Pirate’s Cove Tropical Bar & Grill

Terrible food and slow service. I want this place to be awesome, but it’s such a letdown. We ordered buffalo shrimp as a starter and they were mushy and slimy. My husband refused to eat them. I got a salad with blackened shrimp. The salad was iceberg lettuce and dried cranberries, and the shrimp were like rubber. It was an all-​around awful meal. The only highlight was the live music. The guy playing the steel drums and singing was awesome.

How many times do we have to come here and say we aren’t coming back…:… If the band wasn’t so much fun I know we would not have stayed to finish our beer

EXTREMELY disappointed in Pirates Cove. Their food was incredibly overpriced for the quality of the food. I paid 12 dollars for a chicken po boy, that was nothing more than a couple microwave chicken tenders on a bun, not to mention the soggy shoelace french fries and watery ranch (that cost extra) that came with it. My bill came to just under 30 dollars for this terrible «sandwich» and two light beers, on draft. Slow service, overpriced food and drinks, and bug/​smoke filled atmosphere completely outweigh the «fun, tropical, and relaxing» atmosphere they are trying to create. Not worth your time or money.

Very disappointing. Food was extremely overpriced. Service was slow. Ordered blackened chicken — got Cajun chicken. Ordered grilled onions — got raw onions. Had to track our waitress down every time we needed a drink.
Definitely not worth it!

Great location on the water. Cold draft beer. Too bad bartenders would rather be elsewhere. Been here several times over the years. Every time I state it’s my last time. Expensive for what it is.

We have been here 3 times since we moved to the area on June 27, 2015. Each time the food has been incredible! My favorite is the grouper dinner and grouper tacos. The atmosphere is fun and tropical, the bands are top notch, and the waitstaff very friendly and prompt. We will be regulars here!

Enjoyed our first visit here. Very casual atmosphere with actual sand in the bar area. Live music on certain nights. Food is average and whoah I paid $ 7.50 for a super tiny root beer drink in a plastic cup that tasted like Nyquil. Still you can’t beat the atmosphere right on the river. Check ‘em out.

Terrible food and service. Over charged our bill. Our server Sean was rude, arrogant. Manager refuse too see us. Don’t waste your money. Does not deserve even one star!!!

Nice Atmosphere but horrible food, service and overpriced drinks! This establishment needs to get real and step it up a notch if they are going to charge those kind of prices for weak and small drinks.

Music was nice, casual and laid back which is what we like. Good atmosphere.
Food was absolutely terrible, i will never eat there again and not recommend to anyone. Without a doubt the worst fish tacos I have ever put in my mouth.
If you go drink bottled or canned beer and expect to pay more than most bars. The draft beer was flat and not cold enough even with ice in the pitcher. Do not order mixed drinks. Either they short pour or water down the liquor. A double tall should be a 16 oz glass with two shots. They serve no more than one shot in a 12 oz plastic cup for $ 12.50. Are you kidding me?
Server was ok, but not friendly and did not engage. We told him that we thought the drinks were weak and he just turned and walked away. His tip reflected his service too.

Absolutely terrible. I brought my mom here on Mothers Day and will not be back. It took 10 minutes for a waitress to greet our table. Bar drinks took another 10 minutes and were not served with any garnishes. It took an hour for our food to come out, while other tables who arrived after us got their food and finished eating before we even got ours. Our food wasn’t warm when we got it, we were given the wrong side items, and our special requests were incorrect (no tomatoes, no avocado). Getting our check took another 30 minutes. Our waitress completely disappeared. Another server brought our check, and did not comp any part of our meal. When we asked about it he shoved our credit card back in our faces and said he’d take care of it and left. The worst service I’ve ever experienced. Don’t waste your time or money.

I like the location and it is a great place for a drink and to relax. However, If your looking for decent food or service forget it. Overpriced and took over an hour for pub food I could have had at bw3s.

Really great atmosphere. Super casual: given it is part of a marina.
I had the Grouper Fingers and calamari. The fingers were unique and awesome.
I would definitely recommend for a low key, relaxed experience with friends!

This is a fun place. I see the negative reviews, but I think those are based in misguided expectations. If you go for the Jimmy Buffet feel and just enjoy a few beers and average bar food, you’ll have a good time.

We went to Pirate’s Cove before a concert at Riverbend and had a mixed experience. It’s definitely not a place that you would expect to see in Cincinnati. It has a Florida, beach bar feel. It’s a little bit off the road and we had some trouble finding it. FInally, a small yard sign staked into the ground along Kellogg pointed us in the right direction.
We sat right by the railing and had a nice breeze off of the water and view of the marina/​boats. However, if you sit by the railing, you can fully expect most of the kitchen staff to come out during your meal to smoke on the dock below.
Since we went before a concert, we were mostly there to have a few drinks and an appetizer. The draft beer that I had came in a cheap plastic cup, and the margarita was arguably the worst that I have had — made with some really bad, cheap mix, and I dont know if there was any tequila in it. Again, in a cheap plastic cup. My wife had a strawberry daiquiri that she liked.
I had the SW Chicken Egg Rolls app which was ok. It served the purpose… pretty basic bar food.
Would I go back? If I were going to Riverbend, I would stop there for a few drinks, enjoy the open air bar, being on the water, and the live entertainment.
If I’m looking for a good-​quality, full meal, I’m not sure this is the place.

I’ve heard about Pirates Cove, my step mom had been there before, and it was on our way to Riverbend so we decided to stop there. It was crowded, but that was to be expected before a concert. The place was really cool. It sits right on the water in a marina, so you’re surrounded by boats. The décor is really fun and tropical, there is even some tables that are in sand to give it that beach feel. I LOVED the atmosphere and décor. That being said; the service and food were just plain bad.
I’m not trying to be mean, but our server was seriously the dumbest person I’ve ever met in real life. The ditzy blonde stereotype didnt do this girl justice. I asked her if there were any specials and she just stared at me. So I asked her again «Do you have any drink or happy hour specials.» no joke she said «whaaat? like things on special? like deals?» I was trying so hard to not show emotion on my face. «yes» her response «i don’t know». Then she just stood there. Didn’t go ask, or anything, just stood there. So we sent her away to give us a minute. About 20 minutes later she came back and got our order. Then she didn’t write down our order. I hate that. Memorizing doesn’t impress me when you screw it up. (But more on that later.) Our drink order finally came after about a 10 min wait. My step moms cosmo came in a plastic water cup instead of glass and was the size of a small shot. Do not buy one, not worth the price! Draft Shandy’s you cant really go wrong with and at $ 5 that’s a pretty standard price.
We sipped on our drinks and waited for our food. I about choked on my drink when I watch our ditzy waitress did next. She went to the table next to us, didn’t say a word to them about what she was doing, jumped up on a chair, (standing over their food as they are trying to eat) and tried three times to put their umbrella down. Finally the gentleman asked her what the hell she was doing and put it down himself. My jaw was on the floor. I would have been livid if she had her foot on my table with my foot on it. WHO DOES THAT?!
We got our food, and it was just ok. For the price I would have expected way more! I got the Fish Tacos because the menu said that is what they are famous for. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t $ 15 good either. The fish was soggy, and the taco was cold. The mango sauce was good and reminded me of Quaker Steak and Lubes Thai Chili Sauce. For my side I got sweet potato fries and they were awesome! The part I got mad about was the avocado. It was old, so old it was hard and brown. Why as a chef would you put this on top of a taco. My waitress kinda looked at me and sat it down anyway. I was going to ask for different pieces but it took her a hot 15 minutes to come back and we were looking for her. Remember when I said, write stuff down– this is why. She messed up orders. My sister didn’t get any mushrooms on her mushroom burger. (And by the time we found our waitress again it was cold. She ate it anyway.) I asked for no lettuce and obviously there’s a bunch. My step mom liked her quesadillo though, and my dad said his sandwich was good.
I would come back for beers and sweet potato fries before a concert just to sit outside for the ambiance and live music. As far as food, do yourself a favor and go 5 minutes up the road to Swampwater Grill. WAY BETTER!!!

I was stoked to try this place because pirates arrrrr cool and because I actually didn’t even know that there was a marina here (I’m new). I walked in like a ten year old, with a huge, nerdy grin on my face. I love being on water and the sand was a cute touch that made other patrons’ kiddos go nuts.
We started off with beer and the Cove Appetizer Platter which consists of chicken tenders, cheese bites, onion rings, and buffalo shrimp. Oh man, this hit the spot. It was a hot day and sometimes fried food just calls your name.
A few beers and more friends joined us and we decided we should eat real food. I ordered a burger and it was awful! The patty was thin and unappetizing. We were all pretty nauseated by our meals but agreed that we’d probably return and have the appetizers again.
Another disappointment was that our friend was drinking Coronas on draft and discovered later that they were $ 6 a piece. That was probably his mistake for not asking but that definitely hurt when we got the bill. All in all, none of us felt like what we ate was worth the cost.

THE WORST. 45 mins for a sloppy bowl of sour cream called nachos. We were going to eat dinner but didn’t. We went somewhere else. No stars. Full ashtrays and birdshit on every table. Dollar for dollar, the absolute worst restaurant in the tri state. Health inspector please stop here!
By the way, reviewers like «Cindy F.» Who gave this place 5 stars and have 1 review, no tips, and no friends should be put in the «not recommended“tips section. This is obviously a ghost account owned by the restaurant and aimed at saving its diving reputation. Was a good place a few years ago. For shame.

We ate here for the first time, on a Wednesday night.
On the plus side, the waiter did a very good job providing service for my table of 6.
Also, it was nice to sit outside but undercover — even though there is really not much view except of lots of docked boats. You can’t see the river, only a little of the water in the inlet.
On the negative side, the band had some of its members who were smoking, and the smoke was drifting over our table — stinking things up and making it unpleasant for those who are allergic to tobacco smoke!
Also, the martini’s that we ordered were so small that it was laughable! It looked like 3 – 4 ounces — served in a tiny plastic cup that was barely half full. My raspberry martini tasted like cough medicine!
My food was mediocre and pricey. My 2 crab cakes were deep fried instead of pan fried — a disappointment. No one thought that their food was either great or terrible, just meh.
The bathrooms are downstairs in a deserted hallway that was kind of creepy. I don’t know what they do for the handicapped accessibility?

Pirate’s Cove at the Four Seasons Marina has to be one of my favorite open air seating locales in the city. Enjoy the cool summer breeze that flows through the wall-​less dock dining and bar.
On the weekend you can nab a bucket of mini-​beers, which are perfect because they never get warm. Coconut shrimp is a must, but is only one of many beach inspired concoctions.
Live music performances are part of the daily routine at Pirate’s Cove, as well as a newly installed sand-​bottomed dining area. Have a seat where you like, kick off your shoes and enjoy the atmosphere!