McMenamins on the Columbia

I come here several times per month. I either get the Mystic 18 or Hammer Head Garden burger. Mystic is ALWAYS edible. Hammer Head has been burnt 4 times now. They cook them way too long. I have to peel off the burnt part. I keep ordering hoping it will be a different chef. NOPE not at 6pm. All the other locations do not burn it.

The staff is always great.
Brownie dessert is by far my fave.
View is nice, but I live on the Waterfront and see it every day. But it’s cooler at Mc’s because of the boats.

Never once have had anyone who works there have an attitude. That’s why I keep going.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

You are just paying(a lot) for the view here. The food isn’t an afterthought, it’s no thought at all. It’s like if you decided to churn out the least passionate, soulless food you could. That’s what they’re doing. Every item was mediocre. No seasoning on the burger, fries were like McDonald’s but less crispy and less salty. Chowder was average, mo’s and places on the coast are leagues above it. Small portion of decent, tender steak bites for $22. At most places you can get an actual, whole steak for that. Shame on them for that portion. The horseradish mayo they served with it didn’t pair well. Not sure why they’re doing that. Maybe you could enjoy a beer and the view here but skip the food.

Love McMenamins! This one is just definitely not the place to go during hot weather! The Ac didn’t seem to be working, so it was quite sweaty in there. The food was good. Water and drinks were refilled very sparingly.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 5

Service: 3

We were really looking forward to eating here. Even though it took 45 minutes for our food, we stayed patient because we thought the burgers would be worth the wait. But when they finally arrived, they were completely burnt. We asked for a replacement, but it came out the same way. What made it worse was the server excusing it by saying there was a new cook. That explanation only left us more disappointed. We left feeling sad, frustrated, and regretting the whole experience. After waiting so long and hoping for a good meal, it truly broke our hearts.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Love the view, and usually things are fine, but today? Our party of 7 wanted to order another round after we closed out. Oops. In turn we got the most passive aggressive denial of service I’ve ever seen. Over the course of 45 min four of us tried to grab a server. Each time, they were happy to help, but had to get someone else. They wouldn’t even serve me at the bar. They said I had to go sit at my table. As the ladies are chatting, finally someone took our order. 20 min later we just left. There was no follow through. It was so awkward. I heard this place has awful service but I was kind of skeptical. I figured most people are just impatient. Holy crap was I wrong.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 1

Monday evening around 8 PM, not exactly peak rush, and we waited over an hour for two salads. No one checked in to explain the delay, and the staff didn’t seem particularly concerned.

The food itself was alright once it finally arrived, but absolutely not worth the wait, and definitely not worth the price. For what we paid, I expected better service and a smoother experience all around.

The one thing this place has going for it is the location. Sitting right on the river, the view is beautiful and relaxing. But that’s not enough to make up for the frustrating service or the overpriced, underwhelming food.

Unless you’re here just for the view and maybe a drink, I’d recommend going elsewhere.

We had a great experience. Got to get a basket of tots/ fries from our passport stamps and also ordered a mystic burger with salad to share plus root beers for post triathlon training (means we were hungry), and on a very hot day. We ended up eating only half our fries and tots—the serving is big enough to share. We ordered our favorite sauces and dips—step aside Mystic, Ranch and Terminator Mustard… my new fav dip is garlic and truffle aioli. Server was amazing—anticipated our needs and kept clear expectations about food time line—it was busy but we got a table outdoors under the umbrellas and food came out in perfect timing and we’ll-presented. A perfect post workout meal!!

This is the first time that I’ve come to this location and I was disappointed towards the end of our visit. We had already paid our check and were just chilling there for a little bit longer because mind you we hadn’t even finished our food yet. Another server comes and asks us for To go boxes and we tell him no thank you & he asks if we want the check, I told him we already paid for our food the receipt is right there, and then he takes my plate away that I wasn’t even finished eating off of. I feel like we were being rushed out which was ridiculous because we paid to sit there and eat. Honestly it just made the experience not great at this location. Be prepared to possibly be rushed out of here and you are better off going to the location in Kalama the service is way better & they are a lot more friendly. The food was good but they also have more options at the other location.

Excellent spot for a great lunch! The waiter was awesome. The food is fantastic! What more could you ask for?

Food was served cold. Consolidated cheese, cold tots, fires, and luke warm clam chowder....cold toasted mini buns. Lol. At some point the did touch the fire. Well before they got delivered to the table. Extra long wait for food to come out. Asked for clam chowder as an appetizer and it came out luke warm with well done burgers. Messy soup bowl with dried soup on the side from the sitting. Beware of the expired sirachi!!!!!!! Expired in February!!!

Romero was the best server EVER! The restaurant was busy and he was so attentive, checked on us often and had great recommendations.

oh..my gosh!! 😁😁😁 this was the best place EVER!! 😣😣 i loved this ethnic african food!!! 🥘 even though bob fell down the stairs..what an idiot...this made the experience better!! 🥰🥰🥰 i didnt have to hear his wails because he tore his vocal chords!!! 🥳🥳 ordered the tarter tots the cheeseburger slider trio...😋😋 the tater tots were SO crispy!! reminds me of my ex...jackson..the grilled cheese..😣😣🤧🤧 the burgers were EXCELLENT!!! 😇😇😇 please come here!!! 😛😛😚😚😚

McMenamins on the Columbia has a super cool vibe and the location is hard to beat—right along the river with a great view. It’s a chill spot to hang out, especially on nice days. That said, the food menu is pretty limited. If you’re looking for more variety, this might not be the place, but it’s still a solid spot for drinks and the atmosphere alone

Other than the location and atmosphere, I'm not sure it's worth it. My wife's turkey sandwich was mostly bread with deli slices of meat. My meal was passable, but given the price, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. The service was lackluster, with weak soda and weak smiles and long waits between. It's really not worth returning unless you want the river view... But I'd likely try a different restaurant along the same beach rather than go back by choice.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 2

I've only ate here a few times tbh, but working here is absolutely horrible.

Hours on a weekly and daily basis are inconsistent, poor training, just thrown to cook a bunch of stuff on line and gave a pamphlet with not much information.

They only give you a fair amount of hours during training and could be anywhere from 10-20 hours a week.

Was let go early for dubious reasons, one was from too many mistakes, another because I was snacking on something because I didn't get a lunch break.

I only worked the summer which is the busiest and worst time to work here. This will likely be my last culinary/foodservice job as well.

The food is "good" but its overpriced and they do have some good beer and cider.

Was just another hostile work environment, no one wanted to be there especially BOH.

Also told the managers and a few others about my health problems and no accommodation was provided whatsoever. No extra breaks, etc. and yelled at when I make a mistake due to my brain fog and fatigue.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1