Dive bar Nirvana!!! This place is awesome in so many ways. The gal bartender sporting the Mohawk that is as colorful as her personality is awesome!!!! Don't expect cocktails here, just down and dirty mixed drinks, shots and beer, exactly what they should be serving. The burgers, cooked on a flat top, are phenomenal, served with hand cut fries, see photo. If you are an Applebees or Chilis kind of person this is most definitely not a place for you. BTY, pool is free!!! read more

The Blue Wave - Kick ass good Big Burger with American cheese - Dive Bars Near Me - Idaho Falls, Idaho

Terrible service tonight at Blue Wave! We've had good service in the past but tonight was awful. Took an hour and 20 minutes for burgers. Ordered Patty Melts and got sourdough bread not rye and never they never mentioned it they were out. Burgers were bland and they forgot the fries with one burger. Had to choke down burgers in just 5 minutes to make the game. We honestly almost left. Do better Blue Wave! Not recommended if you need to get somewhere. If you have several hours to burn, I guess this is your place. read more

I was so hopeful... This is definitely a dive bar for locals. We came in for an early dinner and there were several families dining in playing pool or giant jenga with their kids. It was such a fun vibe. A coworker suggested Blue Wave and we were excited to try "the best burgers in Idaho Falls". Unfortunately, outside of the fun atmosphere, the rest of the experience was lackluster. We seated ourselves and waited close to 20 minutes for anyone to acknowledge we were there. It wasn't just us either. The table across from us were also clearly tapping their feet in anticipation. Someone from that table actually ended up walking over to the bar to ask for service. Once our waitress finally made it to the table, we had mulled over what we were going to order more times than I can count. But alas, we made a decision. We ordered mini corndogs, a pastrami burger for my fiancé, and a mushroom & swiss burger for myself. Both burgers came with a side of fries -- I wanted tater tots but they were all out. Let's talk taste. The mini corndogs were burnt. I actually think they would've tasted so much better if that weren't the case. The chef gave us more corndogs than what's on the menu but that's probably because he knew they were burnt (LOL)! The pastrami burger was meh. I can't think of another word to describe it. The beef patty was overcooked and the pastrami slices were dry. My mushroom & swiss burger was better but still not good. The beef patty was cooked to a medium-well but lacked flavor. There were no condiments on my burger so I kept dipping it in fry sauce hoping that would give it some life. I'm not sure why The Blue Wave gets hyped up so much. We won't be coming back -- at least not for the food. read more

See all

Jen and Dallas were amazing servers the food was amazing and all in all 10/10. They were super friendly made me feel right at home greeted me right when I came through the door definitely a must try. read more

The food was good. Service was good. The music selection someone chose drove us out of there. Obscure Rap/Hip Hop/Angry. Felt like I was somewhere else. Next time I'll pay for "priority" on my songs. read more

We had the brisket today for lunch; simply delicious with a generous side of hot fries. Our server was very attentive, we are sorry we didn't get her name. The brisket is featured close to Halloween; not on the daily menu. Can't wait til next Halloween! Pleasantly and Friendly! read more

Usually cold inside the restaurant, good burgers, a bit of a dive bar, has a pool table, Service was polite and cost was reasonable.

Awesome local bar, great food, tasty drinks, pool tables and super employees. What more could you ask for. Always good specials too

If you're like me and love a good dive bar, this is the place for you! Awesome burgers done on the flat top, great assortment of beer. And that dive bar atmosphere that I love. Give it a try next time you're looking for a great burger and the dive bar experience! read more

The Blue Wave has the best burgers in Idaho Falls. The staff always treats me well and is friendly. read more

The Blue Wave - Double Fromage Burger - Dive Bars Near Me - Idaho Falls, Idaho

See all

My wife and I went to try it on June 2, 2023. We heard the food was good but we didn't get a chance to try it. The waitress waited on 2 other groups that came in after. Then 3 ladies went up to the bar and she served them drinks, mind you we have not been served drinks or even spoke to the waitress. She had acknowledged us and said she would be right with us. That was before she served the ladies drinks and another lady came and was waited on. If this is how you treat patrons we want no part of it. We waited over 30 minutes for nothing. We will never be back your service is probably the absolute worst we have seen. We have family coming to visit and this place was on our list to go to. I don't know how you can turn profits like this. The waitress was a blonde with a Mohawk. read more

We always get the steak fajitas with potatoe skins and have never been disappointed the severs is always wonderful

The food was great and the service even better!! Between Isis, Murphy and Travis I had an epic experience for my first visit to Idaho Falls. You guys were amazing!!! read more

Neighborhood dive bar that grills its burgers with pride, cooks proper fries, and doesn't charge too much for the cold beer. A few taps ranging from the national swill to the local ambrosia. Enough TVs and pool tables to keep the entertainment lively, with a few quiet corners, tables and a bar to settle in. People can be a little stiff at times when they're slammed, but nice and welcoming when things are quieter. Located next to the Senior Citizens Center and a large cemetery, just down the road from the local zoo. Clientele can be rough at times but folks are generally civil and respectful. read more

The Blue Wave - Asked for the game and no problem. - Dive Bars Near Me - Idaho Falls, Idaho

See all

One word, gross!! Don't go here, it's the worst run down bar in Idaho falls and super dirty inside and i wouldn't trust the food to even give to my dog. read more

The kid cooking was a bitch. All he could think of was getting off work. Burger was under cooked and the tots were soggy. Terrible service and tail beer on draft. Stick to bottled beer at this place. read more

Totally cool vibe, great grub, cool staff. I wish it were just a little bigger but only for more room around the pool table. Recommended.

I have so many memories of this place. It's always been a favorite with our family. I especially loved work lunches here with my dad before he died. I have eaten here with friends and family at least 10 times since summer. I'm sorry to say last Saturday night was my last time though. The guys running the place were so incredibly rude to us and especially my mom. They didn't acknowledge that we had sat down for a half hour and finally we had to go ask someone to come take our order. Our overcooked food was dropped off ages later and no one ever came to check on us again. When my mom went to the counter to pay they ignored her and then had a rude conversation about her as though she wasn't there even though they were looking at her. I feel like my family has been betrayed. A place that rewards decades of established patronage with insults and discourtesy can't be trusted. It was a special night for us with several family members there from out of town and our evening was ruined. I can't believe they did that. :( read more

Asked for a grilled bacon tomato cheese sandwich and ice tea- ice tea was very watered down; and my sandwich was basically toast- no cheese- with quartered tomato chunks and very under cooked bacon. Very sad because The Blue Wave used to have the best food - not sure what happened in the last 2 years but might be time for a new cook - won't be back read more

This place has gone down hill the food is nothing like it use to be the service slow and the people are rude, that's the last two times I've been in and probably the last time ever. read more

Love the blue wave. Good food good drinks. Good people. It's is a cool , clean, great for hottys.

Food is good for a bar, but the service is awful. Went in today and sat at the bar for 10 minutes. They washed glasses, refilled other patrons' beers, but didn't say a word to me. Finally I had to ask to order. Then the woman behind the bar says "It's an hour wait for food." The bar was only about half full. What could possibly take an hour to cook? So if you're going there for lunch, I suggest you first ask when someone will be taking your order. Then they might tell you at least how long it will be before you get it. read more

The Blue Wave is an interesting but fun place. It is a little old school, and smoking is allowed. The food is quite greasy, but the fries are good. They have a good selection of beer, and a full bar. The service is fast and the prices are decent. They have a few slot machines, and 2 pool tables. It is a great place to hang out if you don't mind going home smelling like smoke. read more

The Blue Wave - The Blue Wave - Dive Bars Near Me - Idaho Falls, Idaho

Jake is a super good cook, the food was old school bigger joint prefect and the service was great read more

The Blue Wave - Dive Bars Near Me - Idaho Falls, Idaho

Taylor is definitely the coolest and efficient, friendly girl!!! Go see her and get some yummy drinks and food!

I came in last night and ordered a pint of the hazel nut flavored beer. It was delicious, if you like hazelnut. The bartender told me that this place recently won a burger competition for Idaho Falls, it the kit hen was closed at that time. There is a $10 minimum card purchase, so, Laura, the friendly bar tender, charged me for a mushroom Swiss burger, to reach past the minimum $10 mark. I came in the next day/ today to try it out. replaced fries with a salad. The burger was pretty good. read more

See all

So this is the second and last time I will go to the blue wave. Who ever owns this needs to really work on your staff. About a month ago my wife and I went to the wave and never got waited on so we left. Today 5/5/19 my son and I went to the wave and the same service. If you don't sit at the bar and my son can't he's in a wheelchair you get looked at but no service. I work on the hart for a living thank god me or my crew don't deliver service like that or people will die. Never going to the blue wave again. I'll take my business anywhere else but there read more

The hamburgers have been rated "best" in SE Idaho. It's a hamburger in a dive bar tricked out in Hawaiian beach theme. So it's just ok. The service was terrible..fifty minutes from arrival to food in hand. We arrived just after 1pm and there were a dozen customers. There was one cook hustling both sides of the bar and one waitress. The two stars are for my grandson who loved the chicken strips otherwise it would've been one star. I won't be back. read more

My wife and I went in for a beer a couple weeks ago. People were starting to clear out from the supper crowd as it was about 8:00 and all the empty tables were not yet bussed. We sat at an empty table that needed bussed. The surly old waitress came over and asked why we were sitting there. I said, "Where would you have us?" She said in the back if we were only drinking. I said there isn't a table back there without crap on it. She curtly responded that she would go clean all those tables and then get our beer order. We just got up an left. We don't need that kind of really insulting service. We won't be back. read more

Yummy burgers and fries! Good dive bar. Try the kahuna burger, the grilled onions and mushrooms are delicious.

My boyfriend and I went into the Blue Wave a couple of weeks ago on a Thursday evening. It took a few minutes to get acknowledged, but once we were, we were given drinks fairly quickly. We weren't asked if we wanted food. I asked for a menu. I'm not sure why I ordered food considering the filth on the floor and around the cooking area, but I was starving and told myself that it would be fine since they were kinda busy when we arrived, and I was starving. I ordered a burger and fries and my boyfriend ordered a chicken sandwich with tots. When our food was ready it sat on the counter for a couple minutes before it was delivered. My boyfriend watched the bartender blow her nose, not wash her hands, and plop our food in front of us and walk away. The bottom bun of my burger was soaked in grease to the point it was falling apart, the fries were barely cooked on the inside and not even remotely brown or crisp. My boyfriend told me to taste his chicken burger and tots and tell him what it tasted like. Well, it tasted like a fish burger and the tots tasted like the grease in the fryer hadn't been changed any time in the recent past. We both ate less than a quarter of our meals. When we asked for the bill the bartender didn't even ask if everything was ok, even after she removed the food from in front of us. We were totally disgusted and will not be returning. Yes we should have said something while we were there but we just wanted to leave. This is definitely not the fun neighborhood bar with the best burgers in town like it was when it was the Blue Room. We ended up going to a drive thru and spending more money, just so we could have something to eat. read more

Horrible service today!!!! 10/14/17. The "wait staff" if you want to call them that, sucked bad today. We had to chase them down to order, food and drinks! If you expect to make money serving, learn how to serve and what customer service is. If I do walk in this business again and see these same people in there, I will instantly leave and take everyone I know with me. Just Horrible! read more

Perfect if you're looking for a dark and comfy dive bar. Their burgers are good and their breakfast is also pretty good and cheap! The beer is always cold. There is no longer smoking inside. read more

I was told about this place from a local. The food did not disappoint. I got the Mushroom Swiss burger and onion rings. Everything was good. Music was decent, and the employees were very personable. This will most likely be a regular when I visit. read more

We went in to The Blue Wave today for our usual good service and great burger. Unfortunately, what we expected was not what we got at all. I have written sterling reviews for The Blue Wave prior to this one because they had pretty good service but their burgers were outstanding. Best in town. As you may read in other reviews the service can sometimes be slow, when they are near capacity, but you order whatever you're going to drink and then you wait; because the burgers really were THAT good. I understand that they, very unfortunately, lost the cook that they'd had for some time. THAT guy. He could cook a burger. And we told him as much on any and all the occasions that he was there to cook our food. Always very considerate and amiable and the burgers, as I've mentioned, were fantastic. Top notch. Today, there were no familiar faces as far as wait staff and the cook was, obviously, different. We have not visited in a few months and we'd heard the news about the former cook so we knew there might be some change. Change, indeed. The service was very slow during what appeared to be a slow time. Less than 20 people, I'd estimate. Our server schlepped over, got our drink order and came back about ten minutes later with our drinks. The cook came over with the calamari we ordered after another 10 or so minutes. Alright. Another 20 or so minutes for our burgers. She put those down in front of us and promptly walked away. Ooooookay. First thing I noticed was my actual burger was about the size of a McDonald's burger and not much thicker at that. They use full size burger buns so that tiny burger looked like a silver dollar sitting in the middle of that huge bun. That had never happened before. I thought I could credit it to maybe I'd just gotten a "runt" but no; all our burgers were the same size, sitting on those giant buns. I tore off the excess bread and made it so I didn't have to eat through a half inch of bread before getting to the meat. In retrospect, I should have ditched the meat and cheese and just eaten the bun. I bit into the burger and that's where the real disappointment began. Completely overcooked. So much so that the middle was gray in color. Completely charred on the outside. Not quite burned through, but enough to leave a very noticeable after taste. If it had just been my burger I could maybe excuse it but it wasn't; it was all our burgers. We all just sat there; astounded at how poorly our food was cooked and how sub-par our service was. I left the majority of my burger after I'd eaten what was mostly edible and then went to the ladies room to wash my hands. My husband went up to the bar to pay our tab, which was still a little more than 40 dollars. As we were leaving he mentioned that he didn't leave a tip. We do not ever not leave a tip. We've had poor service before, but we've still left a tip. This was the complete, and utter, dissatisfaction that we experienced today. I posted this review today because "dive bar" or no; The Blue wave had a really good burger at one time. Sadly, that time seems to have left this mortal coil in the company of their former cook. It's not likely that my family will be visiting The Blue Wave again. I'm pretty sure Sonic could provide me a gourmet burger in comparison to the hockey puck we were all served today. Too bad, too..., it didn't used to be a bad little bar. read more

We love this place! The have the best burgers in town and they have awesome tater tots and fry sauce. Also when you need a beer this place sells the coldest beers around. read more

I walked in and then saw where the food was cooked and walked right out. The grill is behind the bar where patrons are smoking and where does the smoke go when they blow out? Right over the food. If this was a non-smoking establishment, I would return and try a burger. I only gave it 1 star because it won't let me give 0. read more

In a lot of the previous reviews people complained about the smoking. Well no need to worry about that anymore! Awhile back they closed for a few days and did a deep clean of everything when they reopened they had turned into a non-smoking establishment! Yay! All I've ever had there was the burgers and fries. Well I recently tried the chicken sandwich and it was WONDERFUL!! If you like tater tots they have great ones! The onion rings are awful that's my only complaint about them. I've been going here since I was a little girl and the food has always been very good. read more

The burgers here are fantastic. I'm a huge fan of the pastrami burger especially. The atmosphere is definitely dive bar. Craftsmen and sailors should feel right at home. No smoking though. Really great food. read more

Unless you'll be ordering beer with lunch, don't waste your time (literally). While they hold themselves out as a family friendly establishment, we watched four parties that arrived after we had ordered all receive their food before we did, even though they had ordered burgers just like us. The one common factor? They ordered beer, and we did not. The food? I wish I could say. After waiting a full hour from when we ordered, we had to leave before any food arrived. I want my hour back!! read more