Rail Stop Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Boston

I love this restaurant and have dined here several times. The last time I came here was for my boyfriend's birthday in mid October. The building hides in plain sight on the Boston Landing Strip between New Balance Headquarters Boston and Cambridge Naturals. It's on the same street as WGBH in Brighton closer to the Watertown line.

Upon walking up to the restaurant, there's several paths, two with stairs and one with a ramp. The building resembles a train station and has a dual side patio with heat lamps out front and tables that run alongside the building facing I-90W. It was chilly and raining outside so we got a giant booth inside towards the back of the restaurant.

Upon walking in there is a foyer between the front doors and then the lobby. It's very big and clean which is great now, because there's ever rarely a wait unless you come in for brunch which is on Saturday and Sunday. They have a hand sanitizer station right outside the main entrance and will offer you a mask if you don't have one, it's extremely Covid-19 compliant so you run minimal to no risk to your health dining here.

The staff is almost always on point (they're human so we can't always expect perfection.) Everyone that I've had as a server, to the host and managers are always friendly and very professional. They anticipate your needs and are personable while also doing their job. For this birthday dinner, I had Walter as my server and he made sure we had everything we needed. They also accommodate all dietary restrictions as I don't eat red meat and am lactose intolerant; my boyfriend is pescatarian. There were no issues with the substitutions we made and I noticed several vegetarian and vegan options on the menu. We both had the Salmon which I LOVE because it has a nice sweet and savory balance thanks to the tomato jam on top.

Can't say more than enough good things about Rail Stop. Of all the times I've eaten here, I have yet to make it to brunch, but I'm sure it would be a grand experience...

Ambiance - 5 stars Servers/waitstaff - 5 stars Food - 1 star

I have absolutely no clue how this place has 4.4 stars out of 450 google reviews but you guys are straight up lying. The vibe and people at Railstop are stellar; it has a cool rustic vibe inside and everybody is friendly.

However, when it comes to the food, it is a completely different story. We're not even in the same genre anymore. If the ambiance/servers were a Harry Potter book, the food would be owner's manual to your lawnmower.

Table bread - 4/10 I don't even know how you can mess up table bread but it was dry and lukewarm.

Paella - 3.5/10 Almost inedible. Rice just tasted of rank clam juice and we were served onion skin. Not actual onions. Pieces of onion skin. Why was the onion chewy???

Chicken Bites - 8/10 Crispy and yums

Bleu cheese - 5/10 Extremely runny but tasted fine. Imagine cleaning an art brush in water consistency.

Ranch - 6/10 Looked good and had the right consistency but tasted of almost nothing. Think mayo with a dusting of ranch powder.

Onion Rings - 7/10 Crispy but no seasoning. Literally no salt whatsoever.

Pizza - 6.5/10 Weirdly sweet. Couldn't tell if it was a dessert pie or spicy sausage. Maybe both.

Overall Experience - 4.5/10 Unfortunately, whilst the servers and ambiance tried so dearly to make up for what was a train wreck of the actual food, we will never be coming here again. Usually, it's worth it to try someplace twice as they might've had an off day, but there is no universe where I step foot inside Railstop again. And I live...

I had high expectation for this place. We took someone out for her Birthday. We had our appitizers, mussels, tuna tartare and pork ribs two different flavors. It tasted very good. So I was very excited to pick braised short ribs for my main course.

Main courses took a little while to come out. When it came out, it looked very good with the different grilled veggies and the mashed potato. I got my knife ready to cut the short ribs, put my fork into it and it was so tender it ripped off a piece of the meat. I was like WOW, it's so tender and soft. Then it all went downhill from there. I took a bite of the meat and it was bland and flavorless. I couldn't believe my taste buds. How can this short rib been braised so long and taste like nothing??? I cut another piece from the other side of the rib and same result. At this point I was like eating short rib that was probably braised in plain water since it has no salt or any kind of flavor. The pork ribs was full of flavors and this short rib has NONE. I had a hard time eating it without a sauce and it didn't come with one. Other people on the table said their food was bland and not savory enough either. This was a truly disappointment.

Service was decent but not attentive enough. My coke was out since appitizers and was not offered a refill.

If u are having just appetizers and a drink then maybe it's good. The main courses needs to improve. I wouldn't be visiting again unless I see some...