Gruene River Grill — Restaurant in New Braunfels

The rarest of the rare - a two star review. When you want to register your displeasure, you write a one star review, but this isn't a one star place. It's just not, so it gets two stars. Doubt anyone will ever read it. What's happened to the Gristmill over the last 15 years is what's happened to all of Gruene, TX. Once upon a time not so long ago, Gruene was a quaint country town and the Gristmill was its crown jewel restaurant - no longer. Gruene was annexed by New Braunfels - itself a suburb of San Antonio, and it's not the country any longer. Totally different vibe, people, and atmosphere that accompany suburbaning. The tens of thousands of people who've moved in over the last 15 years - ostensibly to "get away from it all" - have transformed Gruene without a trace of irony into the center of it all. And even more unironic, suburbanites don't actually want all that beautiful country charm. They think they do but they really don't. They want suburbia. They want TGI Friday's. So that's what you get now at the Gristmill. Even though it's still a gorgeous compound on the banks of the Guadaloupe River, the atmosphere and the employees are most reminiscent of what you would get at a chain restaurant just off the feeder road of a commuter highway. That's what Gruene has become and that's what the Gristmill has become. Now don't get me wrong, I'm complaining about far more than the atmosphere. At my December 2024 visit, I received absolutely horriffic service. The hostess was aloof and rude and the waiter gave me the worst service I've had in maybe the lat 30 years of eating out, which is saying something. Anyone can have a bad service experience in a great place or even a great service experience in a bad place, but the fact that this guy is allowed to remain employed at the Gristmill says something about management and its priorities. The guy was just mailing it in. He truly did not care that he was providing the worst possible service to my party. Couldn't be bothered and didn't care. The food was also pretty standard faire for a TGI Friday's, not at all the quasi-fine dining experience that I remember from 15 years ago. How do you go from quasi-fine dining to TGI Friday's? For starters, you buy your commercial Tostitos-adjacent chips in bulk, let them go stale, and keep serving them. That's definitely how I would start to make that transition, and hey, that's what they did! But it wasn't just the chips and salsa/queso that were bad/mediocre. All the food we had was bad/mediocre. Maybe we just happened to order the wrong stuff. Maybe the kitchen was just having an off night. But I can only review the experience that I had, not the experience that I would have had with a different order and a different waiter. Bad atmosphere, bad service, mediocre food. But hey, it's also a lot cheaper than I remember it being 15 years ago. Gotta compete with TGI Friday's...

I came here about 4 days ago (October 29) for my birthday with friends and my partner in crime. It was a cold windy day but the fireplace heated up the atmosphere quite nicely, I was surprised because we sat at the back near the windows because the view was amazing, even in the gloomy weather.

As an appetizer, we shared the spinach and artichoke dip and it was more than enough for 4 people! Great portion! I ordered the Jalapeno Craw fish Chowder - it was awesome! Best soup I've ever had, like... ever and I was so amazed at the amount of flavor (even four days later I'm still marveling). For my entree, I ordered the Jalapeno Mandarin Pork Chops, my partner had the Southwestern Meatloaf (I think he posted a review already) and my friends had the Hawaiian Style Baby Back Ribs (half portion) and the Filet Gorgonzola (prepared blue or very rare).

First, the Filet Gorgonzola prepared blue was amazing - compliments to the chef! We judge how well they follow instructions when we ask if they can prepare the filet blue and they've excelled at that part! The Hawaiian Baby Back Ribs was great, not much we can say on that because it was just the usual flavor we've had before at other places. My partner posted his review of the Meatloaf, so you can read that.

Now my pork chops, I was not expecting what came out in front of me, it was superb presentation and LARGE portion (I could barely finish it and I do eat a lot!) - I was honestly expecting maybe two slices of pork chops like the ones you buy at a grocery store, not 2 slabs of pork chops like the picture attached. It was moist, flavorful, and absolutely cooked to perfection! The only issue I had tho, was the menu said JALAPENO Mandarin Pork Chops - there was not even any hint of any jalapeno nor was there any flavor of spiciness of it, a bit disappointing but the overall flavor was still amazing.

For dessert - I've gotten the Strawberry Shortcake as a complimentary birthday gift - DO NOT GET THIS... I'd take off a star for it, but the overall experience outweighs a very, very, very, very, very, dry strawberry shortcake. I literally almost choked on it and had to drink a lot of water. I don't know if it was because it was free or it was just dry... So instead, my friends ordered me a creme brulee... now that... was amazing, so amazing that I wanted another one, and I got it.

Overall, it was a fantastic birthday at Gruene River Grill. We will definitely be returning soon, but now we know not to order the driest strawberry shortcake I've ever had and to request that they actually put jalapenos in...

The chicken fried steak is NOT as big as your plate, which is good.

I am a CFS fan who has a very difficult time finding really good CFS. I'll get to that momentarily.

After going to The Gristmill practically every time we go to Gruene, we decided to try Gruene River Grill.

The biggest difference between the two is that Gristmill has a much much larger patio section overlooking the river. Gruene River Grill has approximately a dozen tables at the deck edge overlooking the river and about another dozen between those and the restaurant.

The interior of GRG is really cool looking and very Texas. Although I prefer sitting on the deck, I'd have no issue being inside.

Now, for the food.

I started with a cup of the jalapeño corn crawfish chowder. Delicious. I highly recommend.

I ordered the CFS, which they call country fried steak, as my entree. It comes with mashed potatoes and sweet corn.

Whenever someone says the CFS is as big as your plate, I instantly consider getting the chicken fried chicken. Why? Because it seems too many people value the portion size over the quality, and restaurants tend to cater to that. You end up getting a pretty thin and not so tender piece of beef with a ton of fried batter. It looks impressive on the plate, but not really anything that impressive to the tongue.

When I cut into my CFS from GRG, about 85% of the cross section is tender and tasty beef. I cut it with my fork. The crust was also flavorful and crisp. It's pretty much exactly how CFS should be made.

My only criticism was that there was no jalapeño cream gravy option. The cream gravy that came with it was pretty tasty, but having a jalapeño version would have made it perfect. BTW, always get your gravy on the side to dip each piece of CFS into so the crust remains crisp.

The potatoes were good, with additional pepper, and the corn was sweet, crisp and juicy.

I guess my only other minor complaint was that it should have had some Texas toast with it.

As for the price, it was $17 which I thought was too cheap. Considering the view, ambiance and location, I'd happily pay $25 for the same entree.

The service was good. Well, the hostess stand could use some improvements, but the waitress did a great job.

The next time I'm in Gruene, I'll return to try another entree. I'm GUESSING most of their dishes are going to be pretty dang good.

If you're in the New Braunfels area and want a great CFS at a nice restaurant for a deal, Gruene River Grill...