An absolutely beautiful area. Wow. We did not stay here for our trip, but man did we want to come back to stay here. It looks great. The river chairs, come on now! Sounds like a dream. We did stop by the store to get some souvenirs and, the staff was helpful with information. Their sand sculpture was cool. We went over to the gas station just to check out the tiny islands, but we found awesome ice cream. A cool roadside spot if you are driving through, or seemingly a really awesome spot to spend a day or two. The restaurant also seemed to have delicious smells.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 4
ov pike
What a beautiful little hidden gem. This is a must visit if you’re in Big Sur. You won’t see a place like this anywhere. It’s so tranquil, the running river sounds make it feel like a sanctuary. Beautiful green manicured grass you can lay in, picnic on, play with a pet or the kids. The chairs in the river give such a relaxing experience you just don’t want to leave. You could spend hours here and let the time pass by. The dining facility is beautiful looking over the river. There’s also a quaint little pool to swim in for guests. I was able to watch my daughter play in the river skipping rocks as we ordered our meal. The food was delicious, average quality (not disappointing though) and the price is high but considering the overall experience you have I can understand why. They have a wonderful menu where it’s easy to pick something you’ll be happy with. Nothing over the top but definitely filling and tasty. Service was good, not over the top but not disappointing either, it was slower paced and kind.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Maria Tamez
Nice place but pricey
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Mehmet Deveci
Super slow service, too pricey, and tasteless food. Anything you order tasted like cardboard.
You are warned, you are welcome.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
Riyasha Bhargav
Gorgeous spot with top notch service and seriously tasty food and drinks. Can’t recommend it enough
Steve Lisowski
EDIT: I spoke with Laurel the owner who was very nice. She was very apologetic and offered some cocktails as a way to make things up. It was a little concerning that the restaurant manager claimed we took up the table 3.5 hours when that simply wasn’t the case. One star bump from 2-3.
I head down here to see one of my favorite bands, driving an hour to get here. Today was probably my 7th time visiting. I arrived and a friend was already seated. It was not busy, with more than half of the tables open. I sat down and the server, who I believe was named Lupe, asked from behind me if I wanted to order lunch. I said I would like a Bloody Mary for now. I shortly then asked for a menu. He came by after a few minutes and asked if I wanted to order lunch. I said I wanted the cerviche but not right this moment. He smirked at me and grabbed a piece of paper on the table that said something to the effect of “order your lunch and get off the table so we can seat others so they can enjoy the music.” I said fine, I’ll take the ceviche now. My friend commented “what the hell?” I went to see the manager who said “I’ll take care of it.” The way it was taken care of? Lupe promptly brought us our bill effectively closing out our tab so we couldn’t order more. I’m usually a heavy tipper and had planned to order more drinks. Had it been busy I might’ve understood. But there were multiple tables available. That server needs remediation or a new job, as does the manager if this is the way the handle repeat customers. Too bad because the atmosphere right on the river is amazing. Next time I go I’ll be ordering diet cokes and just sit on the benches (the band is worth it). Why patronize an ungrateful establishment?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
Gio Amor
Beautiful place 2 visit
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
gretchen erickson
I would not recommend this place for the food, it's s a little pricey and the flavor is not there. We got the burger it was big and juicy but it seemed to not be seasoned at all. We also got the beet salad. Definitely not my favorite, although there was a lot of goat cheese and I love goat cheese so that was plus. I also got the French onion soup. I dont want to be rude so im just going to say , not good. The onions were not caramelized, there was no cheese and again it lacked flavor, bigtime. Now that we're done with that, do go after you eat somewhere else and sit in the river. It was very relaxing and absolutely gorgeous.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 3
Felipe Soriano
Perfect!!!!!!!!
Maria Camarena
Overall this is a good place to enjoy some lunch and a drink after a long hike. You get to dine either inside with a view of the river, or outside on the river. The Inn has set up chairs in the water for you to sit and enjoy the water on your feet, while you eat or just relax. Seating is limited in the river, so you may need to be patient, but the quiet of the water and the birds chirping around is very relaxing.
Very nice spot for a great lunch. 8 of us walked right in and sat down. It was around 2pm. Staff very friendly and courteous. Food very tasty and delicious. Decent amount for the price. The outside patio and surrounding area is awesome. Would definitely return. Thanks 👍
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lisa Stone
River Inn is such a peaceful spot to relax, especially if you can snag one of the outdoor chairs. You can sit right in the water. We usually order a drink from the bar and they give it to you in a plastic cup that you can take down to the river. Such a unique and fun experience. It can get pretty crowded on weekends and parking isn’t always easy, so weekdays are the way to go if you want a quieter vibe. It’s also a perfect stop before heading down to Pfeiffer Beach. Great place to unwind and take in the scenery.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
lilia Robertson
Greet place to enjoy a meal
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Becky L
We were seated immediately but placed away from the main dining area, which seemed to affect the level of attention we received. We waited 20 minutes before anyone approached our table to take drink orders. About 15 minutes into the wait, I asked the hostess about our server, and she simply replied that the server was busy. Shortly after, I noticed a newly seated table being served before us. I followed up with the hostess again, but this time she responded with visible attitude, pointing at a server and saying, “She’s busy and will be right there.” When the server eventually arrived, she admitted she didn’t know who had been seated first and randomly chose a table to start with. The entire experience felt unorganized and poorly managed. While the food arrived quickly once ordered, my burger was bland and disappointing—though others at the table seemed content with their meals. Overall, the service was unacceptable, and I would not return. A lack of communication and professionalism ruined what could have been an enjoyable visit.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 1
Aiko Haringsma
Food was fine. Service was a bit slow and sometimes felt a bit forgotten. Wifi wasnt free and had to pay 10$ for 15 minutes.
An absolutely beautiful area. Wow. We did not stay here for our trip, but man did we want to come back to stay here. It looks great. The river chairs, come on now! Sounds like a dream. We did stop by the store to get some souvenirs and, the staff was helpful with information. Their sand sculpture was cool. We went over to the gas station just to check out the tiny islands, but we found awesome ice cream. A cool roadside spot if you are driving through, or seemingly a really awesome spot to spend a day or two. The restaurant also seemed to have delicious smells.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 4
What a beautiful little hidden gem. This is a must visit if you’re in Big Sur. You won’t see a place like this anywhere. It’s so tranquil, the running river sounds make it feel like a sanctuary. Beautiful green manicured grass you can lay in, picnic on, play with a pet or the kids. The chairs in the river give such a relaxing experience you just don’t want to leave. You could spend hours here and let the time pass by. The dining facility is beautiful looking over the river. There’s also a quaint little pool to swim in for guests. I was able to watch my daughter play in the river skipping rocks as we ordered our meal. The food was delicious, average quality (not disappointing though) and the price is high but considering the overall experience you have I can understand why. They have a wonderful menu where it’s easy to pick something you’ll be happy with. Nothing over the top but definitely filling and tasty. Service was good, not over the top but not disappointing either, it was slower paced and kind.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Nice place but pricey
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Super slow service, too pricey, and tasteless food. Anything you order tasted like
cardboard.
You are warned, you are welcome.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
Gorgeous spot with top notch service and seriously tasty food and drinks. Can’t recommend it enough
EDIT: I spoke with Laurel the owner who was very nice. She was very apologetic and offered some cocktails as a way to make things up. It was a little concerning that the restaurant manager claimed we took up the table 3.5 hours when that simply wasn’t the case. One star bump from 2-3.
I head down here to see one of my favorite bands, driving an hour to get here. Today was probably my 7th time visiting.
I arrived and a friend was already seated. It was not busy, with more than half of the tables open. I sat down and the server, who I believe was named Lupe, asked from behind me if I wanted to order lunch. I said I would like a Bloody Mary for now. I shortly then asked for a menu. He came by after a few minutes and asked if I wanted to order lunch. I said I wanted the cerviche but not right this moment. He smirked at me and grabbed a piece of paper on the table that said something to the effect of “order your lunch and get off the table so we can seat others so they can enjoy the music.” I said fine, I’ll take the ceviche now. My friend commented “what the hell?” I went to see the manager who said “I’ll take care of it.”
The way it was taken care of? Lupe promptly brought us our bill effectively closing out our tab so we couldn’t order more. I’m usually a heavy tipper and had planned to order more drinks.
Had it been busy I might’ve understood. But there were multiple tables available. That server needs remediation or a new job, as does the manager if this is the way the handle repeat customers.
Too bad because the atmosphere right on the river is amazing.
Next time I go I’ll be ordering diet cokes and just sit on the benches (the band is worth it). Why patronize an ungrateful establishment?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
Beautiful place 2 visit
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
I would not recommend this place for the food, it's s a little pricey and the flavor is not there. We got the burger it was big and juicy but it seemed to not be seasoned at all. We also got the beet salad. Definitely not my favorite, although there was a lot of goat cheese and I love goat cheese so that was plus. I also got the French onion soup. I dont want to be rude so im just going to say , not good. The onions were not caramelized, there was no cheese and again it lacked flavor, bigtime.
Now that we're done with that, do go after you eat somewhere else and sit in the river. It was very relaxing and absolutely gorgeous.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 3
Perfect!!!!!!!!
Overall this is a good place to enjoy some lunch and a drink after a long hike. You get to dine either inside with a view of the river, or outside on the river. The Inn has set up chairs in the water for you to sit and enjoy the water on your feet, while you eat or just relax. Seating is limited in the river, so you may need to be patient, but the quiet of the water and the birds chirping around is very relaxing.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
Very nice spot for a great lunch.
8 of us walked right in and sat down. It was around 2pm. Staff very friendly and courteous. Food very tasty and delicious. Decent amount for the price. The outside patio and surrounding area is awesome.
Would definitely return.
Thanks 👍
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
River Inn is such a peaceful spot to relax, especially if you can snag one of the outdoor chairs. You can sit right in the water. We usually order a drink from the bar and they give it to you in a plastic cup that you can take down to the river. Such a unique and fun experience. It can get pretty crowded on weekends and parking isn’t always easy, so weekdays are the way to go if you want a quieter vibe. It’s also a perfect stop before heading down to Pfeiffer Beach. Great place to unwind and take in the scenery.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
Greet place to enjoy a meal
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We were seated immediately but placed away from the main dining area, which seemed to affect the level of attention we received. We waited 20 minutes before anyone approached our table to take drink orders. About 15 minutes into the wait, I asked the hostess about our server, and she simply replied that the server was busy. Shortly after, I noticed a newly seated table being served before us.
I followed up with the hostess again, but this time she responded with visible attitude, pointing at a server and saying, “She’s busy and will be right there.” When the server eventually arrived, she admitted she didn’t know who had been seated first and randomly chose a table to start with.
The entire experience felt unorganized and poorly managed. While the food arrived quickly once ordered, my burger was bland and disappointing—though others at the table seemed content with their meals.
Overall, the service was unacceptable, and I would not return. A lack of communication and professionalism ruined what could have been an enjoyable visit.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 1
Food was fine. Service was a bit slow and sometimes felt a bit forgotten. Wifi wasnt free and had to pay 10$ for 15 minutes.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 3
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