Riverside Grille

The food tasted like an overdose of seasoning salt. The patty melt was served on rye bread yet the overpowering seasoning eclipsed what is normally a flavorful bread. Couldn’t even eat half of it. The meal was cold. The staff were ghosts. The one star is for the beautiful view and location.

You get one star for good service and one for the spicy shrimp. You lose three stars for a very poor tasting burger that was overcooked and tasted burned. It was a real disappointing lunch.

Lots of windows in the resturant so that no matter where you sit you can pretty much see the lake. I had the meatloaf and it was good. The bread and butter were awesome. House salad was yellow and white junk lettuce which was a disappointment. Overall much better than an Applebee’s or similar chain.

Great location, overlooking the lake. Great service, attentive but not intrusive even though the place was packed. Great drinks and fantastic prices given the quality of what was presented. For the maximum experience get a table on the deck.
Started with the fried green maters. Interesting presentation, topped with pico de Galla, feta, and a basalmic drizzle. I am a traditionalist when it comes to my fried green, but they were excellent. Luckily one did not get the treatment and it passed old school muster.
Now on to the pot roast, everyone needs down home food from time to time. Excellent but missing the veggies, what is pot roast without the carrots. Though the green beans on the side were, as Goldilocks said, just right.
As the evening ended and the sun went down fog started to settle over the lake. Really wanted to try the Two Layer Key Lime Pie, but I am stuffed and very satisfied. Look it up on their menu and you will want to try it as well. Definitely worth a road trip!
Okay I gave into temptation, one to go please. Since I have a fridge in the room, I know what I will be having in the morning.

Can’t say much for scenery in that it was fogged in but I know it is very good. We were there on a Monday night and they were very busy. The service lacked a little but they had issues with broken glass in the cooler and that tied up servers. They were very pleasant and knowledgeable. My wife’s order was wrong but the waitress went to the kitchen and got it straightened out. Considering the problems they had the staff handled it beautifully. The food was excellent and if we are back in town we will stop again.

I haven’t even gotten my entrée yet and I am «YELPing» about this place. On the river, beautiful smoky fog rolling up to provide a peaceful view as I sample beer cheese dip made with Stella. However, the reason I am not even waiting for my duck breast to post is the croutons on my Caesar salad. So here it is:
ODE TO THE CROUTON
Simply delicious
Buttery, melting crunch
Salty, flavorful niblet of paradise
Pause while I munch munch munch
Who cares if my duck is good, or my shitake mushroom rice pilaf, or the kahlua brownie I plan to indulge in after a long, evil week in corporate America! That CROUTON made my whole week.

The facility is great with great staff and food. Had Southwest Egg Rolls and Spicy Shrimp and Chicken Pasta. All were wonderful! A definite keeper with graet views.

Thanks to Unilocal we found this restaurant after church in Oak Ridge. Friendly attentive service, nice atmosphere and tasty buffet on scenic lake. Maybe a bit overpriced but on vacation we tolerate that more. All around positive experience.

I’ve been there several times now never disappointed in the food… It is great and the service is the best… Restaurant needs more atmosphere and warmth… the view of the
river is beautiful…

Been here twice and enjoyed both times. They bring out the BEST bread and butter I have ever tasted. To die for! Amazing chicken pot pie. Great view and gorgeous on a sunny or snowy day.

We were there Monday evening. What a great experience. The view of the river is awesome. Service was as good as it gets. Ask for Megan as your server. She is great! I had the rib eye which was very good. My wife had blackened talapia which she loved. Whenever I am in the area, I will be going back.

I came here on business and this restaurant was recommended to me. The location of the restaurant is absolutely beautiful, settled right on the riverbank. For my dinner I had the po boy as well as a cup of the Cajun black bean soup. In general, I thought the taste of the food was good, but there wasn’t anything special about it. It really tasted like standard food that you might find at a local bar. the fish on the po boy was a little too underdone for my liking and the soup was a little too salty. Overall, not a bad dining experience, but not one of my favorites.

I came here for a rehearsal dinner last week. I have driven by Riverside Grille maaaany times (my fiancé’s dad literally lives across the street from it) but this was my first time going. The menu was pre-​selected for us so although I didn’t have much say in what I ate, I did enjoy my time there. I LOVE how it is situated right now the lake, I imagine this is the perfect place to have a cocktail when the sun is going down (they have an outdoor patio) but again, since I was at a rehearsal dinner, I was unable to.
The food that I had was okay… I had steak, green beans, and a potato (with a salad). Pretty basic meal. The green beans were overcooked and a bit mushy. The service was decent — I just wasn’t that impressed with the meal. HOWEVER, since it is so close to a family member’s house, I do intend to come back and try out different parts of the menu/​cocktail list!

Wonderful place to eat and the staff is über friendly, have gotten to know several of them. Danielle and Eric are really nice managers and Lucas serves up great customer service when we sit in the bar area. I can’t get enough of their brunch on Sunday’s with French toast casserole topped with blueberries, I think I’m addicted. Also have a awesome party venue.

Given the alternatives in vicinity of ORNL, this is a solid choice. In order of best to worst; views/​location, food quality, drink list. Don’t come here for a wine dinner. Do come for the best non-​chain food in the area and awesome views!

Location location location. This joints looks from the outside like the church of Scientology. It’s sleek and modern inside and there’s an upscale feel here. The menu on the other hand is pretty simple and not very thrilling. Although I’m bored by ordinary they do it well. Service is sharp and professional and the food came out in a great time frame. The patio has great views from every table. Finally, the price point is silly affordable.
This is the place to take someone you are trying to impress. I debated giving only 4 stars for the lackluster menu but you can’t fault them for execution. Good job across the board even of the place looks like star fleet headquarters.

Great bar. A little something for everyone on the menu. Beautiful restaurant with great ambiance & an amazing view.
They have a Sunday brunch that’s to die for. But be patient for Sunday brunch. It has gotten really popular. If you’re there for the bar, you will enjoy several BIG flat screens with what ever sports are going on. If you’re there to eat a meal outside on the patio, you will get an even greater view of Melton Hill Lake. It’s an easy access location and a very sufficient parking lot. There is an event space available & it’s a great choice for wedding receptions. I can say this from personal experience. This restaurant used to be «The Flatwater Grill» & was under different ownership & management.

This restaurant is in a beautiful location, with lovely views. The place itself is an ugly behemoth of a building, but as long as you are inside looking out, I guess that’s okay.
The menu is pretty limited and samey — okay, it is a «grille» so that’s not unexpected, but if you have a mixed party looking for some variety, then this isn’t the place to go. There’s nothing vegetarian on the menu, beyond the appetisers — even amongst the salads. When asked, they have a vegetarian dish in reserve — pasta with vegetables — which is adequate, but very bland. The bread is very tasty, though. Salty and tasty.
The service was quick, in terms of waiting to order and then for the food. It was a little inattentive after that, with no water top-​ups coming our way.
For me, there’s nothing much to entice me back here, but if you’re in a group who fancy the look of the menu, you may well not be disappointed.

Fine dining for Oak Ridge ;)
The menu is good and special orders for food allergies or picky eaters are not a problem for them.
Happy Hour in the bar is also great!
The grilled salmon salad is my favorite!

Not bad! A place to finally take company has been discovered for me! And, on top of that there’s a view and not a bad menu. There’s brunch in the mornings on Sundays, which isn’t bad, but I didn’t partake in that my first time here. I instead ordered from the menu, which had a good amount and variety of choices of dishes.
So this is what I got: the Roasted Chicken Pasta. And my verdict? Not bad. It was very creamy and had a good amount of food. I also got a salad to go with it so I could fill out my requirements of greens in my meal. Bow tie pasta, mushrooms, broccoli, tomatoes served with lightly cheese on top with some color of the spinach. Good combination and gives a good full feeling of the whole entire meal together.
For dessert I got the strawberry cake. And for that, I felt as if it was a little too sweet for my taste. It was served with whip cream as well as real strawberries, on top of a extremely sweet icing. The cake itself wasn’t really extremely sweet, it was sweet, but not overbearing. What made it too sweet was the icing, which they made sure to pack the slice full of. Next time, I’m getting the crème brûlée.
Overall, I really enjoyed Riverside Grille. The great service, food, and the great view of the river while eating my meal made this place a definite revisit for me. (I got to watch some rowers row/​race on a rainy and windy day, while wondering how they do it. And, where I come from it’s very, very, very rare to see «crew-​ing?») [I sort of think it’s stupid to call the sport crew, but then actively rowing. So, I’m breaking rules and saying crew-​ing.]