The Rio Cafe

Been meaning to try the Rio café for some time, so today l came along for lunch, the Rio café reminds me of some of the places that l used to find by the beach front or on the west coast towns, where they also looked as if they hadn’t changed since they opened.
Atmosphere
A strange one even though they’ve supposedly had a revamp they still look as if they need another one already, some areas looked the part but the mix of modern & old made it look odd.
Food
I came for the food & had the Rio islander burger that was served with Stornoway black pudding & goats cheese, all the burgers came with skinny fries & coleslaw.
The food was on the table within five minutes, obviously they where pre cooked & microwaved later.
The Stornoway black pudding was microwaved on top of the burger with the cheese and all l got was a sour taste from the black pudding, an extra ingredient was found in the burger, please see photo.
All l could taste from the burger was spices, especially cumin.
The skinny fries where nice and the home made coleslaw.
Even though this was my first visit here it was more of a disappointment, I will try this place at a later date, will definitely not be having a burger here again though.

I’d been recommended to try the Rio for breakfast from a friend, and decided to test it the morning of a day out drinking, the ideal test. Needless to say, I wasn’t disappointed.
The décor of the Rio is quite unique around this area, reminded me of a American style diner. The layout is good, with quite a few seating spaces and open bar area with stools. The music playing was cracking and all. Service is great, very friendly and attentive.
We had a round of full breakfasts, coffee and orange juice. Juice was chilled with no ice (a plus for me) and the coffees were warm and tasty, I’d prefer mine slightly stronger but personal preference. Breakfast was good, arrived warm and not too long a wait. I found the quality of the breakfast good, without being outstanding. For the price I’d expect it to just be slightly more tasty.
Overall I’d definitely return to the Rio for a breakfast, and also for a drink, looks a great place for an evening drink or 2.

Last time I visited & reviewed Rio, I gave it a middle-​of-​the-​road 3 stars. I was looking forward to getting along to see their recent refurb and try out the food but I still came away with a very much 3-​star experience.
So they refurbished the place which was very much needed! It looks fresh, there’s lots of light blue and overall, it’s given the place a new bit of life. They’ve changed the bar area and there’s more seating but I wouldn’t say it’s a massive transformation — it still pretty much looks like the Rio.
I was in for a meeting and was totally starving, so got the eggs florentine. It was perfectly acceptable even though the eggs were overcooked and I wolfed it down in no time. I liked the seeded mustard mixed through the sauce.
My only real gripe with this place is that I still find the service to be pretty hit-​or-​miss. It feels a bit like pot luck getting served and you just hope for the best. That being said, it’s a pretty cool spot for an afternoon meeting and is pretty damn popular with the locals.

I absolutely love the Rio Café. To my wee mind it’s kind of like the diner in Seinfeld, Central Perk or Al’s Diner — it’s so über cool and beautifully styled it’s like an iconic TV show café right in our wee Glasgow!
It’s no secret I love mid century design and décor and so this classy little joint is my kind of place. I loved it before and love it even more now it’s had a refresh! It’s more spacious and had a really good makeover without losing the vibe that regulars love, a truly impressive renovation. The toilets have had a much needed revamp too.
The booth seating is comfortable and fun and basically everything looks like Happy Days meets Twin Peaks meets Mad Men– what’s not to love?
Weekend nights mean dj’s from 9pm and there’s all sorts of other regular slots including weekend poker, a Tuesday night quiz and an open mic night.
The food is diner style comfort food which also caters well to vegetarians and vegans. I must say– there wasn’t quite as much healthy stuff as I would like to choose from but this is a diner style menu! My spicy bean burger was absolutely delicious and a really extremely generous portion. Served lovely and hot at the same time as my pals– none of your fancy small plates «you’ll get it when we bring it» stuff in here!
The service was pleasant but not remarkable in any way– which suited me fine. I’ll come back here as often as I possibly can– absolutely my favourite place to hang out– for me it’s the very best in the West.

I popped in to check out the post-​facelift Rio on a rare trip home to Glasgow. Having been a fan of the retro stylings and clattery comfy-​coziness of the old Rio, I was really worried that the facelift would have ripped the heart out of the old place so I’m delighted to be able to report that the best bits are still there. They’ve kept the booths down one side and re-​jigged the rest of the seating, making much more efficient use if the space. Gone is that weird raised platform bear the door which, although fairly big, managed to make every table feel ridiculously tiny and cramped. And also gone are the Alex Ferguson wee tables up the back (I’m sure that’s where they filmed the ‘go to your GP if you have a persistent cough’ advert) to make room for a more accommodating service area and bar. The feel if the old place is *slightly* diluted but I’m sure that once it gets a patina of wear around the edges, it will feel like it’s old self. One thing which disappoints slightly is the menu. I never really noticed before how uninspired the menu is but i guess I was hoping for a revamped menu to go along with the re-​fit. The place has a bit of the greasy spoon about it and so yes, absolutely, it has an all-​day-​breakfast sort of a menu. So far so good. But it’s all just a bit average. They are charging healthy prices and so I would like a bit more quality or care for my money. Some thick sourdough for the toast, or some farmers market bacon, perhaps. Or at least some interesting modern breakfast options — some avocado on toast, or goats cheese and local honey. That sort of thing. Or, if you are going to go down the sliced-​supermarket-​bread and catering-​supply-​beans route, then you also need to be knocking a quid or two off the prices.
I like the look of the place, and I love the feel of the place in the evenings (some interesting events, gigs, dj sets and a pub quiz) so I really hope that now it’s had a facelift, they will turn their attention to the menu and i can give them more stars.

Oooh — they’ve gone all blue!
Yes, the Rio is back after a much-​needed facelift, and they’ve managed to retain the same funky diner vibe while at the same time creating a bit more space.
Gone is the long bar, replaced by a more functional island unit closer to the kitchen end, which has enabled them to fit in extra tables where the bar used to be.
The banquette seating is still pretty much the same, although everything has been re-​upholstered and looks very smart (I mention it mainly because one doesn’t often get the chance to use the word ‘banquette’ these days).
The menu has been slightly revamped, although the old favourites are still there. There’s a nice super salad option on the lunch menu that I look forward to trying at some point.
On this visit I had some green pea soup with some toasted ciabatta, which was tasty enough although I felt the onions in it could have done with a bit more cooking as they were a tiny bit crunchy. At least I think it was the onions…

This place was recommended by a friend based on their coffee, which was according to my boyfriend lovely.
We were staving and looking for some late breakfasts, which they serve all day. The décor really made this place for me. It’s vintage, retro, whatever you want to call it, it was awesome. Authentic retro too, with fantastic music playing by Fitzgerald and Armstrong.
I ordered a Chai Latte, and was severely disappointed. It tasted like hot milk, so I asked them to make it stronger. I’m not sure what they did to the second one but I couldn’t drink it.
The breakfast was a bit hit and miss. The bacon, potato scone, hash brown and beans were yum, the sausage and egg a bit odd, like the sausage was really, really chewy!
£18 for two full breakfast, an undrinkable chai and a coffee. A little steep for my likely, which I probably wouldn’t have thought if it had been better.
I’d go again if I was in the same spot… craving breakfast at 1pm after a fun night and in the area, or maybe just to try something else. The décor and theme would make me want to give this place another go… but I won’t be getting a Chai Latte again.