Let me start off with a big shout out to our server, Emma! She had great recommendations and was very sweet. Everything was absolutely delicious! It does take a while to get your food, but the wait was well worth it. I highly recommend you try the Poutine it's fries smothered in freakin heaven . We also had the bacon wrapped dates, which were also yummy! The pork chops were so juicy it was ridiculous! Careful though, that habanero does add a kick to it (for those of us who can't take the heat). Oh and the onion rings were MONSTER SIZED! If you like burgers..try the Blackberry BBQ burger it did not disappoint! I can't wait to go back! read more

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Stopped by The State in Riverside for some dinner with the boys. This restaurant is very well-kept and the atmosphere was quiet and calming. We ordered a few appetizers before dinner, which consisted of oysters, poutine and bruschetta. All were amazing! All three of us ordered the New York Strip steak, which comes with broccolini and mashed potatoes. Only one issue with all three of our entrees; all three were supposed to be cooked to medium, but all came out as hockey pucks. We notified the server and she had all three recooked. Once our new steaks came, all three came out rare this time, so seared then served, but we ate them anyway. Not quite sure the cook knows how to cook a steak. The manager was awesome and took care of us for the mishap. One other item of note is when we were seated by the hostess, she made it a point to tell us that we only had an hour and a half from the time we sat to when we had to leave. She actually repeated this to us 3 times in a matter of a minute. Seemed kind of rude and off-putting. We'll more than likely come back to The State in the future. Pro tip: order a bourbon mule. Trust me, you'll love it! Two thumbs up for The State. Happy eating, my foodies! read more

The State - Bruschetta - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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I have to just start this off by saying the meatballs were SO good. We heard this place had just opened up recently & we wanted to give it a shot. We decided to have a little early date night and go during happy hour. Happy hour for the well drinks is definitely worth it! My drink had vodka & cranberry for just $6 off the happy hour menu. The meatballs & brussel sprouts were also from the happy hour menu. * also recommend making a reservation, I made one ahead of time and we were seated almost as soon as we got there. I did hear they were pretty booked already for the night with reservations so maybe try to make one instead of walking in on the weekend. For the main entrees I got the pork chop with fries instead of the broccolini (an easy substitution). My fiancé got the bbq bacon burger with onion rings ($1 more) instead of fries. My pork chop was so juicy and had such a good flavor. The fries were really good! My mashed potatoes were a little bit cold but still good. My fiancé loved his burger but he did say the onion rings had a bit too much batter when trying to eat them. Overall though I really enjoyed my meal, our appetizers & drinks. I will definitely be coming back! Also want to give a little shoutout to our server Emma, she was great! She was really nice and helpful with navigating the menu and our options. Happy that Riverside has this new spot :) read more

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I liked the interior. Food was average, wine was not really good but I understand it's a whisky place. Service was okay. Really nothing impressive. read more

I was excited to know this place had opened here in Riverside. I've been to their other two locations and have always had great experiences every time. This one is as beautiful inside as the others, with its dark, moody, and rich tones, and warm and inviting feel. The server helping us was very friendly and attentive, and the food was delicious as always, but it took a lot longer than expected to get a couple of apps and a plate of tacos served. Hopefully they're just still working out the kinks of being newly opened, and will soon be up to par with the other locations. We're looking forward to revisiting. read more

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honestly? impressed. came during happy hour on a friday and the service was great, the restaurant itself is quite lovely, and i didn't take a bad bite of food. everything was super reasonably priced and i left excited to come back and try more of the menu. riverside could use more of this energy! read more

The State - pesto chicken sandwich with a side salad - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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Great service, food and the prices are pretty good!!! Happy hour food and drinks are awesome. read more

The State - Beautiful old building! - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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Lazy n' flavorless state salad, okay ish pork chop. Good cocktails. Will come back to try happy hour and the burger but otherwise, a pass on the food Good ambiance. Good service. read more

The State - Old fashion and bourbon lemonade - American Near Me - Riverside, California

As part of my ongoing goal to meet with a friend once a month, we decided to return to Riverside and stumbled upon a restaurant called The State. It's located near the charming alley lined with colorful umbrellas--the kind you often see on Instagram. The area is very cute, walkable, and lively. Parking is mostly public and located behind shops and restaurants, so be prepared for a short walk--less than five minutes. When you walk into The State, you're greeted by an open, airy atmosphere. The outdoor seating is especially unique--covered by a roof but fully open to the air--with both table and bar-style seating where you can people-watch as you enjoy your meal. Inside, the restaurant features a beautiful bar and plenty of space for large parties. It's a little on the darker side inside, so watch your step. The bathrooms were clean, which is always a plus. They have a great selection of beers, but I went with a mojito--and I'm so glad I did. I tried a classic version and one made with Tito's vodka. Both were excellent, but the one with Tito's was especially refreshing. Service was friendly and impressively attentive, especially considering how busy the place was. We started with the Brussels sprouts, and they were amazing--crispy, flavorful, and perfectly seasoned. I ordered the chicken and waffles, which were fantastic. The waffles were fluffy, the chicken was crispy, and the combination was spot-on. My friend had the pulled pork tacos, and I tried a bite--wow! The pork was juicy and tender, with incredible flavor. I also love that you can customize your sides. I highly recommend visiting The State and will definitely be returning! read more

Beautiful place really good prices. Good music good for branch and breakfast they have happy hour during the week and the weekends we got Melissa the best customer service I really recommend this place read more

The State - American Near Me - Riverside, California

Great daily deals. Stopped in for the Monday mule $8 not bad. First off no copper mug, secondly no taste of alcohol what so ever. Nice ambiance, beautiful establishment, not sure about the food since we stopped by for a nightcap. Service was good and the gal was proactive and let us add an additional drink before closing the bar. Note to self don't order mules here. read more

The management team did reach out to me to apologize and offered me a refund. I'm appreciative of that, but it doesn't change the experience I already had. I would consider trying the other locations, but I am definitely steering clear of this one. read more

The State - My Veloute Chicken takeout - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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Our go-to was The State in Redlands for years, but I think this new one in downtown Riverside has taken 1st place! One it's closer to where I live, but also they have really done a great job with the decoration, ambiance, and staffing. The new manager Gary is so great - and I can't wait to see the changes he brings to make this the new 'it' spot. Sometimes it's hard to replicate dishes between branches, but I've had all my usuals here and they're great - the bourbon bbq burger, onion rings, short rib poutine, and the basil bourbon lemonade. I also love that they still take reservations for small groups, like the other branches, and they even can accommodate large events (I hosted a conference at the Convention Center and they were happy to work with us to set up a fun event). The only thing I hope they can add in down the road, super minor, are some pull down shades in the front window as those tables get blasted at dusk. But not a deal breaker at all, and can't wait to visit again! read more

The State - Bourbon BBQ Burger + the best onion rings EVER. - American Near Me - Riverside, California

The state is one of my go to for happy hour. Their drinks are pretty enjoyable. I love my old fashions and they serve a variety of whiskeys for them. Their appetizers/burgers are really amazing. I would highly recommend checking this place out. I've also tried their pork chops and I would say that they're worth a try. The servers here are also very nice. read more

The bacon wrapped dates are the double c&s- crispy, creamy, sweet, & savory. The bacon is crunchy but the cheese, bbq, and the date makes it smooth. It's sweet because the bbq but also savory due to the cheese and bacon. Really good worth the $10. The tacos were amazing my husband said. Short rib tacos were better (his opinion) shrimp tacos had a bit of a kick to it (he doesn't really care for spice that much but if you do probably the better option). He got the old fashion with redwood empire whisky. He loved it, unfortunately he let the ice get to it and it got watered down. However it was amazing. I got the blackberry bbq burger and OMG was great!!!! I can't even describe how good it was. It wasn't like overpowering, but you can taste the flavor so it was really nice and subtle. I would highly recommend it. Husband got the stake sandwich was super good. I usually hate them because the meat is usually hard/chewy and it wasn't here. The crème brûlée was FANTASTIC!!! I've only had a few and I'll say that this is up there. The host and waitress were both amazing. Came on a Saturday night without reservations and got sat right away luckily. The waitress Melissa M. was great putting up with us (mostly my husband) . She did a great job tonight! Give her some props as well as the chefs in the back for cooking such an amazing meal read more

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Alright, hear me out: I've eaten at the Rancho location and things were good. Ate at this location tonight, and I had the steak frites. It was flavorful. However, the rest of my table wasn't so lucky. My husband got the Maple Glazed Chicken with the risotto and... it was terrible!!! The risotto was too watery, and tasted of nothing but garlic (which I normally wouldn't complain about, but this time it's all I tasted). The chicken was bland, had absolutely no notes of maple or sweetness. On top of that, the chicken had a strange aroma. Almost as if it was sitting out at room temp or was rotten. We asked our waitress to smell the chicken and she confirmed that it smelled funny. She was very sweet, and offered him a different dish and to comp the meal. The whole experience, unfortunately, was not worth it. From the wait, to the food, to the way it was handled by the manager, I don't recommend coming here for a while. Hopefully they improve their food quality and get more organized in the future, until then I will not be returning and don't care to find out. read more

We got here at 12 and I'm not sure if it's because I came in with a group of teenagers and they just expected no tip but the service here was terrible. Mind you we got here when it was EMPTY. However, we made a RESERVATION. I cannot make this up we had to ask for our food in to-go boxes. read more

The State - American Near Me - Riverside, California

*vegan review* Pretty good vegan tzatziki burger! The bun could be better and I would have liked more tzatziki on the burger to make it more saucy, but it was a good solid vegan option. Also really delicious mocktail options and great service! read more

My husband and I went here on a Thursday around 6 pm. It was not too busy and the service was speedy. Our waitress was very kind and attentive, I got steak and he got a burger and we shared the brussel sprouts. Everything was perfect! Burger was juicy and my steak was perfectly cooked!!! (I added salt to my potatoes, but I like extra salt). Beer was ice cold!! The restaurant is beautiful, we loved the dark decor!! Can't wait to go back! read more

The State - Burger steak - American Near Me - Riverside, California

The state is an old favorite of my husband. Always have a great meal when we go to the one in Redlands. So when we had a show at the fox we decided to try the one in Riverside. We had a great time food was amazing, drinks were delicious. read more

What a beautiful restaurant. The food looked delicious and the cocktails were on point. The service was great, Clayton and Benny were amazing and friendly. Definitely coming back. read more

The State - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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We had a work group of 14 and it was a phenomenal experience. Our server had it going on and we were in and out for drinks & dinner in 90 minutes. Great decor, excellent cocktails. read more

Love this new restaurant in Riverside. Customer service was amazing, our server was over the top, making sure we always had water, etc. The food was also delicious! My favorite was the shrimp tacos. read more

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Bacon wrapped dates were amazing and so was the poutine. Service was excellent. The coffee old fashion is a must try!

Great service! Delicious food! Beautiful restaurant. Hate that it's downtown Riverside, probably won't be back to this location but loved the food. PERFECT Shirley Temples!!! read more

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Exceptionally impressed. Just walked in for dinner and being a vegetarian I'm always on the hunt for legit creative food. This place did not disappoint at all. Tempura avacado wraps with exotic grilled cheese option. Appreciate the options and care in their food. Solid price point and amazing atmosphere. Service are bar was excellent and made me feel super welcomed. read more

Sadly, I'd be hard pressed to remember when we've ever had WORSE service recently. We walked in late afternoon after walking around downtown. I get that 4ish is in the middle of services but they had plenty of staff. We waited a good 12-15 minutes for anyone to come to our table. Yet 4 staff members were milling around at the hostess stand doing nothing that I could see. My husband had to get up and ask the hostess for help. She took our initial order and apologized. You'd think that after that they'd have been more attentive, but nope. Someone took our app plates and forks. Had to ask to get new ones. (They only give you a single fork which is weird. Is there a knife shortage?) Food came, no one asked if we needed anything until we were half way through. (Needed hot sauce and ketchup. No salt or pepper on the table.) Drinks and water glasses went empty. They had lots of staff people doing very little. They'd go to one table and drop off waters, and disappear. Come back and take an order....disappear. They could only do one thing at a time apparently. They tried hard to not make eye contact so you couldn't get their attention. There were no more than 9 tables while we were there and somehow they couldn't handle it. While we were there two sets of people were sat, and left when they didn't get service. Again, you'd think that would be a clue that something is amiss but it didn't faze anyone. Management needs to train their staff better than this. Drinks were great. Food was ok. We hate to see restaurants come and go downtown so we try to patronize them when we can, but this is likely not a place we'd ever return to. Maybe for drinks at the bar. The State is in a sad state. read more

Not much has changed from the last visit unfortunately. Waited quite some time to be greeted and get water once sat. Drink service was beyond slow for cocktails, our second drink ordered showed up after we had already finished our meal. And the food was very average but not worth the price. The pesto chicken sandwich has potential but the ciabatta it's on overpowers it and dries out the sammy (change the bread). We came for lunch and it was pretty quiet customer wise but the music was on and off loud depend on the song. Probably won't return unfortunately as I was looking forward to this being a new go to spot. read more

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The State gets 3 stars because the service is great but the food quality is inconsistent. Brunch is OK here. The salmon Benedict was delightful and featured an herby hollandaise (nice touch). The food was unfortunately cold upon reaching the table, including my friend's over-salted bbq burger which had a sad side of extremely stale fries. The menu could also use a standard breakfast plate of eggs, home fries, and sausage for those that aren't into bacon. read more

Stood at the host stand for a good 10 mins on a slow day on Tuesday and received NO service. I immediately left Normally the State restaurants in Rancho and Redlands have been attentive and accommodating. Wish the Riverside restaurant gave the same service. The community of Riverside deserves better than what they had to offer read more

Food was so flavorful! So many good options to choose from but we decided to order the Poutine as an app and it did not disappoint. So cheesy and delicious. Ordered the Double Smash and Drunken Pig with onion rings for entrees. Both burgers were juicy and tender! The onion rings were nice and crispy. Service was great and on top of everything! read more

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We just walked out after having the adobada tacos, and honestly, they were disappointing, completely dry and served without salsa or limes. When we asked, we were told they were out of salsa, which is understandable, but it would've been nice to know before ordering that we were about to be served the driest tacos on earth. As for the service, our bartender wasn't very welcoming or attentive. The whiskey sours were overly thick, and from my understanding, a quick taste test with a straw could've easily ensure they were good before serving. It seemed like she was bothered making the drinks, and from my understanding true bartenders take pride in their craft, and hospitality is key to bringing guests back. I'm giving two stars only because earlier today I was at the Victoria Gardens location, and it was amazing, from the food to the service. The chicken tacos there was insanely good! Definitely worth the drive! Unfortunately, I'm not sure I'd return to this location after today's experience. A smile and being welcoming can go a long way, even with the food not being good. But those two hand and hand.. well it's a set up for disaster. read more

I'm a Riverside local and decided to try The State after walking by one day. The service, food, and vibe is great!! The poutine and meatballs were delicious. I paired it with a tasty red wine, Cooper and Thief, not too sure if this is top notch wine, but it was half off so it worked out! My lady loved it as well! We will be returning!! read more

Came because we've had good experiences at other State locations, and this place sadly disappointed. Service was extremely slow. From getting seated, to ordering, to waiting for our tab, we were there for a total of 2 hours. And food was mediocre. It wasn't even busy which could have contributed to longer wait times. Sadly I wouldn't recommend and most likely wont be back. I can't imagine on a weekend night what service would be like. read more

The State - $12 champagne brunch - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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Great vibe, very nice ambiance, very clean and nice service . Food was delicious... loved the lighting and decor. Would def about it

Fantastic service by Emily. Great ambience, music playing, smiling friendly staff. We ordered the bruschetta to start. Was excellent. Probably the best we've had. So good we ordered a second. Our main dish was short rib tacos and the other was shrimp tacos. They were equally delicious. Definitely a fabulous dinner with excellent service. The only pic I remembered to take of the food was one piece of bruschetta left! read more

The State - Menu from 8/3/25 - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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I had a really frustrating experience here on 4/10/2026 , especially considering we had a reservation. We were seated right by the door, which was uncomfortable with constant traffic and drafts, and not at all what I'd expect when booking ahead. I politely asked if we could move to a booth since there were clearly some available, but the server told us no because a party was coming in at 5. The response came with an unnecessary attitude, which made the situation even more off putting. What really didn't sit right with me was being told that booths have to be selected through "open seating" on OpenTable. That's simply not true l checked the app myself, and there is no option to choose a booth when making a reservation. It felt like we were being given an excuse rather than an honest answer. Overall, between having a reservation and still getting one of the worst tables, plus the dismissive service, the experience was disappointing. Better communication and a more respectful approach would have made a big difference. read more

We were in the area and decided to stop by for a quick lunch. We were seated right away, as this location did not seem to be as busy as the Redlands one. Our waitress came by and took our drink order fairly quickly, then came back to take our food order. We received our drinks rather quickly, but the food did take a little while. Especially considering that the restaurant was not the busy. We order our usual appetizer, the poutine fries, and they were loaded with cheese and meat but had very little french fries. They were still good though. We also ordered the pesto chicken sandwich with salad to share as our entree. The sandwich was awful, and the salad was the saving grace. They did give a large portion of salad on the plate for us to share, which was nice. The service was rather slow and we were just slightly disappointed in the food in comparison to the Redlands location. The parking is also street parking, similar to Redlands, so you might have a short walk to the restaurant. read more

The State - poutine - American Near Me - Riverside, California

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Stopped in to get a couple drinks with my husband. The two bartenders (especially the female bartender) were so great. They answered several questions that we had about our drinks. It was such a fun night and I will be back!! 10 outta 10!!! read more

We had an amazing first time here! We tried the Brussels sprouts, poutine, onion rings and the double smash! Burger was good! Fries were not greasy they were really good, the onion rings were our fav! They are nice and crispy and really big! They were all very satisfying poutine was not our fav but it was still a good shareable option. Mackenzie was amazing!!! She was super knowledgeable, friendly and truly made our night so much better! Ask for her when you go I promise you won't regret it! Thanks Mackenzie for all the options, I have a list of drinks I like and do not like read more