Cliff House Inn — Restaurant in Arkansas

My wife stopped there last year for a girls trip and told me how great the fried shrimp was. Since it was our 32nd wedding anniversary, we decided this might be the place to take a road trip and celebrate, especially after reading all of the cajun style options on the menu (we're both originally from the Texas/Louisiana coastline).

So, we get there and are immediately seated. Nice atmosphere with an outstanding view. We explained this was our anniversary and brought in a bottle of wine to celebrate (fyi...the site says its a dry county, so if you need a little extra, bring it yourself). The waitress was very attentive to our needs, since we did forget glasses, and even a corkscrew. She was there lickity-split to take care of us.

Food-wise, the experience was split down the middle. We ordered the fried green beans as an appetizer, and these were phenomenal. Fresh cooked with just the right amount of zing to make them really good. The wife ordered the fried shrimp again, and these were a true large gulf shrimp (and not from a pond farm somewhere).

I ordered the blackened ribeye with boudin. And, its important to place here...at one point the owner came thru and said this was their signature dish and i would love it. If not, just let him know and they would make me something else. The flavor profile was there (hint... chef prudhomme would be proud) and the boudin had good flavor. BUT...the ribeye was not good, at all!!! It was a very poor grade steak that was tough and I would say 40% was fat.

So, you may ask, did I say anything about it? The answer is no. Should I have...probably so. However, my wife had an amazing experience here the first time, and she wanted this to be a special treat for me/us on our anniversary, so I opted to stay quiet and not make a scene. Looking back now (especially for what they charged me, i should have made it a point to point this out). I was hoping the owner would have swung back thru and seen the huge glob of uneaten fat/gristle, but after his initial comment, we never saw him again. And then the moment passed.

So, I say this to let you know I believe this place should be experienced for the view/ambiance/experience, and to enjoy some good cooking...but please, please, please...stay away...

Visited with 2 adults and 4 kids. Arrived around 1 and had a short wait for seating. The host was polite and asked us if we would mind splitting to two tables to go ahead and be seated. We were fine with that, but realized that the tables were side by side we just moved two chairs over and bunched around one, seeing as how our kids were all fairly small. We noted another table with a chair at the head and presumed this was a logical solution, and also freed up additional seating for two at the second table. Not only did the waitress comment on this when she returned with drinks (she had taken the drink order for both tables, so was serving us both) but another woman, who we presumed to be an owner or manager came over to the corner we were in and commented on how we had all bunched around the table (we were in the back corner , so not crowing any walkways or anything.). The waitress was not very friendly from the start. The pasta & roll was very good, however we did not recieve our salad with it until the waitress came back toward the end of our meal and I asked about it as well as a refill (the only time she revisited the table). The fish was rather flavorless for catfish. We have definitely had better catfish platters. Jojos in Mt. View serves a similar platter that is far better and less expensive. The waitress never returned after bring the salad amd refill. We had plans to get desert, but was never asked or offered, so we decided to save $10. Our ticket was brought by a different girl that basically seemed to be trying to get us to leave. One might be tempted to think it could be due to the kids, but our kids are very well behaved, so I don't perceive that to be the issue at all. Overall, the price was quite steep for so, so food and far less than...

Portions are very small for the high prices. You are definitely paying for the view (it overhangs the Arkansas Grand Canyon). Parking is minimal. There is a 3% charge for debit/credit cards. You enter into a store and then wait to be seated. We had no wait. Burgers aren't available after around 3 or 4 pm and the burgers are $14+ with no sides. If you change or sub anything there are significant uncharges. The baked potatoes are kind of weird--they're fried? The lady that seated us was very nice, and the gentleman that we paid to leave was nice, but our waitress was nonexistent. We were seated immediately but it was over 20 minutes before anyone took our food or drink orders--2 women kept coming by our table saying they were getting our waitress but then the waitress that came was one of the women who said she was getting our waitress. The sodas are 12 ounce plastic bottles and it's just under a dollar for each refill (around $3 for the first one--the menu says you get one free refill, but we were charged for the refill). Again, portions are very small but the grilled chicken is moist, tender, and flavourful. Side options are very limited for the meals--they were only offering broccoli and cauliflower with the meal. I told the waitress I couldn't eat either of those because of a medical reason and asked if I could swap out pinto beans or even fries and was told my options were no side or pay $5.99 to sub it out. This was actually our second time here (both times we were on motorcycles), but both visits had similar negative outcomes and I've finally learned--we won't be back for the three-peat. Go on into Jasper and find something...