River City Brewing Company

WoodBrew

Illinois

3/5  rDev -9.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | food: 3 | $$

It was Monday evening...A Monday night that included Monday night football just down the bay from this establishment....and it was dead. The only others here were a group of older people (mostly women) that were obviously in town for a conference of some sort. The tables were blan and the bar was small...not much going on which was a big surprise. The quality was mediocre at best...the food was ok, service was spotty, and the beer was eh. Our server was not overly knowledgable and seemed depressed to even be there....which I can;t blame her....there was not too many people there. The menu had much to choose from so the selection was average. The food was ok...the best was chips and salsa....but honestly...how hard is it to F up chips and salsa. The bill for four samplers and four appetizers came to $50 which I thought was reasonable.

12-08-2011 02:32:17 | More by WoodBrew

kylehay2004

Florida

3.55/5  rDev +7.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

River city brewing company is in a great location on the south side of the st johns river in downtown Jacksonville, FL. In a few words this is an underachieving brewery which makes ok tasting beers for the masses. Their beers rarely offend however are simple. The cost is reasonable for the beer and food. The standard food menu is average but their Sunday brunch is excellent. Service isn't great or bad. The typical crowd is older usually at te happy hour and late night times. A great place to enjoy a drink is expectation it low or if you are also into wine or liquor.

06-07-2012 23:36:10 | More by kylehay2004

GarthDanielson

New Hampshire

3.2/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2 | selection: 3 | food: 4 | $$

While visiting JAX we ended up stopping by River City Brewing Company. The place was great visually, and we were seated right by one of the huge picture windows with a view of the bay. Awesome atmosphere, with a nautical theme to everything in the restaraunt. The waitress was very helpful initially, being able to describe all the the beer offerings available, including the specials, as well as a bit of a description of each, showing that she very likely has at least sampled the line-up. After that, she was basically off the grid. She delivered our beer orders, and then was nowhere to be seen for quite some time. I can understand this at times during extreme rush/busy hours, but this was early afternoon on a Monday. The place was at least 75% empty, and we waited forever just to order food. Once we ordered and received the food, it was extremely tasty. And overall, the prices were extremely reasonable. Three of us were able to eat and drink for under $40. On vacation from the LA area, that is absolutely amazing to me. Unfortunately, once we got the bill, we once again had to wait for our waitress just to pay. It seemed as though she had 7 breaks scheduled all while we were there. Other than service, this was a great visit. The bar area wasn't open while we were there, so I couldn't tell if they did growler fills or anything like that. Might be reason enough to further investigate on a return visit.

03-08-2011 06:17:49 | More by GarthDanielson

chinchill

South Carolina

3.55/5  rDev +7.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5 | $$$

River City Brewing is disappointing as a brewery, inconsistent in food preparation, had shaky service, yet remains an attractive destination largely due to its location, featuring great views of the St. Johns River and the Jacksonville skyline.

They do offer an attractively priced ($3.25) beer sampler consisting of about 3 oz. samples of each of their 5 beers: the house beers on tap were a Light Lager, Red, Porter (more like a brown ale), an interesting high ABV bourbon triple (?) and a (weak) Pale Ale.
Other beers are available in bottles.

Their venue has 2 distinct areas: the brewery/bar, and the upscale restaurant. The former has a far more casual atmosphere and furnishing. Customers their can order off a bar food menu, as well as the upscale restaurant menu. Both sections have many tables with fine views, but the view is a little better from the restaurant, and can be a lot better if one sits inside.

Dining with 3 other people, I got to see and sample a variety of food offerings. This ranged from inedible (a spinach side) to improperly cooked (burnt scallops) to extraordinary (the bread pudding with fruit and rum sauce). Service was somewhat formal but too inattentive. Bread was served with no plates, and delays were long even though the restaurant was not busy.

Worth a visit for the exceptional views and fine atmosphere, at least in good weather, but set your expectations low.

03-06-2011 14:50:42 | More by chinchill

Radome

Spain

3.5/5  rDev +6.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4 | $

I stopped in for dinner and beer when nearby for business.

It was a very relaxing atmosphere. my friends and I ate outside on the patio overlooking the river and attractively illuminated bridges and buildings. The food was very good. I had a salad with walnuts and feta that was delicious. Other dishes at the table looked good as well. The service was fairly quick and attentive.

I tried the beer sampler and decided the Porter and the seasonal were my favorites. The house style tended to be very mild flavors and aromas. Every beer seemed to be on the lightest/least offensive end of its style spectrum. I would consider the beer forgettable if not for the very nice porter and the bourbon aged barley wine. The best part was that the beers were very cheap, even after happy hour ended.

02-27-2011 05:31:44 | More by Radome

armock

New York

2.83/5  rDev -14.2%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 2.5 | food: 2.5 | $$

Atmosphere - I only went to the bar area but the rest of the place looks pretty decent. The bar area is where they do the brewing with the brew house is behind a glass wall by the entrance. Decent sized oval bar and some tables inside a a large seating area outside on the deck.

Quality/Selection - It seams like they cater more to the BMC crowd than craft drinkers. They only had four house beers on tap a Light Lager, Red, Porter, and a Pale.

Service - It wasn't bad but it wasn't better than average. With the 40 something year old bartenders complaining about their hangovers from the night before and that its too loud for a Saturday afternoon.

Food - Not all that impressive to say the least. I ordered a sandwich and it was like something I'd make at home to take to work for lunch. By that I mean the they used wonder bread.

Overall the other two brewpubs in town are better places to go for some local beer and food.

11-12-2010 01:54:58 | More by armock

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

3.7/5  rDev +12.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | $$

This was a ginormous place overlooking the St. Johns River. Entering, the m.d.s. was just inside to the right with the bar area through a set of double doors still to the right. By going down a long ramp, we reached the octagonal wood and copper-topped bar. Further aft was seating on an outdoor wooden deck with its own bar for use primarily on weekends. The copper-jacketed brewhouse was to the right of the ramp and was visible behind glass. To the left of the ramp was their stage. Past the m.d.s. was a spiral staircase leading up to their private banquet facility. Further on was their opulent dining area with a panoramic view of the river.

Beers: Jag Light; Red Rooster; Jackson Pale Ale; Rip Tide Porter. Seasonal was a Summer Wheat.

12-16-2009 22:15:13 | More by woodychandler

wvukb

West Virginia

3.18/5  rDev -3.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2.5 | service: 4 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4 | $$

My visit to River City Brewing Company surrounded a bowl game in Fl. We stopped in to catch a basketball game and enjoy a few North Florida hand-crafted brews. While I will admit the selection was a little disappointing, I had the sampler, the atmosphere of the place and the friendly nature of the servers and owner was outstanding. The deck that oversees the St. James River is picturesque and the food was incredible. All in all, I'll give Anthony and his staff a pat on the back because of the atmosphere and service, but as far as a brew pub, this is much more of a restuarant than a brewery.

02-06-2008 19:08:29 | More by wvukb

gixxerman

Pennsylvania

3.2/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 2.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

Great place to stop on the way to the airport, from 4-7 they offer a $2.50 pint special on the house brews. I had a few of their RipTide Porters, it was roasty, chocolaty and had a hint of coffee. I give it a thumbs up, I think any porter lover will enjoy it. I am not sure of the ABV, but it doesn't knock you over the head.

I sampled the Crab Bisque, it was awesome. A very generous amount of crab, and a quite delicious!

The view is of the St. Johns River and downtown is quite picturesque. Be sure to bring that camera along, you'll want to use it. There are 2 marinas right outside of the patio, but I don't think there is any public docking available.

You choices are pretty limited in Jacksonville, but I think this is a great place to check out during happy hour or for dinner. They have live entertainment starting at 5:00 Wed - Sat if you are into that.

09-24-2007 23:54:03 | More by gixxerman

nickfl

Florida

2.98/5  rDev -9.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4 | $$$

This is an odd place to review because it is really like two separate establishments sharing the same building.

(note: for the numbers above, I will be referring to the restaurant, because the bar isn't really worth going to).

The restaurant is a nice, relatively upscale, location on the river downtown. The atmosphere is great; in no small part due to the excellent view of Jacksonville's attractive downtown skyline. As I recall the food is quite good; but I have to admit it has been a couple of years since I have eaten there.

The bar is about as different from the restaurant as one could imagine. It is a dark, dank, dive and on the weekends it is a meat market. Most people there drink buckets of macro beer and I really can't understand why they bother making their own beer.

The Beer itself is pretty average. They brew a handful of standard session beers and while none are particularly bad, none are very good either. The thing that strikes me most about the beer is that it in no way justifies coming to one of the shittiest bars in town.

If you come here for dinner you have the option of enjoying a decent beer with your meal (which is more than you can say for most good restaurants in Jacksonville), but it you come here to go to the bar, you will regret it.

09-24-2007 07:46:45 | More by nickfl