Cunningham's Journal On The Lake in Kearney

Beautiful restaurant, delicious food. My only complaint was they had people stacked up around the door saying a 20- 25 minute wait when there was tons of tables empty. The traditional you can have a seat at the bar while you wait for a table was not offered. In fact the area between the hostess and the bar would be a perfect place to sit and have a drink before your meal but they were serving people thier meals there. We were offered a seat but nothing else for 30 minutes. Maybe because it was lunch on a Sunday?

Amazing food and amazing atmosphere. We had local beers and local whiskey. We stopped here on vacation but we will find a way to come back sooner than later.

Food was excellent, server was great. The host was rude. Several tables (we had a reservation)available yet he set us in the direct sun outside. It was hot and miserable.

A fabulous dinner within walking distance of our hotel - can’t ask for much more than that! We had different kinds of chicken sandwiches-delicious! The fries were perfect, as were the onion straws and dipping sauce. The beer was delightful, and the staff was attentive.

This visit was much better than the last where we walked out without eating due to the poor service. This time we were greeted and seated reasonably quickly. The server was prompt but seemed rushed, so not as helpful as expected. The drinks menu QR is a pain. It isnt directly accessible. Another app has to be loaded first. Food arrived hot and had good flavor.

It was our first time to the restaurant for an anniversary date. Being able to make a reservation was great because we came from out of town. We will be back!Everything was delicious and presented well.Lacy M was our waitress and she took great care of us. She suggested things on the menu to eat and drink. Keep her!:We got signed up the the rewards program also. Very cool.

To say I was disappointed in the whole experience is an understatement. First, we made online reservations. We arrived about 20 minutes early and checked in with the hostesses. They assured us they would text as soon as our table was ready. At 10 minutes past our reservation after seeing other people being sat that arrived after us with no reservations we checked with the hostesses who basically told us they were not at fault for not correctly getting ahold of us to be seated. They were both rude and unhelpful, but to the gentleman who did get us seated, kudos to you sir, we appreciate you. Our bartender was excellent, and if it wasnt for the 20 minute wait to get the drinks we ordered we would have most likely walked out then. But we thought that since our initial drinks were good we would chance it and stay. As we finally got seated, the hostess again was rude and we were given a waitress that looked absolutely lost and who was extremely slow to get to our table for us to even order drinks. We ended up ordering drinks appetizers and our entrees all at once due to the complete lack of hustle and drive shown by the waitstaff. This order was STILL wrong when it arrived at our table (missing the appetizer). To which the person (not our waitressdelivering the food to our table said we did not order. The waitstaff continued to be rude. To say that this was one of the single most terrible restaurant experiences I have had in kearney is an understatement. The ONLY reason I gave this a 2 star review was for the amazing sirloin that was cooked to perfection, and the drinks that the bartender initially served us. Outside of that it has major improvements needed to service and waitstaff before we come back, if we come back.

Warm. Inviting place. Very busy so a lot of noise from all the conversations. Did little to detract from the setting. We were a party of about 11 and were served promptly and courteously. Food was very good. Theres seating for small groups and couples as well as for large parties. I recommend it highly.

Beautiful location with a great open-air atmosphere on the lake. Always busy - very popular, so make reservations in advance. Food was fantastic and our selection included quesadillas, chicken mac & cheese and crispy chicken salad. Our appetizers were cheese balls and pork belly bites. HIGHLY recommend the pork belly bites....DELISH!! A great experience!

The male bartender tonight is mediocre. Took over 9 minutes to even greet me (timed it+ I asked for a cheesecake with no whip cream of course there was whip cream, I expect nothing less from that boy...not very intelligent. Nonetheless, the brunette female bartender is kind and attentive why it saved a 3 star.

What a great place to get food and watch the sunset. We stumbled upon it on one of our drives. It will become a somewhat regular stop on our trips from Omaha to Denver!

Busy, active, and slightly noisy. Great food and service. Would definitely go back! Tons of beer selections but we werent able to "scan" the beer menu.

The burger was fantastic but rare for medium. The bun was too small for the size of the sandwich. The server was nice but confused how to put our order in on the handheld she was using. She had trouble at every table she waited on. She did ask how the food was once but never did offer to refill our drinks. Mine was gone after half my meal. She glanced at it and kept walking. I always leave a,good sized tip but not as much this time.

Everything was great until they put red and green peppers on the filet skewers without it being in the menu or having the server warn us. They were out of the Filet Medallion entree and the skewers would have been a good substitute but for the peppers I hate with a passion. Ruined the dish for me. Talked to the manager and they made it right. As a plus, the rib eye and the Jim Beam sirloin were very well received.

The inside of the restaurant, especially by the lake, was so beautiful that I thought I would like to come and try it later in the evening.But the skewer I ordered was too burnt. As soon as I lifted the wooden part of the skewer, it was all crushed, so I couldnt tell whether I was eating wood or meat.I was sad that I couldnt even talk to the store because I was on a road trip.

We were celebrating our anniversary with what we hoped would be better than last experience during covid 2 yrs ago. We dined indoors at a long table just inside patio doors, which we shared with returning college students. Lots of noise with music and other diners but to be expected on college return weekend. Waiter was gracious and apologized for entrees that werent available. We ordered appetizers, drinks and our meal which we had no complaints other than having to ask for salt and pepper to be brought to table. The worst thing about meal was the flies, (I accidently hit drink server who was bringing out my drink but he saved ittrying to prevent flies from landing on our food! Waiter even apologized for flies, I guess next time we just as well go on picnic and expect the pests! Wonder if health inspector would have noted that many flies as a nuisance.

Always wanted to hit this place when in town. Went for lunch and the atmosphere is great. I recommend setting outside, weather permitting. Beer was cold & staff were friendly but that is where to positives end. When ordering my waitress asked how I wanted my burger cooked. I said medium. When it arrived it was grey on the inside & didnt taste like $12 burger. How do you screw up a burger? Especially medium. Ran through Dairy Queen for dinner & their $3-4 burger was better. My father had a fruit cup and got about 6-8 small pieces of fruit in a little bowl. Bottom line this place isnt worth the money. Its sad because this place has great potential but does not live up to it.

I am ALWAYS disappointed in the food quality at this Cunninghams location. It has the location, the style, the outdoor venue... everything you would look for if you are in town on business or vacation or as a resident. But the food is never better than average regardless of menu item, and commonly of poor quality. Greasy. Overlooked. Poor flavor. I return to join friends for patio drinks and the view. But my business avoids this restaurant for conference lunches/dinners because of the food and service. In stark contrast is Cunninghams on the Bricks downtown. Same menu but much better in terms of execution, flavor and service. Service downtown is attentive, sales oriented, and those folks genuinely enjoy serving. Lakeside has staff standing around chatting in the dining room, servers who dont know there is a happy hour, and folks who do not engage. For HIGH END service and QUALITY food, visit Cunninghams on the Bricks and skip On the Lake. It is worth the short drive from your hotel.

We got there for a late dinner after traveling all day. We were a bit tired but also hungry. Got seated quickly on the outdoor patio, which was very nice as the sun was setting, but no server came after 15 minutes so we moved our self to the bar where Brittany took great care of us. She helped us with our Beer Flights from the great selection of Craft beers on tap. Lots of varieties. They were out of the Filet Skewer so we each ordered the Three Skewers plate. Unfortunately the food came out barely luke warm. Brittany was very eager to take care of us though. She apologized and took the plates back for reheating. The great tasting varieties of beers more than compensated for our slight disappointment in the meals. Would still recommend.

Arrived with a party of 10 tired travelers. Nate? our server was fantastic and so pleasant with our indecisive group! He checked on us a lot and all the food came out fast and was delicious! Restaurant is super cute and we had a great time!

Went here two nights in a row, while staying in Kearney. They have some amazing shrimp tacos, nachos and specialty cocktails. Prices are very reasonable. Service was great. Pork belly bites are under cooked and tough, not a fan. Doors were open the second night and the Flys were pretty annoying.

Ordered French dip. Buns were hard and burnt. Waitress replaced it with a different bun bigger than the first bun. There was way more bread than meat. Have never been disappointed until today.

After reading reviews, we thought this place/food was going to be a great stop. Food was below average bar food, disappointing. I tried my sons buffalo wing sauce because my buffalo chicken wrap did not taste right, Could not tell what the buff sauce was even though that sauce is pretty universal. We tried a couple apps, pretzel bites (thought they would be pretzel bites as in actual small pretzels but in all fairness, we probably did not read the app descriptionwere some kind of cheese balls with deep fried pretzel crust? Inedible. Daughters pizza was ok. In a pinch, its better than fast food. The Caesar salad had onions on it, nuff said.

We have been traveling and this has been the best meal of our trip. We got the order to go, and everything was fresh, tasty, and well packaged.Highly recommend this restaurant. It has a nice menu selection and excellent food.

Stopped here on a whim as we were traveling by. Simply Googled local restaurants and picked first one that popped up. Honestly, one of the absolute best meals we ever had. Great food and service. So jealous and wish this place was located in my hometown.

Place was quite full even on an early Monday evening. Great food and drink selection. Roulette peppers were really fun. Some were nice and sweet; others nearly killed me. Service was friendly and attentive.

Food was ok. The server was actually nice. But The host and the hostess were a train wreck. I stood in front of them for a good 15 seconds with eye contacts made, and no one was willing to ask me if I needed anything. Won’t return and won’t recommend.

Everyone is so friendly and thoughtful here! It was a hot, busy day but we were seated much sooner than predicted which was awesome. During our short wait, we were encouraged to sit in the outdoor waiting area and someone brought our dog a drink of water. One of the servers greeted me as I was about to go check-in and he immediately sat us on the dog friendly patio so we wouldnt have to go inside; he selflessly offered to take care of the check-in for me. It felt like everyone went over and above for us, giving us the absolute best experience.The drinks are fun!! So many margarita options - loved the Malibu version. Food was delicious and came out super fast (again, it was busy so that was another pleasant surprise). Lovely patio, nice views of the pond, great food and drink options. Absolutely fantastic service!

We had dinner here last Friday night. There was a great selection of beers on tap and the menu was very versatile. We ordered the (journal bitessteak bites and they were delicious, very tender and very flavorful. We both did the make your own skewers, great options and great flavor. This is a great place to visit when you go to kearney. I was very impressed with the multiple individual restrooms too, that was a interesting and fancy touch! We ended the night at Cunninghams on the Bricks!!!!! Thanks again for the fun Friday night!

Good experience overall, service could have been a little better; the server wasn’t very attentive. They handled an order send back well due to an under cooked burger. Food was good, atmosphere was pleasant. Would go again.

Wow! This is worthy of a road trip to eat here again. Our large group was well taken care of by the staff. Great drinks (lots of beer on the menuand the atmosphere was excellent! Personally, I had the drunken chicken sandwich and wasnt really expecting anything extraordinary but the smokey flavor of the chicken was outstanding. Others in our party were also complimentary with their selections. We all had a great time and agreed this place is a 10!

Very good, a little slow getting groups seated. Table service was good!

We were here for my sisters wedding from out of state. Food is great; however, we had an issue with the service. We initially made a reservation for seven family members before we left and my niece and nephew came along? making it nine. We were at one of the really long tables that can seat around 16 people and told the waitress we have two extra people and there was room at the table. Next thing we know, the Manager is at our table saying he cannot add chairs and we would have to wait to seat the extra people until the group at the end of the table leaves. There was already room and chairs for my niece and nephew, so no issue that we knew of.He says this multiple times and we ask are you asking us to leave and the Manager said no and repeated what he told us again, only louder this time. I finally said we are not complaining, what is the problem? He then backs away and leaves our table.

They took us late which we were thankful for as travelers. Food was pretty good and priced right. The staff was very friendly and the music playing was awesome! We also liked the interior design...

Always love eating here! Good never disappoints, and neither do the drinks! Highly recommend! Try their pork belly bites or journal bites, quesadillas and burgers to die for. Really anything on the menu can’t go wrong!

We made a reservation for a Tuesday night at 6:30. First time here - didn’t know they require that you specify you want a patio seat. We arrived earlier than our reservation. Restaurant was very quiet, yet they took 10 minutes to seat us. And they put us in the very back corner of the restaurant with a sweet, but new and very poorly trained waitress.We ordered a garden salad $10 and veggie quesadilla $10. The salad was a joke. 3 leaves of lettuce, slice of cucumber and slice of tomato. I should have taken a picture. The veggie quesadilla was soggy and bland.We paid, ordered Dominos, left, and are now enjoying our pizza while we write this review. Super sad.

My son and I walked here from our hotel room. We got there about 20 minutes ahead of our reservation which was also the same time they opened. I figured they’d be kind enough to let us sit inside until they were ready.We stood outside in the cold for about 15 minutes. The hostess knew we were out there and said that she had to wait until 10:55 before she could let us in. (Employees should feel empowered to assist a customer in need.It was 39 out that morning, a little common sense or hospitality would have gone a long way here.I was excited to be here because online it shows this restaurant is on the lake although it was too cold for us to sit patio. I was not thrilled with my booth seat being torn and damaged. I just thought of a more elegant place here. When I seen that I immediately think of Village Inn or a Denny’s that is where you are accustomed to seeing that.The food though was incredible!! We both got the ribeye which had so much flavor! The bacon on the bacon wrapped scallops could have been cooked better.The first bathroom to your right did not have a working soap dispenser.I wanted to give this place 4 stars but I feel that the ambiance, service and functionality of things all should be in order also. Especially for the class of restaurant this is supposedly.

Food tasted good, (and at a great price might I add), hostesses were great, guy walking around with tablet,(Coltonnot so much. My friend asked what time happy hour ended and he said 6:30, buddy was about to order and tablet guy comes back saying sorry happy hour ended at 6. Look mistakes happen, but if you make one own it and at least allow the first drink to be at the price you literally just said. Otherwise it was a great trip. Even our new waiter was cool and his trainer (Coltonwas cool too. In case you care, the water tastes good here. Water at other places in Kearney tastes chemically.

We were in town visiting family and decided to stop in for a burger and beer. The place is amazing! Great atmosphere, knowledgeable staff and incredible burgers! They also have a nice selection of beers. Oh, and the bathrooms were super clean as well which tells a lot about the establishment. We will definitely do this place again, when the opportunity presents itself.

Very good food and the service is amazing. Our waiter name was Levi and I have to say that was the best service I have ever had in a restaurant that busy. It was a group of 21 and he never lost his patience even after all of our continued request for drinks. He was amazing!

Excellent Service, food was cooked perfectly..we ordered the steak bites appetizer and they came out so fast and super hot and tender. My husband ordered Juicy Lucy burger with side of wings and he said best hes ever had. Kolten B was our server and he had excellent recommendations. We will be back!!

Service was great, we loved our waitress. The beer is also great. But I was a little disappointed in the food department. I really wanted to try the pork belly bites, but they were out. And I ordered a burger and so did my husband, and I saw that the sides were mixed up (which was fine, we just ate off of each others plates). But what was most sad was the burgers didnt taste like there was any seasoning. I couldnt taste any one of the holy trinity spices neither salt, Pepper, or garlic powder.I will also add the bathrooms are individual rooms, which is very nice!I was just very psyched to try some delicious looking food, but the flavor fell short.

My first time going to Cunninghams the food and the senery was wonderful. My burger was season just right and very favorable. The French fries were delicious a nice golden brown with a snap to them. I didnt need Ketchup for the fries it would have taken away the flavor.

Beautiful lake side dining. Fantastic food. Highly recommended the skewers. Shrimp street tacos were also to die for.

We were visiting from out of town and met family there. We sat on the patio. Great patio with excellent views of the lake. I had the pick your skewers. I choose jalapeño chicken, steak and salmon. They were all very good. A couple of us try some of their large selection of beer. The service we received was exceptional.

We were here overnight, Cunningham’s right next door. Beautiful large restaurant with outdoor patio. We asked to be seated in a booth, and were surprised that the booth was almost entirely enclosed. No view, no people-watching. We asked to move, and were happily accommodated. We had shrimp tacos and salmon tacos, and drinks. Food was very good, our server Bobby very nice. About 33$ before tip. Good place.

Wait staff was excellent. Kitchen sub-par/average at best. Everything is overcooked and dry. I guess their claim to fame is beer and burgers, so if you stick to that maybe you won’t feel like you’re getting ripped off. Drinks are easily 3x markup.

Cool new place with outside seating.Food was eh/ bland flavorless well at least the shrimp tacos and cesar salad were .Waited to be seated outside expecting to enjoy the viewing of the pond while eating turns out they have this fence that totally blocks the view lol

This was our first time but definitely not our last. The waitress was nice and since we were unfamiliar with the menu and such, was a great help.We ordered our meals and they came out still smoking, they were so hot and fresh..Great first time experience.

This was a take order I picked up at the bar of the restaurant. I was the third of three people waiting so the food was given about 10 minutes after the online order due time. They were moderately busy. The nachos were good and the homemade chips were great. The cheese was nacho cheese sauce and was a bit cold, partially due I am sure to the 2 minute drive back to my hotel. The cajun burger had an interesting sauce on it but a bit pink for medium. The drunken chicken had pretty good flavor but was a little dry. I got the grilled veggies which were tasty but was 80% zucchini. Would try restaurant again.