The River Cafe - London

Visited the River Cafe for the first time April 2013 after years of following their progress and food ideas. I was warned of the relatively highprice but I have to say 100% that this is an experience that will be worth it. We went for an anniversary treat and what a treat it was. If you love fresh seasonal food you will not be disappointed at all. I had an excellent starter Calamari con Piselli chargrilled squid with peas, anchovy & parsley Outstanding! then Pappardelle with beef fillet slow-cooked in Chianti with pine nuts, lemon zest & tomato which was thick and full of flavour I then had a mixture of cheeses Scimudin a creamy cow s & goat s milk cheese, Lombardia Caprotto A mature goat s cheese, Campania Ragusano a cow s milk cheese, matured for 12 months, Raguso, Sicilia Had a gorgeous Verdicchio Classico 'Il Coroncino' as well Make the trip if you can. We did - all the way from the Peak District and LOVED it Thanks for the excellent service.

Excellent attentive service, fine ingredients and mostly consistent cuisson, but with an arguably slightly dear price tag. But what a gem it continues to be in the area. Still love it, and great people watching!

Forever favorite restaurant in London -but don't recommend it on weekends

had a wonderful meal outside under the heaters. Ordered lobster pasta and scallops as starters - divine, then grouse and monkfish as secondi - excellent. Came with complimentary focaccia and sparkling water (much appreciated). Love this place - perfect spot to come for a special meal when in London.

We love this place. Excellent food, good wine list and terrific ambience

Amazing staff and the food was simple yet incredible. Shows you don't need to be fancy, it's all about the taste and doing stuff well!

Fantastic. The Al Fresco dining works very well. I look forward to returning

Cantine atmosphere, excellent service, very fresh ingredients and simple italian cooking, slightly overpriced though.

Five star food and service. One of West London's gems. Particularly good for lunches, with a picturesque river view by day, if you're not looking to break the piggy bank for dinner

This restaurant is good but I left confused as to why it is so hard to get a reservation. Some of the food was very tasty (scallops - amazing) however the squid starter was verging on bad and although our main courses were good I do not More

Best italian in London amazing atmosphere. Especially nice if you can sit outside .

Very nice family experience but it s always crowded.

I lived for a long time in London and had never been in a place there. The food is impressive and the space surprises with a wood oven in the living room. It is picturesque especially on a cold day facing the river. Of course, it is not easy to find. The only thing the restaurant has is the price of the menu, it is quite expensive.

A veritable institution, always worth a visit at lunchtime. The food doesn't always hit the mark, but it is the experience which satisfies. I come back with great pleasure.

Top service. Good lunch. Wines a little expensive but it is London ..

Eye-wateringly expensive. I mean, really, unnecessarily expensive. Nevertheless, the food is fantastic, the service every good, the setting lovely. But I've been to restaurants in New York, Paris, San Francisco, etc, where the food is as good or better, the setting spectacular, the service better--and the the prices nowhere near as sky-high. Go to eat, and spend, and enjoy it. But don't expect "value for money."

Good food, nice atmosphere, and the grilled seafood is my favourite.

No doubt, the food is amazing. Location is off the beaten park, but worth the detour. Did not give a 5 stars, simply because most of the staff have quite an attitude! You feel like saying: relax, breathe and enjoy.

Delicious food, lovely restaurant and very kind staff

Delicious food, beautiful setting but in my opinion overpriced for what it is

I went to the River Cafe years ago and had such good memories but have to say it doesn't live up to that. The whole experience felt slightly... cheap given the cost. The tables are crammed so close together that you have no privacy, and the paper table cloths contribute to an American fast food atmosphere. The food is good, but not that memorable, and its not helped that the menu isn't accurate. My Italian partner pointed out that the panacotta is not really panacotta but more of a crema. The squid is not described accurately and is neither crispy nor cut into small slices. Again, it's fine but I was hoping for a special experience. I would point people to Murano or even Padella for exceptional pasta.

We had high expectations and was terribly disappointed. Paper tablecloth? Seriously? With those prices? Totally overpriced. Please check the photo and the price. It didn't worth it at all.

So disappointing. Service: it felt as if the staff were the important people, not the customers. Polite but not engaging. Food: the quality of ingredients was high. The cooking was very good. I had the scallops with rocket and chilli Others in the party had risotto. It was served on a flat plate and was totally unvarnished. It honestly looked like a plate of sick. We had the lemon tart to finish. Very light and tasty but again unfinished. No garnish on the crime fraiche and cold. No blow torch to make it more palatable. No effort made to present food attractively. And very little for the money charged. The wine was excellent. Honestly not worth it. I would never recommend this well known restaurant to anyone and I will never return. I honestly don t understand what the fuss is about. I would have complained at the time, but when you are eating with friends it isn t what you want to do. Liz L

Beautiful restaurant with great atmosphere and good Italian inspired food perhaps a little over priced.

Great food with lovely service and a great location

Absolute best. A bit far but amazing products and definitely an amazing setting for a Saturday or Sunday brunch if you can sit outside !

We go here on special family occasions and for fun nights out. The food is always exceptional with a friendly and well trained team making it always a pleasure.

Good but pricey but the view can't be beat by anyone I know when the tides in not out the you see the river at its worst

Second visit. Remains mediocre and over priced. Zero atmosphere

Not as good as three years ago. This time it has truly disappointed me. Food wise there are nothing much exciting you can expect from the menu, not anymore.Now here comes to the service it is very unfortunate to say the serveice of the river cafe has lost its smart approach. It could be called as rude and carless now. The waitress we have had been touched my chest with plates, hit my glass while I was drinking when cleaning my table all the time, not to mention how many times they kicked my chair. Comparing to 12.5% service change this is not a fair game. All sauce that meant for pairing the dish were late delivered as my guest and I had half way finished... In general it certainly has lost it charms to lure customers coming all the way to our skirt of London for a fun&fine dining experience. I have visited River cafe for over 4 times before this visit. All I can describe is those past experience were fabulous. One of stars I give to the fire stove.

We love this place - everything is quality, from olive oil to focaccia to all food items. The vibe is also very energetic. Keep coming back to

Over priced food at an out of the way location that simply isn't what it used to be. Staff aren't great either, and an over familiarity with some of the 'regulars' makes you feel like you're intruding on someone's private, rowdy party. This is casual canteen eating at haute cuisine pricing. Been 3 times before, won't be going back. Monkfish - Overcooked and over salted.

Food excellent. Drinks far far too expensive. Some staff condescending. Been before. Probably not again. Watched owner swan around with lovydovy clients

Truly excellent food. Do not read the bill, you will cry.

Good food but clearly the kinda place where people come to see and be seen. Although an iconic restaurant in London there are now better Italian restaurants in the city.

Beautiful location and stylish decoration however food is pretty average. Pasta was overcooked and was missing taste. Expected much more given the hype and especially the prices.

Nice atmosphere and good food. I recommend going for lunch and maybe sit outside to make the most out of your experience. Service was excellent. I believe that the restaurant features Italian food but I thought that most of the options could be from any other cuisine - which isn't a bad thing. They change lunch and dinner menus every day which is quite remarkable.

Lovely view by the river. The service is good and the food is fresh. The Lobster was superb but the only negative comment was the pasta as it was undercooked. Good cocktails & desserts

Fantastic place to eat. Best veal shin in long time.

It's really good, attentive staff, truly amazing food - the sliced sea bass starter was outstanding - and a helpful wine sommelier. It's expensive for a reason but a fab treat.

This is one of the best Italian restaurants around (against all odds and not indicative of its name). It benefits from a lovely setting by the Thames although it is arguably a bit out of the way. It is worth the detour though!

To class service. Amazing atmosphere. Very expensive but worth it because of friendly service and kind reception, don't forget the mouth watering food and endless choices on wine. Bumped into a big celebrity on our first visit...

Great food. Great service. Well worth a visit if your in the area

Amazing - The food was delicious and lived up to expectation. Service was very good. I look forward to returning for some more Nemisis Cake!!

great location by the Thames - (you need to get up and walk 30 paces to see the river) great river views at night food was good, not a huge selection atmosphere was good, sat outside with party of apx 10

Wonderful restaurant, great atmosphere. The staff were hospitable and made the occasion a great one. Looking foward to coming again!

not a lot to add, just that all the complements we heard become true: excellent modern italian food, very professional stuff & great atmosphere. only minority for tourists you must take a cub if you don't want to walk 15 min. from the tube.

Great atmosphere (choose the patio if the weather agrees), wonderful range of new-age Italian cuisine and amazing selection of wine and cocktails. Keep your eyes open, celebs are known to frequent this place (James Corden, Michael McDonald and J.J. Abrahams were there on our warm summer visit).

Great food and good environment Portion is ok A bit costy

Great food but disappointing portions (verging on embarrassingly ungenerous) made this (my third visit) enormously underwhelming. Just not good enough for what you pay. Plus it would be nice to get the wine in time to enjoy with the food you're being served. It's an "institution", yes - but fell far short of expectations and value on this visit. Shame.

Great Italian food made from fresh ingredients. Try the Presecco which is always good. My lamb was char grilled to perfection. The tart is the best thing on the desert menu made with Amalfi lemons. They overcharged us by 200 pounds but one of our party caught the mistake and we got a half hearted apology from a young man in Chinos which was nice.

Fabulous Italian restaurant with some of the best service in London. Expensive but worth the money for an occasional treat. Haven't tried anything on menu which is not delicious.

It has and it Will always be my favourite place in the world

The lamb d'angelo was amazing. The panzotti was overcooked and imbalanced in terms of flavour, too much pumpkin and incredibly soggy. The waiting service were distinctly average, looked bored and unable to answer questions re food or wine. Front desk were most pleasant. Overall, only okay.