River Dock Cafe

I live on Staten Island and have visited here several times. The service at the River Dock Café is decent to none. Once I ordered drinks and watched as they sat at the bar for over 40 minutes and the food never came at all. Customers walk in and become invisible. They don’t even notice how many people walk in and walk out without any service at all. I just have 2 tips for you. (1) sit at the bar, you’ll have a better chance of someone noticing you. (2) hurry, because this place won’t be around much longer

Not so good salad. Chicken was cold, seemed as it had been taken out of fringe and thrown into microwave with not enough time to warm up. It was also dry. Margarita was very good, that I recommend. Nice view of the Statue of Liberty.

The absolute worst. 20 minute wait for water. First 4 wine selections they were out of. Couldn’t wait any longer than for a salad. That was okay. I would recommend for worst restaurant in New York reality show.

We had the lobster roll, salmon sandwich and calamari plate to share. Everything was delicious. If you go you should definitely try the Staten Island IPA bear, that is brewed here in Staten Island. The service was kinda slow but very good. Friendly staff and clean place. Overall we gave 4 stars.

The service is very good. The food is mediocre and overpriced for what you get.
Two of my guests ordered lobster rolls which were dreadful, canned lobster shredded beyond recognition and in a tasteless dressing. I had an over cooked burger with rubbery cheese and my order of sauted onions came with two tiny slivers of onions, two!
There is something really down at the heels about this place. Very disappointing and NOT worth a trip from Manhattan to eat here. Needs new management. Again, I do want to say our waiter was terrific. Holderer party on Sun. 2:15 PM.

Good beer, views, and location for anyone who might have missed the boat. Salmon sandwich is my favorite thing on the menu. However, the service leaves much to be desired. The usual bartender I see on staff is very inattentive and when you finally can get her attention, is very rude. The staff could use a reboot, and it definitely wouldn’t hurt them to stay open past midnight on the weekends.

The food is not good. This would be a great place if the food was better. The sangria is not bad and the service was good, but I would rather get on the boat to go downtown Manhattan and eat. I had the crab cakes and the sampler platter. The only thing good was the duck sauce. The calamari is rubbery. The chicken wings are not bad. All in all I won’t be returning.

Awesome greeter smiling seated quickly outside seating appetizers brought out fast mozzarella sticks tasted premade but main meals were good pictures included, I could honestly say food tastes as good as it looked! May 20^th weekend. Portions were big utensils properly wrapped real napkins. Tables and water cups plastic. Amazing service free cake for 5 stars soo sweet

I live on the nearby on the Island so its a convenient spot to go to on a nice day and enjoy some moderate drinks outdoors. I am a sucker for bars with nice views and I’ve never had an issue with the service, always very attentive and friendly.
I don’t like that it doesn’t stay open past midnight on the weekends. I wish it stayed open later.
The food is meh. Its not terrible but its not great either. The only thing I remember being above average was the Lobster ravioli.

It’s exclusively a tourist trap. Food is awful. Service is worse. They have a steady stream of unsuspecting customers. They put their money into the aesthetics and the tourists pile in because the place looks nice.
Anecdotally, I was getting food from the take-​outside one day. The girl taking my order behind the counter was eating Subway. Out of curiosity, I asked her why they don’t get an employee discount or something. She cringed and shook her head saying «I wouldn’t eat here.»

Me and my sis came here on a Sunday afrernoon. Milne was our server. The wings came out cold and i wouldnt recommend them. The lobster ravioli was great. Tell people they can smoke out side where people eat please! I almost had ash from a cigarette in my food from two ladies behind me. Thanks for the service though.

Enjoy coming here for the beer selection, which is quite good but prices on other items are problematic. Was told a special was running all week long and after making a special trip on Friday found out that was not the case. Spoke to the managers to no avail. Very disappointed. There are better options for eating in the area and I recommend trying something else first or risk being disappointed. Or just wait till you get to Manhattan, which is what I should have done rather than having an evening wasted.

Came here for a leisurely bite to eat. Crab cakes were decent– weird dried up carrot garnish on the plate.
French fries– the kind that are coated and while they give you a big basket, they were looking overdone.
Cappuccino was ok.
Crème brûlée — don’t bother. Very thick, tasteless, gross. I have that dessert everywhere since it’s my favorite– from NY to Los Angeles and this is the worst I’ve ever tasted.
For one person with just the above items, no alcohol, it was $ 34. Yes you read that right. $ 34.
I’ll return just because it’s close to me and I’d like to try the dinner items. But won’t be getting today’s items again.
Step it up, River Dock owners. You’ve got a potential gold mine there.

Loved this place when it opened, when it opened, service was quick, well and as soon as seated, 30 seconds later a waitress would take my order.
Now i came in one evening around 7:30pm on a Thursday night to have something to eat and i waited approximately 1 min to be seated or even noticed. An indian guy came to my attention and seated me.
I then looked at the menu for about 2 mins ready to order i glanced over to see if he or anyone else was there. Waited 5 more minutes and no one. The bartender was playing with a bus boy and no one to take my order.
Quite honest the place has good food, but the service is by far the worst. Not coming back here and i suggest no one come here if you dislike waiting. Bad experience for the 4^th time.
Spend your money on the subway in front. They will notice you as soon as you get there ready to order.

When hunger struck on a recent «voyage» aboard the Staten Island Ferry, my boyfriend and I decided to stop at this little spot, conveniently located within the St. George Terminal. It hit the spot!
The beer selection is pretty basic, but with a couple of nice surprises. We both ordered the Piraat, which was on draft. For food, I ordered a turkey club sandwich, which was made with yummy bacon but less-​than-​exciting deli turkey. My boyfriend ordered the lobster «roll» (which I don’t think you can call a roll since it was served on sandwich bread). The fries were awesome though… crispy, lightly seasoned and delicious.
While we dined, we were able to enjoy waterfront views, which was a nice touch.
I wouldn’t go out of my way to come here. But if I find myself at the ferry terminal again, I’d stop by for a beer.

Got off the ferry and looked for a place to grab a bite to eat.
Stumbled across this place in the ferry station. Ordered the half panini and New England Clam Chowder. The sandwich was dry and pre made but the soup was good. Nice and warm for a chilly day.
Overall: will not return.

This review is actually ranked a 2.5; let me explain. I was already somewhat weary of this place due to previous reviews. I was very concerned about the food; however, I had to try it out for myself since it is conveniently located at the Staten Island, St. George Terminal. Also there is no doubt that this place has an awesome view of the lower Manhattan skyline.
So my boyfriend and I decided to grab dinner here on a Friday evening. We arrived at approximately 4:30. We opted to sit outside. We waited about 15 minutes and no one even glanced at our table. It wasn’t even that busy so in my opinion that is completely unacceptable. We were finally able to flag down a bus boy and informed him that no one even took our drink orders or brought us water yet. After that the hostess promptly came over and took our drink and food orders. She was friendly and apologetic; however, it was apparent to me that she lacked a confident knowledge of the menu.
We ordered the crab cakes and calamari for appetizers. I ordered the fish and chips and my boyfriend ordered the lobster ravioli for his entrée. The crab cakes were terrific! They definitely did a great job with those. Unfortunately, the calamari was a little too crispy for my taste. My boyfriend really enjoyed his ravioli. As far as the fish and chips, I would not recommend that dish to my worst enemy. It lacked the flavor I was hoping for and unpleasantly reminded me of dishwater.
One HUGE saving grace for this place is the bar area. Once it started to get cold outside we moved inside to the bar. The bartender was pleasant, the drinks were reasonable, and they have Flagship beer on tap which I learned is a locally brewed beer.
All in all, I’d definitely return for a few drinks at that bar but I’m not sure if I’d recommend the food overall. This place has to get a low rating simply due to the unacceptable service and inconsistent food. Also with the changes coming to St. George with the shops and Ferris wheel this place may quickly turn into a tourist trap; therefore, BEWARE!

My husband and I stopped here after our commute back from the city on a random Tuesday evening. We heard decent things about this place from a friend, and thought we would check it out for ourselves.
I got the southwest salad with grilled salmon, and my husband got the crabcake burger. We were both very happy with our meals. I am Indian, my food needs to have flavor. And the salmon was extremely delicious. Now that means a lot coming from me. My husband really enjoyed his burger, and it came with a side of fries. The fries were out of this world. When you eat fries that do not need any kind of condiment, you got yourself some damn good fries.
Our server was incredibly kind and friendly. I would return back another time to try some of the more expensive meals. The view wasn’t that great, but there was no air-​conditioning inside and it was actually more comfortable sitting outdoors. If you’re taking the ferry to Staten Island one day, consider stopping by for a delicious meal.

First visit. Seated right away. Ordered 2 beers and still waiting. Service is slow and the place is not crowded at all.
Probably THE WORST caprese salad appetizer I’ve had. Tomatoes have no flavor, mozzarella is bland and the olive oil lacks flavor. We added S&P to punch it up some. Sad.
Got mozzarella sticks. My compliments to the person who ran the microwave. Managed to get the inside melty but still not hot enough.
Don’t come here expecting good food or fast service. Servers are slow. Food is not worthy of this beautiful location. 2 apps, 2 beers, 2 drinks = $ 55

To get right to the point the best thing about this place is that they serve Staten Island Flagship beer and the view. The service is very slow, even behind be the bar. The food is OK. Not great. It’s a good place to have a beer while you wait for someone at the ferry or to pregame for the SI Yankees. That’s about it.
EDIT #1
So I’ve visited river dock quite a few times after my last review. I often stop in to wait for my GF to exit the ferry.
It seems the service is slowly improving. So kudos to the manager, he seems to be making an effort to improve his business.
I’ve sat outside since they opened the patio. In fact I’m outside as I type this, pregaming for the SI Yankees season opener. The staff working the patio seems to be on point taking care of the tables around me. If I order food (doubt I will) I’ll update this review again.
EDIT #2. Got the fish & chips. They use North Atlantic cod (thank god for the cod)… Serve it with cornmeal textured fries. All good. The only problem is when I asked for malt vinegar they looked at me like I was an alien. They didn’t even know what it was. On the menu is says «traditional fish n chips» shouldn’t that come with malt vinegar? The waitress asked anther worker for it and her delivered without hesitation. All though it was an unopened bottled (which is normally good but for this place I assume it was unopened because they’re clueless). Anyway. I digress. Riverdock is slowly improving. The service is getting better and they mean well from the kitchen. But just a little work to be done… riverdock is coming along… I’ll check back in soon…
EDIT #3 stopped in after work for a quick beer. Waited 20 minutes for it. Never coming back.