The Riverside Airport Cafe — Restaurant in Riverside

I love this place.

The staff is so friendly, and the owner is right there working with the staff to take care of everyone!

They have a wonderful outdoor patio with views of the runways and busy taxi-ways, as well as indoor seating for those ridiculously hot days that riverside is known for!

But all that means nothing if the food isn’t good.

The food isn’t good. It’s great!

I’ve been eating here for several years, back through the transition from the previous owners to the current owner. I was excited when I heard that the current owner, who was a waitress for the previous owners, would be taking over, her transition was seamless, but now a couple years in, she has clearly made the restaurant her own, while retaining the charm that always existed. I’m usually here on weekends, where there is often a live band playing on the patio (though, playing the song “I could be alright if I could just crash here tonight” probably isn’t the best song to play when pilots are doing pre-flight a few feet away! lol!) it’s good for a quick bite between flights, or getting together with friends for a relaxed dining experience.

I’ve had food all across their menu, and really enjoyed it all. But I keep forgetting to take pics! Pictured is a bbq cheeseburger with bacon and onion ring on the burger. It’s an 8oz patty, which is a little much for me, but they were more than happy to cut it in half so my wife and I could split it. (We also split the fries).

I’m normally the type that loads my burger up with condiments after it arrives, but this was delicious just the way they made it!

The fries, though? They were great too! Crispy and fresh, a little skin on, which I always enjoy, and again, great as is, or of course dipped in ketchup (and of course, they have Heinz here).

If you’re flying in the area, stop on in! And if you’re not flying, but just live around here, stop in too! No pilot license required for food!

The only thing I wish, is for longer hours, I usually fly mid-afternoon and sometimes I’m hungry after 2pm, and maybe smaller bite options, for when I’m not able to share with my wife. But those are minor issues, did I mention I...

We came here for the first time. Overall, it seemed like it was going to be a good experience. We came on a Sunday, and our wait time was only about 30 min which was better than what we expected. However, we waited for our food 1 hr 10 minutes after we place our order . And we only ordered 3 - very easy to make- breakfast! Our waitress, came only twice during that time we waited. And they only brought one of the meals and we had to wait about 15 more minutes for the other two plates which was very inconvenient as by the time we were able to start eating, our children had almost already finished. We came here because of the good reviews about food and service. While food was good, unfortunately, service was not the best! We are a hispanic family. And our waitress was hispanic too but there were not that many hispanic families at the time. As I already mentioned, this is our first time here so we don’t know if this is the typical waiting time to get the food after ordering on a Sunday or if this is a place that does not attact that many hispanic families, but we did feel uncomfortable not only because our waitress didn’t come back like in over 45 min before our food arrived- we got to the point of thinking they forgot about us- but also because when we were leaving we observed how our same waitress apologized to another family in front of us- white family- about the long wait for them to get their food. One more thing about our waitress, she never smiled. She didn’t get to the point of being rude maybe (she didn’t say anything rude but it was more about her attitude). Her face and interactions were very serious when coming to our table, definitely, she wasn’t friendly either. I prefer not to mention her name. However, we won’t come back. Hopefully, management takes this review seriously about asking their employees to provide an exceptional customer service to Hispanics/Latinos and not only to white families. I hope other Hispanics visiting this place don’t feel the...

Riverside Airport Café—perfect for a blog, Instagram caption, or even a voiceover script for TikTok:

📍Riverside Airport Café – Where Brunch Meets the Runway ✈️🍳

If you’re looking for a hidden gem in the Inland Empire that’s anything but your average brunch spot, the Riverside Airport Café is it. This place serves up classic comfort food with a side of airplane takeoffs—literally.

✨ Family-friendly vibes make it perfect for weekend outings, and yes, there’s a DJ spinning chill tunes to keep the energy up while you sip on bottomless mimosas (yes please 🥂). The food? Think hearty breakfast plates, fluffy pancakes, and crispy bacon that hits every time.

What makes it extra special? You’re dining just feet away from the runway—so you’ll catch private planes and helicopters taking off while you eat. It’s like brunch with a built-in airshow.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Great for kids, fun for adults, and a total vibe for your next IG post or family outing.

✅ Food: 8.5/10 ✅ Vibes: 10/10 ✅ Mimosa game: Strong ✅ Bonus: You can literally watch planes take off while...