Riverstone Cafe

This place used to have great food and drinks.
Now they have new ownership… and a smaller menu… and the food is not as good… and the drinks are not so good.

Eh, it was decent. We went later so it was close to empty. Only us and one other table. Nice atmosphere and good décor. I think it would be pleasant even if crowded. I had two Tapas plates, mussels and the three mini crab cakes. The mussels were served in a white wine sauce (choice of white or red) which was delicious. They were very good size and cooked great, served with crostini which was good. The crab cakes were very bland and had way too much filler. They were dry and the aioli did nothing to help the flavor. My wife had the French onion soup which she said was good but was advertised as being served with a puff pastry on top but was instead served with a piece of Crostini, not a huge deal, but. She was going to get the grilled squid, but they were out of that as well as being out of the chicken saltimbocca (sp?). Instead she got the special that she was told was scallops served over angel hair pasta. Scallops were WAY overcooked and the pasta albeit homemade was not angel hair and was very doughy, so much so that she didn’t eat half. Service was okay, even only with two tables, there were multiple mix ups of what goes to which table. Would we go back? Depends. I would for the mussels, but probably not for any other reason.

Our experience with Riverstone Café began with a phone call to the restaurant to inquire about spaces for large groups and options for people with food allergies. We were able to secure a curtained-​off section of the restaurant for our party of 15 on a Thursday night, and the chef got on the phone to talk about allergies with us. The chef listed a number of menu options that were natively free of the allergen and offered to make us pretty much anything we like with a special preparation to exclude the allergen. Great start.
On arrival, our table was ready to go in the special section of the restaurant. We were greeted by the friendly waitress, and the chef came out immediately to talk to us about our allergies.
Our party ordered appetizers and entrees. Among the things that were ordered were the crab cake triplets, hot dang, french onion soup, oysters, crab and spinach dip, chef’s crab cakes, scallops and shrimp scampi, New York strip steak, chicken picatta, blackened grouper, cheeseburger, etc. Everyone enjoyed their food. Alcoholic beverages were also ordered, and everyone seemed to enjoy those as well.
Throughout the meal, the waitress, staff and the chef were very attentive, friendly and on top of things despite there being a large party with 3 small children. The noise level in the restaurant was low, and we were able to hear each other comfortably.
I also want to note that the chef mentioned that he was hired just a few days prior to our visit. Therefore, folks who were unhappy with the food should give this place another chance. The new chef is pretty awesome.

Keep looking. Apparently the new owner doesn’t value what made this restaurant fantastic in the past. The tapas on the menu are a sad tribute to what was once offered here. Two oysters choices on Friday night. Do yourself a favor and find another place to enjoy your evening.

Service was amazing BUT food was lacking… Veal Parmesan was dry and not flavorful at all. No oyster bar anymore folks!

Tapas and drinks used to be great but over the past few visits the number of tapas options have decreased and the newest version of the menu tonight had no real tapas, just standard appetizer fare. Service was fine, no issue. Food was mediocre at best and not worth the price at all. Really dead for a Friday night too– this place is definitely on the decline. It’s a shame, but I won’t be back.

Riverstone has changed since last year! (2014) my husband and I loved riverstone… We loved the tapas and the food was always fresh… «Was» is the key word. things have changed here. The food is mediocre for the price and the drinks are awful.
We loved this place and will no longer be returning.

These reviews are the equivalent of someone saying they enjoy low-​key quiet lounges so they go to a night club and complain about the noise and intense atmosphere.
The oyster bar is very relaxing and they always have a great variation of oysters accompanied with tasty sauces (try the red pomegranate one).
The new management is excellent and the new menus are very good. I originally went for brunch two weeks ago and had a apple chicken walnut salad which tasted unbelievably good. I would recommend this salad for a light and tasty lunch. The service was friendly, quick, and the environment was relaxing. After asking for a dinner menu to browse, I saw a handful of entrees and tapas that caught my eye so I decided to return for dinner later in the week.
Dinner: I had a pear and goat cheese crustini and sesame tuna to start. I can confidently say the pear and goat is the tastiest appetizer I have ever had. The sesame tuna was cut to perfection and the presentation was very nice. For my entrée I had the Gingo Miso Striped Bass. Couldn’t find anything wrong with it. The soup wasn’t overbearing, the bass, which lied on the udon noodles, was perfectly seasoned. Once again, the service was great, quick, and friendly. Lemoncello lemon drop martini was a bit strong but hey, who’s gonna complain about more alcohol.
There was honestly nothing I could find wrong with my experience. I suppose the food took a bit longer than I hoped for but the server told me the kitchen cooks for Riverstone AND Doc Martin next door. To have a kitchen staff cooking for two restaurants at once made this more tolerable and understandable. The menus online need to be updated too.
¹⁰⁄₁₀ will return.

Avoid, this place has one redeeming quality. The Wednesday oyster special. After having several small, overpriced, awful tasting appetizers. I have come to the conclusion that it simply is not worth coming to this establishment anymore. The martini list is awful, the beer selection is awful, and the bar service is sub-​par for price comparison. For 9 $ a martini I want it to be at least satisfactory. I would avoid eating here six days a week. The oyster special is great, the rest, is a wannabe restaurant. DO NOT enjoy

If you want to make your girlfriend cry on her birthday, take her here. If you like to go back into the kitchen to get your own syrup, come here. If you like being a guinea pig for some frat boy’s first day on the job, this is your place. All those reviews written before the management change and before they did away with their signature brunch buffet? Let them fade from your consciousness like the glory of this Exton staple has faded in the past few months.

Just so you all know, the ownership has changed hands as of September of last year…

Food was good but service was almost non existent. Server didn’t check on our table until we were finished. Food came out wrong but was fixed quickly. Had the feeling that we were more of a nuisance then a guest.

So disappointing. This has been a great staple for good drinks and good food and good service for years. It has definitely declined.
They had a band tonight that was way too loud and made the experience a bit awkward.
Tonight we had food that was inedible and had to be sent back. The server was nice but had too many tables and we had to flag her down on several occasions.
Sadly this will be my last visit. Their tapas was so good, the new menu just isn’t working well.

All I have to say is bad oysters! As in, you take a whiff and the dead fish smell nearly knocks you off your seat. Understood that it is a busy night and they were two servers short. Willing to overlook service and getting our flatbreads before our oysters. However bad oysters –YUCK! Will not be returning and will not recommend.

Drinks are excellent and the food usually is. However did not care for the spinach and crab dip. Window seats are chilly in frigid temperatures. Get a seat near the fireplace. Mon-​thurs you can bring your own wine. They have kid menu. But make it a date with the Martinis. Especially between 5&7! Excellent for big appetites or small. Also the tapas allow you to try several things and share. Great parking and great bar to catch up on sports. It is close to Downingtown theater so you can drive 10 minutes down he road and still catch the movie before it starts!

This place… was not good. Was in the area on Sunday morning and wanted brunch. Browsed Unilocal,checked out this place’s website, and everything promised a beautiful brunch buffet with rave reviews. We drive all the way there, and as soon as we walked in the door, the host said, «Okay if you’re here for our brunch buffet, we are no longer doing it. We just have a regular menu now.» I felt bad for the girl because I bet she had a lot of angry people on her hands that day.
I guess we could have turned around and left, but we had driven all the way there and didn’t want to be rude to this poor girl, so we agreed to be seated. She placed us (2 of us) at a teeny table way out of the way of the near-​empty dining room. Our server had to come looking for us if he wanted to see if we needed anything; it wasn’t something he could see from across the room.
Which leads me to my next point. Dude, I realize you probably hate your job — who doesn’t — but you could not have made us feel less welcome. I’m not averse to punk style, but the guy who serve you food shouldn’t have inch-​long, black and glittery fingernails. His hands looked like SabreTooth from the X-​Men series. He wasn’t very helpful or welcoming — this includes splashing me and our table with water from the pitcher because he wanted to fill our glasses and leave. No apology or recognition of this.
My dude ordered the crabcake eggs benedict which seemed ok. I ordered a salad and said, «Can I just get that without cheese?» It came with gorgonzola. I knew right away the order would be wrong. He didn’t write it down, he didn’t even really do anything other than nod and grab our menus. Of course, it came out covered in gorgonzola cheese. I couldn’t eat it. I wouldn’t even send it back because quite frankly, what else are they gonna bring me? Take an hour to give me something else I Don’t want? Kind of pointless.
The entire time, a man — I think the owner — was standing at the front yapping on his cell phone. The room was filthy and abandoned — places you could tell used to function as the brunch buffet were now just empty stands. Every person there looked unhappy, including the staff, and all-​in-​all, it seems that whatever everyone had been raving about on Unilocal has gone the way of the dodo.

For the past 9 years, my husband and I used to go to Riverstone as our go-​to. But all that changed when the new owner took over about a year ago.
The last time we dined there, a couple sat next to us outside. We started noticing someone smoking behind us — which is illegal in Pennsylvania– but we were done, about to leave and decided not to make a fuss. The man, by the way, was sitting outside RIGHT next to the no smoking sign.
The couple next to us, however, had just sat down so the man very courteously got up and asked the man to stop smoking. At that point, the smoker became rude, told the other man he was the owner and he could do whatever he wanted.
Angered, the man returned to his table and asked to move, so he and his date went inside. We were pretty upset by this and mentioned it to our waitress as we were leaving. Well, the smoking owner then decided to kick out the couple! We spoke at length with the manager and have not returned since, and refuse to go to Riverstone or Winners Circle.

Riverstone is a favorite among my coworkers and me for happy hours after work, but this place is really good any time of day. They always have great beers on tap and they make an awesome dirty martini. There’s a great range of seating options — casual lounge chairs and low tables, lots of bar stools, a private room in the back and a nice little outdoor area during warmer months. And the food is seriously tasty — especially the hummus platter, the brie & roasted turkey panini and the pear & goat cheese crustini.
Two other bonuses:
1. If you’re in the mood for more casual «sports bar» type food, you can also order from the Winners Circle menu, since they share a kitchen.
2. On Tuesday nights, they put out free food during happy hour and it’s usually a pretty decent spread.

It was an enjoyable evening. The restaurant was not full on a Saturday night. service was good but could have been faster. The waiter was odd and blinked a lot. He forgot to bring me ketchup after I asked. Not a very good waiter.
All the food and drink I had was good. Different types of oysters to try. Tapas are nice and good for sharing. I liked the Bloody Mary they made.
I would go back. Hopefully a different server will be at our table.

Riverstone’s oyster bar has more kinds of oysters than you can shake a stick at, including European flats, Giga-​motos, Mystic Rivers, and Shigokus! Their $ 1 oyster special (Wednesdays) applies only to half of the varieties they offer. Each oyster has its own texture, flavor, and size; study the menu to best satisfy your oyster cravings.
Try their Oysters Moscow ($ 9), four freshly shucked Atlantics with Pearl vodka, horseradish cream, and black caviar — don’t worry, they’re not shots. Speaking of which, they serve up generous shots, with deep pours.
The red bell pepper and crab chowder (small is $ 4) is pleasantly flavorful: substantial jumbo-​lump crab meat, roasted peppers, bacon, Idaho potatoes, onions, green bell peppers, and celery. Respectable texture. On the other hand, their Asian lettuce wraps ($ 8.50) — with pulled chicken — is frightening. Stick to seafood.
Good service. Bubbly server Sam met our every need, splitting our check when we asked, and bringing us extra forks with dessert!
Attractive ambiance, low-​key music. The dining room has a large center table with a fountain, and off to the side is a pizza oven. There’s outdoor seating as well.