The River’s Edge Bar and Brasserie

Absolutely dreadful!!! Six of us dined there in the middle of April. We were however served by a charming waitress who was extremely knowledgeable, very polite and quite frankly too good to be working for this establishment. Two of us had the chicken breast which were BOTH undercooked inside. We called the waitress over and she promptly removed our plates, apologised profusely and rushed it back to the kitchen, the gentleman near the bar who I assume was the manager, looked as if he could not be bothered to lift a finger, apart from lifting a few glasses now and then! I then heard shouting from the kitchen and assumed that the chef was disagreeing with our waitress (and us), re our undercooked food. However, she was very professional and at the end of the day, it was not her ho cooked the food, so it was not her responsibility to have to apologise, it should have been the chef! To cut along story short, we demanded some money off the price of the bill. which was granted, although you would expected the MANAGER to come to our table to rectify the situation at this point or at least apologise? Obviously this does not happen here!!! I can only assume that the waitress was trained before from another restaurant, as I certainly cannot see how any of the staff would gain the proper training from the people who run these premises. If I had a restaurant which was a stones throw away from HCP then I would make much more of an effort to look after my customers and staff. Absolutely appalling, Do NOT eat there.
Lisa

If you are tired of the busy Kingston waterfront bars this summer, this is the perfect alternative. The food is average but the view more than makes up for it. Sitting on the waterfront with a cold beer — it doesn’t get much better.
Its tricky to find — being located in the Carlton Mitre Hotel right next to the bridge.
A good tip is to pick up one of the many ferries that go between Kingston and Hampton Court.

A Thameside brasserie that’s part of the Hampton Hotel, its location is its biggest selling point. There’s a large patio that looks over the river and the bridge that can be as sunny or shaded (trees and umbrellas) as you like. It’s a good place to stop after visiting Hampton Court Palace (
) right across the road.
The service was OK. They tried hard, but they got the drinks order wrong initially and it took a bit of hand-​waving to be noticed when we first arrived. But they were helpful with requests about food ingredients, and very pleasant.
The dishes we had weren’t special; the salads were pricery for what they delivered. But there’s a lot of choice, so I can’t say we had a full sense of the food.

One of the best things about The Rivers Edge restaurant is that it is literally on the rivers edge. (It sits on the Thames by Hampton Court Palace) On a summers day you can take your food and drinks and sit about 5 feet away from the lapping water. Even when the weather is not so warm, you still have a lovely view to look at.
Apart from this, The Rivers Edge is not my first choice of restaurant. The food is perfectly decent, nothing wrong with it at all — but apart from a few interesting touches, the menu is largely uninspired. Still, there were a few touches that caught my eye — a starter of Wild Mushroom Spring rolls, and Spicy Lamb Koftas for a main — that stood out. Apart from that, the food is quite formulaic. Still, it doesn’t matter too much when you are admiring the view.

This is the perfect place to be on a hot summer’s day, away from the heat of the city. As the name suggests, you can sit on the decking, right on the edge of the Thames and while away a lazy hour, enjoying the tranquillity and beauty of the setting with its wildlife, bobbing boats and pretty houses.
If you want a snack to accompany your reasonably priced drinks, simply order at the bar and it will be brought to your table as soon as it’s ready. There is a seasonally changing choice of traditional munchies as well as more creative choices. The nachos and salads are good and generous.
Less alluring in the winter, it’s still worth a visit as you can sit inside and admire the views from window seats or on comfy leather sofas.