound while there. I'd like to come back and visit during the daytime to fully embrace the river view and scenery. The prices are not bad because the food is delicious. Some members in our party had cold French fries but other than that - nothing to complain about. The music was wonderful and lively. We will definitely be back when we are in town again. read more

What a fun place! Love the atmosphere. Come by boat and hang out. Laid back, good simple food, reasonably priced, casual and relaxing. Stan the owner will come over and say hi. Salt-Life days! read more

Food was not good at all. Multiple people have given this four stars and I do not know how. Scallops were overcooked and over spiced. They were out of oysters and grits. The rice was overcooked. The pickle spears were not great. Too much breading. The live music was too loud. The server was nice. A lot of potential but horrible food. Go to scooters if you want a great burger. read more

Great location and service.one of the best views near Tallahassee- closes water to the city. Great drinks. Try the smoked mullet- a local delicacy. read more

Riverside Cafe - View - Seafood Near Me - Saint Marks, Florida

We visited this place back in May of this year since it was an old favorite of several from our party. I was wary after reading the reviews here but most all of it turned out to be true and then some. The food was mediocre, service was absolutely horrendous for no apparent reason as it wasn't very busy when we first arrived. It took 20 minutes just to get noticed and we had a party of 12 people. Food orders were confused, and overpriced drinks never made their appearance sometimes. The ambiance is total dive, which is fine by me as I am normally a connoisseur of dive bars but 3.50 for a domestic beer??? Really? The only saving grace was the location on the water, which is why they can get away with what they charge and the lousy service. That alone gave it a star. The band was mostly set up when we arrived but left the PA on, which was emitting a high pitched squeal until they took the stage almost an hour later. Nobody cared to tell them to turn off their equip.. is there even management in this place? Does anyone here give a s***? Nope. That about sums it up. read more

Riverside offers a great selection of local, fresh seafood at a solid price. The café is very out of the way, especially if you're coming from Tallahassee, but it still seems to call people down. I have friends who swear by it as the go-to seafood restaurant in the area if you want the fish to be as fresh as possible. I loved my grilled grouper sandwich, and my girlfriend the fried shrimp basket, so I think they might have been right all this time. The prices weren't bad either, with even the more popular varieties of fish still between $10 and $15. The space is a typical seaside shanty type of place with a tiki bar and stage for the occasional Friday night band. Yet, the view of the meandering St. Marks River is what really adds some flair to the experience. Overall, Riverside seems to be a great, relaxing way to spend a Saturday afternoon while hanging out near the St. Marks River and Forgotten Coast. read more

Riverside Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Saint Marks, Florida

See all

This was one of our favorite places to come, have a drink and dinner. Unfortunately, the service and the food deteriorates every visit. Today we waited 2 hours for a burger and oyster basket. The restaurant was not busy, and when the food arrived it was nasty. The fries were cold and hard, obviously old. The oyster basket was greasy and nasty. The burger was raw and appeared to have been seared quickly to rush the order out. The atmosphere and views are amazing. Unfortunately the restaurant itself is deteriorating. Hopefully the owner, whom according to the bartender is old and doesn't care anymore, realizes what is happening before it gets any worse. Will twice before coming back read more

Went on a Sunday night around 5:00. They had a band playing, not too crowded. Went to sit outside by the bar. Rachel the bartender was our highlight of the evening! Kept the beers coming! But the food took one hour and 30 minutes to arrive. The shrimp in the shrimp baskets were very good. The fries were dried out and cold. The chicken strip basket was over cooked and dried out. Wish we had known the food would take so long to get- we would not have ordered the food. The river view was nice. Saw many people in boats try to dock their boats and ended up hitting the docked/parked boats. If food had been good and swiftly served would have given a 4 star. read more

This place is right on the river and It has slowly improved over the years. Giant tiki bar with live music sometimes. I like the fried shrimp basket. Being on the river is nice and there is a beautiful view across the river. In Tallahassee, go south on Monroe St. it turns into Woodville hywy. Stay south and it guns right into Riverside Cafe in St. Marks. read more

See all

We've been to Riverside Cafe dozens of times over the years and will NEVER return. After a dinner of mixed quality (grouper sandwich was good, oysters were tiny and bland), we got the bill and discovered that they charged $1 each for tap water. I figured it must be a mistake so I asked. The manager/owner came over and confirmed they charge for tap water on festival days. I get it if you're looking for free water with no food during the stone crab fest, but we spent $100+ on dinner and he still was firm on charging for water. The absolute disrespect and inflexibility of Riverside's leadership lost them customers tonight. read more

Great environment. Lil pricey but definitely a cool spot. Too bad they were out of oysters!

Tourist trap! One of the superpowers bequeathed to natives of Panama City is the ability to smell a tourist trap from a mile away. Now, if you can go in with understanding this fact, one can still have a halfway decent meal at the Riverside Cafe. Near the Riverside Cafe there are also a barbecue joint and a "cantina" but both were closed during our holiday visit. Riverside Cafe is open 7 days a week. Having driven all that way into the wilderness of the river there wasn't much debate between the members of our dining party as it was either the Riverside Cafe or drive miles back up the highway. The Riverside Cafe, along with the other restaurants in St. Marks, is located at the southern terminus of the Tallahassee-St. Marks Historic Railroad Trail, a paved biking path that runs about 20 miles between the two towns and is built on the path of an old railway. Many of our fellow diners were cyclists. Considering that ours was one of only two cars out front we were surprised to see how busy the dining room was until we saw all the bicycles parked in front of the door. Why do I call the Riverside Cafe a tourist trap? Well, it has many of the negative attributes commonly associated with the trope, such as unnecessarily high prices and cutting the corners they hope you won't mind. At the same time, one of the great positives of tourist traps is they often occupy the prime real estate and have awesome views. So is the case with the Riverside Cafe. This restaurant is located directly on the St. Marks river (you really can't appreciate this from the outside) and offers a great views of boats scooting across the river, people tying up at the dock and coming into the cafe to dine, and seagulls and pelicans swooping about and perching on the beams of the dock just outside the confines of the dining room. The kids ought to really enjoy the opportunity for such an up-close view of pelicans, which really are majestic creatures. The dining area has a couple of covered rooms open to the air and also a completely open air bar running along the edge which provides the very best view of the river. What about that corner cutting? One of my biggest restaurant peeves is when a place tries to rip you off on your beverages. To me, high-priced alcohol at these places is just the way it is, but to overcharge for soft drinks? Come on! At the Riverside Cafe they serve Coke products, no free refills, brought to you as a cup of ice in a styrofoam cup and a 12 oz can. How much for this luxury treatment? $1.68! Why on earth is it reasonable to ask me to pay $1.68 for a 12 oz can of coke? I understand this restaurant's location is a bit more isolated than many, but I still don't see why they can't lower that price or move to a better drink service. The food consists of various seafood offerings, burgers, and sandwiches. There is no lunch menu, as far as I could tell. I chose to have the River Burger, whose name and description sounded like it might be one of the Riverside Cafe's signature items. The River Burger is a 1/2 lb. burger served on on light rye with jalapenos, mushrooms, swiss cheese, Heinz 57, and mayonnaise. I asked them to hold the mayo on mine. It was actually a pretty good burger. Better than most burgers I've had in this style lately. I was a little skeptical of the rye bread and the Heinz 57 on a burger, but all the flavors really went well together. Jalapenos weren't very hot at all. Fries were pretty good example of generic, frozen/fried fries. Fine with me. I do wish that that burger was a bit cheaper than $8.99 though. Seemed a bit high for what it was. Service was "ok." Seat yourself. All-in-all, a neat place to eat a meal and drink a beer while watching the action on the river. read more

Although the place looks kinda fun from the outside, the food is terrible. At least what we had was! The blackened fish "world famous" sandwich was not fresh. The only redeeming bits were the unsweetened tea and blue crab fritters that smacked of a hushpuppy. Clearly this is a place to get your drink on--not to eat. In addition it's pricey. And slow. And while waiting the wait staff was confused as to what food was ordered from what table. We were asked at least 3 times if certain baskets of this stuff was ours. Not recommended. Next time I'll try "Cooter Stew" across the street. read more

Riverside Cafe - Looking forward to seafood! ;p - Seafood Near Me - Saint Marks, Florida

Ok food but it is the setting that I the winner here. On the river, with a steady parade of interesting boats and people. Food is casual and slow when busy but it's hard to find a better place for a beer and burger or grouper sandwich on a nice afternoon. Dock your boat out back and enjoy! read more

Riverside Cafe - April 3rd, 2010 - Seafood Near Me - Saint Marks, Florida

See all

Very impressed with our meal today at Riverside Cafe. We have been here several times in the past and today, without a doubt, was the best meal we have ever had here. Stacy our waitress was wonderful and very helpful with both drink and meal suggestions. Several in our group had the First Mates Platter with fried oysters, grouper and shrimp. The portions were very big and everything was cooked perfectly. I had The Other Guys Chicken sandwich which was incredible. I really enjoy spicy food so I will definitely be getting this sandwich again. Can't wait for our next trip back!! read more

1. Location gets a C its a little bit of a hike from tally, but a good little day trip can go to the light house, and the old fort. 2. The setting gets a B. Its not really nice, nor on a bay or beach. It's a nice opened air wooden seafood shack on the river. It's what a tourist trap Margaritaville tries to be. 3. Food gets B its not outstanding, but beats most of tally fish spots. Its good, but no Captian Anderson's in PCB or Jonas in Thomasville. 4. Service gets a C. It can be slow due to the small kitchen 5. Bar Service gets a C. It's average. So overall it's a C plus that I rounded up to a B. Take a day trip from tally to st marks and stop in. Kick back relax watch boats go by have some drinks and grab a fish sandwich or something. My go to is Grouper sandwich. read more

Great view and Blackened Grouper Sandwich, with Mermaid Water to drink and love the live music on the weekends! Good Times !

I have eaten here at least 5 times. Every time I have enjoyed a great meal and great service. My most recent visit was today. I had the grilled fish and shrimp and grilled veggies over cheese grits plus side salad. It was delicious as were every one of my meals here. I love coming to St. Marks with my bike or by kayak and always look forward to eating here. It is dog friendly which gives ir extra points with me. Their draft beer selection could be better but that is my only negative. read more

We went later last night and sat ourselves outside on the dock. We got to watch little crabs scramble along. My husband said the bacon burger was good. We plan on going again during the day to watch the othermarine life that our waitress told us about read more

Next location right on the river in a small town. All outdoor, but covered, seating. They were under staffed, but that looks like the norm from other reviews. I found the staff friendly but then again I'm actually patient and nice to those who serve me regardless of wait time or even if they're are in grumpy moods. A smile is contagious. The bacon wrapped shrimp was good, but how do you mess that up? The seafood gumbo was a bit over spiced and masked some good flavors. The crab bites were very tasty, but a bit mushy in texture. If I'm ever in the area, I'll visit again. read more

See all

Asked the waiter what he suggested. He suggested the World Famous Riverside fish sandwich. $3 dollars extra to make it a grouper sandwich. The grouper was about 1/8" thin!! It will be quite a while before I return. $13.99 for grouper fish sandwich. read more

We have been here many times. They are always busy. Busy is ok. Slow service is ok. Bad attitudes are not ok. Waited 15 minutes for anyone to talk to our table after seeing three other tables get service ahead of us. Simply asked a waitress who was waiting on our table. As she was walking away she said that they were busy and would get to us when they could. We left. read more

Good food, good service......but capacity has outgrown the kitchen. Don't go hungry because wait time is 25 min for appetizers and 1 hour for food. The kitchen is literally the original kitchen from when the place was a home. Also, the music is 80's and 90's rock but there was a guy practicing with his electric guitar(they have live bands so I guess he was rehearsing) ruining the music. This restaurant is a diamond in the rough, an investor could make this into a gold mine. read more