Lured by an Entertainment Book Coupon, we tried the Riverside Cafe for dinner this evening. Located on Riverside Drive in a former chain fast food location, this restaurant it's open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The dinner menu includes a number of "Breakfast All Day" items, sandwiches, burgers, steak, prime rib, pastas, entree salads, and (mostly fried) fish. We shared an order of fish and chips and an order of fried clams. Both dishes included large portions and plenty of fries, as well as, a small bowl of cole slaw. The service was friendly and efficient and we found both meals quite tasty. Not much atmosphere, but good food will bring us back. read more

Tried because I've seen so many advertisements for this place with BOGOF coupons, though I've been disappointed by every restaurant that has set up shop at this location. This is a little better than the earlier establishments, but not by much. I went for the chorizo con huevos for breakfast, but it was beyond Americanized. Bland. The "chorizo" was just breakfast sausage like I would find in any diner. Coffee was overpriced and not so good. $2.39 for a cup. The service was very good. I was going to give it two stars, but it gave me a satisfying burp. read more

Pro: Good, traditional food and lots of it. The fish and chips and burgers are particularly good. The fish and chips are really good. Not too much breading and the oil is fresh and at the right temperature so the fish is not greasy. The service is friendly and the food arrives quickly. I've seen a few breakfast dishes and those have looked good. Con: A little expensive for "fast food". The waitresses are always changing and often new and have little experience with food or being servers. I had a "taco salad" once. There were no refried beans on the bottom and the "salad" consisted of a bag of washed lettuce and some diced tomatoes and a handful of seasoned ground beef on top. I could do a better job at home. The waitress did not mention when I asked for refried beans, and "is this it?" after I got the "Amazing Taco Salad" and then when I was done there's still a LOT of lettuce on the plate. It came to $15.30 with a coke and I thought that was too expensive. (I felt bad for the waitress and left a tip so it was more than that. For lunch....a lunch that 20 minutes later I'd be hungry again.) The food is OK but can be spotty. Stick to more traditional "stick to your ribs" type food. My suggestion is that the cook should go to Taco Time and have a taco salad before he makes another one. I should have done that as well. read more

This will fall into our "Fish and Chips " (hereby abbreviated FNC) subset of reviews. Understand, we compare all FNC to those from Waterfront Fish Market in Everett, sadly now closed (sniff sniff). We chose to do a side-by-side comparison with the FNC from Riverside Cafe and the Cafe 99 Pho restaurant around the corner. Riverside's FNC were overpriced ($12.99), something we find typical of FNC that is served with garlic toast. The last thing you want after a bunch of fried potatoes is more starch... Their fries were also not seasoned, and the tartar sauce was acceptable but not amazing. The fish was typical, what-you-would-expect, but nothing to go back for. Mt. Vernon doesn't offer much for FNC, so choose wisely. read more

1) service was a 2 outta 5 2) food was plain 1.5 outta 5 3) prices are stupid high for plain food So hear is the real review... Not a fancy restaurant for the coin your going to drop, the food is not that great... So if you looking for good food and a decent price this is not the place... Sorry riverside cafe, step your game up... Thanks for reading this review, have a great day! read more

We are from out of town (from north), and met our daughter and granddaughter(from south), this half way for both. Fatastic service, great menu, great prices, generous amounts of great food. We liked it and we all will return. read more

Worst club sandwich ever. Almost no meat. 1 thin slice of turkey and ham, very little bacon. The meat was cheap processed, terrible quality. read more

My husband and I stopped for breakfast this past weekend and were waited on by a very nice gal by the name of Sheila. She was super attentive, friendly, personable and professional. We've eaten there several times in the past but this is the first time we've seen her so she must be fairly new. She's great and hopefully we'll see her there again. read more

I feel sorry for this place. You can tell the owners are trying everything they can to be succesful, it just doesn't cut it. They started this place as a Mexican place and since the Valley is over saturated in Mexican food, decided to have a go at American. Its clear they don't have a complete grasp on American Diner cuisine and no clear vision for their restaurant. Is it a drive through or is it a diner? Most people speeding by on Riverside Drive don't know. They don't care too much to stop in and see and why should they? read more

The Riverside Cafe has a variety to offer anyone that may stop off the busy highway but that doesn't mean that they can satisfy everyone. The trouble with this joint is that they depend too much on frozen food and charge way to much for what they deliver. The Wife and I had a small (very!) fish and chip and a BLT with a soda and coffee. $30 (without tip) later we felt that though our bellies were full, our souls were far from satisfied. The A&W across the street would have provided the same level of satisfaction for half the price. read more

Great service and it's a casual oasis. Prices are a bit better than the usual fare in this area.

My wife and I stopped here for dinner because we were looking for something light and simple. This unassuming mix between a diner and fast-food drive thru has everything from prime rib to seafood to breakfast. I would say the menu is Denny's-esque with a home cooked flavor. My wife ordered the short stack and I ordered a burger. Both were made to order and the service was courteous and prompt. I would eat here again. read more

Pretty good mixture of Americanized Mexican along with more traditional dishes. Service is great (although I usually go on Sundays, & they're not too busy). read more

Great food and service, lots of options, plus they open early (6am). Jim Spane read more

The salad was dripping wet. Did not enjoy it. The lettuce was fresh & blue cheese dressing was good. They need to figure out how to serve it NOT laying in water. The shrimp, clams & fries were good. read more

Good food. Fast and friendly service. We ordered the biscuits and gravy with a side of sausage links. We received the food in a few minutes and it was hot and delicious read more

Using my 'GoSkagit' coupon I tried this place for lunch. Had the Monte Cristo which was pretty ordinary. However, I had the BEST French fries EVER! They have little signs on the tables which say 'Popcorn Fries' which I'm assuming are some sort of licensed fries. Whatever! Every once & awhile I just NEED an order of fries & have stopped in McDonalds as they do make good fries. But these are incredibly crisp on the outside with a flaky inside & just the right amount of salt. Usually fries start to get soggy as they cool...not these. Also, I like tarter sauce with my fries & theirs is a cut above the regular tarter sauce I've gotten elsewhere. A big winner all round. With the drive-up window my only problem could be limiting my intake! read more

I really wanted to like this - and I should have, considering I was starving. The breakfast quesadilla was okay because the cheese was melty, but it lacked luster. The chicken wings were meager and came with an unaltered hot sauce. It was just... blah. read more

Hands down the best fish and chips in Skagit County. Reminds of the old Short Stop fish and chips. Order it you won't be disappointed!

The fish and chips were really good, though the fries are just the from-frozen variety. Service was friendly and prompt. On the other hand, it seems like this place is hanging on by a thread and trying to cut corners wherever they can. The outdoor lighting has been cut in half, making one wonder if it's even open. It's kept freezing cold inside (we never took our coats off). Also, we were bombarded with little paper signs everywhere promoting various goodies that can be ordered. These are obviously the frozen items that get thrown into the microwave or freezer, as the flyers are from companies such as Trident Foods, etc. The kids mac and cheese was just Kraft. The clam chowder was just okay. The atmosphere is confusing...Mexican-style booths in an all-American food restaurant. We were the only ones in there almost the whole time. I probably won't go back. :( read more

Me and my husband stopped because we had been out enjoying the sun all day and starving. Seeing that they had a sampler platter and the captains plate, we were excited to stop for our first time. We will never stop again and will never recommend this place. The food was at best horrible and the service was around the same. When I tried to explain to the waitress that we were not happy with our meal in the least bit, she blatantly disregarded me and continued to ring up our bill. And then turned around when I went back to my table to mock what I had said to the cooks. When you order a salad, it should come first not forgotten and handed over only when you have mentioned it for the 3rd time. And any other place you receive a combo of seafood, you always get at least one slive of lemon, not none! And in what restaurant do you not get asked if you would like something to drink? I guess this one. read more

From out of state, and stopped for breakfast. Service was good, very friendly staff. Breakfast was extremely overpriced. French toast was spot on but hash browns were bland. Would not recommend for breakfast. read more

Biscuits & Gravy is really good!! This is a nice place to eat in the middle of town. Lots of parking.

We have been back to the Riverside Cafe several times since our first review and have had the Swiss Cheese Mushroom Burgers, Chicken Fried Steak Dinner, Hawaiian Chicken/Pineapple Burgers and today we had Biscuit and Gravey with Hashbrowns and Riverside Cafe Breakfast (eggs,hashbrowns,sausage and toast). We are very happy with all our meals so far and the service is very good. We were very pleased to see several families eating there on each of our trips. Check it out for a good meal at a fair price. Easy to find and fast back on the freeway location. read more

Excellent service! Our waitress was pleasant, went out of her way to make sure we had everything we needed, had a smile all the time, and had a great personality!! The food was flavourful and plenty for the value. In fact, we had enough to bring home and have for our lunches today. We had the fish-n-chips, clam chowder, philly chicken, and deep fried ice cream. Everything was fantastic!! The display on your plate was definitely inviting. The environment was welcoming. If you want a place to relax and feel at home with your 'like at home' meal... this is the place to visit. We will definitely go back. It is difficult to find a place with a variety of food to go out for in this area of Mount Vernon that is worth going back or is not a 'In and Out' type place. I will be recommending to other, as they drive through Mount Vernon area, to check it out. The menu reminds you of the variety you would find on an 'IHOP' menu but with a little more at home taste and value. Plenty of variety to have something for everyone! read more