Let me start off by saying If I could give no stars I would. Went to the River Grill last night for dinner. It was not the first time we have been there but it definitely will be the last. First our waiter did not pay any attention to us at all, 95% of the time he was wrapped up with the table next to us who I am going to assume were his friends. When he came to take our order 20 minutes after we had been sat, no bread or even asked if I would like another drink we ordered the calamari, I told him I could not have the red pepper on top because I can't do spicy, it had still come with the pepper. Then we had to wait another 45 minutes before he would even come take our dinner orders. Mind you he did serve his friends table who was seated after us. He still never asked if I wanted another drink or how everything g was going. We also finished the bottle of water and they only reason he knew to come ask if I wanted another bottle was because I turned it upside down in the holder. Finally when our meals came my girlfriends scallops were barely cooked and my steak felt it was sitting for an hour. All in all our dinner took almost 3 hours for crappy cooked food and extremely rude service. Not to mention we both barely made it home before getting sick. Will never be going to this place again. read more

On 07/20/13 we were at the river grill to celebrate my wife's 60 th birthday. We had called and arranged to have a table for 15 three months prior to this day. When we called we asked specifically if the weather was not suitable for outside if we could move inside. We were told no problem at all ! Upon our arrival at1 pm it was excruciatingly hot. Our table was set up outside but in the only spot with no ceiling fans! We asked immediately if we could move to a table inside. After several minutes we were told that they could not accommodate us and that another party was coming in at 230pm. My first reaction was to just leave and go elsewhere but we had family coming at different times and from distant places so after speaking with my birthday girl who by the way was sweating bullets by this time we decided we had better stick it out. After finally getting our supposed waitresses attention we ordered our food . We were supposed to have two waitresses . Not! Service was to say the least deplorable! Drinks and water Sat empty as we sweltered in the heat our guests seeming visibly uncomfortable. Now to top it off the severe weather that was broadcast came to fruition and the rain , thunder, and lightning let go. With no one from the restaurant responding to our needs we began to roll down the plastic curtains ourselves in an effort to stop the rain that was now blowing over our table and guests. Still no offer of inside seating. Unbelievable ! My poor wife! Well the storm finally passed and approx. 1 hour and forty five minutes later our food began to make its way from the kitchen. After receiving the food and asking our guests how everything was I was bemused by the lackluster responses given. After all this the food could not even produce. What a mess ! So anyway after all this it took me another twenty minutes to get the staff to bring out my wife's cake ! Thank God it was almost over! Now at approx. 515 pm I got my $ 423.00 check with the tip included of course for all the great service and accommodations that we received . Oh and don't forget the fine cuisine ! My advise to management is to shut the place down for a month and regroup, get it together , have a little common decency and treat people as you would want your wife and family treated! My advice to any new customers is that just because it's on the waterfront and pricey does not mean it's good. Just for point of interest my wife and I had been going there since its inception ! What a shame! Stay away folks you will be sorry !!! read more

I was there with my wife tonight.We have been there many times and the food and service have been excellent. However tonight we had a server, Jesus, that really was horrible. He told us the specials and took our order fine. When he brought the entrees he simply placed them down. Seeing that my wifes wine glass just had a small amount of wine he asked if she wanted another glass. She said no, not yet. Well that was all we saw of Jesus for a good half hour. I needed a beer and my wife now wanted another glass of wine but could not get his attention. After about 15 -20 minutes we asked the young man pouring water if he could please get out waiter. He said he would however we never had the additional drinks and finished out dinner. Never being asked if we needed something and was every thing allright. After we had finished Jesus appeared and asked if we wanted anything else. When we complained to him about his service he did not apoligize instead he stated that you had visted out table twice and had asked if we wanted anything. A total lie. read more

I am not the one to complain about eating out, or writing reviews. But after yesterday's experience at River Grill I felt I had to do this. 1) We had a 2 p.m. reservation, and still had to wait for the table for at least 20 minutes. We had three children with us, one of them a 3-month old. Understandably, it was Mother's Day, the restaurant was busy. So, no problem. We'll wait. 2) Service was horrible. When we finally were seated, there was only a hastily strewn table cloth and utensils on the table, no glasses. We had to ask three times for glasses with water to be brought. Waited 15 minutes more. You would think, that salt and pepper, and menus come standard at restaurants. Not here! Had to ask for each item several times. 3) We quickly understood that this was going to be the pattern, and rushed into placing our appetizer and main course orders at once. Limp salads were drenched in salad dressing. 4) My 9-year-old daughter ordered apple juice. Ten she commented it tasted "fizzy". Well, after tasting it, I realized the juice was FERMENTED! SOUR! SPOILED! It probably sat somewhere non-refrigerated for days! No problem, mentioned this to the server and asked for a different drink. 5) Main courses arrived... My mother-in-law and son ordered sirloin steaks with shrimp. My son commented he did not like the taste of the shrimp. This is coming from a 14-year-old who eats EVERYTHING! 40% of the sirloin was FAT, i.e. not intended for consumption! 6) My 9-year-old ordered chicken tenders with fries... How can you ruin that? Well, there were TWO small tenders and a HANDFULL of fries strewn around the plate. Really??? For what you are charging for this kid's meal? I felt this was the restaurant's attempt to get as many people through the door as they possibly could. Charging over $30 for an entre for most dishes and providing food that is not fresh is a complete disrespect for the customer! Well, the best part to come... This morning, y 14-year and I are having digestive issues. I'll spare you the details of that. Again, I did not come to River Grill to get sick. But what do they care. We shelled out almost $300 for our party, and we are gone. I hope others will take time to read this review. And for some reason, I could only select "Excellent" for this review. read more

It's not that I don't believe the bad reviews - it's just that six of us had such a lovely time here on New Year's Eve and our experience was SO completely enjoyable, that it's hard to believe we went to the same restaurant as the complainers. There was a slight wait, even with a reservation, but I understand that there are "bookings" on New Year's Eve and it's hard to predict when the first tables will leave. Our server was on-the-ball and very pleasant and had a cute sense of humor. He could describe all the food well. It was a $45, four-course menu and ranged from simple roast beef to complex seafood dishes. Everything was fresh, artfully plated, and well prepared. The hostess also helped out the servers during crunch times, which impressed me. Everyone at our table enjoyed everything they ordered and we are varied in our tastes. The decor is lovely and I heard other customers saying that they had a great time as they left. I'd certainly return and look forward to going there when it isn't seventeen degrees outside and I can sit at a table on the patio. I'd have no hesitation recommending this restaurant. read more

We had the opportunity to visit the River Grill Memorial Day Weekend 2010. A great little spot! We had reserved a table on the patio and were closest to the water- so great views of the sunset sky! Our group had some cocktails and started off with the italian sausage app and one member ordered french onion soup- both were wonderful. The broccoli raab that the sausage was placed on had a very nice flavor. For entrees our group ordered: NY strip, filet mignon, whole lobster and the lamb. All of the dishes were very good and cooked just as we ordered. (Lobster tail was a tiny bit overdone but, the claws were perfect!) Despite being stuffed we ordered dessert- and boy are we glad we did! Our group ordered: carrot cake, cheesecake and chocolate peanut butter cake- the winner hands down was the CARROT CAKE! We were told that a woman in town makes them right out of her house :) A great spot for a nice but, still relaxing meal with attentive service! read more

We arrived here after rejecting the option of dining at another restaurant down the road where we were treated rudely. We were treated graciously upon arriving here, and were seated at a roomy table. The menu options were very appealing. I was a little disappointed that the yummy olive tapenade and butter spiked with herbs and pepper that came to our table were accompanied by an uninteresting piece of bread to spread them on. But that was the only disappointment we encountered with the food. We shared a lovely special Thai coconut shrimp bisque, and our salads (they come with the entrees) were well made and well dressed. My entree (a special of crab stuffed shrimp in lemon cream sauce) was well made, with a tasty sauce, real crabmeat and the cartilage removed from the shrimp so you could eat the whole thing. The sides with the entree were tasty, even the veggie medley. My fiance's pasta dish was delicious, with tasty seafood ravioli in a cajun cream sauce and lots of shrimp. The service was good although it took a while to get our bill at the end of the night. We will definitely go back in warm weather to sit outside and enjoy the river! read more

We hosted a rehearsal dinner here a month ago and couldn't have been more pleased with the entire evening. Mark, the chef/owner, was never too busy to meet with us during the planning and was so easy to work with. It was evident to us that he valued our business and wanted to make our evening as memorable as possible. We were not disappointed! Mark suggested that we have our event inside so as to be a bit more private - a great choice. Throughout the beautiful summer evening, our party was not rushed (although they were busy and the patio was filled outside), the service was attentive and very adequate and the food was delicious - hot and beautifully prepared. It was as perfect an evening as we could have imagined. Many of our guests commented that they would return for a later visit, and my husband and I will definitely be back. I wish I could give Mark credit for holding off the torrential rain until our dinner was over and we were leaving, but that would be too much of a stretch! read more

I have to agree with Linda's statement. I am shocked there is so many negative reviews, which makes me ask does yelp only put up the negative reviews and not the positive ones? I have known the owner/chef for years and my husband and I have never had a bad experience. It is the restaurant that my family and I recommend for out of town guests to go to. I've never had anyone say they were disappointed. I do know that they get extremely busy in the summer which may have contributed in the occasional delay in service that some of the people are complaining about. We love the staff there and they are half the reason we continue to go back. I absolutely love their Chilean Seabass, and ,my husband has never not had his filet mignon cooked to perfection. Whether we sit at the bar and have some drinks and appetizers or sit at a table the food and service is always great! I do wonder being a former restaurant owner myself if the people that come on here and completey bash restaurants, if they themselves have ever worked in food service, and if they treat their servers with the respect they are demanding? This restaurant has been there since the beginning of the Newburgh waterfront restoration. Obviosly they must be doing something right! I only ask if you had one so called bad experience that you give it another try. You never know what is going on behind the scene.....having just one person not show up can throw a whole entire night of service off! read more

i have been a diner at the River Grill for 10 plus years - the lunches , dinners, special family occasions including a recent birthday celebration dinner have always offered high quality dishes, service and a beautiful river atmosphere . Even during the winter months, the candles, music and holiday ambiance, have made every occasion at the restaurant a 5 star time for me, my friends and family, read more

The River Grill is great for date night, a family dinner or meeting a group of friends. No matter, i enjoy fine dining. Relax with a waterfront view from the patio or inside. It's beautiful year round. The delicious food keeps me going back and introducing friends to the restaurant. Lunch or dinner, the host or hostess will locate a seat where I'm most comfortable. I have specific needs in social settings and the staff at the River Grill has always been accommodating, friendly, and helpful in every way to make my dining experiences the best. Jake has seen to it personally that my dining experiences have always been perfect... From seating to dinner choices if he isn't our server that evening. The menu is a great read and there's always something else to choose when I hear the specials offered. Fried calamari, Caesar salad and stuffed shrimp is my go to if I can't decide! But there's always the oriental baby back ribs. I think we've covered the menu between friends and family. Everyone loves the food, the way it's prepared, presentation and the service. No matter how often I'm here, someone will try a new dessert, but I will get the peanut butter chocolate torte.... read more