Recommended. The family dined here recently to celebrate a family birthday. The ambience, food, wine and service combined to make it a very pleasant evening. One word of caution - it can get a little cool in the outside area later in the evening.

My wife and I dined at River Grill on 1st April 2014. Originally horse stables and located by the Mitchell River, the restaurant is refurbished to a high standard and retains some of the original charms and features of a bygone era in the 1800's.

Our dinner meal consisting of mains and dessert (absolutely delicious) was of the highest quality and prepared tp perfection. The meal was equivalent to something you would expect from Michelin star restaurants in large cities. Complementing our dinner was a wonderful local award winning wine (2010 Cabernet Shiraz Merlot blend) that was recommended by the Charlie, the restaurant's proud and knowledgeable owner.

The service throughout the dinner was excellent as was River Grill's decor which consists of high ceilings, exposed beams, quality wine glasses and ample room between each table.

If you are staying in or near Bairnsdale or just passing through then do yourself a favour and visit River Grill restaurant.

My hubby and I had eaten here 3 times before over the course of a few years and even though the food was great, the woman ( we have been told was the owners wife) was so dreadfully rude every time,we just couldn't justify the money spent on the night.
When I heard the place had new owners I took a friend there for lunch and it was fantastic. The food was even better and the new owner very nice. It was such a pleasant change from before however, I returned recently with 2 other friends and didn't quite enjoy it as much. obviously word had gotten around re change of ownership and great food.
It was lunch time and the place wasn't full, but had enough diners to be busy enough, the owner came to take our order and wasn't anywhere as nice or friendly as he had been, he didn't want to engage in any conversation, was quite short with us, took our order and left us wondering if we should leave.
Our food arrived pretty quickly and thank goodness it was really yummy. I had the calamari & the deconstructed cheesecake was to die for !
I only hope that the owner doesn't go down the path of the previous customer service - as word will get around pretty fast in this small town and he will find that people will not pay for rudeness and this place is not cheap, nor should it be. The food is fine fining and it's the best place to eat in town. I wish them all the best. I'll try it once more in the next couple of weeks and see how it goes. Stay tuned!!

Amazing to find such an excellent restaurant in a small town. One of the best meals I have ever eaten complemented by excellent wine and very friendly service

This was the only restaurant we visited in Bairnsdale, a medium-sized town in country Victoria. It is usually possible for find a few restaurants providing good food, in towns like this, but maybe a bit less usual for find places aiming at 'fine dining'. The restaurant is bright and friendly and the staff helpful but not intrusive (which we prefer). Our food was prepared with good ingredients and cooked well, and a good selection of wine was available at reasonable prices. We got the impression the restaurant was trying very hard to achieve a very good standard, and overall our experience there was very good.