Potbelly's Riverside Cafe - Rockaway

We tried this place after not returning for two years due to poor service. We decided to try again to see if something has improved, nope! We waited 45 minutes for eggs and the girl forgot my toast. I had to ask her twice. A nearby customer saw my frustration and told the waitress to not forget my toast after receiving her coffee. The same nearby customer said, We know the service is terrible, but we like the food. However, we always leave super frustrated! When I did receive my toast, 15 minutes later, it was not even toasted. The waitress also responded with yeah to customer requests, was sloppy, and disorganized. The cooks in the kitchen are slow as molasses and are just goofing off and not working. The table next to us, party of four, waited 15 minutes before even being acknowledged by the waitress, then another 15 minutes for 2 coffees and 2 waters. The owner is never present but he does not have good people to run this place in his absence. WE WILL NEVER RETURN.

A hole in the wall with very good food. First time here, next to a pretty river but without any views. I had crabcakes benedict which was fabulous! I alwys have my english muffin on the side. Also, the homefries are just cubed potatoes. Nothing to remark about as they were unremarkable. Not a quality muffin at all, but the review is truly about the main ingredients of the meal. Good homemade unsweetened iced tea. The person I was with had some sort of omelet that had sausage in it. He had eaten there many times before and always enjoyed it. I would go back there in a heart beat. Our server was an awesome woman who has been working there forever. Kudos to her :

The food was decent and reasonably priced but the service has a lot to be desired. We waited over an hour for our breakfast order and one order was completely missed making the wait even longer. Our server was in training but doing her best. No one checked in to see if we needed more coffee or beverages during our wait. I'm not sure if this simple establishment is worth second try, nothing to write home about. Disappointed :

My wife and I stopped in at this cool little restaurant in Rockaway this morning. The setting of this place is perfect....train tracks on one side and a river on the other. The woman serving us was very friendly and gave us details on a movie which had been filmed there. I ordered stuffed French toast and my wife had a build your own omelette. The food and coffee was very good. If you're in Rockaway, give this place a try!

I was in the area around lunch time and checked my options on social media. Some of the reviews suggested that a take-out might be a better option then a sit-in. Too many people complained about a 30 min to an hour wait. Today could not be a 3 Martini two hour lunch so I opted for the take-out. The plus side was that the wait time was a short 10 minutes. The ingredients: ham, salami, lettuce, tomato, onion, oil and vinegar and bun were fresh on my Classic Italian Sub. They have a lot of sandwiches to choose from. Prices are fair but other restaurants are a bit cheaper in the area. The sub was $9 and it was not stuffed. The Rockaway River runes next to the cafe and they have outside seating. The downside is that you can't really see the river. Main street on the other hand is clearly visible. On the other side a small parking area is next to the train tracks. The interior has a comfortable ambiance verging on outdated. The furniture was Cracker Barrelish with interesting wallpaper. The potbelly stove fit perfectly. There were about 8 customers dining at the time. I saw one table that was not cleared while I was there. It's BYOB with Italian, American cuisine with lots of seafood choices. Things were were interesting enough that I might come back for dinner. Show less