Celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary and this place was phenomenal. The atmosphere was great and the food was even greater. We had the best waitress in Florida who was delightful and served with a smile. Thank you Miss Dominque for making our celebration a memorable one.
DinedThereSippedThat
I really did enjoy our dinner at vegan Village. Having no idea what to expect other than vegan food I didn’t set any expectations and was going in with whatever happened happened. But even with that being said a restaurant still has to maintain a basic average level of overall “keeping it togetherness”. Let me explain. We had reservations and showed up to the host stand on the river walk and a bus boy asked if we had reservations and if we needed help, so we said yes to both, but five minutes later no one had come to seat us so we walked inside. Once we arrived inside the bartender, us which seem to be playing every roll under the roof, said we can have a sit wherever you wanted so we sat inside In the eclectic kitsch dining room - which I loved. It was at this point that I rearranged my expectations for not stellar service, despite very friendly service. Clearly they were low on staff because the chefs were bringing out the food to the table which came quick and was all delicious, minus the vegan cheese pizza, five on five for the food. Though they could really simplify their lives by reorganizing the menu. It was a bit confusing, rather lengthy, and different options on the online menu and printed menu, a bit confusing for everyone I’m sure. Despite the food being great I can’t give higher than an average rating if I tried due to the fact that no one ever cleared or dishes and we had to go bring them to the bar. I guess the bartender was so busy that she never had a chance to come back to the table so we had to bring our empty glasses to the bar and order new drinks at the bar - which was no big deal, but expect to perhaps self serve or wait a while if it’s still the same 3 months later . I had a really good time because we were in good company and the food was delicious but service wise it was just lacking so much. I’m not even upset though, I just hope they get it together.
Jaclyn K.
I am very excited about Riverhouse Vegan Village and excited to go back and try more food on the menu! The location is perfect--I've always loved Himarshee and Riverwalk, and glad to see businesses becoming revitalized in the area. If you are looking for picturesque riverfront dining with optimal natural shade, bistro lights, and old Florida feel, this is your place. The building is absolutely beautiful-I've always admired the space whenever I've been on Riverwalk, but I'm so glad that there is now a restaurant there! The hostess was so sweet and our server was very friendly and attentive. The menu was pretty robust and had a lot of different offerings. I asked if the menu changed since some of the things I had seen online weren't listed, and since Covid they have had to adjust the menu slightly. Regardless, there were plenty of options for myself and my friend who is also gluten free. We started with the loaded vegan fries- holy moly. They were amazing. Delicious vegan cheese smothering hot thin fries. Delicious! I ordered the Breakable Vegan Greek Salad and my friend got the Wild Tomato Vegan Salad. The Greek salad was unlike any Greek salad I've ever had--it had al dente green beans, vegan feta, and a vinaigrette. The Wild Tomato Salad had very yummy balsamic reduction with vegan shredded mozzarella. I think next time I will explore the heavier options--the vegan chicken sandwiches look super yummy, so I am excited to go back and try some more! Overall, the atmosphere and ambiance is worth the money. Service is great, and food is very good!
cindy d.
This restaurant should be ordered shut for not adhering to the health administration restaurant guidelines. Food not prepared properly. Priced above and beyond over what it should be... flies (due to staff uncleanliness) everywhere landing on the over cooked rotten food served. Attempting to serve cocktails after pricing with alcohol then watering down... charging 8.00 for 1/2 ball of ice cream melted ... by far they do not offer a "vegan" menu as they say they do. Their burgers are horrific, & pasta with hard shrimp was inedible. Thank goodness for our kind waitress that attempted to serve us while trying to maintain positivity in the restaurant. Shame on the River House to serve such overpriced low quality food.
Tulsi Mehta
Wow I have never been to a restaurant where I had a reservation and the staff didn’t even look at our table for 45 minutes, even after we tried calling out to them multiple times. The menu was inconsistently priced and definitely over-priced for basically fried bar food - the same side dish had different prices in two different places on the same menu. We were so excited about the ambience but when we got there the (lack of) service made it worthless. It was absolutely ridiculous, we didn’t even get water. We eventually just got up and left because we didn’t think we were going to get served at all that night. We never got to try the food as we never got served, but will not be returning ever!
Mo N.
Service was excellent. I thought the food was good. We started off with onion rings (not pictured) that were a little greasy but overall the food was good. I'm still wondering how they made the shrimp look so much like shrimp I will be coming back to try other options!
Alex Recio
Tried the chicken bacon tomato and the chicken mac and cheese. Both were great. Half the menu is vegan and half isn't at the River house. Server was super friendly and service was top notch. This restaurant gives a true fine dining vegan experience.
Keith Halpin
Not very good. For the amount of money you spend, you should at least have a nice, clean and pleasant place to go. The outside dining was disgusting. Picked inside and just the decor was something you would put in your outside patio. The steak I ordered I believe was pre cooked. Pretty chewy. My wife's salmon was quite small and not warm. If you want to spend a lot of money for a level 2 restaurant, be my guest.
Richard Loebl
We had a terrible experience when we reserved a table for our Mother's Day Brunch. They required that we pay the full amount by credit card to reserve a table. When we arrived at the restaurant in time for our reservation, the situation was chaotic. They informed us the hostess was in a car accident and the bartender quit. At first they did not have the table we reserved and paid for, then they seated us outside where it was hot and there was no umbrella to shield us from the sun. We went back inside and tried to find someone to talk to, but nobody would talk to us. We looked at the food at the buffet, and it looked terrible. Everything appeared dry, overcooked, and there were empty trays. We decided to get our money back and leave, but nobody would help us. We asked for a manager and they said they have no manager - just the chef - and he was too busy. The bartender that we talked to was clearly stressed out and annoyed. We tried to call today to get a refund and we only get a voice mailbox. This situation is unacceptable and we advise you to stay away from this restaurant.
Lionel Hirsch
My daughter invited my wife and I to have lunch at the Riverhouse Restaurant for Mother's Day. She was so enthusiastic about this occasion, as were we.Unfortunately, disappointment set in almost immediately. A sense of disorganization prevailed the moment we arrived. No one seemed to be in charge.What's more, nothing suggested that the establishment was welcoming families to celebrated a special day. It presented itself more like a rustic watering hole than a restaurant. We suggested going elsewhere only for our daughter to tell us she had prepaid almost $300.We were eventually led to sit outside by a friendly waitress who was clearly overwhelmed, and embarrassed by the lack of preparedness. We were then served the most insipide mimosas. One sip was all any of us had.We then made our way to the 'buffet'. Choice was very limited, nothing justifying the $300 price tag for three people. After selecting a couple of items, we returned to our table only to have confirmation of what was obvious; the food was simply awful.This was without a doubt one of the, if not THE worst restaurant experiences we've ever had!If the Riverhouse Restaurant has any integrity or shame, it will apologize to, and refund every single family that entrusted it with the celebration of their Mother's Day.This regrettable experience was especially disheartening for our daughter who had such high hopes of making this a fun, and culinarily enjoyable lunch on a special occasion.
Beautiful historic building and view. On the water with outdoor seating. Menu for both vegan and non vegan to cater to both :) restaurant is new so you can feel logistical challenges with inventory and staff - worth the wait ????
neil holmes
Nice setting, good service and the starters were great. But the main course was a BIG disappointment. 10 of us there nobody impressed. One girl reckoned her steak was off. Presentation was just awful as well.Perhaps we were unlucky the main chef had to go out. Hope they fix it, but we won't go back.
phatgrl24
Fabulously Flavorful Cocktails (1/2) price happy hour! The food is basically farm to table as all is locally derived... under new management and I have to say was very pleased with not only the staffs knowledge of the menu items but the personal attention given to my order (I gave major dietary restrictions). FYI they also have a non-vegan menu and my husband said the chicken avocado melt was the best he has had! Way to go!
Lisa G.
Really disappointed in this restaurant! I had such high hopes! Celebrated my vegan friend's bday. Got there a little early. Had a reservation. Was quickly seated. The hostess started walking me toward a table without an umbrella. I asked to sit at one with an umbrella. She obliged, but not sure why that wasn't a given in the first place. Had the jalapeño corn poppers for appetizers & they were the best part of our meal. 2 of us ordered the vegan mac & cheese with vegan chicken & one order a vegan fish sandwich. None of us liked our food & we either dabble in vegan cuisine or r actually vegan! The vegan chicken was dry & lacked seasoning as did the mac & cheese. I asked for ketchup & that helped. The drinks were good. We ordered a pina colada type drink & 1 was purple! So yum! Dessert was the apple pie/ice cream & it was delicious! An umbrella from the table behind us fell on my friend, due to a windy day. Her arm was sore for days. I may try again & order something different, only because it's right on the river!
Andres Ramos
I was there with Carlos Escabi on the Saturday he described, and the server flouted county health ordinances by wearing a mask with many visible holes. It was clear the holes were made intentionally, and his reply of, "It's just a muzzle anyway," when the deficiencies of his mask were pointed out indicated he had no intention of aligning his behavior with county and CDC health prescriptions.Come to this restaurant if you want your food prepared by staff who decide which health ordinances they feel like following.If you read through these reviews, you'll see the owner contesting the veracity of Carlos' claim rather than demonstrating an earnest effort to rectify the situation. I and all other members of my party can attest to the fact that this employee was indeed thumbing his nose in the face of science and health guidelines.
Celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary and this place was phenomenal. The atmosphere was great and the food was even greater. We had the best waitress in Florida who was delightful and served with a smile. Thank you Miss Dominque for making our celebration a memorable one.
I really did enjoy our dinner at vegan Village. Having no idea what to expect other than vegan food I didn’t set any expectations and was going in with whatever happened happened. But even with that being said a restaurant still has to maintain a basic average level of overall “keeping it togetherness”. Let me explain. We had reservations and showed up to the host stand on the river walk and a bus boy asked if we had reservations and if we needed help, so we said yes to both, but five minutes later no one had come to seat us so we walked inside. Once we arrived inside the bartender, us which seem to be playing every roll under the roof, said we can have a sit wherever you wanted so we sat inside In the eclectic kitsch dining room - which I loved. It was at this point that I rearranged my expectations for not stellar service, despite very friendly service. Clearly they were low on staff because the chefs were bringing out the food to the table which came quick and was all delicious, minus the vegan cheese pizza, five on five for the food. Though they could really simplify their lives by reorganizing the menu. It was a bit confusing, rather lengthy, and different options on the online menu and printed menu, a bit confusing for everyone I’m sure. Despite the food being great I can’t give higher than an average rating if I tried due to the fact that no one ever cleared or dishes and we had to go bring them to the bar. I guess the bartender was so busy that she never had a chance to come back to the table so we had to bring our empty glasses to the bar and order new drinks at the bar - which was no big deal, but expect to perhaps self serve or wait a while if it’s still the same 3 months later . I had a really good time because we were in good company and the food was delicious but service wise it was just lacking so much. I’m not even upset though, I just hope they get it together.
I am very excited about Riverhouse Vegan Village and excited to go back and try more food on the menu! The location is perfect--I've always loved Himarshee and Riverwalk, and glad to see businesses becoming revitalized in the area. If you are looking for picturesque riverfront dining with optimal natural shade, bistro lights, and old Florida feel, this is your place. The building is absolutely beautiful-I've always admired the space whenever I've been on Riverwalk, but I'm so glad that there is now a restaurant there! The hostess was so sweet and our server was very friendly and attentive. The menu was pretty robust and had a lot of different offerings. I asked if the menu changed since some of the things I had seen online weren't listed, and since Covid they have had to adjust the menu slightly. Regardless, there were plenty of options for myself and my friend who is also gluten free. We started with the loaded vegan fries- holy moly. They were amazing. Delicious vegan cheese smothering hot thin fries. Delicious! I ordered the Breakable Vegan Greek Salad and my friend got the Wild Tomato Vegan Salad. The Greek salad was unlike any Greek salad I've ever had--it had al dente green beans, vegan feta, and a vinaigrette. The Wild Tomato Salad had very yummy balsamic reduction with vegan shredded mozzarella. I think next time I will explore the heavier options--the vegan chicken sandwiches look super yummy, so I am excited to go back and try some more! Overall, the atmosphere and ambiance is worth the money. Service is great, and food is very good!
This restaurant should be ordered shut for not adhering to the health administration restaurant guidelines. Food not prepared properly. Priced above and beyond over what it should be... flies (due to staff uncleanliness) everywhere landing on the over cooked rotten food served. Attempting to serve cocktails after pricing with alcohol then watering down... charging 8.00 for 1/2 ball of ice cream melted ... by far they do not offer a "vegan" menu as they say they do. Their burgers are horrific, & pasta with hard shrimp was inedible. Thank goodness for our kind waitress that attempted to serve us while trying to maintain positivity in the restaurant. Shame on the River House to serve such overpriced low quality food.
Wow I have never been to a restaurant where I had a reservation and the staff didn’t even look at our table for 45 minutes, even after we tried calling out to them multiple times. The menu was inconsistently priced and definitely over-priced for basically fried bar food - the same side dish had different prices in two different places on the same menu. We were so excited about the ambience but when we got there the (lack of) service made it worthless. It was absolutely ridiculous, we didn’t even get water. We eventually just got up and left because we didn’t think we were going to get served at all that night. We never got to try the food as we never got served, but will not be returning ever!
Service was excellent. I thought the food was good. We started off with onion rings (not pictured) that were a little greasy but overall the food was good. I'm still wondering how they made the shrimp look so much like shrimp I will be coming back to try other options!
Tried the chicken bacon tomato and the chicken mac and cheese. Both were great. Half the menu is vegan and half isn't at the River house. Server was super friendly and service was top notch. This restaurant gives a true fine dining vegan experience.
Not very good. For the amount of money you spend, you should at least have a nice, clean and pleasant place to go. The outside dining was disgusting. Picked inside and just the decor was something you would put in your outside patio. The steak I ordered I believe was pre cooked. Pretty chewy. My wife's salmon was quite small and not warm. If you want to spend a lot of money for a level 2 restaurant, be my guest.
We had a terrible experience when we reserved a table for our Mother's Day Brunch. They required that we pay the full amount by credit card to reserve a table. When we arrived at the restaurant in time for our reservation, the situation was chaotic. They informed us the hostess was in a car accident and the bartender quit. At first they did not have the table we reserved and paid for, then they seated us outside where it was hot and there was no umbrella to shield us from the sun. We went back inside and tried to find someone to talk to, but nobody would talk to us. We looked at the food at the buffet, and it looked terrible. Everything appeared dry, overcooked, and there were empty trays. We decided to get our money back and leave, but nobody would help us. We asked for a manager and they said they have no manager - just the chef - and he was too busy. The bartender that we talked to was clearly stressed out and annoyed. We tried to call today to get a refund and we only get a voice mailbox. This situation is unacceptable and we advise you to stay away from this restaurant.
My daughter invited my wife and I to have lunch at the Riverhouse Restaurant for Mother's Day. She was so enthusiastic about this occasion, as were we.Unfortunately, disappointment set in almost immediately. A sense of disorganization prevailed the moment we arrived. No one seemed to be in charge.What's more, nothing suggested that the establishment was welcoming families to celebrated a special day. It presented itself more like a rustic watering hole than a restaurant. We suggested going elsewhere only for our daughter to tell us she had prepaid almost $300.We were eventually led to sit outside by a friendly waitress who was clearly overwhelmed, and embarrassed by the lack of preparedness. We were then served the most insipide mimosas. One sip was all any of us had.We then made our way to the 'buffet'. Choice was very limited, nothing justifying the $300 price tag for three people. After selecting a couple of items, we returned to our table only to have confirmation of what was obvious; the food was simply awful.This was without a doubt one of the, if not THE worst restaurant experiences we've ever had!If the Riverhouse Restaurant has any integrity or shame, it will apologize to, and refund every single family that entrusted it with the celebration of their Mother's Day.This regrettable experience was especially disheartening for our daughter who had such high hopes of making this a fun, and culinarily enjoyable lunch on a special occasion.
Restaurantji Recommends
Beautiful historic building and view. On the water with outdoor seating. Menu for both vegan and non vegan to cater to both :) restaurant is new so you can feel logistical challenges with inventory and staff - worth the wait ????
Nice setting, good service and the starters were great. But the main course was a BIG disappointment. 10 of us there nobody impressed. One girl reckoned her steak was off. Presentation was just awful as well.Perhaps we were unlucky the main chef had to go out. Hope they fix it, but we won't go back.
Fabulously Flavorful Cocktails (1/2) price happy hour! The food is basically farm to table as all is locally derived... under new management and I have to say was very pleased with not only the staffs knowledge of the menu items but the personal attention given to my order (I gave major dietary restrictions). FYI they also have a non-vegan menu and my husband said the chicken avocado melt was the best he has had! Way to go!
Really disappointed in this restaurant! I had such high hopes! Celebrated my vegan friend's bday. Got there a little early. Had a reservation. Was quickly seated. The hostess started walking me toward a table without an umbrella. I asked to sit at one with an umbrella. She obliged, but not sure why that wasn't a given in the first place. Had the jalapeño corn poppers for appetizers & they were the best part of our meal. 2 of us ordered the vegan mac & cheese with vegan chicken & one order a vegan fish sandwich. None of us liked our food & we either dabble in vegan cuisine or r actually vegan! The vegan chicken was dry & lacked seasoning as did the mac & cheese. I asked for ketchup & that helped. The drinks were good. We ordered a pina colada type drink & 1 was purple! So yum! Dessert was the apple pie/ice cream & it was delicious! An umbrella from the table behind us fell on my friend, due to a windy day. Her arm was sore for days. I may try again & order something different, only because it's right on the river!
I was there with Carlos Escabi on the Saturday he described, and the server flouted county health ordinances by wearing a mask with many visible holes. It was clear the holes were made intentionally, and his reply of, "It's just a muzzle anyway," when the deficiencies of his mask were pointed out indicated he had no intention of aligning his behavior with county and CDC health prescriptions.Come to this restaurant if you want your food prepared by staff who decide which health ordinances they feel like following.If you read through these reviews, you'll see the owner contesting the veracity of Carlos' claim rather than demonstrating an earnest effort to rectify the situation. I and all other members of my party can attest to the fact that this employee was indeed thumbing his nose in the face of science and health guidelines.