Big Sur River Inn

A lovely place to enjoy time away from the city. Great views. Loved being close to the river, beach, hiking. The restaurant was delicious. The grocery store was super convenient

This is the second time we’ve visited Big Sur River Inn and we love this place. The service is always awesome, the food is amazing, and the back patio area is super chill. The adirondacks on the river is super cool. Grab some food, drinks and dip your feet in the cool river while chilling with friends and family. This is a must-see when driving through Big Sur!

Ate dinner. The food is incredibly overpriced for what it is, like double what one would spend anywhere else. Were talking $30 for a burger and drink or chicken sandwich and drink. You are automatically charged 20% gratuity despite it being basically take out.
The grounds are really nice, but the absolute rip off for the food cost is hard to swallow.

We booked into room 12 with 2 queen beds. The one queen bed was really not up to standard. It was horrible to sleep on so much so that I decided to sleep on the floor. For over $300.00 a night we expected at least comfortable beds to sleep on. Needless to say that we will not return soon to the Big Sur River Inn. The burgers at the restaurant are also way over-priced.

Food was ok but not great. Payed $130 for 4 adults meals and 2 beers. Bathrooms were beyond disgusting. Clamchowder was good, would have given it 4 stars, but dam the bathrooms were nasty.

I don’t go there much. I went to see Roger Eddy. In the mean time I order half chicken. It was a little dry no flavor, I can’t add salt. I couldn’t believe they ad 20% gratuity. It was not worth it. The entertainment was great.

We had destination family wedding People were able to party together day and night so we had a great time Everyone was very pleasant in all areas Loved Tony as our server for cocktails Friday and Saturday The Kirk's from Nashville

Cute restaurant!
There is a river behind the restaurant where you can grab your food, pull some chairs and sit inside the river! With live music in the background, it was perfect!

Stopped for lunch. Food was very tasty and burger was large, 4. Atmosphere with river was great, 5. Service was decent but charged automatic gratuity (and got the order wrong on condiments for one of the sandwiches). Price was quite high for the food, but maybe I was paying for the stream access? I'll probably check out Nepethe next time to have a better sense of offerings in the area (before automatically going back).

This review is just for the restaurant. We were there with our family yesterday.

We ordered our food at the counter outside and after exploring our seating options - inside, outside on the deck or on the chairs in the river, we decided on eating inside the restaurant. Regardless of where you decide to eat, they pack up your food in a cooler and hand it over to you. Convenient if you choose to do a picnic on the river not so much if you are eating in.

I was deeply saddened when we opened our cooler and saw that our food came in single-use plastic take out containers. Even water glasses were single-use plastic. When I asked if they had any reusable glasses as we were sitting inside, the server looked around and said this (single-use plastic) is all we have. As a eco-conscious family, I felt sad that my family's outing caused plastic waste that is going to end up in the landfill. I guess I should have done my research before eating at this place.

Big Sur River Inn here is something you can do -

1. Offer guests a choice of how they want their meals - in reusable or to-go containers
2. Switch existing single-use plastic to-go containers and glasses to compostable earth friendly ones.

Wins
- Food was good
- Live music
- Silverware and cloth napkins
- Chairs in the river

We didn't stay or eat here but needed phone service for just a minute to message family. We kindly asked the employee if we could use their wifi for the minute and was told no. I understand they have rules but I would've gladly allowed it if it were my business.but it's not. The reason for the 1 star is mainly because of the attitude of the employee. Could do better.

Where do I start with this place. Wife and I wanted to go tour the pacific coast highway so that we can see all the beautiful scenery will eventually get to a stretch of road for I would say 50 miles and you come across the one and only restaurant on the road looks like a quaint little place off the road that also rents cabins. We were starving so we decided to stop and eat there.
First thing that should tip you off is when you have to pay for your food upfront. The second thing is when you order your food and they bring it out in a plastic igloo cooler set it on a chair beside your table and says thank you and walks away. I do understand Covid concerns however in all honesty both of our trays that were in plastic trays or setting inside of a plastic cooler that didn’t appear to be super clean on the inside but the food was sealed off. The next big no-no was the fact that they charged you upfront for a gratuity to which we never even got a refill on our drinks I had to walk up to the bar which by the way was not transgender friendly and ask for a refill. The final kicker for two plates and we’re talking about TV dinner style plates Cost us $86.00!

If you hold out you will be happy that you did there is food shortly down the road.

I will say that the food that we received was hot and was good. Service was horrible price was even worse and experience was bad I do not recommend this place at all.

Nice place to stop by as a new "experience" but besides that, I would not recommend it more than once imho. The food is crazy overpriced for the quality.

We got the Penne Meatball dish which was OK but not great, smells great but taste does not match. Same with the Tres Trip sandwich which is DRY, hard to chew, and mediocre. Have had much better at numerous other spots. Dishes (even basic small ones) are easily $25+, not to mention there is a MANDATORY 20% tip added to each order.

Prices seem to be for the rental of the cooler that your meal gets put in, and the opportunity to eat on the river. BTW if you sit in a chair on the river, make sure you don't get one with crazy incline otherwise good luck getting back up especially w food. IF you eat here, eat at a table and just go down to the river after. Most of the staff is friendly except for a couple of them who seemed super annoyed to even be on schedule.

THE best post-hike reward I’ve experienced. Order some food and thrill serve it to you in a little blue cooler, which you’re encouraged to bring down to the water with you. It’s so nice! Great menu and drinks. Highly recommend after a long hike on a hot day!

Probably the best restaurant near big Sur. Due to covid they are actually giving the food in a Togo boxes and in a cooler. It brings a nice picnic vibe when you eat the food. The main attraction for the restaurant is the river which flows at the back of the restaurant. You can sit on a chair, dip your feet in the flowing water and much your nachos. The food is bit expensive but hey you are in middle of a mountain.

Food was good. Vibe was cool. It is a very nice place to stop. The food prices are on the higher side but that was the case for other food places in Big Sur as well. It was unfortunate that we weren't able to get a spot on the river, was really looking to that. They also seem to have a strict rule on not bringing your own food, we saw multiple signs.

We had dinner there Friday night and there was a plastic lid in my soup. I wasn’t offered a refund. The setting is beautiful but I’ve been coming to the area for over 20 years and grew up eating at the River Inn and I think their restaurant is struggling. It used to be so good years ago I don’t know what happened: (. The food is more expensive than ever and there shouldn’t be plastic in anything.

No internet access, and the wifi they had was horrible, so no point in using but was so nice to unplug, was much needed.live music on Sundays!

What a fun place to drop into for a late lunch. Seat yourself on the patio or venture into the river and cool your toes. Picnic style on the lawn is also a great option while enjoying the live music

This really is a get-away place to disconnect. It's quiet with good food, good drinks and good easy live music. Stay awhile and find yourself relaxed again.