Rizzo’s Diner

I don’t cuss… But wow, I want to after Rizzo’s in a good way… This food shouldn’t be in public it’s so damn good! It’s like watching porn, but food wise eating it!!! Hot damn!
We’ve been Unilocaling our food way through Memphis and while all Unilocal Memphis recommendations have been wonderful, clearly we saved the very best for last… Rizzo’s!!! Holly moly– excellent service, food, excellent everything! If I could give 6 stars, I would… Featured on the food network, who knew healthy could taste so good!!! Wish this place where in my town!!! Wow, wow, wow!!! A Memphis MUST DO!!!

We had anticipated a great lunch at this place. Great ambiance, just steps from the Lorraine Hotel and Civil Rights Museum. We all started with the famous lobster pups. They would’ve been tasty when freshly made, but had apparently been sitting there a bit – cold and lifeless. Our lunches varied but we also all tried the cheeseburger soup. Again, it would’ve been tasty if warmed up. One of our dining companions had the Blue Plate Special. NEVER order the Blue Plate Special. It was one measly little crab cake and the peas tasted like field peas. It was supposed to come with bread but like a few around us, that never appeared. I had a cheeseburger which was flavorful and generous despite being cooked to very well done-​thus, the one star. No one else was impressed with their entrees, either. To top off this disappointing dining adventure, our bill was a complete mess! It was like she was on another planet. All I can say is when we come back to Memphis, we will NOT be visiting Rizzos. Too bad, because it had promise of being an innovated culinary delight of interesting choices. Not.

Food is fantastic. A southern dining joint for those just looking for a break from BBQ. We went tapas and got to sample a lot. Black bean hummus very good, would be better with veggies to dip. Zucchini cakes great especially the creole tomato sauce. Lobster pup amazing but star of the night was the scallop risotto. Sauce mushrooms and greens spectacular (more greens less beans please) and scallops were huge and perfectly done
To top it off the music was great and staff friendly!

Great food! The open faced roast beef sandwich had the most tender beef I have ever had. Anywhere. It came with mashed potatoes and gravy on bread. The serving was generous and I took some home.

Gotta love rizzos. I love the vegetable plate when mushrooms aren’t involved. Like that it changes daily. Chorizo meatloaf and pot pie are a win. Really everything I’ve had here has been fantastic except for the hummus. Definitely not a fan of the hummus. Service is great, speed of food showing up is great during non peak hours which is a plus.

We had a great dining experience here. Everything was delicious!!! We arrived at 9 on a weeknight and were truly taken care of. Our waiter was passionate about the menu and all of the specials. He also provided us with fantastic BBQ restaurant recommendations!
Cheeseburger soup was rich and flavorful. A cup is a sufficient portion that helps to leave room for the entrees to come.
The Scallops over Mushroom Risotto was divine. The entrée was surrounded by a lobster glaze that was scrumptious.
The Catfish was excellent and vegetables served alongside were perfect.
Dessert was also very good. Homemade vanilla bean ice cream easily pleased a self-​declared chocoholic. Blueberry bread pudding was superb!
Chef, please open a restaurant in NY!

I think this place is categorized wrong, I’m not sure what it was other than eclectic, but it wasn’t Cajun. The waitresses were snobby and the service was slow. The food was fine but definitely not worth the outrageous prices.

Was here last night and tried the pot pie. It was really good. The skin on the sausage was a little tougher than I’d like, so there were a few chewed pieces left over at the end, but not because of the meat… just skin.
Service was excellent. Flying solo, so I sat at the bar. Nicci was friendly, knowledgeable, and had some good recommendations.
There were too many good things on the menu, so I had to come back. Tonight I’m going to try the lamb belly tacos and Short ribs. Can’t wait to see.

Er.Mi.Gah. Rizzo’s on South Main is a dream! I visited for brunch with a few friends and although my vegetarian options seemed to be limited, I was not at all disappointed with my meal.
I had the curry edamame tofu scramble with seasoned tofu, grape tomatoes, and chopped scallions. It sounds like a piece of heaven because it was just that! Chef Michael even visited our table to ask about the experience. We couldn’t help but rave over the food and plan our next visit.
Head over to Rizzo’s for brunch ASAP. Thank me later.

I was super excited to go to this place. Had heard so much. We were a group of 5. 2 of who, Vaish and husband, had been there before. And they had the most amazing things to say about the food.
We ordered a bottle of wine for the table. The waiter got us a different bottle than what we ordered, bad start. But no problem!
Next we orders lobster pronto pups, hummus and lamb tacos for the table. Lobster pronto pups were pretty good. Crispy outer covering with delicious lobster.
The hummus was meh. Very very average.
The lamb tacos failed to impress us either. It felt the tacos were repeatedly microwaved before being served.
For the main course I got the chicken pot pie. Vaish had ordered it on her last visit and per her it was even not remotely close to what they had been served on their last visit.
The veggie plate was very depressing too.
For dessert I had orders the blueberry bread pudding. Now the three stars are actually for the dessert. It was simply amazing. I am not a dessert person, but this bread pudding was out of the world. I could eat it over and over again.
As for the very average food, I would like to give Rizzo’s another try. May be it was just a bad day for them.

I love their short rib, that’s all I ever get. I love their avocado salad too. I’ve had a blueberry bread pudding there that was to die for as well. I don’t care much for their lobster pronto pup.
I will tell you not to wear your best clothes or purse. When you leave here u will smell like food and grease like you’ve been working in the kitchen. Poor ventilation.

I’ve always loved this restaurant but I REALLY love their new location!
Whenever I ask a Memphis foodie what there favorite restaurant is, Rizzo’s Diner ALWAYS gets thrown into the mix. Because if you’re a true foodie, you know that Rizzo’s is what’s up. I can’t believe I just used that phrase… but it seemed fitting… now I feel weird… I’m just going to continue to get over the awkwardness…
I love South Main. I love this building. And I love their food. That bar puts me in my happy place and not just because I like to drink (although that is definitely true). The cheeseburger soup, lobster pronto pups, basically their whole menu differentiates itself in a positive way from the same olé same olé found across other Memphis menus.
If you want to try something different, new, and GOOD, mosey on over to Rizzo’s! Especially for brunch!

Had the bananas foster French toast, catfish Benedict and beans with Parmesan grits — all three were great, even to my 10 month old. Bonus– the bathroom has a changing table.
Service was good, place was clean (including bathrooms), and the staff and chef were all warm and welcoming. Will definitely be back.

If you are reading this — stop what you are doing and go here now. Rizzos tends to get overlooked when it comes to great restaurants in Memphis — and this needs to stop. It is the most consistent restaurant downtown and never fails to impress.
I’m not sure if I should mention the lobster pups — it’s pretty common knowledge that they are to die for. Along with their cheeseburger soup, they could be a meal themselves.
They have a great chef on site — Chef Shorts is his name, and he always comes up with the best specials. Seriously, if you don’t know what to get, just get the special. It’s never been less than 5 stars. I also love the Salmon here, and the veggies it comes with changes.
Rizzos also has a bada** brunch. So if you haven’t already, forget what you knew about the old Rizzos, and go to their new-​ish location ASAP.

This place was awesome! We were on our way through Memphis coming from New Jersey headed to California when we decided to have a nice «comfort food» dinner. Thanks to some tips from our buddy Guy, we knew just where to go.
Never saw the old location, but I get the impression that it was tighter and less opulent than this new space. Really nice wood and brick décor.
The menu was a bit «different» with relatively limited choices, but the choices that were there looked great and the waiter and chef were happy to accommodate special requests. Cindy has a citrus allergy, so, without asking for anything special, the chef prepared several items specially for us, without adding the citrus. In the case of our Hanger Steak, he made a red wine reduction for us just so Cindy could avoid the citrus in the usual sauce!
The usual suspects were, of course, awesome — the Cheeseburger Soup (OMG!!) and the Lobster Pronto Pup… But all the other reviews already rave about those. The Hanger Steak and the Short Rib, though… Com’on! These are dishes fit for a King (or his Queen or Princess) without a doubt. :-)
The food would have been 5-​star worthy without the special treatment, but I have to be honest, if I could give them 10 stars for going miles over and above what was necessary, I would. One of the 5 best restaurant experiences we’ve had anywhere, hands down.

We were passing through Memphis, only had a few hours, we’re very hungry and we stopped in for a quick brunch time breakfast dish at Rizzos — UNFORGETTABLE! Cat Fish Benny hands down the best Benny I have ever had, and I’m not exaggerating. I’ve had British Columbia smoked maple salmon Benny’s– they Still don’t beat this Killer breakfast dish! We had it with the stone ground grits — which I normally hate grits — came recommended by the chef, And you don’t turn down the chefs favorite, and they were sooooo good it was stupid! Stupid good! We ate our food so fast it felt like we never took a breath of air, it disappeared so quick I only took a picture of our empty plates #bestbreakfastinMemphis
An added bonus: the sound system was playing Van Morrison and the Kinks and seemingly all my favorite songs from all my favorite Wes Anderson films. That was icing for sure.
Carrie was our waitress/​bartender (we ate at the bar) she pointed us in the right direction when it came to food, hooked us up with insider tips about thrift/​vintage stores, music shops, and other eateries in the city. She was super fun to talk to, genuine and knowledgeable about everything we talked about!
The whole experience was warm, refreshing, and definitely tasty!

We loved the menu for Downtown dining week 2015 and as usual everything was on point.
For an appetizer we had the cheeseburger soup which was deliciously cheesy but not too rich. We also opted for the roasted vegetable salad which was delicious with the wonderful citrusy vinaigrette. I had the chorizo meatloaf with green tomato sauce, which is very dense and flavorful but not heavy.
For dessert we had a delectable caramel brownie with vanilla bean gelato and chocolate sauce which was fudgy, warm and totally decadent. We ate every scrumptious bite.
As always the service was impeccable, thank you to our wonderful server Lee.

The food is always inventive and amazing. My three favorites are the cheeseburger soup, the lobster pronto pup and the chorizo meatloaf. After dinner the other night, I’m going to have to put their chicken pot pie in my rotation. My main course the other night had the interesting challenge of being unevenly heated. Parts were hot. Parts were warm and parts were down right cold. I still cleaned my plate.
Service is attentive and quick. The only hiccup we experienced the other night was the (lack of) speed at which our dessert arrived. Our waiter and the manager came by more than once to apologize for the delay. Once we finally got it, we cleaned our plates.
Drinks are well made. The bartender (s) have proven to be friendly and knowledgeable in previous visits.

I went for Downtown Dining Week and I’m going to assume that the set prices were the reason for the small servings. I enjoyed the food. It was cooked well but it felt more like samples than a meal. I will have to try again on another day. I loved the cheeseburger soup and the lobster Pronto pups were so so. Oh and service was not that great.

this is my second visit, first time in the new location and it is just wonderful! Important: grits, you have to get them, it doesn’t matter what is placed over them or around them, they are amazing!
last night I had the snapper and it was cooked to perfection, placed over the best grits ever! mr. Mike Patrick is a genius!
love the choice of wines available and the location is great!

So firstly a disclaimer, I’m not the biggest fan of cajun/​creole and honestly would never willingly chose to eat at a cajun inspired restaurant. But Rizzo’s dinner is truly an exception. Though it’s Unilocal categorized under «cajun/​creole,» it is really much much more!
You need to start off with the lobster pronto pups. Pure amazingness. I thought it would be like a lobster corn dog, but is was more like lobster tempura-​light and fired perfection. Plus it’s served with a small leafy salad, dressed in a spicy mustard, so you don’t feel too guilty devouring the fried goodness.
For my vegetarian buddies, they have a veggie plate on the menu which changes daily. Tonight it was a trio of edamame-​potato patties, broccoli goat cheese casserole and roasted acorn squash with arugula. Such unique options so obviously I had to get it, and it was awesome! They really need to make the edamame-​potato patties an appetizer, I’d order it again and again. My husband had the chicken pot pie with andouille sausage. The filling was flavorful and the puff pastry was flaky and perfect.
We came here for a special celebration, but honestly the ambiance wasn’t prefect. Yes the décor is trendy but the lights were bright, the tables close together and not really set up for a romantic evening. Would be a great place to hang out with a bunch of friends though.
Also the wine prices are insane! I recognized a bottle of red wine on the menu which I had recently bought at Buster’s for $ 12.99. On the menu it was priced at $ 43! Pure robbery. Next time, maybe I’ll just pay the corkage fee of $ 15 and bring my own bottle!
Rizzo’s definitely changed my mind regarding cajun cuisine and I can’t wait to come back and try the brunch!

I know I have written a review here before when they were at their old location, maybe it got lost in the transfer? This used to be a 5 star review.
The new location is great and much roomier. This was probably my fourth time eating here and all previous times have been fantastic – some of the servers could use some polishing, but overall they have been 5 start experiences. In the past I’ve enjoyed the lobster pronto pups, cheeseburger soup, pot pie and the hanger steak and everything was great.
This recent visit was a bit of a let down. The atmosphere was great, the new location is hip but the food was just okay. I saw the executive chef walk in a bit after we ordered, so not sure if he was in the kitchen at the time of our food’s preparation. I say that because just about every part of all of our main courses were really bland. It was like someone didn’t season or taste the dishes. I never ask for condiments at nice restaurants, but this is the one time I HAD to ask for salt and pepper. The food wasn’t bad, but it didn’t make my taste buds get excited – simply underwhelming. Everything from the green beans, mac n cheese, potatoes, to the chorizo meatloaf was under seasoned.
I will go back and still suggest this to others because this has been one of my favorite places since it opened, I just think someone really forgot to season the food on this night. I hope it doesn’t fall into the same trap other local great restaurants have fallen into, where once they get popular and don’t struggle to fill tables that their service and quality are pushed to the side. So, I am leaving 4 star review as an average of my visits and I will update again when I return.