Gristmill River Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in New Braunfels

UPDATE Jill, one of the general managers at Gristmill, reached out after hearing about our experience and asked to make it right. This was already above and beyond what I had ever expected, and we sincerely appreciated this gesture. We agreed to a do-over and made new reservations. There was a night and day difference in our experience this time. While we were still seated right away and had yet another wonderful view, we also had a fabulously attentive and helpful server, and got to enjoy some amazing food. Seriously--everything we ordered was unbelievably delicious!

My only note is that, because this was a do-over, I'm not sure what a normal night out might be like outside of our initial experience (or the effort to make things right). However, they have reignited our excitement towards the Gristmill and we're eager to find a reason worth celebrating to go again! I'll be interested in seeing how the service is the third time around, but for the time being, they've earned back every star above.

Although my husband and I have lived in the area for almost a year, we decided to save our first time at the Gristmill for a special occasion. After arriving to our 6pm reservation to celebrate our three-year anniversary, we were seated right away with a great view of the river! We excitedly looked through the menu, deciding on a drink and appetizer, then discussing our entrees, then looking again at the drink menu... and again at the entrees. But unfortunately, after waiting ten minutes, we were never checked in on. We closed our menus and waited another 5-7 minutes, but still, no one came. Deciding to cut our losses, we got up and decided to have a better night at a nearby restaurant (highly recommend!).

I wish I could rate our food, but we never had the opportunity to order. I wish I could say something about the waiter, but I didn't have the chance to meet them. I'd like to think they may have simply been understaffed, but walking through a crowd of 5-6 of the waitstaff chatting in the breezeway as we exited didn't give me much hope on that front.

Based on the rave reviews this place received, we were surprised by our experience. I'd like to think this was simply a blip in their usual service, but considering my husband told them how special the night was for us, I'd hate to take a chance at just a regular outing at the Gristmill, let alone another special night.

I've never written a Google review before, but I've also never been this disappointed in a business's service. Since I know we'll likely receive the same cookie-cutter response—"We have forwarded your feedback to management for review with our staff"—like other low-star reviews, my only recommendation for this place goes to management: train your waitstaff to work as a team. If they notice a table that hasn't been attended to by their assigned waiter, step in and at least offer some waters, especially on a hot day. I promise, it'll go a long way.

Wishing others better luck...

I LOVE the Gristmill... I grew up going to the Gristmill for Birthdays and Special Occasions for its unique local Texas feel, great food and atmosphere. I have been here when it's been slow but also extremely busy with up to an hour wait. However, I moved out of state for a few years but moved back recently. I went to the Gristmill today, 03/01/2025 for my Mothers 61st Birthday, but today we had a horrible service experience. I am usually not one to write these types of reviews but I feel that this needs to be brought to anyones attention that may experience a similar issue here- We came to the restaurant shortly after they opened, around 11:30am. There was no wait and upon a brief line at the Host stand, we were asked by the host if the "first available table was ok" to which we agreed, however we were not told this would be Outside in the steamy 85 degree Texas spring beating sun. The hostess took my mother and I through the restaurant to an outdoor table in the DIRECT SUNLIGHT. Not only was this table in the beaming sun with no cover/umbrella like the other tables, but one side where the seating "bench" was, there was a huge gaping hole where the bench was falling into the uneven brick making that seat very unsteady to sit on, and frankly unsafe; luckily I was on that bench instead of my elderly mother or this story may have ended differently. Once the hostess came back with menus, she told us our waiter would be by, but I asked if there was maybe a table in a more shady area or at least with a safer bench or seat, since it was my Moms Birthday. She proceeded to say she needed to "go ask her manager" instead of just moving us to a more comfortable table... never have I had to wait for a managers "approval" in a basically empty restaurant with plenty of obvious seating elsewhere. As someone who has worked in Hospitality and Food Service, I was shocked that we weren't simply moved without question. The hostess came back to take us to a lower level of the patio, where she proceeded to try to place us at a similar extremely sunny table, when there were clearly tables with shade or umbrellas available. At that point I requested if we could be seated INSIDE since it seemed they were reserving the shaded tables, or just preferred to sit us in the sun. The hostess again SAID SHE NEEDED TO ASK HER MANAGER. At this point we decided to leave, as it was obvious we were playing musical chairs instead of getting a decent shaded or even a SAFE table for my elderly mother's 61st birthday. I am extremely disappointed in this experience and just wanted to inform the general public to be sure to ask for INSIDE SEATING if that is your preference, because the hosts make it seem borderline impossible to get a decent table in a empty Gristmill, and only ask "if first available is ok" instead of simply asking "inside or outside" like they use to. Not everyone wants to sit in the Sun...

I was really looking forward to dinner at Gristmill with my son. The curb appeal is really great which kind of raised my expectations. There was no air conditioned dining available so we sat outside under the trees with fans. It looked inviting but some portable swamp coolers would have been great.

Things started off okay but our waiter “Edward” seemed a little unprepared. It appeared that we were one of his two tables so I wouldn’t say he was “in the weeds”. To be fair, the other table was an 8 top.

Another server brought us water while waiting. We were going to consider drinks but Edward didn’t have a drink menu handy so we stuck with water for the time being. My son ask for lemons. After a bit, Edward gave the lemons to his other table. We asked if he was going to get our lemons and when he realized he gave them to the other table, he tried to give them to us after being handled by the other guest. He did bring us our own but I can’t believe he considered giving us food from another table.

His knowledge of the menu, catch of the day and specials was poor. When he took our order, we had to clarify it several times. He quoted $22 for the salmon (catch of the day). The food came out in a fairly timely manner. Presentation was fair at best. The salmon wasn’t tasty and was over cooked. Our total order included the salmon, green beens, onion rings, quesadilla and spinach salad. I can’t say any of it was above average.

After dinner, we were ready to get our check and go. We asked for the check and a to-go box for the onion rings. The box he brought us wasn’t big enough for more than a few onion rings. After being quoted $22 for the catch of the day, we were charged $28.99. We waited patiently to ask Edward about the charge but he was deeply engaged in personal conversation with his other table. This conversation went on easily 12-15 minutes completely ignoring our table. We flagged down another server who went and got his attention.

When Edward returned he started off with the excuse that this was only his 2nd month at this restaurant. He took our check and 4-5 minutes later, another server brought us a corrected check. We waited again for Edward to return and take my payment. When he didn’t return, I asked another server if she could take my payment. She gave my card to Edward and minutes later he returned the check and card without saying a word.

I signed the restaurant copy and couldn’t see any reason to leave a tip. We left the payment on the table and left. I hope the other customers enjoyed their dining experience but tonight, I can’t say I did.

Update: i suppose that after seeing my review, Gristmill refunded my purchase. I really wasn’t expecting that but at least they cared to keep an eye on their reviews. I appreciate that and next time I’m passing through, I will give them another chance and...