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    Smokehouse On The River

    2.7 (60 reviews)
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    SMOKEHOUSE ON THE RIVER ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Smokehouse On The River

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    The restaurant sign
    Mike M.

    Not a bad little restaurant tucked away in River Ranches We walked in on a a very busy New Years weekend and we were told 1 1/2 hours wait. We waited and 30 minutes, and we were seated. I ordered the ribeye steak with onion rings and bbq beans The steak was supposed to be 14 ounces but I can't really believe it was, although it was quité tasty. The onion rings were perfect. Once we received our food, we never saw our server again. I guess it's hard to complain if it's the only place in town.

    Westgate smokehouse
    Javier R.

    Westgate smokehouse has good food the barbecue is real!!! They really smoking ribs and meats. It's definitely juicy and smoked to perfection. I had the burger and I highly recommend it. The ribs are huge, juicy, and full of Smokey flavor with amazing smoke rings on the meat it self. They know what their doing in the kitchen. Definitely try this place if your ever at westgate river ranch...

    Burger
    Ali C.

    Decent enough food for a resort restaurant. As you can see in the photos, the portions are large. Burger & fries tasted yummy, garlic parm wings were not crispy enough and lacked flavor, could have definitely used more garlic. The server was very attentive give to our large group of 11 (8 were kids), she kept the drinks filled & checked in often. The restaurant followed strict COVID guidelines. I ordered a lemon drop martini and they said they "didn't know if they had that" which is a pretty basic drink so I was a bit disappointed in that. The drink menu was all really sweet concoctions that didn't appeal to me. Over all good experience but def not 5 star.

    Dave O.

    I booked a RV Site at River Ranch RV Resort which comes with many amenities including all the fun things to see and do at the Westgate property, Westgate Smokehouse Grill is one of several restaurants on the property. We arrived here early evening to grab a burger on the day we arrived, We were seated immediately and our server Heather arrived within a minute or two with two menus and a friendly smile - after spending a few hours setting up camp in the Florida heat and a few beers all we wanted to do was hydrate so we both decided on a large unsweetened ice tea and boy let me tell you it's the real deal here, strong brewed and refreshing. The restaurant wasn't extremely busy but after we were seated it seemed lots of the guest had the same idea we did, there was a steady flow of customers and as large as the dining area is it became apparent this place was quite popular. Heather returned with our teas and we placed our dinner order, although it was Friday Night Fish Fry, the smell coming off the large bbq pit outside had us both wanting something with a little smoke, this monster pit was attended by nothing other than a cowboy with a ten gallon hat and definitely a pit master. The half pound of certified beef was cooked to a perfect medium, the fresh toasted bun topped with vine ripened tomatoes, crispy lettuce, thinly sliced red onion and pickles made this burger a great choice it was delicious - the sides are either fries or slaw, we opted for the fries, tornado cut also known a spiral not the most common cut but fitting and cooked crispy. This place exceeded my expectations, and I set the bar pretty high in regards to the food, the service was very good as well, being this place is located a few miles south of nowhere and it's a real ranch I'm going to say the place looked a little worn or maybe it was just that it had the atmosphere of a chuckwagon after a long cattle drive, a little dusty and in disarray but I'm not gonna penalize them for that it kinda adds to the authenticity...

    Eric R.

    Quite possibly the longest wait for a table and food service I've ever experienced. After finally getting seated after 45 min, we sat at our table and waited on the server... and waited... and waited. Then she/he came to take our drink order and we put drinks and food in, because the reputation of bad service preceded them. It took 15 minutes just for our drinks to come out. Then after 45 minutes our food arrived. We had to wolf it down to get out of there to the rodeo, so we could get a seat. I think my burger tasted good? I didn't have time to eat my fries before we raced out. We asked for our bill when the food was delivered so the server would get it to us. The only reason this place can exist is because the audience is captive with literally nowhere else to go.

    a basket of food
    Doris R.

    Enjoyed my time as we were celebrating our friend 30th birthday. The food was very good and the atmosphere was great as well. We all ordered something different which I can't remember everything we ordered but I can say everyone left satisfied.

    Open to the public, scenic spot on the River. Service & food was good. Chicken wings were plump, but need more sauce to add flavor. Fun spot for the family! Game room is also cool for the kids!

    Outdoor seating.
    Monica R.

    As part of our RV trip, we ran out of dinner options while staying at River Ranch. We decided to stop in for dinner at the only dine in restaurant on the site. Location is great and we decided to sit outside. What I can honestly say is it wasn't bad and it wasn't the greatest. The place was completely empty. We were the only ones sitting. As an appetizer we ordered the alligator nuggets. Actually this was pretty good. As my meal, I ordered the shrimp skewers with a baked potato and salad. It was okay. I ate it. My husband had the bbq chicken and ribs. He only ate the ribs. He stated it was too saucy. He didn't find anything impressing. I would imagine if we would have come in on another day then maybe the vibe would have been better. But the food is average and just a bit pricey.

    Ranch house salad, combination platter with fries and slaw
    Jessica S.

    Good food, server was nice as well as all other employees we encountered, covid protocols all seemed to be followed by employees. We split a salad that was listed as an appetizer and the combination platter. It was a perfect amount for us to share and get a taste of most of the menu. Everything was good. Personally I dislike all the wasted plastic silverware and paper plates and individual sauces etc.. too much waste, but that seems to be most places right now. The beer was super cold so that was great!

    This is most of the FAT, there was even more. That's what I paid $22 for.
    Dr Don S.

    Westgate Smokehouse Grill IF WERE YOU I WOULD AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COSTS!! WORST BBQ PLACE I HAVE EVER BEEN TOO. I should have read the reviews better before going. We were all hungry and this was the closest restaurant. BIG MISTAKE!!! We ordered Smokehouse Combination Platter at $22. It must have been leftovers from a few days ago. It was barely warm. The Brisket was as hard as a rock and was over 50% FAT!! The pulled chicken was mostly FAT, the bun at the bottom was also as hard as a rock. Another piece of Chicken came with it that was all dark meat and not very good. Service was also very bad. The lady never came back to the table to ask if we needed anything. All the servers were in the butler area talking, why take care of the customers. I laid out all the fat on a piece of paper and asked the server to show this to the chef, she had nothing to say!! I took a picture of all the fat and will post it. That was most of the meal. Differently not worth $22. Being the only ones in the restaurant at dinner

    Cass G.

    The meals come on plates that look like cast iron skillets...they're not really. Cute theme! The barbecue chicken was really tasty and the waitress was super nice and answered our questions about the resort. We are looking for an available weekend to go to this resort!! Check it out!

    Paul P.

    I'm not sure why they only have a 2.5 star rating. When we entered we were greeted immediately then sat after our temperature was taken. The server was super friendly and our food was very good. So there you go.......We will definitely return by boat next time and spend a night or two.

    A combo with brisket.

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    6 months ago

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    3 years ago

    Horrible prices and even worse food! Avoid this place! Management is not helpful either.

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - Smokehouse On The River

    The Crooked Bass Grill and Tavern

    The Crooked Bass Grill and Tavern

    3.9(131 reviews)
    21.0 mi
    $$
    Established in 2016
    Takes reservations

    Excellent food, Excellent servers with many choices! Owners…read moreare accommodating and professional. Love going here! Also 2 choices - inside or outside under a fantastic thatched roof. Outside entertainment also!!

    Awful! We live in the area and come often.. we sat at 7.. took 20 minutes for server to even get to…read morethe table.. we received our food at 9! That's right 9! We ordered 3 burgers (2 med, 1 well done, the well done being for a child) and 2 tunas.. all 3 burgers came out wrong (wrong temp and wrong toppings, one burger had wire brushing in it, which owner argued, saying there's no way) tuna was ice cold, and not seared cold, like fridge cold (which again owner argued saying there's is no way) . Server was great and apologized over and over ( which she should not be apologizing she's not the one in the kitchen) owner (female) finally came to the table, asked us how our dinner was. When we expressed how it was, she began to argue with us, saying there is no way that things were wrong. At one point addressing the server as if she was the one who made our food. At this point, we had enough and knew it was not going anywhere! The owner did take off 1 burger and 1 tuna.. which was appreciated. After being talked down too, we all expressed at the table, that we would rather just pay our bill and leave! Not one time were we rude, disrespectful or mean in any way to be spoken to the way she spoke to us. Absolutely wild experience! We truly love this place.. but this has definitely set a tone. Edit... Her response says it all! Facial expressions were because we were absolutely appalled at the fact that she was arguing about our experience! While ahi tuna is supposed to have a cool center the fish was ICE COLD.. FRIDGE TEMP FROM TOP TO CENTER! When asked to take it back to heat it.. it was microwaved.. which then turned it gray.. but once returned that pink center was cool, not FRIDGE COLD! The wire brush was in the burger.. she argued with us stating it was a hair from the onion(which burger was supposed to have no onion) .. even though you could perfectly see it was a copper wire of some sort! Mind you it was found at the end of the burger. The reason we didn't take the offer of new food, is because we were done.. 2 hours to get our food, and they waited till the absolute end, to approach our table! By that point we had eaten what we could and she was speaking to us by this point like we were awful people.. WHY WOULD WE STAY ANOTHER HOUR! Especially after being talked to like she was! We couldn't get a word in! So as you can tell about her response from here, you can only imagine her response in real time!!! Horrible display of an owner!

    Photos
    The Crooked Bass Grill and Tavern - 2 lbs of Snow Crab Deliciousness!

    2 lbs of Snow Crab Deliciousness!

    The Crooked Bass Grill and Tavern
    The Crooked Bass Grill and Tavern

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    Lake Wales Family Restaurant

    Lake Wales Family Restaurant

    4.5(221 reviews)
    26.0 mi
    $$

    First visit after discovering on YELP and wow! Very tasty food and great service. Today we ordered…read moreFried Green Tomatoes ($9), Chef Salad($13.70), Texas Club Sandwich with gone fries($12.50), and Country Fried Chicken with sides of mashed potatoes and corn ($14.20). Nothing was overly salty and everything we ordered we would all order again. The Chef Salad was large and looked fancy with fresh vegetables and lettuce and meat and cheese roll ups. The Texas Club was a tasty chicken salad sandwich on crisp Texas Toast with a nice light taste. The Country Fried Chicken was moist, easy to cut with a fork and seasoned just right. We don't often find a fried chicken breast as nice as this one. The fried green tomatoes were plentiful and prepared just right and perfectly crisp. Our server today was Annabel and she was just as friendly and attentive as we wanted/needed. When we sat down, I was hoping this might become my new favorite restaurant and they lived up to that hope. We live close to an hour away but I'm thinking we may drive back for breakfast tomorrow. This is most definitely a highly recommended place to visit.

    We went to Lake Wales Family Restaurant for the all you can eat ribs! Let me just say...WOW. The…read moreribs were fall off the bone delicious with just the right amount of HOMEMADE barbecue sauce! Sorry no pictures! Give them a try! I don't think you will be disappointed!

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    Lake Wales Family Restaurant - Entry interior

    Entry interior

    Lake Wales Family Restaurant - Chef Salad

    Chef Salad

    Lake Wales Family Restaurant - Interior

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    Interior

    Jay Bees - Liver and onions with mashed potatoes and gravy

    Jay Bees

    4.2(52 reviews)
    17.7 mi
    $$

    We stopped for lunch at this family owned restaurant. It's a cross between a diner and a…read moreluncheonette, but bigger inside. There are both booths and tables. Every time we have passed this place in the past, there's always been a full lot of cars. Last time, I bookmarked it for a future visit. Today was the day. It was seat yourself which we did. Our friendly server brought menus and later drinks while we decided what to order. They had a couple specials on the board -- fried shrimp and catfish. Along with two other veggies of the day and a couple pies available. My husband decided to order liver and onion with his choice of two sides of mashed potatoes and gravy and apple sauce. His mother used to make this. I don't cook liver, so when he sees it on a menu he gets it. He said it was excellent. One of the reviews I'd read mentioned liking a patty melt. As I had not had one of those in years, it sounded appealing. I got mine without onions. The cheeseburger was perfectly cooked with two different cheeses between fried rye bread. A tad greasy, but delicious. I chose mashed potatoes instead of fries. The brown gravy was hot and went well with the potatoes. For dessert, we shared a slice of coconut cream pie. A little bit artificial, but just enough sweetness to satisfy. Between home style food, decent prices, and very nice staff, we decided we'd definitely be coming here again in the future.

    A delightful lunch stop on the way to Tampa today. Friendly…read morepeople and fast service. A variety of items and specials to choose. I ordered the Liver and onions, which came with mashed potatoes and gravy and my choice of apple sauce. This was delicious! Just like Mom used to make! My wife and I shared a slice of Coconut cream for dessert, also wonderful. Making this a repeated stop when traveling this way again!

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    Jay Bees
    Jay Bees - Patty melt with mashed potatoes

    Patty melt with mashed potatoes

    Jay Bees - Inside tables

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    Inside tables

    All American Eats - Pretzel bites with a cheese sauce

    All American Eats

    4.8(29 reviews)
    36.2 mi
    $$

    For it being a food truck next to a motel on the side of the road, the portion sizes and taste of…read morethe food were pretty remarkable. My husband and I split an order of the 6 ct. traditional wings (buffalo sauce, medium heat), and while they were good, I really wish the heat had a little more of a kick. The spice level here definitely caters more to the older whiter crowd, so order higher heat if you want it!! I got the seafood combo platter, which includes a crab cake, broccoli, fried shrimp (think bloomin onion from Outback Steakhouse seasoning), and while it was supposed to include mashed potatoes, I guess they were out of it. They didn't inform us ahead of time and subbed it out for a seafood pasta salad instead, so a little bummed there, but the food was pretty good otherwise. I tried a bite of my husband's reuben sandwich and it was fantastic! The way they do their bread is so good. In all, there are some things here and there they could definitely improve on (communication on items out of stock), and the food is just ever so slightly pricey, but it's a good meal that you'll probably have at least a little left over.

    All American Eats is a loud and proud American food establishment that has a little bit of…read moreeverything on their gigantic and ever evolving menu and I was happy to say I enjoyed everything I sampled. Its location is great and the staff was wonderful in bringing the food out to us in our car once it was ready so we didn't have to wait in the heat. The Corned Beef/Pastrmai Reuben was one of the best I've had outside of a northern Jewish deli. Fresh, hot and with a generous amount of meat. I paired it with their pasta salad and really enjoyed the rich flavor, although I do believe there was a bit of an upcharge that was snuck in for it. The Seafood combo included a "Maryland style" crabcake, which is always a dubious claim as I am a Baltimore boy. All American Eats advertised no filler, and to their credit, they absolutely were truthful there. It was still not holding a candle to a true Maryland crab cake, but it's one of the best I've had in Florida. The butter roll and broccoli we had alongside it was delicious. We received a seafood pasta salad in place of the mashed potatoes we were expecting which was a bit disappointing as we were looking forward to trying that particular side dish and neither my wife nor I enjoyed the seafood pasta salad too much. The wings were generous on the sauce and we ordered medium buffalo as a spice precaution, but I think we'll get spicy or hot next time, as medium fell completely flat with no heat registering for me. Overall, this is absolutely somewhere we would get food from again, as we're eager to sample more items from the vast menu on offer.

    Photos
    All American Eats - Sitting at our favorite table enjoying great food and wonderful conversation. Thank you AAE!!!

    Sitting at our favorite table enjoying great food and wonderful conversation. Thank you AAE!!!

    All American Eats - Philly cheesesteak and Antipasto Pasta Salad

    Philly cheesesteak and Antipasto Pasta Salad

    All American Eats - Outdoor seating area

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    Outdoor seating area

    Smokehouse On The River - tradamerican - Updated September 2026

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