River Roast

Service & drinks were excellent for the pricing; location & ambiance you can't beat on the river in summer

What a great lunch experience. The decor is beautiful. Really enjoyed the bottom floor patio views of the water. Had the added surprise of the Navy Blue Angels practicing for their show this weekend.

I had the Grilled Chicken B.L.T.A. and side of Street Corn. The meal was delicious. I was confused with the BLTA which the A was supposed to be avocado. I think it was really an avocado spread on the bottom of the sandwich. The sandwich would have been better with the avocado. In my head, I was wanting it so it detracted from the experience even though the sandwich was still so good...as a BLT. Oh, the toasted sourdough bread was wow! The street corn was excellent. Lots of great flavors. It was a big serving, best for 2 people.

I really want to go back for this BLTA and have the avocado! Since I won't have time, please go for me!! Let me know what you think.

Updating my review because I GOT MARRIED AT RIVER ROAST! I want to shout out the amazing event team and event space, that only made my love for the restaurant stronger.

7 years ago when I moved to Chicago, I was nowhere close to getting married, but I saw River Roast's event space from a boat tour and said "now THAT would be a dream wedding venue." I'm still blown away that I actually made this dream come true!

We booked River Roast in Dec 2022 for our April 2024 wedding after touring about 20 venues. We chose based on River Roast's location, amazing food, close to all-inclusive packaging, and dynamic pricing for the off-season. And OBVIOUSLY for the gorgeous patio space!!
We had a great initial tour with a staff member who is no longer there, and our account was transferred to Jessica after we booked who was then our main contact. Jessica was so great!! She checked in often in the downtime before we really needed to start planning, and then was totally on top of things as we got closer. She knew all the details that other couples cared about or forgot and always made sure nothing was overlooked. When some floor plan things needed changing after our rehearsal, she got everything fixed right away so it was ready to go when we arrived on the wedding day. Jessica also went above and beyond, letting us store some things at her desk to minimize stress on the wedding day.

The food on our wedding day was PERFECT and even better than our tasting. We had a guest with extremely severe allergies, and Jessica personally worked with him to make sure he could eat. And it wasn't just a bland plate - they brought him every side dish and even late night snacks tailored to his needs. We loved the menu options, and how we could have unique options like tuna tartar on wonton chips, but could still offer a classic steak and potatoes for the grandparents with less adventurous tastes. Several guests said the chicken was the best wedding chicken they've ever had.

We could not have asked for a better venue. We were lucky to have a perfect April weather day and the patio was gorgeous. We had lots of out of town guests who loved being downtown on the river. Our photos are amazing. The River Roast team and event space truly made our dream wedding come true, and I'll be talking about it forever.

A bit of an unusual review. Unusual in how every person working at River Roast is empowered to ensure customers are satisfied. We had a couple of issues and two different employees- one server and one bus person- immediately took steps to correct the issue without having to get a manager. We only commented on something and they immediately reacted. Extremely unusual in these times, kudos to the culture they have created. Now the food.

Sat outside along the river, beautiful atmosphere. Ordered Pork belly, was awesome, a great treat. Tuna tartar, same, unbelievable. Beef roast was good, no disappointments. Service was attentive considering how busy they were, was nice that servers not responsible for our table still asked if we were ok. Normally I would rate lower for a couple of issues we had, but the immediate response and care was phenomenal, erasing any negativity. Again, kudos to the whole team and culture of service.

Brunch spot next to the river! The outdoor seating is first come first serve, we went there when they just open the restaurant so we have no wait and were able to get the outdoor table. The river view is amazing! Service are quick and amazing. We were celebrating our friend birthday and got a free champagne and the cheese dip appetizer. Food are in good portion, price are reasonable. You have to pay the bill online. We were having issue using the split bill function, and calculate the cost incorrectly. However, our server has help us review and resolve the cost issue immediately!

Upon arrival, we were greeted right away. We advised hostess we were unable to make reservations but wanted to know the availability to be seated. She shared there is seating immediately at the bar. Since the restaurant is on the riverfront, you have to go down a flight of stairs you access the restaurant, the bar and the patio area. We sat at the bar and was greeted, provided menus and were served quickly. The waiter even offered us a tip on seating on the pato. We asked the patio hostess how long for a table and she shared 30 minutes. We put our name down anyway because the waiter told us its never more than ten minutes. He was right. We seated on the patio and less than 10 minutes. We had a nice view of the riverfront. The waiter came about 15 minutes after we were seated. Provided us menu and water I asked for lemon for the water which did not arrive until we were basically, almost done eating. We ordered a Jim salad and burger to split. The food came out right away. However, we asked for ketchup and additional salad dressing which took another 15 minutes to arrive., Well, the ketchup did, I never received the additional salad dressing. The waiter was on floor with the place. We had too many tables to attend to everyone appropriately the burger very chewy. The salad was dry. I was not impressed with the food. The positives of this restaurant is the view on the patio and the service at the bar. The restrooms were clean and fully stocked. There is valet parking for $18 however you can find a spot on the street nearby.

Excellent view and the food was great. Staff were friendly and I could say service was superb.

Food was great. That's about it though. The service was horrendous. Took 20 minutes to get our first drinks ordered, appetizers came out about 20 minutes after that and main dishes literally took 45 minutes. We did get a $13 carrot cake for the troubles... that's why they get a 3 star and not 2.

Again the food was great. Plan on 2+ hours minimum - this was on a Wednesday at 7pm.

Affordable prices even though it has an amazing view of the river! $3 beers during happy hour, nice servers, and a lot of space inside and outside of the restaurant. Portions are decently sized as well!

FOOD:
Beet Salad w. Steak (7/10) - Steak was well cooked, beet salad has a bit too much dressing. Opt for dressing on the side!

RR Burger (7/10) - Solid burger but nothing special here!

To get there was a little odd, but that was probably user error. We walked North on Clerk and went along the river overlook, around all the people eating. On the way out that gate was locked. So maybe try the front entrance.

It does have a great view of the water, elevated between the road and river.

The outside tables were full but inside was fairly empty. It is a large place but I believe this was dinner on a Sunday.

We got the cheese board, $21. Cheese boards are always overpriced but this one had a variety of items and sizeable.

For entrees we got the Beet salad, $18. The different components of this worked well together. It was also large and would be difficult to finish.

And the Beer Stewed Mussels, $21. I really enjoyed this and I couldn't even eat all of it. The beer mixed well with the sherry. The toast was great to taste more of the sauce. The mussels tasted fresh. I would actually recommend sharing this dish. It is a lot of one item.

One or two small knocks on this place was every song seemed to be the hits of 1985-1995. You can pay online, which was a positive, especially as our waiter didn't come back to ever give us the check. They did have a mix of inside and outside tables though. There's not a ton of choices, especially if you're not a big meat eater.