The Riverhead

Why Eat At Home?

Throughout winter we have a special Monday & Tuesday offer of Pasta or Pizza, Pinot or Pint for only $19.

Why heat the house and cook when you can come to The Riv and we’ll do it all for you.

Mother’s Day & Big Daddy Wilson

Be sure to book early for Mother’s Day. Make a day of it and wander down to The Boat House after lunch.

Big Daddy Wilson, bluesman, songwriter, composer from North Carolina, USA will be playing in The Boat House from 2pm until 6pm and it’s FREE.

Big Daddy Wilson is all heart & natural soul with a fabulous voice. Wilson creates lovely blues, roots and soul music in an acoustic formation.

Big Daddy Wilson was born less than 50 years ago in a small town called Edenton, North Carolina. The population of Edenton counts less than 6000,  55% African Americans, 25% below the poverty line. “We were very poor but I had a very beautiful childhood”, Wilson remembers. “Me and my sisters were raised by Mom and Grandma. We lived a simple life, we went to church every Sunday, school on weekdays. I also worked back then on the tobacco plantation and in the cotton fields, I was a real country boy.” Wilson sang in church but he never thought about going on stage. “I was extremely shy.” His guardians meant well for the fatherless boy and they often sent him to church also during the week. “That won’t hurt him, keeps little Wilson away from drugs and off the streets.”

Young Wilson quit school at 16, and sometime later joined the US Army. Being a poor black man in the south and living in a small town, jobs were scarce. After being stations in  Germany, the young man became homesick. “I found out the quickest way to go back home was to see that you got married. They’ll allow you a vacation time about two weeks to go home to get married.” Wilson convinced his officers of his impending wedding and returned Stateside, refusing to return to Germany. After six weeks his mom was so worried that she begged him to go back to the military. “And so I was back in Germany.”

A few years later Wilson met a German girl who became his wife. She is the reason for him staying and also the reason for a poem which became Wilson’s first song.

And then Wilson heard the blues for the first time. Back in Edenton he had listened to music only in church and from the local, country radio station. But now he went for the first time to a real blues concert. “I met the blues here in Germany. I didn’t know what the blues was before.” Big Daddy Wilson says. “It was here that I found a part of me that was missing for so long in my life.” It did not take long and the shy guy who had written some poems started looking for melodies. He went on stage, jammed all over the German blues scene and made an impression with  his warm and soulful voice. He began touring with bands and as a duo and even released a few records. “My sister came all the way to see me perform and she couldn’t believe it. No, that’s not my brother. It seems like all my shyness was gone – thanks to my music.”

The Gaming Room – Closure

The Gaming Room will be closing on Monday 20th February.

It has become necessary for us to close the gaming room in order for us to extend our kitchen. Our chefs are under enormous pressure preparing a huge amount of meals for The Landing Restaurant in what is presently a tiny kitchen.

In an effort to continually improve, it is crucial that we provide a space that will help the chefs produce the quality and quantity of food the restaurant is demanding.

We are looking forward to this improvement but apologise to our patrons who enjoyed the entertainment in the Gaming Room.