Old Man River — Restaurant in City of Tonawanda

This was the first time trying out the old man river. It was also my birthday and had a craving for some BBQ and seafood. They have two stations, one that sells burgers, sandwiches and finger food and the other side that sell alcohol bbq and seafood. We got the 3 meat platter with two sides and cornbread and also added on two beers. This all came up to about $60 which is a bit on the pricey side for what you receive. I picked the ribs, beef brisket, shrimp with the side of Mac Mac cheese and baked beans. It's got potential but old man river needs to go back to the drawing board with how this food is being executed. The ribs were extremely small with no meat on the bone and what was on the bone was very dry and you basically had to fight it to get the meat off the bone, the brisket was pretty dry. Almost like eating a well dine steak that was cooked to death, the mac and cheese was under unseasoned and reminded me of instant mac and cheese. However the shrimp was a pretty solid choice and the baked beans were good but unfortunately didn't feel special. I could've probably received the same quality and satisfaction from a can of bushes baked beans.

When eating these thing separately its a huge disappointment, pretty bland and dry but comes to a good meal if you combine everything like a garbage plate and dump a ton of bbq sauce on it. However for a meal that cost $60, I expect more from it. I should be able to take just a strip of beef brisket and thoroughly enjoy it on its own, bit I would not be able ti do that, the brisket and ribs are more like warm beef jerkey.

Overall it was a great time. There was live music, the atmosphere was great, the staff were extremely professional and helped me with everything I needed I would see myself coming back. The only issue is the price. I feel the price for what I received was...

Taking a ride down the river and saw the restaurant looking like we were out of state on vacation, we just had to stop! The front view was colorfully awesome with a look of separate clam shacks, ample tables and chairs. Turned the corner to see the open entry to the counter for ordering hot dogs and burgers and such, with a view of an outdoor patio with umbrellas and tables, tall tables, too. Then, around the third corner to see a small parking lot and more street parking available. We entered from that back side, and saw the chef cooking/smoking food. It looked fantastic! Such a friendly guy sharing the memory behind the Mark's Corner sign with feeling. We ended up ordering from the outdoor counter, for dinners with two sides; Two chicken dinners with potato wedges, mac n cheese, and corn bread. The chicken was a type of vinegar bbq and the meat was SO TENDER it literally fell off the bone. It was delicious! The mac n cheese was tender and very creamy with a great cheese flavor. Corn bread was moist and delicious! We also ordered a shrimp dinner with potato wedges. The shrimp was plump and fried to a good crunch on the outside with a tender shrimp inside. As we took our food to the table, they brought us a container with the sauces. There is also ketchup, salt and pepper, available to take to your table. A nice cold beer topped off our meals. Wish we didn't have other plans such that we could stay for the live music. Surely, there will be a next time we look forward to. The bathroom was a little on the small side and I imagine if there is a lot of people, you're going to have a wait. But, at least there's a bathroom, sink, soap, and light blowing hand dryer there. It was nice to take a walk across the street to see the river up close, as well. All in all, a great visit and good food, good atmosphere,...

Our first time here, has all the makings of something fantastic, lots if seating fun atmosphere right by the water......but what a disappointment. We came based on all the awesome reviews.

First off, spendy (about 60 dollars total for 2 of us, not including the tip), now I will spend $60 dollars all day on a good to great meal...this is not the case here.

We decided to try all three options (burgers/fried food, smokehouse, seafood shed).

Burger/fried food. Spent $8 ring of fire, deep friend onions rings and Jelepenos w/cheese sauce and hot sauce- onion rings were good the Jelepenos tasted old and dry, as in... you can barely bite threw them we got 4 onions rings and 4 slices of Jelepenos.

We decided to hit up the smokehouse and seafood shed, with great expectations, to say disappointment is an under statement -3 meal platter Brisket, Cajun shrimp, Sausage, Mac and cheese, slaw and corn bread, including 1 beer, was almost 45 bucks and it was not good. Not a terrible portion 2 people could easily spit this.

Overall: Shrimp bland, brisket horrible chewy salt lick, sausage was one of the worst things I have ever tried, Mac and cheese was cold lumpy and over salted, coleslaw - I just can't even describe, tasted over seasoned with some sort of fennel or oregano seasoning, corn bread was "ok". We took three bits each (shared with hubby) and had to toss it...it was that bad, just not good at all.

Side Note: Bathroom was disgusting, as in I hovered and was scared to touch the faucet.

I rarely leave bad reviews but terrible experience, tried to say something but everyone at smoke shack was MIA..hence the review. Giving 2 star based on staff, atmosphere and seating, truly is a...