The Little River Cafe

Great place to stop and have a pizza and beer. Awesome place to unwind and enjoy live music.

Waited 2 hours to get food that was awful. Excuse was there was only three cooks. The owner has no idea how to manage a restaurant. DO NOT GO!!!

Rowdy place that sits on the little Miami river. Fun and lively with a big wrap around patio. They played good live music while we were there on a Friday night. We tried the hot breaded wings… they were hot! But deliciously breaded and tasty. We also tried the deep fried salmon. .very good with a dip that tasted like a cross between cocktail sauce and bbq.
Their pizzas looked amazing and we thought the menu was great with a little bit of a Cajun flair. since they offer muffalettas, Cubans as well as red beans and rice. A cool place!

Our group had a confirmed reservation close to a month in advance, and some people in our group drove all the way from Kentucky to eat here. When we arrived we were told that they were «booked». They did end up moving several tables next to the restroom and server station so we could sit down and eventually eat.
We sat down at noon placed our orders and waited, and waited, and waited, and waited nearly an HOUR and a HALF before our server finally showed up to tell us our food would be out shortly. All the while while 3 other tables next to us showed up, ate, and paid before we were even told that our food would be out.
Since we were seated next to the server station we could see how they were handling food and drinks. I’m not even exaggerating folks, I literally watched a server drop two cups rims down into a puddle of muck, wipe them on her shirt, then fill with Coke. It was really disturbing to see this, since the puddle was obviously a cesspool of bacteria.
We could see the cooks as well, we saw a guy literally scratching his head like an alcoholic with a scratch off lotto ticket, then handling food. I honestly was ready to leave then, but since this was the only place to eat anywhere around we made the mistake of waiting it out. Huge f’ing mistake…
Going on an hour and 45 minutes now and our food was finally being brought to our table. Every single person in the group except one said their food was cold, but after approaching a couple of hours we weren’t going to spend another 2 hours waiting on warm food. My wife did not get her meal which was just a salad when everyone else did. We were told it would be out «shortly» about 15 minutes after everyone else had attempted to choke down their food. When the salad arrived it was literally in a bowl that was filthy. I’m taking the bottom and rim covered in grime, and as my brother in law stated «It looked like the Tasmanian Devil made it» I never send food back but we asked for a clean bowl, not too much to ask after 2 hours right? The girl who brought it out began to argue that it wasn’t dirty, but after taking a look at how nasty it was realized that it should be taken back and said we wouldn’t be charged. Golly gee wilickers Cletus that was the least these a-​holes could do.
No manager apologies from the manager or owner. Honestly this place is lucky it is the only shit show in the town because it is managed by people who have no business being in the service industry.
I could go on and on with all of my observations, since I spent a few hours of my life in this shit dive that I will never get back.

We ended up here when my friends bike broke down about a mile away. We stopped by at 10:30 on a Sunday morning, so this place was definitely much sleepier than some of the other reviews mentioning that it can be a rowdy biker bar. The staff was very nice and let us use their phone since we got zero bars. We were there before they opened but they let us sit inside to warm up and offered to open early for us. The burgers were very good, I had low expectations, but they can cook a mean BBQ burger. Based on the framed playboy pinups in the men’s room I’m guessing that the other reviews are right about this place being a little more wild on the weekends. Normally this wouldn’t be my type of joint, but they have won me over with their friendliness and great burger. But I’ll probably just stick to lunch hours.

Update: September 2015 Things are running smoothly at this restaurant! Although some of the servers are very new and not entirely familiar with the menu, I am giving this place 4 stars. The food is well made (portabella mushroom sandwich is delish), not overpriced and the atmosphere is the best in the area. Our food arrived at a normal rate, speedwize. Although new, our servers both were really sweet and accommodating. We sat on the deck and enjoyed a singer who could really morph his voice to the song. Johnny Cash, Neil Young. Bob Dylan, sung at a perfect pace and just the right volume. This place is not a dive. Just a simple, clean, locally owned stop on the trail– with good ambiance and good food.
(One more bonus to note: There are no noisy kids running around the place. This made for a pleasant kid-​free date night)

I really, really want to like The Little River Café. Have been there a few times and the service is always soooo painfully slow. First the things I like about the place: Great motorcycle destination and patio, some great riding around the area makes it even better. Awesome patio and outside bar and live music on the patio. The things I don’t like: horrible service. The last time I was there we waiting so long for our food to come out (about an hour), we told them just to forget about it and left to find another place. Every time we come here the service is bad and although they are apologetic about it, it’s always the same line «we’re just really backed up right now». Seems like they would fix the problem, hire more people, something. Another thing I don’t like is the parking lot. While there’s plenty of space, it’s all gravel. For a place that draws a lot of motorcycles it seems that they would have some paved parking, would be nice. In the past when we have stayed long enough to actually get food it was ok, nothing really out of the ordinary, definitely not worth waiting an hour for.

This place is ok. It’s one of the only places to eat in this area. They have live music and a large patio. The food is ok, nothing I would call great and the beer selection is limited. Only bud light on tap. The crowd here can be rowdy so keep that in mind when considering bringing the kids. Not likely that I would return. Just not for me.

We stopped in for dinner this evening and our experience was less than stellar. Our party consisted of 4 adults and 2 kids. We were able to sit down right away and we received our drinks rather quickly… but then it went downhill.
We placed the kids order first, chicken fingers and fries plus an order of potato skins as an appetizer for the table. A few minutes later we ordered our dinners, 2 calzones, 1 deluxe nachos and 1 jalapeño-​sweet onion burger. The kids meals and the appetizer came out with in about 15 minutes. The skins were okay, nothing special, a little bland and they definitely required salt and pepper.
My nachos arrive about 25 minutes later and that was the only one of our meals to arrive. I ate and offered to share my food with the table. They were hot and served with a side of sour cream. The chili was okay, but the cheese, it reminded me of ballpark nacho cheese, but they did come with fresh lettuce and tomatoes. The issue is, our server didn’t even bat an eye, she just asked if we wanted anything else to drink about 5 minutes later… uummm no, we want the rest of our food please. She said she would go check on it. She never came back. A guy named Mike came over about 10 minutes later, and I asked where the rest of the food was… I was already done eating and no one else had anything else to eat yet. He said he didn’t know what had happened, so I asked again where the food was and if we were going to get it, he said that he «thought they lost the ticket, that was the only explanation he had, as bad as that sounds». He said our food would be out in about 5 – 10 minutes and offered to buy us a round of drinks. We did not need drinks, just our food.
Fast forward 15 minutes later, the food finally comes out. The calzones are huge and I was told they were really good and they were hot. The burger was good as well. The whole issues is that we waited FOREVER for our food. Mike said he was going to adjust our bill for the wait.
The rest of the table eats and we wait for our checks. We had to have the server adjust one of the checks as it still had the charge for food on it.
The live music tonight was nice though, Mad River Rail Road.
Overall, a bad impression for the first time coming here. I would pass on coming back.

The wait was long but the food was good. We ordered a small pizza for our daughter. At $ 7 we were expecting a personal size pizza. Instead she got a pizza similar in size to a LaRoses medium. She loved it. I ordered a veggie calzone with no cheese. It was literally bigger than my plate and provided me with 3 meals. My husband got a salad that was huge. The portables mushroom appetizer was also really good. Reasonable prices, cold beer, beautiful setting. I will be back.

This place is nothing but a dive for loud drunks, rednecks and bikers. Unless you want to be overcharged for an unpleasant experience, avoid at all costs.

I’ve stopped here a couple of times while on the Little Miami Scenic Bike Trail. Although the food is not great and is a little overpriced, the large outdoor patio makes for a good atmosphere. The service is hit or miss. On our first visit the waitress seemed genuinely put out by our presence but this last time the service was excellent. The food itself is standard pub fare.

Absolutely love this place. They may be a little too relaxed for some, but this is right up my alley. Good food, great prices, large helpings and down home customers. Of course, when I arrive, I ‘ve just ridden 25 miles on my bicycle. Any food from chicken tenders to burgers to salads and even a chicken barbeque pizza has been a yummy treat. Too bad that I don’t have room on my bike for a doggie bag. The clientele you sit near may be friendly motorcyclists. The large outdoor porch is, a great on a breezy day with plenty of shade.

Muffuletta sandwich very good. Fries were small and not very crispy. Salads were reported to be ok but nothing special. The fried mushroom had a very tasty sauce. For what and where this place is it seemed likea fine little bike stop

Great patio. The food is very good — and the beer is ice cold. The bartender (who may also own the place, not sure) is always very friendly and provides great service. It’s an interesting mix of bikers (as in Harley) and cyclist who stop in from the bike trail. I am a member of the latter — and the bikers are always friendly and interested in striking up a conversation about cycling. It’s a relaxed, laid-​back atmosphere and my favorite part of a long ride. It’s exactly 20 miles from Xenia on the bike path.

We luckily found this place on accident while out riding. It is perfectly situated near the bike path and the river, so there’s plenty of activity and people watching. The décor is clean outdoorsy café just as the name indicates.
The crowd is a nice mix of bicyclists, canoer/​kyakers, locals and motorcylists. There is no cell service in this slightly remote area, and that is nice. So nice in fact you can easily spot the few annoying people as they wander around with their arms in the air desperately looking for a connection as if their plane just crashed in the Andes and their life was in jeopardy. This hopefully will keep them from returning and leave them in Panera, chipotle, or whatever suburban strip mall they typically visit to annoy good people.
The food is solid pub fare and modestly priced. We had a chicken sandwich and fries that were delicious. The staff were all uniquely friendly and they were busy while we were there. The beer is kept on ice and the selection is decent. No frosty mugs or fine dinner china here. They have Great Lakes selections and the typical fizzy yellow big-​name brands too. I can’t wait to plan another ride through there to take some new friends here!
If you’re looking to hang out in skinny jeans and show the world how important you are while staring at your cell phone & laptop, avoid this place. Please.

Great little place with great people. They opened up their doors to us on an off-​day as we were filming there. Even though they were technically closed, they would still serve cyclists that came up the Little Miami trail beverages. I thought that was awesome. The location can be a bit unsettling to city dwellers such as myself. In fact, when we first arrived with no one in site, I got out of the car trying to get a signal on my mobile to reach the rest of the crew, much like the stupid person does in those horror movies — and I even know better! It’s not that it’s a creepy location per se, it’s just SO quiet and empty with woods all around. Which I typically dig. When there are more people around.
The staff is a great group of friendly folks. They can whip up a fantastic pizza too. We eyeballed the menu and I will definitely trek up there during regular hours to check out the rest of the fare.

I love Little River (though I may be biased, I live in Oregonia). People you hafta understand, Oregonia is a TINY town made up more of sprawling farmland than town (we have a Post Office, a convience store, and a restaurant) It’s one of those towns that if you blinked, you’d miss is, but you don’t wanna blink, because of the twisty hilly roads.
I admit, after the fire, I am not as fond of the inside of the restaurant, it’s rather dark for me, though the space is opened up compared to before. The food is still good though. Try the fired portebello mushrooms, I could make a meal out of those alone!