Green River Lodging, Dining and Attractions Reviews
River Terrace Inn: Clean, comfortable rooms and an outstanding breakfast.
Stayed here from Wednesday, September 24, through Monday, September 29, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
My wife and I stayed at the River Terrace for five nights during late September as part of our annual “meet-up” with several of our fellow outdoor enthusiast friends. We picked Green River so that we would have access to the hiking options in the San Rafael Swell region. Lodging options are somewhat limited in Green River, and after looking at the reviews and listening to recommendations for folks in our group, the River Terrace became the obvious choice. And as it turned out, it was an outstanding choice.
Overall, the River Terrace is a standard motel, but it takes “standard” and makes a very good lodging experience. First of all, the room we had was huge. There was plenty of room for the two queen beds, plus a couch, chair and table in the sitting area. The furnishings were dated, probably early 1990s vintage, but everything was in good shape and good working order. There was also a small refrigerator, microwave and coffee maker in the room. Likewise the bathroom had plenty of space and came with all the standard amenities (soap, shampoo, hair dryer and plenty of towels). Most importantly, the room was very clean.
Just a word on the breakfast set-up at River Terrace. It has to be the best complimentary breakfast that I have had in a motel in a very long time. Most places have reduced their breakfast offering to the point that it is hardly worth the effort, but River Terrace offered made to order omelets, pancakes, French toast and they have a great variety on the menu. Plus they have cereal, bagels, toast, coffee, juice and other assorted goodies on the buffet. If we would have gone to a restaurant to get this kind of food we would have easily paid twenty bucks for the two of us, so it was a good deal. But the French toast I tried this morning was very good and it was served up in very short order.
The River Terrace gets its name from the outdoor area behind the hotel which overlooks the Green River. To be honest, the view is nothing to write home about, but the seats are comfortable and the area is shaded, so it is a nice setting overall. We spent some time out there in the early evening after a day of hiking. There is also a very nice outdoor swimming pool and hot tub area. I did not partake in these amenities, but several of our group did and it appeared to be a great place to relax after hours of hiking in the desert.
The staff we dealt with (primarily at the front desk and in the breakfast area) were all friendly, respectful and helpful.
A couple of points on logistics. First, there is no elevator in the hotel, but the most you will have to go on the stairs is one floor with your luggage. The second floor rooms are on the same level as the parking lot, so you will go down to the first floor or up one flight to the third floor. Most of the rooms have an outdoor sitting area (except for the second floor room on the front of the building, like we had, which is why we had a lower rate). The balconies off the back of the hotel appeared to provide a somewhat secluded area, as they overlooked the river.
I found the River Terrace to be a great lodging option, as well as a very good value. We paid $120 per night, which included breakfast. Sure, there were less expensive options in Green River as well as some newer chain motels, but River Terrace appears to provide the best overall value in town.
Stayed here from Wednesday, September 24, through Monday, September 29, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
My wife and I stayed at the River Terrace for five nights during late September as part of our annual “meet-up” with several of our fellow outdoor enthusiast friends. We picked Green River so that we would have access to the hiking options in the San Rafael Swell region. Lodging options are somewhat limited in Green River, and after looking at the reviews and listening to recommendations for folks in our group, the River Terrace became the obvious choice. And as it turned out, it was an outstanding choice.
Overall, the River Terrace is a standard motel, but it takes “standard” and makes a very good lodging experience. First of all, the room we had was huge. There was plenty of room for the two queen beds, plus a couch, chair and table in the sitting area. The furnishings were dated, probably early 1990s vintage, but everything was in good shape and good working order. There was also a small refrigerator, microwave and coffee maker in the room. Likewise the bathroom had plenty of space and came with all the standard amenities (soap, shampoo, hair dryer and plenty of towels). Most importantly, the room was very clean.
Just a word on the breakfast set-up at River Terrace. It has to be the best complimentary breakfast that I have had in a motel in a very long time. Most places have reduced their breakfast offering to the point that it is hardly worth the effort, but River Terrace offered made to order omelets, pancakes, French toast and they have a great variety on the menu. Plus they have cereal, bagels, toast, coffee, juice and other assorted goodies on the buffet. If we would have gone to a restaurant to get this kind of food we would have easily paid twenty bucks for the two of us, so it was a good deal. But the French toast I tried this morning was very good and it was served up in very short order.
The River Terrace gets its name from the outdoor area behind the hotel which overlooks the Green River. To be honest, the view is nothing to write home about, but the seats are comfortable and the area is shaded, so it is a nice setting overall. We spent some time out there in the early evening after a day of hiking. There is also a very nice outdoor swimming pool and hot tub area. I did not partake in these amenities, but several of our group did and it appeared to be a great place to relax after hours of hiking in the desert.
The staff we dealt with (primarily at the front desk and in the breakfast area) were all friendly, respectful and helpful.
A couple of points on logistics. First, there is no elevator in the hotel, but the most you will have to go on the stairs is one floor with your luggage. The second floor rooms are on the same level as the parking lot, so you will go down to the first floor or up one flight to the third floor. Most of the rooms have an outdoor sitting area (except for the second floor room on the front of the building, like we had, which is why we had a lower rate). The balconies off the back of the hotel appeared to provide a somewhat secluded area, as they overlooked the river.
I found the River Terrace to be a great lodging option, as well as a very good value. We paid $120 per night, which included breakfast. Sure, there were less expensive options in Green River as well as some newer chain motels, but River Terrace appears to provide the best overall value in town.
Ray’s Tavern: Great Burger
Dined here on Thursday, September 25, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
We had a large group of hiker’s descend on Ray’s Tavern on a Thursday evening in late September; there were 23 of us in the group. I had made a reservation a few weeks ahead of time, just to make sure that they could accommodate a group of our size; “no worries” was the reply. The day of our reservation, I recived a call from the folks at Ray’s to confirm and to ask if we would prefer indoor or outdoor seating (turns out that there was another large group dining there on that evening, and they needed to have the groups in different areas). I picked the patio seating. I was a little worried about the service now that there was going to be tow big groups, but it ended up not be a problem at all.
The patio area was perfect for our group as there was plenty of room for the group to move about and mingle before dinner. Our servers did a great job of getting drinks for folks before dinner as well as quickly taking orders once we were seated. I seemed that all the food orders were brought out pretty quickly after the orders were placed, so obviously the management did a great job of planning for the two big groups dining this evening. The food was outstanding. I heard no complaints and lots of compliments from our group. The only downside was that with the large group we only got a single check, so we had to figure out our own tabs.
So the service was stellar, the food was outstanding and the atmosphere was perfect for our group (the beer was no good, but that’s just Utah) which made for a great night. We really enjoyed the experience and I would certainly return to Ray’s when staying in Green River of passing through the area.
Dined here on Thursday, September 25, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
We had a large group of hiker’s descend on Ray’s Tavern on a Thursday evening in late September; there were 23 of us in the group. I had made a reservation a few weeks ahead of time, just to make sure that they could accommodate a group of our size; “no worries” was the reply. The day of our reservation, I recived a call from the folks at Ray’s to confirm and to ask if we would prefer indoor or outdoor seating (turns out that there was another large group dining there on that evening, and they needed to have the groups in different areas). I picked the patio seating. I was a little worried about the service now that there was going to be tow big groups, but it ended up not be a problem at all.
The patio area was perfect for our group as there was plenty of room for the group to move about and mingle before dinner. Our servers did a great job of getting drinks for folks before dinner as well as quickly taking orders once we were seated. I seemed that all the food orders were brought out pretty quickly after the orders were placed, so obviously the management did a great job of planning for the two big groups dining this evening. The food was outstanding. I heard no complaints and lots of compliments from our group. The only downside was that with the large group we only got a single check, so we had to figure out our own tabs.
So the service was stellar, the food was outstanding and the atmosphere was perfect for our group (the beer was no good, but that’s just Utah) which made for a great night. We really enjoyed the experience and I would certainly return to Ray’s when staying in Green River of passing through the area.
Tamerisk Restaurant: Surprisingly Good
Dined here on Friday, September 26 and Sunday, September 28, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
When visiting a small town like Green River, you never know what you’ll find in term of dining options. Certainly there will not be a lot of choices; you just hope to find one or two good ones. Turns out that is not a problem in the small town of Green River, as there are at least a few good, home town places to eat and Tamerisk is at the top of the list. Our group ate here twice during our stay in Green River during late September. The first time was on a Friday evening when we had a group of 15. I had made reservations a few weeks in advance as I did not know what to expect in terms of the crowd on a weekend night. They appreciated the heads up and were even able to split the bill since they had the advance warning. Our second visit was on Sunday for dinner when we had nine diners. During both visits we received excellent service from friendly and helpful staff. I found the menu to have a great variety of choices; something for everyone it seemed. And the food was very good. I believe that everyone enjoyed their meals; I know that I did. As for atmosphere, think family-style; just a clean and friendly place to have a bite to eat. Which was exactly what we were looking for.
Dined here on Friday, September 26 and Sunday, September 28, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
When visiting a small town like Green River, you never know what you’ll find in term of dining options. Certainly there will not be a lot of choices; you just hope to find one or two good ones. Turns out that is not a problem in the small town of Green River, as there are at least a few good, home town places to eat and Tamerisk is at the top of the list. Our group ate here twice during our stay in Green River during late September. The first time was on a Friday evening when we had a group of 15. I had made reservations a few weeks in advance as I did not know what to expect in terms of the crowd on a weekend night. They appreciated the heads up and were even able to split the bill since they had the advance warning. Our second visit was on Sunday for dinner when we had nine diners. During both visits we received excellent service from friendly and helpful staff. I found the menu to have a great variety of choices; something for everyone it seemed. And the food was very good. I believe that everyone enjoyed their meals; I know that I did. As for atmosphere, think family-style; just a clean and friendly place to have a bite to eat. Which was exactly what we were looking for.
West Winds Restaurant: Better than I was expecting.
Dined here on Saturday, September 27, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
OK, this is a restaurant that is part of a truck stop complex, so I really was not sure what to expect, particularly since we had a large group (over twenty folks). We did make a reservation, but only that day. Still they were easily able to accommodate our group. We ate there on a Saturday evening in late September. The service was a little slow as there was only one server assigned to our group, but she was doing all she could to bring our drinks, get our orders and get the food out to us. I give her high marks. It might have also been that we swamped the kitchen a bit with such a large group on somewhat short notice. No worries as the additional time allowed our gang to socialize a bit. The menu offered at West Wind has a nice variety; salads, sandwiches, pizza and dinner entrées. However we were told when we arrived that ordering pizza would not be a great option as it would take an hour to complete those orders (not sure what the issue was). Turn out that while the food was a little slow in arriving that is was very good. I think that everyone in the group enjoyed their selections.
Dined here on Saturday, September 27, 2014; reviewed November 1, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
OK, this is a restaurant that is part of a truck stop complex, so I really was not sure what to expect, particularly since we had a large group (over twenty folks). We did make a reservation, but only that day. Still they were easily able to accommodate our group. We ate there on a Saturday evening in late September. The service was a little slow as there was only one server assigned to our group, but she was doing all she could to bring our drinks, get our orders and get the food out to us. I give her high marks. It might have also been that we swamped the kitchen a bit with such a large group on somewhat short notice. No worries as the additional time allowed our gang to socialize a bit. The menu offered at West Wind has a nice variety; salads, sandwiches, pizza and dinner entrées. However we were told when we arrived that ordering pizza would not be a great option as it would take an hour to complete those orders (not sure what the issue was). Turn out that while the food was a little slow in arriving that is was very good. I think that everyone in the group enjoyed their selections.
John Wesley Powell Museum: Nice Little Museum with Interesting Exhibits.
Visited on Sunday, September 28, 2014; reviewed November 2, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
This is a very nice little museum that provides a good history lesson on John Wesley Powell’s expeditions down the Green and Colorado Rivers as well as the local history of Green River. The 20-minute introductory video gave a good overview of Powell’s first expedition down the Green River from Wyoming to the confluence with the Colorado and on through the Grand Canyon. Quite the feat! The museum also houses the hall of fame for river runners and explorers, but I did not find that too interesting. There were also a few dinosaurs in the lower level. It was certainly worth the time we spent there (maybe an hour). I think I enjoyed the placards outside the building just as much as the museum itself (more general history of the area and Green River). I would not say this is a “must see” but if you have an hour available then it would certainly be time well spent. The admission fee seemed a little high for what there is in the museum, but these small operations do need funds to stay open.
Visited on Sunday, September 28, 2014; reviewed November 2, 2014 See this review on Trip Advisor.
This is a very nice little museum that provides a good history lesson on John Wesley Powell’s expeditions down the Green and Colorado Rivers as well as the local history of Green River. The 20-minute introductory video gave a good overview of Powell’s first expedition down the Green River from Wyoming to the confluence with the Colorado and on through the Grand Canyon. Quite the feat! The museum also houses the hall of fame for river runners and explorers, but I did not find that too interesting. There were also a few dinosaurs in the lower level. It was certainly worth the time we spent there (maybe an hour). I think I enjoyed the placards outside the building just as much as the museum itself (more general history of the area and Green River). I would not say this is a “must see” but if you have an hour available then it would certainly be time well spent. The admission fee seemed a little high for what there is in the museum, but these small operations do need funds to stay open.