BB’s At The River

NOT A GOOD EXPERIENCE. My Fiancé and I came here for the Greater Palm Springs Restaurant Week. We we’re pretty reluctant to go after all the bad reviews about this place, but we made a special trip out to Rancho Mirage. We went there was around 2PM to grab a late lunch. We were seated and the server took our drink orders. When he came back, he told us that the specific menu for Restaurant Week was only good for their dinner service. Pretty annoyed, we left the restaurant and reluctantly came back around 7PM for dinner… the restaurant was dead and now I can understand why.
We were swiftly seated and our waitress come over and introduced herself. One of the only good things about this experience was our server, Katie. She was extremely personable and bubbly (⁴⁄₅). She grabbed our drink orders and our appetizer orders and then asked was the Restaurant Week voucher was, like she had no idea how to proceed with the rest of our service. She went back and had to talk to two people and ask what to do with it. Our appetizers came extremely quickly, probably because the restaurant was dead. The caprese salad was good (³⁄₅), but it’s kinda hard to mess that up. But let me tell you, the ahi tartare was really delicious and the portion was really large (⁵⁄₅).
I ordered the chicken marsala with pasta and my Fiancé always orders chef’s choice, which ended up being grilled salmon with mashed potatoes over a bed of grilled… veggies? (not sure really…) Our food arrived and and first impressions were not good. I love marsala wine and I love chicken and pasta, but mine looked like gray goop. It was not good. Even after dousing it was salt and lemon, I couldn’t even take two bites. My Fiancé’s salmon was overcooked and under-​salted (³⁄₅). His mashed potatoes were pretty good. The veggie, mushroom, tomato medley thing was mushy. Sides (¹⁄₅).
We ordered dessert which was good, just like every dessert, all the time imo (⁵⁄₅). But once we were given the check, we were pretty shocked to see that they added an 18% gratuity on it themselves. Did they really think that because we had this voucher that we weren’t going to leave a tip? We probably would have tipped the waitress just at much. We did not question this as we just wanted to get out of there, but even a day later we’re pretty peeved. It’s the principal of the thing. We will not return back to this restaurant.

Great service. Great food. Very large portions. Good selection. Lots of booths. Nathalie was awesome and provided outstanding service!

It was Saturday night and our party of four had checked in with Cheesecake Factory and PF Chang’s. Not a huge fan of chain restaurants but brother from out of town suggested them. Both restaurants had long waits and wow, they are so noisy that you can not have a conversation. We decided to check out BB’s and we were so pleasantly surprised.
We were seated right away. Our server Briley was great. She was attentive and made several suggestions including the lower price happy hour specials. The food came out quickly and she was checking on us throughout the meal. She could have used some more back up assistance from a service attendant to pour water, clear plates etc. It is not easy finding decent service here in the desert but Briley was great. We were also able to have a great conversation where everyone was able to hear each other. We are not super old, but even my teenage son has a hard time to hear others in loud restaurants.
We will definitely be going back. I read the less than stellar reviews from other diners and I hope that they become more consistent. I did see what looked to be the owner or the manager just kind of cruising around. If you aren’t willing to pour water, bring bread, say hello to the guest then you shouldn’t be in the restaurant business.

Had a terrific breakfast. Sat outside on the patio next to the water. Food was very good and so was our server. This was our first time here and we will be back. Good Job!

The food was pretty good, and our waitress was pretty good. The experience wasn’t amazing, but very good.

Ok food … Service was horrible they forgot we were there forgot our desert forgot drinks forgot we were there. Had a reservation at 7:15 did not leave there until 9 o’clock. So many better places to eat in town.

Do yourself a favor and go elsewhere. We ALWAYS go to this place and they changed the name or ownership and that was that. Went back last night for a drink and appetizer. Food was good. Drinks good. Service – Um.what service. Bartender nice guy but oblivious to us. Like we were invisible. Did I mention nobody else was there?
And then the manager or owner was berating the bartenders, looking for $$ that was missing. In front of us. UNCOMFORTABLE.
We were ready to pay. And we waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And we waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And we waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And we waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And we waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. And waited.
Get the point?
If that sweet waitress hadn’t happened past us, we’d STILL be waiting to pay. There was NO sense of urgency or anything. And when we did put the card down to pay, we again WAITED –SEE ABOVE
Ya – Please. Go in the restaurant, sit ANYWHERE but the bar. Unless of course you have nothing better to do.
NEVER going back again. #sorrynotsorry

The restaurant leaves no impression in mind. I had an urge for steak. The sauce on it was very vinegary. It smelled sour when I took bites. The potatoes were more mundane by having no flavor. I forget what my eating companion ate, but he didn’t finish it
Through Unilocal we had an offer for a free dessert. Was not worth it! It was a month ago when we went so I forget the details, but there is no need to go back
Also the service wasn’t great in the main dinning room. There were only four tables to serve and our waiter was very slow to take order, come to check and do dessert. Oh, also the staff, other than waiter, delivers the food. They had it wrong. Of course, after we had finished our meal the waiter noticed the foul-​up.

Food and service were solid. Enjoyed the crab and shrimp cakes, Granny Smith salad and Timothy Leary garden burger with «shrooms». Good beer selection. The menu is fun, the view on the patio overlooking the water pond and distant hillside is relaxing. Definitely recommend for something local, other than the typical chains.

Great experience all around. Prompt seating. Some really cool live music. Food was affordable, everything was at least good, some things were very, very, very good. Only thing I didn’t like was this drink that had elderflower liquer in it, but that’s my fault, I ordered it. Server was all over it (should have got his name :/​), wonderful family experience.

Really good food! We had avocado, bacon pizza and tuna poke, we also had the Asian chicken salad and spinach/​artichoke dip. Everything was very good and well made. The server was a very sweet and attentive!

I’m sorry but I’m not quite sure why they only have three. Something stars here. I wouldn’t quite give it five but certainly 4.3 would be a good rating. We just came to the river to do a bit of shopping and have a quick brunch on a Saturday and guess what they have a good breakfast menu till 3 PM and the food was bomb. The only thing I didn’t like was the hollandaise sauce over my waffles because it tasted like custard. I brought my daughter and her friend and they even had a few good looking servers to top it all off they did a good job. I’ll be back!!!

My husband and I ate here for the first time on Saturday (³⁄₂₆). We sat in the bar area to have a light lunch. I ordered the candied walnut and blue cheese salad and added chicken breast to it as the salad does not come with chicken breast. I really liked it. The chicken was moist, flavorful, and tender. I was full after eating half so I gave my husband the rest. My husband ordered the Ahi TarTare Tower off the Appetizer menu. It was a pretty decent size and my husband really enjoyed it.
The only thing slightly negative was after promptly acknowledging us and taking our drink orders then food orders he wasn’t very good about follow up… like if we needed another round of drinks. We each had a nice cold beer with our lunch, which was served before ordering food, and finished them before finishing our food. My husband finally had to get up and go to the bar to order another round for us. I think in the future the server/​bartender we had needs to be more cognizant of his customers sitting at bar tables too. Not just the ones sitting at the bar. He was very nice and was very helpful on recommending different items on the menu.
I would absoluely recommend dining here.

Just had dinner here with the family and we LOVED it. Originally walked into Babes because we wanted a BBQ dinner. The staff at Babes acted rude and said the wait would be incredibly long if we wanted to sit outside… although their patio was not even half full. And they also had an attitude that I was putting them out. So I walked another 100 feet and walked into BB’s and they were so incredibly nice. When I said we needed a table for 8 the hostess grabbed the manager and he started clearing tables and said that he was going to get us a table right away. Everyone was so nice and accommodating. It was nice to have dinner at a place where they appreciate your business. Our whole family agreed that they have the best hamburgers ever. Great atmosphere. Great staff! And the setting is second to none.

First time here, me and my boyfriend stopped off for dinner and some drinks before we caught a movie. We ended up getting some quick appetizers (that were delicious) and some amazing drinks.
The service was amazing, because our waiter had provided and exceeded the expectations of what I’ve been shown at other restaurants. I wish I remembered his name, but again the service was amazing because they were also accommodating our needs to get to the movie on time. Xo!

Had dinner at BB’s with a friend after a movie, and it was a really good experience from the start. The ambiance that the restaurant’s décor creates is very appealing, and the food (I had the pesto chicken pasta) was delicious. I also have to give a HUGE shout-​out to our server: a beautiful French lady by the name of Natalie. I think she was new, but from the very beginning it was very clear she was no stranger to providing exceptional service. She treated us not like customers, but like family that just needed a little reacquainting! She did a very good job communicating with us — checking in on us consistently, non-​intrusively, and yet in a very entertaining fashion all at the same time! And it wasn’t just us either: I noticed she treated the other guests next to us with the same great service!
I had a wonderful time here, and my stomach was certainly happy afterwards! But I thought I should definitely let BB’s know that Natalie is huge asset — she’s a big time keeper!
(PS Thanks for the hiccup-​stopping trick Natalie! «Mon Petit Cheval Blanc» really does help!)

Tonight I had a girls night with some of my co workers and I had a great time.
Pros:
Service was very good. Our waitress was very attentive to our table and checked in often for refills and check ups.
Food was very tasty and reasonably priced.
The wings, pizza and bruschetta was delicious.
The ambiance was very inviting and up scale.
Cons:
The bar area seating was very compact.
The drinks on the menu we orders were not good.
I ordered a blueberry lemon drop and it tasted like a lemon peel and vodka.
Happy hour is only inside. :(wish we could have sat outside but it was understandable.
Over all great spot! I had a really great time !!

Very disappointed in our brunch experience today. The service was very slow and inattentive. I had to ask the server for water three times. We asked them to move an umbrella for sun shade, it never happened, we eventually changed tables. They were not that busy so I couldn’t figure out why the service was so poor.
The food was not much better. My California omelet was awful, just a coating of eggs around a blob of cheese and crumbled bacon with lackluster potatoes. For my wife’s Eggs Benedict, the eggs were over cooked and it was not served as ordered. All in all a big disappointment after the great experiences we’d had there with Acqua Pazza.

If I had not seen the sign prior to walking inside, I would have thought the place was still Piero Acua Pazza’s (or however it’s spelled). The décor is almost exactly the same, except that they stopped the waterfall wall feature dividing the bar from the dining room, and removed the ropes that were holding up the large mirrors along the dining room wall.
I don’t accurately remember the menu from the previous ownership, but this seemed familiar.
Good pricing during happy hour, and reasonable (though not super-​quick) service.

The first time I enjoyed bb’s, it was purely for the cocktails (highly recommend the namesake margarita). The second time was today, and I decided to partake in the cuisine. I ordered the soup of the day, which was gazpacho. I loved it so much, I ordered a second cup. Not joking, it was excellent. For my entrée, I had the grapefruit, avocado, and chicken salad. It had a light, flavorful sesame dressing and was topped with toasted pine nuts (my favorite). Overall, it was a very nice meal.
Our waiter, Miguel, was also great. He was incredibly patient while my whole party took their time to make up their minds, and change their orders.
As a side note, they serve Harney & Sons tea — it’s the best. Yum!