The River Cafe

Had a tasty lunch here recently. Some of the best olive oil I have ever tried. However I thought it was on the expensive side for Michelin food.

I was also very disappointed with my table and was right by the entrance. I recently came across this site tableguru and recommend using it to find the best table! Next time I will try and get a window seat in the middle of the restaurant!
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7 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 4
Wednesday, January 04, 2012

I ate at the River Cafe last night. This was my first visitand as I drove through the barrier I was excited to be eating here. I went to the bar first and enjoyed a lovely cocktail. The staff were all friendly and knowledgable. I ordered the crab linguini which was at best pleasant, but just a bowl of pasta on a plate no presentation. Then I had my £39 dover sole, it had a rich buttery taste and was served with black olives making the whole dish really salty. I am very disappointed as were my friends. Our bill was £362.00 for what I consider decent bistro food. Not a resturant I will be returning too.
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Beverley Hennequin - View all reviews by this user
4 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 1
Friday, December 16, 2011

I visited last night for the first time. I was suitably impressed from the minute the valet lifted the beam for me to drive in to park. I arrived a tad early before the rest of the party arrived. I was made welcome from word go. We were a group of five and although the restaurant was full, the ambience was great and it felt cosy and intimate. The service was attentive but not intrusive. Wine was delicious. Everyone loved the food, shared and tasted each other's dishes etc. We didn't have the best table in the house, close to the door so there was a draft on my back. I will most definitely go back. Portions were generous. Best scallops I have ever tasted. Food was interesting yet unfussy. Fantastic vibe and superb location.

Prices were what I would expect to pay in one of London's most well-known, established restaurants.
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DG
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 7
Thursday, November 24, 2011

After reading some of the reviews I was a little apprehensive before visiting River Cafe last weekend, I need not have worried. We were a party of six and all of us thoroughly enjoyed our visit from the minute we walked through the door. The staff were friendly and efficient and our service was impeccable. The food was just wonderful, we were all trying each others dishes and not one disappointed. The chocolate nemesis deserves a mention - naughty doesnt describe it -in a league of its own! All of my party thoroughly recommend this restaurant and would love to visit again.
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Mrs K T Hughes
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Having just been to River Cafe I am utterly disappointed with the food and value for money. I have always wanted to go, so was very much looking forward to an amazing experience. The menu sounds mouth-watering, but unfortunately that's where it stops. The fish carpaccio starter was so overpowered with pepper that you couldn't taste the fish, the veal main was bland and in all honesty you could cook better at home. The lemon tart was tasty but the top was burnt, and the port was awful. On the plus side the wine was delicious.

At £125 a head I would never go back, nor would I recommend it. Spend the money elsewhere!
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3 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 0
Saturday, November 12, 2011

When are these people going to realise they didn't set out to get a Michelin Star at this restaurant. They have their style of service and have stuck to it! It's knowledgeable but unintrusive, and it's charming!

You say it doesn't deserve a star. That is your perception. If you want stuffy Michelin Star service then this is not the place for you. Equally if you want stuffy, over fussy Michelin food, this isn't the place for you.

This restaurant is about the best ingredients in a relaxed but well-informed friendly environment.

The reviewers on here know nothing about good food!
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Steve
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Some of our business contacts suggested this restaurant (we are on business here from Holland). We got a table without reservations last night. We must say that we think it is WAY overpriced and the food is NOTHING special at all, we cannot imagine that this must be one of the best restaurants of London?? Some food was even burned. The service was done by too many (badly dressed) students without personal attention. We had a 3 course dinner and left after paying 253 pounds, we cannot help it, but we felt totally ripped off. We absolutely wouldn't recommend it.
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5 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 1
Tuesday, September 06, 2011

I went here the other night. For the quality of the food, I think it's WAY over priced. My sea bass dish was £37. It was nothing special, and very rustic. If you're looking for a really cute place to sit outside, yes its pretty nice. But overall very over priced for simple looking and simple tasting dishes.
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Lake
4 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 2
Thursday, August 04, 2011

I have wanted to go to the River Cafe for Years. I regularly cycle past it as a local to the area and have heard rave reviews. I have tried in vain on a number of occasions to get a table there only to be told (rather snootily), that I needed to book months in advance to guarantee a table.

Last night I finally made it there with two very 'foody' friends who kindly paid for the meal.

Quite frankly I felt embarrassed for taking them. Our pasta starter was congealing by the time we got our teeth in it. When a main course costs £35 I think it is fair to expect nothing less than something exquisitely delicious. My monkfish was tasty but not particularly special. Restaurants that charge £50 plus for a starter and a main should also serve spectacular bread in my opinion. A bit of dry ciabatta did not impress although the olive oil dip was excellent.

By the time the dessert menu came we all felt rather full and decidedly underwhelmed. We had a glass of champagne on arrival and two half bottles of wine between us, a starter and a main each and the bill came to £270. I am more than prepared to pay £90 for a positively memorable, delectable London meal experience but sadly this was not one of them. Like another reviewer similarly wrote 'I wish I'd gone to La Trompette down the road for the 'just as tasty' £19.50 three course menu!
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Michelle
6 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 2
Friday, July 15, 2011

I could not agree more with the reviews on this restaurant. Have just returned from a very pleasant evening with friends which was only marred by the feeling that we should have booked a table at La Trompette instead. How The River Cafe got it's star I don't know. The food was ok and the service acceptable but we left feeling like we had been fleeced. We are locals not gullible tourists, we know that we can eat a better food for the same price or less in west London and I seriously object to paying 30 odd quid for a main and almost 20 for a starter in a place with paper tablecloths! I won't be returning...
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5 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 2
Saturday, June 11, 2011