Riverside — Restaurant in Geneva

Yesterday, I went to Riverside with a friend—a place I know well, where the owner is always friendly. We sat on the terrace, but we noticed something unusual: the girl working there seemed to ignore us. This was surprising because just a week ago, she was checking on us frequently, perhaps because the owner was present then.

We each ordered a glass of wine, but unfortunately, the taste was off and not enjoyable. When we mentioned this to the server, he quickly tried to suggest something else without giving us much time to decide. This made the interaction feel rushed, and honestly, a bit stressful.

We went inside to speak to him again, explaining that the taste was really bizarre. He insisted we should take the other wine. Since we know quite a bit about wine, we gently suggested that maybe the bottle had been open for too long. He was very decisive, saying “no way” repeatedly. He even tasted the wine from our glass with a spoon and then dismissed our concern, saying no, it was fine.

As customers coming to enjoy a good time, we felt this was not the right approach. Instead of arguing, a better response would have been to say, “Let me offer you something else,” or to find a smart way to compromise, especially since it was only 17 CHF. If the goal was to keep us happy, this small gesture could have encouraged us to spend more.

We don’t mind paying for quality service and good products. But in a city like Geneva, with many options—especially beautiful places by the lake—what truly makes a difference is that special touch: genuine attention and warm human connection.

The bar itself is beautiful and popular, but to stand out and keep customers coming back, it’s important to balance business with friendliness and care. We hope Riverside continues to grow and finds that balance, because feeling truly welcomed is what makes a night...

Two (!!!) days only after the opening of the bar due to the covid-19 due to the closedown, they served us a cocktail at a glass full of lip prints from red lipstick from the previous customer !!! Before We thought that it looks relatively clean place and they wash the glasses in the washing machine, but not at all. This is unacceptable and I don’t understand how they didn’t see such a thing. I don’t want to imagine how dirty the kitchen is. Supposedly, a bar cares about being perfect clean after 1 month of lockdown of no customers, and this shows that they don’t care at all. Of course we didn’t touch the glass and ordered a beer in bottle instead. They didn’t even treat it to us at the end to show some apology. This place doesn’t deserve your money and your presence, as there is no responsible person for customer...

Very disappointed with management, its a very lively and expensive place despite being around 30-40 people there is afternoon they only made use of one toilet the disabled toilet. My husband asked the young male bartender if the regular toilets could be opened as there was regularly a queue but the manager refused. It was getting busier and busier. As someone who has to use the disabled toilet to empty a stoma bag knowing so many people were queuing behind you put me in a very unnecessary and uncomfortable position. Its easy to realise this place don't care about their customers just their...