Unfortunately, the River Rat is closing - forever - Saturday December 30, 2023. Good luck to the retiring owner and to the fabulous employees. This was a great meeting place for the Lawson family.
Nicholle Russell
Like the atmosphere and space setup. Outdoor heaters are nice. Good food. Nice bartenders, who helped me pick out a beer I'd enjoy. (I'm not a beer person, but wanted to try something new with dinner.)
Gozde S.
The craft beers are fantastic but nothing beats the brisket in my opinion. Fun environment for kids and adults! Definitely come hungry....
John Swartz (Cruise Planners)
We were at the armory close by and stopped in for lunch. What a cool place! I'm sure it's a party during USC football games. The staff was friendly and helpful and our food was fantastic. Definitely recommend and plan on returning in the future.
Hayley L.
We were on our way through Columbia after hitting up Congaree National Park looking for lunch and on a whim pulled in here because it looked cool from the outside. I'm so glad we did stop because this place was lovely! The ambiance inside was friendly and like fun/cozy combo. The bartenders were super nice and helpful in helping us decide what to eat/drink. We took our meals and beverages outside and it was a cool space as well. Very spacious although I imagine it gets packed on game day. It looked like they had a projector for the game which we thought was really cool if that's true. Definitely worth a visit if you're in the area or passing through the area.
keanu andreas
Awesome place . The staff is friendly. Nice open venue. There is plenty of seating. Lots of different beers to wet your pallet
Carter Nowell
The place is great. The beer and food are both good but it is very slow. We ordered dinner (burgers, wings, sandwiches) and it took an hour and a half to get our food.
Tonya Taitt
Good beer horrible food. $8 salad that's smaller than the average side salad. Loaded Nachos are $11 and it came with 8 black beans one leaf of cilantro and no cheese except on the bottom and a couple dots of cream. It's almost like they wanted to make it bad. Wouldn't eat here again
Jeff Sears
First visit while traveling but it won’t be the last. Great location with a great indoor bar area and a huge outdoor area for group events. Josh at the bar has a great personality and knew his beer! I loved “Dogs on Surfboards New England IPA” as well as the other IPAs I tried. The smoked wings are some of the best I’ve ever tasted! Carolina Reaper if you’re brave. River Rat Brewery for the win!
Donna Nickle
Rick and I had a fabulous time celebrating his birthday at the River Rat Brewery bar!! His loaded House Burger, sporting the River Rat Brewery logo on the bun, and my pulled pork BBQ sandwich, with shared fries, were delicious. And, of course, the River Rat Marzen and the Raspberry Gose topped it all off!
Great beer & service. John is super great bartender with great recs. Fried green tomato taco was tasty!! Brisket slider-amazing!
Makenzie L.
We stopped by River Rat on our way back from Congaree National Park. The building is super neat with lots of parking! The inside portion is very small so it was pretty crowded on this veryyyy hot day. There's an upstairs rooftop bar with bar seating and couches and it's the perfect place to chill out and enjoy your beer! We actually ordered prosecco with a king of pops popsicle popped right inside the glass. You could choose between 6 flavors of pops for your drink! It was $7 which I thought was a great price for the drink and the popsicle. There's plenty of beers to choose from and the bartenders were really great. Really want to visit again to try the beer!
Lexi Haddock
What a cool place! First - it’s completely family friendly! And dog friendly too. There’s a small indoor bar area, a covered porch that can be used for private events, a larger covered area,and a huge grassy area with picnic tables and space for Cornhole.One of the coolest features is the former grain silo turned into a stairwell that leads up to a bridge to a rooftop bar that has the loveliest view of Williams Brice Stadium. The rooftop bar is limited to 21 and up.We were at a catered event that served BBQ and Mac and Cheese but apparently they have great snacks foods and I heard the nachos are great.And, of course, local brews. The Raspberry beer was great and the Red Ale. No one in the group said anything but good reviews on the beer. If you don’t care for beer, they have a wide selection of wines and some frozen drinks.I can’t believe it took me so long to finally get to this place. It has a great ambiance, great brew. We had a wonderful evening!
Kandus J.
Such a fun brewery and a great spot to have some cold ones! This was one of my favorite breweries while visiting Columbia. The taproom is a little small but it's a great spot! They have some killer merch and the beers are damn good! I love their logo and had to get a t shirt from them. Definitely recommend if you like good beer! Cheers!
Camilo Boada
The beer is awesome, everything I tried was tasty and delicious!! Great vibe, outdoor area is kids friendly and has plenty of tables. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable about their menu. Highly recommend
Unfortunately, the River Rat is closing - forever - Saturday December 30, 2023. Good luck to the retiring owner and to the fabulous employees. This was a great meeting place for the Lawson family.
Like the atmosphere and space setup. Outdoor heaters are nice. Good food. Nice bartenders, who helped me pick out a beer I'd enjoy. (I'm not a beer person, but wanted to try something new with dinner.)
The craft beers are fantastic but nothing beats the brisket in my opinion. Fun environment for kids and adults! Definitely come hungry....
We were at the armory close by and stopped in for lunch. What a cool place! I'm sure it's a party during USC football games. The staff was friendly and helpful and our food was fantastic. Definitely recommend and plan on returning in the future.
We were on our way through Columbia after hitting up Congaree National Park looking for lunch and on a whim pulled in here because it looked cool from the outside. I'm so glad we did stop because this place was lovely! The ambiance inside was friendly and like fun/cozy combo. The bartenders were super nice and helpful in helping us decide what to eat/drink. We took our meals and beverages outside and it was a cool space as well. Very spacious although I imagine it gets packed on game day. It looked like they had a projector for the game which we thought was really cool if that's true. Definitely worth a visit if you're in the area or passing through the area.
Awesome place . The staff is friendly. Nice open venue. There is plenty of seating. Lots of different beers to wet your pallet
The place is great. The beer and food are both good but it is very slow. We ordered dinner (burgers, wings, sandwiches) and it took an hour and a half to get our food.
Good beer horrible food. $8 salad that's smaller than the average side salad. Loaded Nachos are $11 and it came with 8 black beans one leaf of cilantro and no cheese except on the bottom and a couple dots of cream. It's almost like they wanted to make it bad. Wouldn't eat here again
First visit while traveling but it won’t be the last. Great location with a great indoor bar area and a huge outdoor area for group events. Josh at the bar has a great personality and knew his beer! I loved “Dogs on Surfboards New England IPA” as well as the other IPAs I tried. The smoked wings are some of the best I’ve ever tasted! Carolina Reaper if you’re brave. River Rat Brewery for the win!
Rick and I had a fabulous time celebrating his birthday at the River Rat Brewery bar!! His loaded House Burger, sporting the River Rat Brewery logo on the bun, and my pulled pork BBQ sandwich, with shared fries, were delicious. And, of course, the River Rat Marzen and the Raspberry Gose topped it all off!
Restaurantji Recommends
Great beer & service. John is super great bartender with great recs. Fried green tomato taco was tasty!! Brisket slider-amazing!
We stopped by River Rat on our way back from Congaree National Park. The building is super neat with lots of parking! The inside portion is very small so it was pretty crowded on this veryyyy hot day. There's an upstairs rooftop bar with bar seating and couches and it's the perfect place to chill out and enjoy your beer! We actually ordered prosecco with a king of pops popsicle popped right inside the glass. You could choose between 6 flavors of pops for your drink! It was $7 which I thought was a great price for the drink and the popsicle. There's plenty of beers to choose from and the bartenders were really great. Really want to visit again to try the beer!
What a cool place! First - it’s completely family friendly! And dog friendly too. There’s a small indoor bar area, a covered porch that can be used for private events, a larger covered area,and a huge grassy area with picnic tables and space for Cornhole.One of the coolest features is the former grain silo turned into a stairwell that leads up to a bridge to a rooftop bar that has the loveliest view of Williams Brice Stadium. The rooftop bar is limited to 21 and up.We were at a catered event that served BBQ and Mac and Cheese but apparently they have great snacks foods and I heard the nachos are great.And, of course, local brews. The Raspberry beer was great and the Red Ale. No one in the group said anything but good reviews on the beer. If you don’t care for beer, they have a wide selection of wines and some frozen drinks.I can’t believe it took me so long to finally get to this place. It has a great ambiance, great brew. We had a wonderful evening!
Such a fun brewery and a great spot to have some cold ones! This was one of my favorite breweries while visiting Columbia. The taproom is a little small but it's a great spot! They have some killer merch and the beers are damn good! I love their logo and had to get a t shirt from them. Definitely recommend if you like good beer! Cheers!
The beer is awesome, everything I tried was tasty and delicious!! Great vibe, outdoor area is kids friendly and has plenty of tables. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable about their menu. Highly recommend