River Bar Steakhouse & Grill in Cambridge

Sensational Christmas Party and Cambridge’s finest venue. 20 of us from The Three Tuns in Abington wined and dined at this incredible restaurant. I’ve been before a couple of times and each time it’s been fantastic. If you love an Espresso Martini and a top class Steak then you can’t go wrong. Thank you to your brilliant staff for making our Afternoon. If I could it would be 6 stars. 😁

Been here many times over the years. It’s one of my favourite steak restaurants. I have even recommended it to people. On this occasion was left slightly disappointed by the service. The food was excellent as usual. I shared a scotch egg for starters with a friend. Followed by a ribeye steak with very tasty pak choi, and some beautiful potato wedges. I’ve had numerous cuts of steak here over the years, and the ribeye is perfection in my humble opinion. I cannot rate the food highly enough. My only gripe on this occasion was the service. One member of staff in particular. I’ve never had an issue before, so it came as a slight surprise. The restaurant was busy, but not packed or full. A unmade table by the window became free shortly after our arrival. We did request to move tables, but only because we were centred in the middle and felt squashed in. If it had been packed we wouldn’t have inconvenienced them. He seemed put out by the request because he had to clean the other table. Whilst placing our order he seemed busy paying attention to something out the window. Very little conversation. When I go for a meal, it’s the package. Not just the food, service is important, especially when paying good money for the experience. Didn’t get a goodbye or thankyou at the end of the meal either. Hasn’t put me off returning, maybe it was just a off evening. I understand it’s a busy time of year. However, service is very important to me, and I have to vote the overall experience down 1 star based on that.

I was at river side steak house yesterday with my husband for dinner. Everything was going well until we saw the chef out the kitchen itching his bottom through his trousers which was disgusting and everyone could see him I felt disgusted and did not eat our food and another thing was when I left the toilet there was folk on the floor where I tripped up and no one did anything was very dissapointed.

We had a birthday celebration here and what a fabulous evening it was. Greeted on arrival and shown to our table by our host, Sibi who hails from Cape Town. A complimentary birthday drink was provided with the menu. Service was excellent and Sibi most attentive. The food was outstanding.Starters of scallops and tiger prawns. Superb. I strongly recommend the Chateuabriand. Excellent steak, well cooked. Throughout the evening the service was top class. Attentive without being intrusive. If I have any criticism it relates to the noise level. Hard surfaces amplified a loud Christmas party. That did not detract from our evening, however.

Lovely place, down a quiet little back street, staff were the most pleasant and extremely helpful, food was lovely, presented well and hot. Starters, main and pudding, drinks are good but very expensive, fine dining kind of place.

The service and the food were Excellent this is without a doubt one of the very best Restaurants to eat out at in Cambridge . The Steak was Amazing !! We will most certainly be visiting them again in the near future .

Ate here whilst visiting the university . Very courteous staff . All of us had steaks and they were excellent . Good selection of wines . Would return and recommend.

This place was amazing from start to finish. The food was delicious and prompt. The staff were smiley, helpful and on point. The cocktails was perfect. Highly recommend

Brilliant from start to finish!!! We went to celebrate my boyfriends 21st birthday and were met by amazing staff! We were served by a girl with short blonde hair (sorry I didn’t get her name!) and she was absolutely lovely and recommended I try the medium fillet steak instead of well done. I went for it and WOW! The flavours were amazing and my boyfriend thoroughly enjoyed his!! Couldn’t recommend this place enough. Service was excellent and there was also another man who served us and both of them made up a birthday plate for my boyfriend which I thought was such a lovely gesture and really set the evening off on a high. Thank you so so much for an amazing evening we will definitely come here again when we are back in the area!

We are here on sat night I must say staff were superb But food was average we both had prawns to start and I would give 3/10 I had lobster and my partner steak 5/10 for both Chef has a cold.

I've just tried to make a group (9 people) reservation by telephone and talked to the surliest, unwelcoming, unhelpful individual ever to answer a telephone. Such was the negative tone of voice I hung-up and will find somewhere else to spend our cash. She could not of had a less warming approach if she had tried. And just as a word of warning to other groups - over 8 people have to sit in a private dining room that doesn’t have the view of the city that this establishment boasts. You are also required to choose, 3 days in advance, from a limited menu of just 5 starters and 5 mains. If the management get to read this I would consider retraining the pompous individual who answered my call at 12:36 today, that just isn’t the right way to talk to paying customers.

Been here several times before but this time was bitterly dissatisfied, wife and daughter ordered medium and medium well fillet steaks and both were well done, few tables around us had problems with food too.

Came here before for a wedding anniversary two years ago and porterhouse stakes were superb! This year we decided to come again on August 15th 2019 and ordered starters which were good and then lobster and porterhouse steak.Lobster was way overcooked and steaks were gristly and chewy and overcooked - not medium rare as requested. At £29 for steak and £38 for lobster you should expect a lot better but we received poor value for money. We did voice our displeasure and received a single pud for free as compensation. Good atmosphere and great cocktails but do not expect good food. This is very surprising because the menu is very basic and does not require chefs of high of calibre to deliver a good product. I was very disappointed especially since our previous visit was very satisfactory. Clearly the current team did not deliver for us.

Good portion size, very nice. Beef was rare. Ask to sit upstairs so you have the view of Kings College, downstairs is a bit of a cave. Staff friendly.

Drove 3 hrs to eat here Sunday afternoon, arrived at 4.30 only to be told closed until 5.30 very frustrating as we were on a time schedule!!! sort out the website and even the opening times on the front door so that more of us are not disappointed , found a lovely alternative at the Galleria

So over priced it ruined the evening. Only serve bottles of beer at £5.50 each. Had 5 bottles at the cost of almost £30 for 2.5 pints. Steak was tasteless I'll never return

Cada vez que mi esposa y yo visitamos a una familia en Cambridge, a menudo cenamos en este excelente restaurante. Desde un amplio menú, a menudo pedimos su Chateaubriand recién preparado y muy sabroso. Se ofrece una gran selección de cervezas y vinos. El servicio es de primera clase y sus precios son muy razonables. Si estás en Cambridge, te recomiendo que cenes en este excelente restaurante.

In my opinion very over rated. £42 for surf and turf. Steak was nice but tiny, lobster was average and the smallest one I have ever seen ! Had bigger and better elsewhere and cheaper

Love this restaurant overlooking the river. Staff are always polite and professional. My son ordered medium fillet steak and lobster, the steak was over cooked, the waitress took it away and a fresh one was cooked. No problem whatsoever and they deducted it off the bill. Nothing is too much trouble would definitely recommend for a really good steak.

Came to this restaurant for my 21st birthday meal with my family, needless to say I was pretty disappointed with the service and unprofessionalism.

Booked for Friday night dinner. Really impressed with the service - manager comes to greet you, the waiting staff very professional, meat was absolutely fantastic - one fillet and one rib eye steak. Delicious.

Having looked for somewhere new to try in Cambridge I found the River Bar on Trip Advisor after reading its reviews. I contacted them and they advised me to book a table as they get busy. I reserved for 1pm Saturday lunch, we arrived a bit early and the manager greeted us, shaking our hands and took us up to our table which overlooked the river. Our waiter Stefan was the perfect host, extremely polite and attentive (he could train staff in a lot of restaurants in the uk!) We chose a cocktail each as weekends together are rare for us, both delicious. We then went for the retro 70s prawn cocktail served in a glass tankard with griddled bread. It was lovely with a just a hint of spice. We chose the cote du boeuf to share with rosemary salt chips, a side salad & a Béarnaise and a green peppercorn sauce both served on the side. We love rare steak but Stefan recommended medium rare as it's cooked on the bone. It was one of the best steaks I've had, slightly charred but the middle so tender and rare it really needed no sauces!We then had the homemade creme brûlée and a double espresso each. With a bottle of sparkling water and a bottle of French red wine (which Stefan topped our glasses with) the bill came to £120. For the quality of food, location and brilliant service we thought it was great value and we will definitely be going again - thank you!

Visiting Cambridge on our return from London, pre-booked lunch without checking any sites, we were not disappointed. Quiet at Sunday lunch but the food was superb, service attentive without being over bearing, well worth a second visit if we are in the area.

On walking into the River Bar Steakhouse, I was warmly greeted by the manager who said good evening and addressed me by my name. I have to say I was absolutely blown away by this fantastic touch as it shows a real interest in his customers. The fact that he had taken time out of his busy day to learn my name was extraordinary. We both opted for rib eyes and they were juicy, huge and really well cooked. The sides of spinach and pak choi were also excellent. Our waiter was warm, friendly and attentive and like the manager provided some of the best customer service I have ever experienced. I was looking forward to trying the Oreo cheesecake but I just didn't have any room left so it will have to wait until next timeHugely recommended.

Arrived at 9.30 on a very busy Saturday night to discover we had accidently booked for the wrong evening. The manager magically sorted our party a table.Drinks, service and food excellent. Cannot recommend the tuna steak rare enough.

I was expecting an Italian joint rather than what i found inside. The food is average, no different from the run of the mill corporate places, drinks are mostly mocktails and cocktails. Nothing overly special about this place. Where are all the steaks on the menu if you are a steakhouse? Try sorting your identity out, don't really know what your trying to be here!.

This is a lovely restaurant overlooking the river. Steaks are very good as are the potatoe wedges. The wine list is also good would recommend this restaurant

One of the best menu's I've seen, prices aren't too bad, and the taste is fantastic! Location is great, try and get a table overlooking the canal!Highly recommended

Not naming the restaurant last night because it would wrongly reflect on the manager, this visit was perfect in all ways. The food, the service, the ambience was above perfect. The maitre d' was absolutely exemplary without fawning or being overpowering. This venue, though a little expensive is well worth a visit. Not the first visit, and couldn't praise it enough on all occasions.

Incredible view over the city, unforgettable atmosphere, and really sweet service. We spent a very good time there.

Myself and 2 friends visited this restaurant while visiting Cambridge. As had read the reviews. Members of our party have dietary needs (this is never a problem at restaurants we have visited in the past) we asked if some of the side dishes could be swapped for others when ordering the food (all the sides are listed as the same price on the menu so did not think this would be an issue) the waiter had to ask the owner who in fact was the chef. The head waiter came over and said due to company policy this was not possible. Basically we were expected to pay for a meal with items that were to be left off and then pay extra for the different sides that members of our party could eat! We told them to forget the order and walked out. I will add that it took 15 minutes for a member of staff to even take our order. Or even ask if we wanted a drink. For the price you pay in this restaurant you would expect better service! Will never visit again and would recommend if you have dietary requirements and like to eat out! Don't eat here!

Had dinner here with a group of friends, the location is great alongside the river and the restaurant interior does look great with the mezzanine floor. We were sat looking out over the river which was great. The food started ok, we were all impressed with our starters, I had the scotch eggs (served warm, very good!) with a mayonnaise dip which was very tasty. Everyone else seemed to be impressed with their starters to. Being a group of lads we all went for the steak main course which was fairly pricey for what it was. I think it was a around £23 for a rump steak. It was a terrible piece of meat and seemed to be a lot of fat in the steak, I actually asked if they had mistakenly served me a Ribeye but I was told it was a Rump. I have had better steaks at CAU in Cambridge which I would recommend over River Bar Kitchen if it is a steak dinner you a re looking for. The deserts were very good, we couldn't fault that and the waiter we had was very attentive and drinks were brought to us extremely quickly. I've been to a few restaurants for an evening meal where you tend to wait for some time to get drinks to the table, especially when it comes to the second round of drinks, you tend to find they arrive after you have finished your main course. Good service, great location, decent food but pricey for what it is.

I went to this restaurant with a friend last week and was left slightly distressed after receiving such poor quality food!! Bad Points1. Bread was hard (she said that its baked in the morning so we should expect it to be had by the end of the day)2. Mussells were without shell and not cooked properly (over done!)3. Steak was terrible!! None of our steaks were cooked how we wanted. 4. Only one style of fries...and they happen to have the pooresr quality ones!!Good points1. Lobster was ok2. It wasnt busy so service was quick Overall.....stay clear of this poor excuse of a steakhouse!!

I was disappointed to find The River Bar Steakhouse & Grill, which is actually independent, felt rather chain-y in already chain-ridden Cambridge. At first glance it looks good, in a generic steakhouse sort of way and it is in a lovely spot although our waiter rather over-hyped the table: the wonderful river view could only be viewed by a ballerina-worthy neck-twisting turn and as it was dark the unlit river was too murky to discern anyway. The menu is cookie-cutter steakhouse and borrows heavily...

Having been to most of the nice restaurants in cambridge i had heard good things about river bar but i wasnt impressed at all. I went with friends for work there was about 15 of us and we wanted a relaxed chilled out evening but it all felt very rushed. Within 2hrs we had been served our 3 course meal, there was no time time to chat and just enjoy the experience. Plates were being taken away when others hadnt finished and we were kind of left a lot of the time when we needed drinks and with so many people i felt like they could of made a lot more money from us. And when some of us did want a coffee to finish we were told the coffee machine was already turned off!!!!The food was not good at all :-( I had a parma ham salad to start with cant really go wrong so it was ok came with tomotoes and bread diced up on the plate. Bread didnt seem to fresh though. I dont think its homemade unlike other places in cambridge that do make fresh bread each day.My main was turkey with all the "trimmings" well if you call a ramekin with 4 green beans and 3 carrott sticks and one small piece of cauliflower all the trimmings. It was tiny and im not a big eater but it needed a lot more to it. It was alright but just no flavour really, there was no taste or anything that made me think wow this is lovely.Dessert was creme brulee and the texture was totally off, way to soft and just bland.Cocktails were nice and there was a very good selection but they need to work on the food as the building is nice.Overall i would not return to this restaurant there are too many better places in cambridge with the same price tag.

It has an amazing view of the river. The Chateaubriand was great for the price! Plus, they do have the best bloody marys in Cambridge!

Great breakfast as part of the b&b deal for staying in the Varsity Hotel next door. Huge continental choice and superb Full English also included. Nice balcony overlooking the river. The only downside is the proximity of the tables.

Went here whilst staying at The Varsity Hotel, which is part of the same group. Had the best steak I have had for a long time, cooked to perfection and nice ambience in the place. Shared the baked camembert with my girlfriend which you cannot go wrong with, and had a wonderful Tiramisu to finish. Unobtrusive and friendly service, will be back