Restaurant Reivew
Toccoa Riverside Restaurant
Toccoa Riverside Restaurant has the prime advantage of being located off-the-beaten path on the scenic Toccoa River in Blue Ridge, Georgia. For over 20 years, the restaurant has been serving both locals and tourists in a picturesque casual setting on the river.
Although the setting was perfect, I can't say the same for the service and food. Unfortunately, Toccoa has not taken advantage of its' wonderful location, as the food and service are not up to par.
Food
Lunch and dinner are served either in the casual cabin themed dining room or on the scenic covered patio overlooking the river.
Appetizers consist of a large selection of fried foods and seafood based treats (Cajun Popcorn, Crispy Calamari, and Buffalo Chicken Tenders to name a few).
The majority of the entrée options are seafood and meat based. Here are a few of the selections you might find: Choice Certified Black Angus Steaks, Asiago Chicken, Southern Fried Catfish, and Crab Stuffed Shrimp. Each entrée comes with 2 sides and a basket of hot rolls.
Other selections include entrée sized salads, specialty seafood pasta dishes, and a selection of sandwiches. Vegetarians can order the Vegetable Platter which includes a selection of 4 different sides. A full wine list is available to compliment your dinner. A free entrée is available on your birthday from a selected list of choices.
The Asiago Chicken, which consisted of a small piece of Chicken Breast topped with garlic, tomato, mushrooms, spinach, and Asiago, was much too small to justify the $14 price tag. To top it off, the waitress mistakenly brought out the wrong side - a baked potato instead of a side of green beans and we had to wait at least 15 minutes to get the right side. Even though we had already touched the potato, they proceeded to take it back. I sincerely hope they did not serve it to the next customer!
The Vegetable Platter was my only choice on the menu as they did not have veggie based salads or gluten-free pasta available. I chose a side salad, sweet potato fries, a baked potato, and green beans as my 4 sides.
Shockingly, the kitchen messed up on my order as well. They brought out my fries sprinkled with Cinnamon when I asked for them plain and also forgot about my wine. Unfortunately, they took away my entire plate just to get rid of the fries (as opposed to letting me eat my other food while waiting for a fresh replacement) and I was left waiting for an additional 20 minutes.
Also, when I asked to customize several sides they were unable to do so, even though their menu states that they can accommodate food allergies. Being unable to cook a simple side of veggies in oil as opposed to butter does not sound very accommodating to me.
Overall, the food was just not that good and the service was even worse. Despite the fantastic setting on the river, it would be very unlikely for me to dine here again as the relaxing views can not make up for poor quality food and a hassle some dining experience.
Service
Service was bad. Our waitress forgot more than one item, messed up on both our dinners, and even took back a side that we had already touched. We talked to the manager who had no apology and nothing to say, other than the sad excuse that they were following the owner's rules.
Bad management, bad service, and an overall lack of food quality were sadly all experienced on a single visit.
Unfortunately, we had to eat our meals separately due to the many mistakes made by the kitchen.
Atmosphere
The beautiful setting on the river gives this restaurant the edge over others in town, however, only in the atmosphere department. It is very popular with tourists vacationing in the Blue Ridge mountain area, however, if more people knew about the food and service beforehand, then this restaurant would start losing business fast.
The covered patio with lights provides for a casual, yet romantic date night destination. Unfortunately the less-than-stellar service and low quality, overpriced food interferes with the relaxing experience.
Final Remarks
The only reason to dine at Toccoa is to take in the relaxing rustic setting on the river. The restaurant's location on the beautiful river is just the perfect setting to compliment any relaxing Blue Ridge vacation.
Because the food and service were so bad, it would be hard to recommend this restaurant. However, if you are visiting for a light lunch on the way back from an area hike, the choice is up to you want to sacrifice good food for the view. Don't expect a 4 star meal and service, just a great view.
Toccoa is going to need a major overhaul in the service, kitchen, and management departments to make this a great restaurant, instead of being simply a place which offers great views. Sadly, Toccoa could be the premier dining destination in town if only management cared more about the food and service being provided to customers. Unfortunately, a good location can only go so far.
