I would give this place 0 stars if I could. Went in on a Friday night (6/14/13) with a girlfriend and it was dead. Some level of stimulation would have been nice. The lights were way too bright and the music was barely on.
As for the service- or lack thereof. I walked in by myself. There were 3 girls behind the bar. None of them even acknowledged me. They stood there in the middle of the bar telling stories and playing with their phones. It took a good 5-6 minutes for them to even come over and ask me if I wanted anything. When my friend arrived, same thing. Not even a hello. 5 minutes later she finally got her drink. Now, I certainly would understand if the bar was packed and they were super busy, but this whole time there were only like 8 people in the place- including us. We got menus and then it took another 15 minutes for them to take our order. By this time we were ready to walk out. 3 bartenders for 8 people and we can't even get someone to take our order? Seems like they were too busy texting, checking Facebook, and flirting with the older gents on the other side of the bar than tend to us. Totally understandable since we have vaginas.
We got our food, finished, then waited another 15 minutes for our check. If I hadn't been a bartender/waitress myself for a number of years when I was younger, I wouldn't have left any tip.
Pretty much the worse service ever.
Went in to order a quick meal for lunch.
Ordered beef fajita salad. The sauce was good and the steak was tender. Very good overall, the ambiance was that of a big room with a big round bar.
Just reviewing the food as I have not had any drinks or other opportunities to judge the vibe or different foods, will be back tho.
We love this place. Â It's a BAR and Grill. Â So understand that before you go. Â If you hate bars, don't go. Â If you like or are indifferent, check this place out!
The burgers are great! Â We try to go as often as we can make a break in our diets for it. Â Blackened blue is the woman's favorite. Â Mine is the Redneck. Â
You'd think we'd be bored of these by now, but everytime we go back we leave satisfied. Â The waitstaff busts their tail too. Â
Be leary of locals reviewing it, it's one of those 'best kept secret' type of places. Â The name keeps out people not willing to try new things. Â And those that I talk to like the fact it's not slammed like the hop doddy places of Austin with 30 minute waits to place orders.
Check it out, but shhhhh....keep it on the downlow. Â ;)
Great place!
Riata Bar & Grill is tucked away in a small strip center, almost hidden by all the beautiful oak trees in the area. Drive by too fast and you'll miss it. Stop in for a beer and a burger and you won't be disappointed. Don't be discouraged by the dim interior and "locals only" feel. Everyone is usually pretty chummy.
The service is great, bartenders and waitstaff are very friendly. TV's are within sight no matter where you sit. Plenty of beers on tap to satisfy even the pickiest drinker. The food is better than most bars. If you feel adventurous ask for the jalapeno cheese roll for your burger or sandwich. It's delicious and adds a good kick.
Atmosphere: Well it's a bar so...it looks and acts like one, even with the rapey blacked out windows.
Service: The service was alright. The bartender was also our waiter so her attention was focused on a few different places. Â She was on top of refills and stopped by a couple times while we ate, so did what she needed to.
Food: The food was alright. I got the turkey sandwich with bacon. Â The bun was large and the amount of turkey on it was minimal. Â I ended up eating it like an open face sandwich so I could actually taste the meat.
The fries tasted like the curly fries from Arby's. Â So if you like that, you'll enjoy the fries. Â Unfortunately I'm not a big fan of Arby's fries. Â They were crispy and had good flavor, just...not the way I like my fries, but good.
Price: The prices were typical lunch time prices, all around the 7-9 dollar range. Â After seeing what I got for 7 bucks even that felt a bit high, but I digress.
Overall: Eh, I doubt I'll be back. Â It wasn't a terrible experience but enough things were off putting enough to not make me want to go back.
The biggest fail was when [I'm assuming the owner/manager] stood right outside the main entrance to the place and lit up a cigar. Â That said plenty to me, anyone who lights up a cigar at the main entrance/exit of their establishment has little respect for their patrons because Cigars may taste good but they smell like ass and he had no qualms doing it.
I have been here many times and I love it. I usually go for lunch or dinner and there is never a crowd. The waitstaff is always really pleasant and polite. The food is yummy and is done fairly quickly. Their drinks are well priced as well. I recommend anything on their jalapeno chedder bun it is sweet and a tad spicy.
Review Source:I like this place. It is what it is. Nothing fancy but good bar food, very clean, good tv's, very friendly and fast service.
The decor is pretty bland and there's a massive island bar in the middle of the restaurant that looks completely out of place but it grows on you. Don't get me wrong though, the bar and furniture are nice and there are a lot of windows and high ceilings that make it feel light and airy.
I'm a meat eater but for some reason I like to try the Veggie Burger whenever I see it on a menu. This place has the best I've had. Maybe because it's lightly fried so I feel like I'm getting some form of grease to keep my body honest.
As for the regular burgers, they are very good. Not up there with the best in Austin but very good.
RBG is one of my favorite lunch spots because it doesn't matter what you get, it will be above average quality and inexpensive. I find myself using them (and the Boulevard B&G) as a barometer for how typical bar food should go down. Surprisingly there are a lot of places in Austin that try to get away with charging more for something that tastes like a spoon food of preservatives. Off the top of my head I'm thinking of Freddies and what I think was Lloyd's BBQ from the neighborhood Randall's that they charged $9 for.
I really adore this place. Not only is it in a convenient location, it is sooo tasty! The servers are always super friendly, the atmosphere is cozy and casual with a nice clean feel to it.
The potatoe skins are the BEST that I ever tasted and had a good price.
I will be back to visit with my Meetup group.
Who knew there was a bar back this road. Even a tiny strip center. Really nice for the apartment residents. Anyway the burgers are good.  I had the Flag Burger and it was tasty and  above average burger for a sports type bar. The fries and onion rings were just average, so maybe hit a bad night for them. Service was good and friendly and we had a large group.
If you are in the area and looking for a good burger this would be a good spot.
I really adore this place. Not only is it in a convenient location, it is sooo tasty! The servers are always super friendly, the atmosphere is cozy and casual with a nice clean feel to it and their food really has a one of a kind taste that I end up craving!
First let me say that anything served on their signature jalapeno bun is going to be awesome. My favorite is the Ragin Cajun chicken sandwich, fried of course. It's perfectly crisp and their tasty ranch sauce sets off the spicy chicken and the jalapeno bun wonderfully. Their seasoned curly fries are really awesome, too! Also, if you want a (sort of) healthier alternative there is a salad that is basically a deconstructed Ragin Cajun which is always super fresh and delicious. I also enjoy the Monterey Chicken Sandwich for something a little different. Yum mushrooms!
While I talk a lot about the chicken their burgers are really good too! The patty is huge! Their queso, also very tasty, as well as the little jalapeno bottle caps. I tried the fried pickles but they serve them as spears and I prefer the slices.
They have recently expanded their menu a bit, I am looking forward to trying something new if I can stray away from my favorites!
I love how this feels like a cozy neighborhood bar. Â The waitresses are uniformly dressed in a tshirt and khaki shorts, cute with just enough skin for the boys.
Came here for lunch, expected to see more techies since it's surrounded by such companies. Â Around 11:30 it was pretty empty but by 12 very bustling. Â Had the mushroom and swiss burger (plus lettuce) on wheat with their curly seasoned fries. Â The curly fries had a striking resemblance in look and taste to Arby's fries. Â
But I really like the wheat (or white or jalapeno cheddar) bun options as well as copious amounts of grilled onions my burger was topped with. Â The burger was juicy but not overly greasy -- we were in and out in like 30-40 minutes, so I'll definitely be back!
Think of the TV show Cheers. Now place it in Austin. Â You have Riata Bar and Grill, or RBG or Rbar, as the regulars call it. Â After going there a few times you become known and friendships are formed. Â And if that's not your thing it's a good place to remain anonymous. Â But the waitstaff is fast and friendly and the bartenders will have your regular sitting in front of you by the time you sit down at the bar.
The food is excellent from the "Some like it Hot" Burger to the Monterrey Jack Chicken Sandwich. Â Curly fries with your order or sub some onion rings or a salad.
If you're a Longhorn, this is the place to come to watch any game televised. With two projection screens and several HD TVs you can watch it from anywhere
Two drawbacks: No NFL ticket so you better like what's on network TV on Sundays. If you are a fan of a team outside of Texas you may want to plan on watching those important games somewhere else. Because playoffs be damned: If Texas is playing they're on the big screen. And sound for games is for football.
Meh. The proximity to Apple is what has had me here for lunch many a time, but we haven't gone in a long time..
The food is bland, the waitstaff blander, and the prices honestly? Kinda pricey for the quality of food. They also don't have any dessert. SERIOUSLY?
The curly fries are pretty darn delish though!
I stopped going to RBG a long time ago, not because it's inconvenient (it's not), but because it's soooo boring and sterile. I really, really want to like this place. I would benefit from liking this place, but RBG has no personality. Not even the waitstaff has any personality.
Maybe it's all changed now, but I won't even go back because of the boring memories I have. Those boring memories scare me away. If it weren't for the friends I coerced into going, I probably would have died of boredom. Yikes!
I don't care how cheap the special is for burger and fries, the burger blows. I tried it two different times and both times it was undercooked (actually, it tastes more like it needed to be warmed up some more). The burger tastes like a thick piece of hamburger meat from a frozen bag. On the other spectrum, the curly fries are delicious and crunchy.
The drinks are weak and expensive. Unless this place is really convenient to your home or work and you want to get slammed and be able to walk home, don't make a trip here. You are much better off a few blocks away at one of the other bar and grills in the area.
This one is tough for me.
I agree with several of the other reviews about the burgers. They are really quite fabulous. Prices aren't bad, wait staff is pretty attentive and friendly. But the place itself is so....sterile and boring. I guess I'm partial to dirty dive bars with poorly hung beer signs and mismatched chairs. This place is really lacking in character. There are several mirrored beer signs that look like they were bought in bulk from Costco and hung with a laser level. They do have several TVs and 2 large projection screens hung, and no matter where you sit, you're sure to get a good view of one of them. It's not the worst place to go for a game or a beer, but definitely nothing to go out of your way for. BB Rovers across 183 is a much better bet if you're in the area.
I really wish I could give RGB 4 stars. I just can't. Most Wednesday nights we hit the place up due to good drink prices. They have $2 margaritas for the ladies on Wed. Plus they also have my favorite  stand-by beers with Blue Moon, Dos Equis, and Shiner on tap. They have a nightly $2 beer special. What they don't do is rotate any of the beers I like into the $2 special and therefore it is always a beer with light in the name which I really just don't care for. Give me flavor not water.
Anyways they still have reasonable prices and are conveniently located near all the Riata apartments. I have only had the food once and it was decent. The wheat bun on the veggie burger was delicious but the patti itself was just average but for 5.99 with a side of fries it is a pretty good deal. The curly fries are the best thing that I have had. They remind me of Arbys fries only not as greasy, mmmmm good.
If you didn't know better you would think I really like the place. I do. I know it is confusing. They just lack the atmosphere and the really good beers on tap to get the fourth star. They could have made up for it with great service but unfortunately the service is just average as well. I will continue to go back here on Wednesdays out of convenience and comfort. It's definitely a low key place to grab a beer or two but I wouldn't go out of my way to try it. If you are a Riata resident you should really utilize what ya got.
This place is fantastically handy if you live at Riata. Â I wouldn't seek it out for the food, but the staff is always friendly and attentive - that's the sole reason for 4 stars. Â
Overall, not a place I'd travel too far to get to, but I certainly appreciate it's handy location. Â As someone else mentioned, the food is good, but nothing to write home about.
To put it simply, I liked this place but definitely didn't love it. Â My friends and I go here mostly because one of our friends lives very close the bar and none of us have decided to shell out for cable. Â So on Texas game days, we have to trek somewhere and shell out for eats and drinks in order to watch the game.
The Riata Bar and Grill was pretty good. Â I was impressed with my food, but not impressed enough to remember what it was called. Â It was some sort of chicken appetizer deliciousness.
But I had two complaints. Â The first was that there was a very obnoxious fat man seated in the prime location who kept throwing out f-bombs every three seconds. Â The first time I heard him, I thought a plane had broken the sound barrier right next to me - it was THAT loud. Â No one else seemed to really mind. Â I just found him to be annoying and a bad sport.
My second complaint was that for a 2-hour game, the chairs were awfully uncomfortable. Â They were faux wood numbers without any padding. Â I have a bubble butt, but even my fanny got tired without extra cushion. Â All in all, I'll go back because it's easier than finding somewhere else and I'm fond of the chicken appetizer. Â But once I get cable, that'll be the last of my patronage. Â So I guess fond is too strong of a word. Â Maybe lukewarm would be more appropriate.
About once a month I get an email from my friend asking me to go to Riata Bar and Grill for lunch. Â He loves the burgers here and he also loves a good deal. Â He waits until he gets a buy one get one free coupon in the local Value Pack. Â Two burgers with fries and two drinks run us $10 with the coupon!
The burger is pretty good. I can never finish the whole thing. Â I would recommend the wheat bun...it tastes like the wheat roll at Luby's. Â Also, they have curly fries that are tasty.
I am sure I will be back in a month with my friend and his coupon!
Riata Bar and Grill is alright. Â I live in the Riata, so it is nice to have a restaurant that is close by and inexpensive. Â The waitresses are very friendly and they always ask if you want separate checks, which I appreciate. Â Their veggie burger is pretty tasty and I love the buns. Â Not sure where they get em, but the buns are quite good. Â The fries are also delicious.
Here's the reason for the 3 stars. Â It's only open to midnight, making it not much of a bar. Â There are only a few beers on tap. Â The food is hit or miss, their quesodillas are tiny. Â And finally, the ambiance is really weird. Â It doesn't feel quite like a restaurant or a bar because it's so small conversations that are appropriate for a bar spill over into the eating area. Â
For my late night activities, I'll stick with Little Woodrows on Parmer. Â However, the food here is nothing to scoff at and I'll definitely be back for another veggie burger.
After reading reviews of Riata Bar and Grill here on Yelp me and a buddy headed over to try it out.
We got in and the first thing you notice is this is definitely a bar more than a grill. I normally hear bar and grill and think applebees or chili's (might be due to the fact that I'm not 21 yet). This is definitely BAR and grill.
The place seemed pretty neighborhood barish. Lots of people in late 20s early 30s enjoying some food and alcohol after getting off of work at one of the many tech companies within 5 minutes of this place. But for being a neighborhood bar the place didn't have much character. Seemed almost too clean to the point of being sterile. Granted thats a good thing but it was too much. White walls with an occasional beer sign and TV's on this upper cut out portion in the ceiling.
The place lacked character but the prices definitely made sure you weren't paying for the atmosphere. My buddy and I both got burgers with water (both of us were under 21, I'm not even sure if we were supposed to be in there, ha ha) and I think we payed maybe $7 each before tip. It was pretty tasty too. I tried the jalapeno cheddar bread but really it didn't add too much to it. The grilled onions, melty cheese, and tasty meat were delicious though.
Overall the place has some decent food but the lack of a unique atmosphere and the availability of some better burger joints held it back from getting a better rating from me.
I recently visited Riata and I am very much a burger fan. People were right, great burgers.
The Swiss Mushroom Melt is to die for. The ingredients taste fresh and the buns are almost buttery. Very delicious. Sides are ok, nothing special, but curly fries are definitely a plus.
Normal selection of alcohol, but bonus for having my favorite draft, Blue Moon beer. I dined on a Saturday night and the place was decently crowded and service was quick. I will be going back soon.
I am not giving this place five stars for one reason. I currently have a broken arm and asked them to cut my burger in half. The waitstaff gave me crap about it. What's so hard about slicing a burger in half? No idea.
We were looking for a new place to try a burger (always on the prowl, hubby and me...) and saw the reviews for Riata on Yelp. It's in a little strip mall in the Riata subdivision off 183, and from the looks of it, I don't think it is a place I would have tried had I been just driving by. (A strip mall....).
Anywho......We went on a Tuesday night, about 8. The place had a decent number of people in it, but it wasn't crowded. The big circular bar takes up most of the center space of the place, with tables around the outside.  The clientele was varied, and ranged from older single guys having a burger and watching the basketball game, to younger college-age couples. Mostly white folks.  We sat at the bar and the bartender (Jill??) was great.  Very friendly, always had her eye out for us  if we needed anything. The other (male) bartender that was there came over after we got our burger and also asked if everything was OK.
The vibe was pretty laid back, with most people either into their companions or the games on TV. As a single woman, I would feel comfortable coming here to have a burger and beer by myself (low creep factor).
The food: We got the burger with bacon on a cheddar jalepeno bun (can't remember the name of it), Â and jalepeno poppers. Pretty durn tasty. The poppers were fried well, not greasy, and came with a ranch side. The burger was big (we split it), a third pound, I think. The fries were decent, spiral cut. The burger was nice and juicy, which is my main requirement for a tasty burger. Also, the bun was kind of sweet, and that just made the whole thing that much better. We will definitely be going back, as the prices are decent (drink specials, about average burger price for Austin bars), the food is good, and the service is really great.
An unusual out-of-the way place with good cheap food.
Food:
- "Some like it hot burger" Â - Great! Â Moist bun
- Fries - Nothing spectacular here but not bad. Â
Atmosphere:
- Bar with flat screen monitors. Â Clean and dark is the best way I would describe it.
Service:
- Excellent. Â
I was really amazed that the food was this good and really dirt cheap! Â (The burger with fries was only 7 dollars.) Â
It definately beats the typical fat-loaded overpriced Red-Robin burger.
Food tasted:
--Queso de Casa
--"Some like it hot" burger (A 1/3 pound patty of 100% pure ground beef topped with Monterey Jack cheese, blazing hot jalapeño peppers and crispy bacon on our Signature Jalapeño Cheddar bun)
--Curly Fries
--Shiner Blonde 2x
Pros:
*Convenient location to the large Riata apartment complex
*Clean
*Really friendly waitstaff
*$2 domestic pints advertised
*Ladies night on Wednesday with $3 margaritas and cosmos advertised
*Jalapeno Cheddar bun was toasty, tasty and really uniquely flavored
*Bacon was crispy as advertised
*Burger was amazingly juicy and the cheese was melted perfectly.
*Burger lived up to it's hype. Amazingly delicious!
*Curly fries were cooked well and were also tasty.
Cons:
*Jalapeno burger was missing some hotness, was hoping for a super spicy sandwich
*Queso lacked some bite, tasted like nachos.
*No add-ins available for the Queso was a bummer.
This place was overall fantastic... I really enjoyed it and to think if it was not for Yelp I would have passed it by for a long time I'm sure! I will probably get the same burger next time I go... once I fall in love with something I can't experiment!
First off I would like to point out that I would give this place 3.75 stars if I could but since that is not an option I rounded up :)
I ordered the "Some Like it Hot" burger because I read the raves about the Cheddar jalapeno bun. Â However, I added sauteed onions and mushrooms to it. Â Oh yeah and I made it a double...Big mistake on my part. Â The single would have been plenty. Â Couple of points here. Â The bacon was nice and crispy and smokey. Â I usually prefer grilled burgers but these were especially good for being fried. Â The grilled onions were very good quality and sweet. Â One minor problem is that the bun could not contain the size of the double and fell apart. Â I had to eat the burger with a fork and knife which felt very wrong but was still delicious. Â I also had the onion rings which were sweet and crispy and came with a cayenne ranch dipping sauce that was excellent.
So why did I give this place 3.75 stars you say? Â For two major reasons. Â First on being that the mushrooms on my burger were not fresh. Â I really hate it when people use canned mushrooms. Â If they did happen to be fresh then they let them soak in water too long and they were rubbery. Â Second and major problem for me is that the beer wasn't cold. Â Especially with this being a bar having great happy hour prices and it being 95 degrees outside I was really looking forward to an ice cold beer. Â It was not. Â It was barely above room temperature and that was because it was in a cold glass. Â
So in a nutshell the burgers are excellent just don't get the mushrooms and order beer by the bottle there as the tap beer is not cold.
Ok this place is right by my home and I had yet to try it. Â I did read a couple of reviews and decided that I had better give it a go.
"I hear you gotta purdy good burger."
I felt like some weird hawaiian shirted nike wearing cowboy after I said it. Â My almost comical drawl comes out at the most inopportune times. Â The guy in boots looks me up and down. Â I give him the nod.
Where did that come from, I thought? Â I guess all that talk about heritage got me feelin' a little surly. Â It's a little early in the day to shoot tequila, and it still wouldn't have sold my drawl. Â Stupid Hawaiian shirt.
I did not expect what I got. Â I thought that maybe people were exaggerating, but I was wrong.
The burger I had was fantastic. Â I got a mushroom swiss medium and was served mayo on the side. Â I'm glad it was on the side, because I'm guilty of adding a touch to help the flavor, because frankly, most burgers need the help. Â This one did not. Â The meat was cooked perfectly and the bread was delicious. Â The fries were alright, curly garden variety, nothing special, but I don't really like fries much anymore. Â
I can not say that anything put me off about this place. Â Very comfortable, Â and the staff is super nice. Â They had one of my favorite beers in a bottle, the old Pilsner Urquell. Â That is not uncommon or anything, it just made for a perfect burger meal.
With a tip o' the hat, I moseyed on. Â Hats don't go with Hawaiian shirts, What the hell am I wearing today?
Months ago, I use to frequent Riata and have made very fond memories in this little pub. Since then, some things have changed in my life and this hot spot is no longer a regular pit stop for me and I miss it much.
The set up of Riata is different from regular bars with a round bar in the middle of this space. This makes it comfortable to view the entire bar, great for people watching, and to watch either one of the two big screen tvs where they are showing the sport of the season. The beers are super frosty here... I seriously have yet to find a place where the beers are as cold as the ones served up at Riata. The burgers are some of the best in town and the staff usually remembers my name but unfortunately I think that was by association and not by standing out in the crowd... but hey, I'll take what I can get!
I like the setup....it was the perfect place to hang back and watch the playoffs. Right down the street from me, so perfect location. But I wasn't as wow'ed by the burgers as I thought i'd be. It was good...but it tasted like it was injected with lard. It'll take alot to clog my arteries, but every time I took a bite I tasted more grease than meat..and if you don't get that grilled goodness that's just an injustice to the cow.
I'll probably go back and try it again since people swear up and down by it.
I must agree with Erik S. Â Get a freakin' burger. Â The rest of the crap is ... well, crap. Â Don't bother with the bar food appetizers, they are terrible.
The service is good, the atmosphere is nice, the beer is cheap, and the burgers are good. Â The fact that I can walk to it is a plus. Â If you're in the mood for a burger and a beer, this isn't a bad place to go.
Get a burger. Â Don't waste your time with anything else, get the darn burger; either a Flag Waver or a Double Trouble. Â The burgers are huge and very good. Â
EDIT/UPDATE
Well, I lied the Fajita Taco Salad is good, the Monterrey Chicken Sandwhich is good, and the Nachos are a decadent treat. Â I don't care much for their appetizers or the Philly Cheese steak.
Domestic draft pints are just about always $2(now maybe up to $3), and the bartenders are cute.
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