The Big R Restaurant

Local authentic Newfoundland meals. Great value & variety. Fantastically friendly and helpful service. Would absolutely recommend to anyone visiting St. John's!

Stopped on the way home for 4 small fries to go with supper. Seriously??!!!!!, the fries were so dried out I'd swear they were from yesterday. And the amount of "scraps" in them looked liked they dumped whatever didn't get tossed last night on the tray as well. (Photo shows the "scraps" in a tray of ONE SMALL FRIES) Definitely not returning ever again. Should have just done McCains bagged fries. Big R.....you should be ashamed for charging so much for such garbage. Do diners that eat in get better quality?????

I ordered for delivery, fish bites, chips deluxe. I'm disappointed with my meal. Everything looked great, until I went to eat the fish bites. My fish bites were mostly batter. I can't believe that the restaurant would let that leave as an order. Also, the complete order took over 1 hr and 30 mins to come, and I actually had to call to see, how much longer, the order was going to be. I believe it was really busy there, but the time it took to come, and the fish being mostly batter, with very little, to no fish inside, is shameful. This is the first time I've ordered from here, and I really think it is the last. Don't waste your money here, its not worth it. The phone call was filled with crackling and static, on their side. Just stay away.

Hot fresh food and friendly attentive service! A classic spot for a comforting meal at great prices.

I had a delicious seafood chowder. My friends had big plates with traditional Jigs dinner, Turkey dinner and fish & chips. One of us loves the Fin & feather special. We keep coming back for more. 😊 There is usually a great selection of desserts to choose from as well.

The food is usually decent and the service is friendly; however, they don't live up to their slogan offering big servings. Sometime during the spring or summer of 2025, they reduced the portion size of many dishes by ~25% (4pc chicken strips is now 3pc, etc etc) but they did not lower the prices - in many cases, the price also went up. Shrinkflation has ruined this restaurant; return the big portions and I'll go back.

Came here for Jigs Dinner and got what we were looking for. The restaurant is not particularly fancy like many of the places you'd see on Water Street, but I'd suggest it's kind of ideal if you're looking to try jigs dinner during a visit to Newfoundland. Unless you're a big eater, I'd suggest skipping on the turkey or roast beef as you get a lot of food with he basic dinner (salt beef, a big carrot and potato, some turnip, boiled cabbage, and pea pudding).

My husband and I have been there 3 times and twice we have had the same rude lady serving us. It’s a shame because the breakfast is so good and a great price but because of the service we have experienced we have decided to not go back there. It’s clear that she doesn’t like her job and was very argumentative

Staff are absolutely wonderful but the food here is hit or miss. The location on Harvey Road used to be my favorite fish and chips in Newfoundland, and I hoped it would be the same here, but it's not. It's okay but nothing special.

came in for supper tonight and I have to say the best fish and chips in the country. Thanks for the great meal!

I have mixed feelings but went with a 4 star because I feel like you have to inflate reviews here. We ordered the deep fried cod, fried, and chippys. I put explicit instructions asking for lots of tartar sauce and vinegar, but when the delivery arrived it just had 2 (2?!!) packets of vinegar and NO tartar sauce. BUT the fish was good. Surprisingly not too greasy, and nice and crispy. The fries, however, completely sucked. They were stale and overcooked. But the chippys which are (way overpriced) homemade potato chips were surprisingly great. All in all, I might order again, but they definitely need to work on consistency. I think I would definitely order just the fish again and maybe make a baked potato or my own fries at home. The fish is good, so I'd like to order again.

Had the burger platter at the recommendation of the waitress with fries and gravy, also as an add on I had to try a piece of fish. Was not disappointed by either. The burger r was excellent and the fish was out of this world. Will certainly go back to try other menu items

When I arrived the first thing I noticed was the dated interior decor. It lacked character and resembled an old hall for elderly meetups. The fish and chips were bland and saltless, not the kind of meal I want to eat. The gravy was cold as soon as it was served. The oil they use to fry had a bitter, putrid taste. The batter was insanely thick and made me gag when I bit into the fish. Overall I would never recommend this establishment, the soap dispenser fell off when I was in the washroom and my Pepsi didn't even taste like Pepsi. How do you mess a soft drink?

I have to agree with the other reviewers. We came here on the advice of our scottish cabbie. Although the service was personal and efficient, the food was pretty awful. I had to give it that second star for character though. I want this place to be more than it is, I really do, but it isn't. sorry big r....

Compared to Ches' (the local standard) a darker, heavier oilier fry. Not necessarily bad, but different. Maybe even a nice change of pace if you're used to other chips. Less ambience than Ches' though, a bit rougher and worn, but still not bad. Feels like a small family-run joint. I'd mainly go if you want a change from your usual fish and chips place, and they also had really good fried scallops last time I was there.

my family of 4 went there Sunday afternoon and I was disgusted by the dried out waste of fish we were all served. It must have been fried at least twice if not three times. The fries were good the gravy was oxo and dressing so so. We were lead to believe this was the best place for fish and chips ..NOT...My hubby was dismayed and I told him it wasn't indicative of shops here. The next day I convinced him to try ches's in mount pearl and thank God I did the fish was fresh and flaky. SKIP this place and go to ches's

I had to give this place a 2 star rate because I had there food for the first time today and I honestly did not like it , they only put gravy on a tiny amount of food and never put any tarter sauce in the bag and I asked for lots of gravy and tarter sauce so sadly I was taking out and never realized this until I got home so I'm Not the type of person to just eat something I'm not happy with food is important to me and I wanted what I payed for because they are a bit pricey so I had to drive all the way back and buy a tub of gravy and tarter sauce ! And I live a good ways away but I did happen to realize that the service was great around me as I was waiting for my gravy

Best chips, dressing and gravy in town. It's a restaurant but I ordered out. Traditional Newfoundland foods. Home made bread to buy and take home is excellent!!

I enjoyed the feeandcheewith d and g. Fish and chips with dressing and gravey. It's deep fried guys.

The big R on harvey road has got to be thee worst food ive ever had. They pre cook every thing then leave it out for days then re fry it on order including chicken fish fries and jiggs dinner. Super burned and dry when fried again! The soup that isnt used that day is put back in a fridge from hot to cold hot to cold which makes it go bad! Everything else is just canned or packaged overpriced and disgusting has given people food poisoning and just tastes like dirty oil for hours. Plus they never change the oil just keep adding to it overall a waste of money.