Lyon Hall is worth the trip! Great beer, food and pretzels. The atmosphere is nice, the price for two diners was really affordable, the waitress that helped us was awesome. We'll definitely come back again. read more

This place has so much hype but I just can't see why. This place is always packed, but I just don't get why. This is it's first big hit. You have to wait forever to get seated. When we finally were, service was extremely slow and the servers were so indifferent to the point of being rude. There is no ambience, it's so noisy you can't even have a conversation. The food isn't much better. I am a vegetarian and the only options were a single pasta dish or a salad. I got a salad, which was pretty good but nowhere worth the cost. Most of my friends said that their dishes were either bland or overly salty. Pair this with the ridiculous prices, you could feed yourself for a day or two and get way better in the process. I guess if you are looking for drinks, happy hour is their strong point, but if you want a pleasant, or even a tasty meal, you won't find it here. read more

Came in with a party of 6 on Tuesday night. Hostess was unhelpful and unwelcoming (I should have taken the hint then). She did not want to seat us until our whole party had arrived. Once seated, we waited around 10 minutes to get water and an order for drinks in. The ladies wine glasses were empty and the waiter was inattentive and uninterested in serving our table. Some bread came out after about 20 mins. The meals were nothing to write about. Plenty of other places in Arlington to try out and invest in. read more

The bohemian breakfast is solid, that with a donut platter and a french press is a good way to start a Sunday.

This brasserie, which we tried on a Saturday lunchtime, was terrible. The service was poor. None of the staff smiled and no one, clients included, seemed to be enjoying themselves. The food was not very good and expensive to boot. After having read positive reviews on Yelp prior to going there, I was excited to try out a brasserie-type restaurant in downtown Arlington. I left feeling very disappointed. Aside from the host who greeted us warmly, I never saw another smille on anyone's face. We ordered a starter and our main dishes at the same time. The starter was brought in a timely manner and was reasonably good, though pricy (quiche lorraine). We were also given bread, which was also good. However, as we ate this starter we couldn't help but notice how grim the staff appeared. As I mentioned earlier, no one smiled; they avoided eye contact even when serving dishes. We half jokingly said that they were all returning from having been beaten in the back rooms. After finishing the starter, the empty plates were taken away and our dishes arrived. I had ordered the hamburger and my wife the smoked salmon. The dishes were served by a food runner who had no idea who had ordered what. How difficult is it to have the same person take the order and deliver the food? The food runner, or course, never smiled or made eye contact either. Even the hostess who worked with the smiling host, was grim as well. At one point, my wife made eye contact with her and rather than smiling, she simply lowered her eyes and looked away. We were both disappointed with the food: my wife's smoked salmon came with what appeared to be day old or older bread, soaked in a some sort of oil which was more or less inedible. My own burger had the same issue. The bun had been soaked in oil was was very unhealthy tasting. I had ordered my burger medium rare but it arrived medium. The server didn't come back to check on us so I called him over. I explained the problem of the meat being too cooked and he mumbled some sort of apology and immediately went to remove my plate without asking me. Of course, I would have preferred to have had the meat cooked right the first time, but I was also dealing with a soon to expire parking meter and the fact that I didn't want to watch my wife eat her dish and then have her watch me eat mine. Therefore, I kept my plate. The fries were oily as was the bun. I barely touched the fries. My wife ate some of her bread but as she is quite familiar with bread and what is and is not fresh, she knew right away that the oil was masking the oldness of the bread giving it a rubbery consistency. She gave up after a couple of bites, complaining of the taste as well as consistency. The salmon, however was good. The grimness of the staff rubbed off on the clients. The restaurant was maybe half full and almost no one appeared to be enjoying themselves. There was one bus boy in particular, a very short gentleman, who appeared to be marching off to the gallows. In addition, he was not properly trained. No one wants to see a bus boy arrive with a basin and put all of the used dishes from a table into the basin. Dishes should be removed by hand. Near the end of the meal, the gentleman who greeted us at our arrival came over to the table to apologize for the overcooked meat and offered us a dessert. At this point, we were so disappointed with the whole affair that our only thought was to pay the bill and leave. We did however, explain our impressions of the entire experience. To his credit, he remained professional and seemed sympathetic to our complaints. When the server came back with the check, he said that the starter had been removed from the bill. This was nice. Prior to writing this review, I sent a long email to the manager with my impressions and was ignored. Six weeks later, I am still waiting for her response. Major disappointment. read more

Never disappoints. Everything is great. Highly recommend the mussels and house-made hot dog.

This is the best restaurant in the area! I am from Princeton Nj and we never get food better than this!

This was my first time here at Lyon Hall. We're visiting family in Reston, and they recommended this place for dinner. We all went and were seated very promptly. I played it safe and got a burger - fantastic! Absolutely fantastic. I tried a mussel off someone's plate just to try, and thought it was quite yummy! The bathrooms are quite an experience, just so you know. There is no mirror at the sinks so you have a direct view into the men's side. Quite a shocking scenario when you see a man washing his hands at the same time as you. Definitely like the ambience. Highly recommend! read more

A fun little place! I always drove by this place but never tried it, so I when I popped in for dinner with a colleague I was pleasantly surprised. They have both German and French cuisine which initially seemed a little odd on the menu. I had the salmon which was not the best salmon I've ever had, but was still good. read more

Lyon Hall is one of the few great restaurant bars in Clarendon. Whether you are looking for a good brunch spot or happy hour - Lyon Hall is the place to be. SJF cocktail is a must and their happy hour bratwurst. read more

A nice little ditty on the outskirts of the Clarendon bar scene, an area that is somewhat known for its debauchery. Lying Hall tries to class things up a bit, but Big Win still managed to get inside sporting his favorite red hoodie. It only took a couple of minutes before your boy was up to his old tricks. You see, despite the fact that this is a somewhat smallish establishment, Big Win could not locate the bathroom. Not a good look when you have a belly full of beer and you are on the verge of pissing yourself. With a sense of growing rage, it was time to take decisive action, so I flagged down one of the employees at the bar and demanded he show me where the bathroom was. Turns out it was tucked away behind some fancy faux wall down a little staircase that was a potential death trap. Well played, Lying Hall. After relieving myself, I was confused to find myself washing my hands but not seeing my gorgeous reflection in the mirror. Turns out the mirror was actually a hole in the wall and Big Win got himself an eyeful of the ladies room. One unlucky female patron happened to walk into view and caught your boy peering in with his big peepers. She immediately went into stranger danger mode and got the hell out of there never to be seen again. After this shocking and startling experience, (your boy is not a pervert) it was time to calm my nerves with a tall, frosty one. I ordered the bartender to bring me the most expensive and tastiest beer she could find. She understood this was no time for games and immediately got to work. After much finger tapping and shooting the shit with Vlad F. (another member of the Penthouse Crew, a most exclusive club reserved only for the elitest of the elite), the bartender lady came back with an exquisite 25 dollar bottle of beer for Big Win to wet his whistle with. Let me tell you something, your boy was chirping with delight after experiencing what had to be the nectar of the gods. Big Win had found the holy grail and he was in flavor country. He received many looks of envy from the other unfortunate peasants who could only dream of spending that much money for a single beer. For a fleeting moment, Big Win pondered how he could enrich their sad little lives and bring joy into their little black hearts, but ultimately he decided against it. You see, he had to keep his eyes on the prize and continue to enjoy himself. Life in the big city can be an adventure sometimes. And so ended my wild yet wonderful adventure in the land of Lying Hall. read more

Had dinner there tonight with my date. Service was very good++great waiter! Most of the food was good. However the Lyon Hall burger was horrible. I think they have gone overboard in attempting to reinvent a basic burger which all typical burger joints seem to get 'right' buy they DO NOT! The fancy bun was sickning and tough. Almost impossible to even attempt to eat because a knife would not even cut through this abomination. Very disappointed with my 'main couse' dud-burger dinner tonight! Would have been happy with a typical burger joint at 1/10th the price! Everything else was fine. read more

Longtime fan of Liberty Tavern and Lyon Hall -but after last night's visit I won't return to Lyon Hall. What has happened? Every dish we ordered was uniformly blah, and the service was equally unimpressive. Very disappointing experience. read more

I was there for a dinner on a Sunday evening. We have a birthday party with 20+ other people, many of whom had previously viewed their menu and made decision of what they'd like to order. When we first came, we were told that they usually charge $1,500 to book the 2nd floor for a large party but they were not going to charge us. We were confused, because never asked them to book the 2nd floor for us. However, they have fixed a dinner set-menu for us to choose from, and each one of us has to choose full dinner (appetizer, main course, and dessert). We were not told of this before. They did send us a "sample 3 course dinner" menu, but we didn't think that we're obligated to choose from it. When asked if we could choose something else, server said no. I also asked if they have kids menu, since we have 3 kids in the party. Server said and quote "Kids menu? No, we don't have kids menu. This is the only menu we have, and our customers like our food very much. We're very lucky." WTH??? I don't understand why she had to be that offensive. All I asked was a freakin kids menu!! Anyway, it turned out the kids were allowed to choose between $17.50 cheeseburger or hotdog. Food was tasty and flavorful but main dish portion is kinda small for the price. Our dessert menu has either chocolate cake or ice cream. It says on the menu that we can choose our ice cream flavor but when we told our server, she said no the flavors were already previously chosen for us. And of course we got 3 scoops of ice cream with basil and cheese flavor. Overall, our night was bitter but we all still tried to be happy for the birthday person. Had they told us about the set menu and all their 'requirements', we would have chosen a different nearby restaurant with much friendlier service. read more

I love French Brasseries! However, Lyon Hall is a bit over hyped. Wanting to get a full course experience here, I dropped by for restaurant week. I started with the Pork Belly drizzled with an apple/rudabag puree and marinated in some sort of cider. It was a good sweet touch to the pork belly. In addition, the Pork Belly was very tender - best course of the meal. On a recommendation from my waitress, I ordered the Veal Sauerbraten (Veal tenderloin and braised veal, spaetzle, potato pancake, pomegranate braised red cabbage) for my main course. I wasn't too impressed with what came out, There was nothing wrong with the Veal, it was good but not spectacular. Maybe it would have been better if it came with different garnishes/sides. The potato pancakes and red cabbage wasn't a great touch to the dish. I also tried the duck fat fries which were a huge fail. They cut them so thick which totally ruins them. It's like "eating a baked potato" as my bf would say. The dessert was so unforgettable, i forgot what I had. read more

Great neighborhood restaurant, bartenders are on point and wait staff lets you enjoy your food without hovering (my personal pet peeve). Highly recommend, I'm there probably once a week whether for dinner, brunch, or happy hour (which has pretty good deals). read more

I used to love this place. It seems like they've just gotten too lazy or something. The wait staff couldn't be bothered, the food was mediocre and in some cases, tasteless, and they changed the pretzel recipe from awesome to boring. Until Lyon Hall polishes up I'd go to Bistro du Coin (cheaper) or Le Diplomate (better). read more

The customer service and drinks were really awesome but I truthfully feel the food leaves a lot to be desired.I would recommend this place for drinks but nothing else. read more

I really like this place, particularly the fact that they bake their own breads, which are excellent. Two complaints which I hope management notes: their website does not contain their hours (if the info is there, it's not obvious). Second, a minor detail, but one that just ticked me off big time, no hooks on the inside of the restroom stall doors. Where am I supposed to put my long winter coat, scarf, etc. while I'm using the toilet? read more

Pretensious service, on both visits I've had. Was really looking forward to Brussels sprouts, quite greasy this time, though. Beet salad was meh and dessert was VERY disappointing. read more

Service was so-so, felt as through the servers were rushing us out. Food wasn't much better - bland, overpriced for what it was.

For the life of me, I can't figure out why this doesn't have at least a 4 star average. Lyon Hall is one of our top choices in the area. Awesome mussels, frites, pretzels, soups, steak tartar, and entrees. I haven't had a meal here that wasn't homey and delicious. And the BREAD (mmmmm). The management is fantastic - we had our rehearsal dinner here and they did a wonderful job with execution at a *Very* reasonable price. Unlike many places in the area, there was no outrageous up-charge on food, room rentals fees, or extreme minimums. Also a great spot for happy hour with friends if you arrive early enough to beat the crowds. read more

First time at Lyon Hall this morning for Saturday brunch... -Service... Our waitress was largely untrained. I think, based on the menu, we were expecting a somewhat different experience. The waitress showed up, and was, without a doubt the most pushy server I think I've ever encountered. She was dead focused on driving the table to order as quickly as possible. If you weren't ready, God help you... I wouldn't go so far as to say that she was rude, but it was so close that it was difficult to tell the difference. She wasn't around much, once our order was taken, and she wasn't responsible for delivery to the table. She also had a bad habit of picking up people's glasses (cocktails and beer) without really asking, and as a consequence, one of my tablemates had 1/3 of his 7.50 screwdriver disposed of while he was away from the table. She also seemed dead set on clearing the table while we were sitting there... Reaching over us, and the few times she came back, she rather rudely interrupted discussion at the table. I think someone needs to tell the Lyon Hall waitstaff that it isnt' at ALL about them... Someone else used the word "amateurish"... I agree with this... I don't fault her entirely, as it's evident that she's never been trained to wait tables properly, and perhaps, dead in the middle of douche-bag central, this is acceptable... As well, a mandatory 20% gratuity was tacked on to our bill. This was resolved by a complaint to the manager. All tallied, I think she still probably earned 18%, but I think her assumption was that because we refused the mandatory gratuity, we were going to stiff her. She was fairly rude on the way out as well... -Food was OK. Our table ordered a fairly wide variety of items. The doughnuts were creative but served on a breadboard. This made it fairly difficult to cut them/share them without making a pretty big mess... My french toast was unremarkable and downright bland... No hint of the ingredients that are typically used to prepare French Toast... More like "toast with syrup"... The mushroom sandwich that one of my table mates ordered was missing several of the ingredients mentioned on the menu. I ordered a side of eggs over easy. For 5.25 (about a dollar more than the cost of a dozen premium Jumbo eggs at market prices), I got three smallish eggs, barely cooked over easy, in an oblong serving bowl. Any kitchen with an ounce of common sense would see the problem with this almost immediately. Try eating eggs, over easy, out of an oblong serving bowl. They turn into egg soup. The table doesn't come equipped with spoons, and getting a spoon turned into a service adventure (no one ever really showed up after we were served to ask us if things were OK, so I had to go hunt for a spoon, and the hostess seemed unable to understand a request for a spoon... She seemed put out that I would request such a thing from her to start with...) Eggs are served on a plate, folks... Plate... Just like the rest of the world does it... Coffee... Two selections... French Press... Cafe Americano... No drip... -Beer selection... Reasonable... This is why they earned two stars vs. one... Cocktails were stingy... 7.50 bought a "tall screwdriver" that was also a "skinny screwdriver", for example. read more

Lyon Hall has great potential, but there are aspects of service that are in great need of improvement. On two different visits, we have had an incorrect order and also witnessed the same at a neighboring table, both during the late lunch period (i.e. only six tables occupied). The kitchen and the front of the house are clearly not communicating. On our first visit, we ordered one of four mussel dishes on the menu. They brought the wrong one. Luckily they replaced it after a short wait. During today's visit, the neighboring table ordered a steak frites, and the steak was extraordinarily undercooked. It appears as if they kitchen put the steak in the microwave. On both this visit and our prior visit, we had the sense that the staff was shorthanded. The first occasion could have been due to the weather (snowy day, offices closed), but this could not have been the case today. Further, we were pretty grossed out when we watched an overworked cleaner use a cloth napkin to clean the floor with his shoe. That's the same napkin I'll be putting to my lips after my meal. Please use a towel dedicated to that purpose. While the food is tasty, especially the mussels, the service is far below par, namely Lyon Hall's sister restaurant Liberty Tavern. I was expecting much more from this experience, and while the food was good, the poor service and lackluster support left a slightly foul taste in my mouth. I am not sure I'll be extending a third chance here. read more

good food, especially the mussels, soups and burgers, but it is not inexpensive. Great beer and wine selection. The bartendar, she could be friendlier and provide more efficient service. read more

I dont recommend this rest! It the worst service and lack of respect to a Customer. i went with 5 friends and ask for a table I liked, they said no its reserved and I totally understood so I ask for one we could all have drinks & dinner. after spending over $300 the Manager ( blond women) comes to the table and told us you need to go because we have other customers!!! She was rude and very unprofessional. we have travel the world! europe, asia, caribbean and NEVER have been treated so rude and on top the food was not that good. read more

The mussel pots are worth the trip, as it is a pretty unique presentation and tastes pretty good, as well. Nice place, would return. The charcuterie presentation was good, the cheese plate was skimpy. We got put into the upstairs room, which is great if you are with a group of friends, but if on a date, a yucky place. The regular dining room was pretty, and very loud. All in all, a nice experience, and if you go to lots of places, this one is worth checking out. I would go back again. Dinner for four, with four drinks, four entrees, and the cheese and meat plates was $152 before tip. read more

Love this place! Very nice environment, food (shrimp salad is THE BEST!!!!!!) never had a bad service! Always very attentive! If I could give more starts I would!!!!! read more

Bartenders are amazing despite often crowded conditions. Food is consistently good.

My friends and I were not very impressed with this place. Four of us went around 9:00 on a Friday night. Several things that we wanted to order were no longer available for the night. They did not have any black pudding left, one of the two selections of wine carafes were sold out, and they were already out of one of their specials. We started off with an appetizer, the alsatian tart, which was just flatbread, cheese, and bacon. Tasty, but nothing unique or special. For entrees we ordered the leg of lamb, skirt steak, and the frankfurter sandwich. We also ordered fries to share. The table agreed that the fries were the highlight of the meal. The lamb had good flavor, but a terrible consistency - like cat food. The frankfurter was dry and tough to swallow. Our server was great, but our food took forever to come out. We had already finished a bottle of wine, and were on to a round of cocktails before they showed up. Maybe it's just growing pains, but none of us felt like we'd want to come back. On the other hand, it seems like a great place to come for drinks. They have an awesome beer/cocktail menu. read more

This review follows a single experience at lunch, but I was impressed enough to write a review. This was a weekday lunch and it was not very busy. I note other reviewers seem to have gone at busier dinner times and in some cases did not have the same positive experience I had. Since it wasn't very busy, the host had us choose our table and being cold, we chose to sit inside, away from the door. The atmosphere was trendy, but very pleasant. There was a good mix of mellow music playing. The waiter came to our table immediately, but even though it wasn't busy, he did not hover. He struck a perfect balance of attentiveness without smothering. He was also extremely knowledgeable about both the beer menu and the food menu. I am a microbrewed beer lover and appreciate when someone can explain what kinds of beer are on the menu when the establishment obviously has gone to some lengths to have a variety of beer. Both my wife and I had the Croque Monsieur and the Brooklyn Brewery Special Reserve Detonation Ale. It was an excellent combination. I had frites as a side and my wife had salad. Both were top notch. They also began with three types of fresh bread including a potato rosemary bread that was fantastic. I am a fan and will certainly come back for lunch and will try dinner sometime too. read more

I am "the boyfriend" that Eden P. had dinner with the other week. I couldn't have said it better. In fairness though, since the time of that initial post, I gave the manager, Gillian, a call to let her know about my experience. I have worked many years in the industry and am a manager myself; I would want to know if that happened in my shop. She was very apologetic about the entire experience, and made it known that she would follow up with the server in question. After that, she asked for my address. Several days later, we received a gift card for almost double the cost of our previous bill, marked "with apologies". So while this isn't exactly a restaurant review, it is certainly a customer service review. We plan on going back tonight to redeem our certificate. Any manager who cares that much about her guests certainly deserves another shot at my business. Oh, and the mussels are awesome! read more

One half of a great dining experience is the service, and the service here was pretty bad. I came here for the first time on a Saturday night during restaurant week. Our server's name was Jasmin. We waited 20 minutes to have our drink order taken, and waited another 45 minutes to get our appetizers (the mini frankfurters and pretzels - not exactly complicated food). To contrast, the table next to us got their drink orders taken immediately and their appetizers came out before ours despite being seated a half hour later. We also waited nearly an hour for a refill on a soda, but again the table next to us had no such problems. The cheese plate also took a half hour to come out after the entrees ended, and we never did get a spoon that Jasmin dropped on the floor and said she'd replace with a new one. The two stars is for the mini frankfurters, which, while cold when they came to our table, we're pretty tastey. This was my first experience at Lyon Hall, and I live around the corner, but this was by far the worst dining experience I had during restaurant week. Very disappointing, especially for one of my neighborhood spots. read more

More like 3 and 1/2 stars. Good service, decent food. The pork belly and duck fat fries were excellent, and the charcuterie is top notch. Bouillabaisse special was so-so and the scallops were subpar: not crispy enough and paired with this weird hard, dry mushroom. Stick to the classic items (sausage, confit, cheeses) and you won't go wrong. read more

A favorite of mine. Great cocktails and amazing beer selection. Like the interesting food selections. I'd argue their lunch menu is their best they have. Very underrated daily happy hour. Can be a bit pricy off of happy hour though. Love the company. read more

Decent place. I Like the dollar oysters on Mondays(make sure to call first because sometimes they run out). Certain drinks are definitely above average. Most food, not so much. the old thyme fashioned is pretty tasty read more

Went for a late brunch last Saturday. They were accommodating and friendly; the decor is nice and the bathroom is clean. I was a little disappointed by the mushroom schnitzel sandwich-- the mushroom was overdone and dry, and overpowered by the bun. I ordered donuts for the table and they were also on the dry side/didn't taste fresh. But the fries were excellent and they offered a generous bread/butter basket with the meal. Others ordered the pork schnitzel, Brussels sprouts and chicken cordon bleu and really enjoyed those. I'd go back! read more

I love when a new business pops up in Arlington. I love it even more when I enjoy my experience there over a series of encounters. So far I've only been twice, but both times were good experiences (even though the first time was during their soft opening). The food is very good - right on par with Liberty Tavern, possibly better. (Thankfully they are using an actual pastry chef, unlike what seemed to be my experiences with LT). The vibe is great and the crowd was mixed with lots of professionals in their late 20s/30s/40s. The service was excellent (though both times I was lucky enough to have Kayla, who is a friend, but it still counts!). What stands out in my mind, and this is odd for me to focus in on this, is the number of beers on draft - very impressive. I'm not a huge beer person, but I think I could easily become one with beers like the Kasteel (at least I think that is the spelling) Cherry Ale. Delicious! read more

Stopped in for drinks this weekend and all in all we had a fun time. The atmosphere was fun, the service was pretty good, and it was a little pricey...but then again so is everywhere in the area. I will say that it did take a while to get drinks, but from what we could see there was one waitress pretty much handling the entire area and it seemed like a lot for one person. Besides that the one complaint that we all seemed to have is that the glasses our drinks came in seemed small and were a lot of ice, meaning there was barely any of that pricey drink in the glass. The space was a little weird, meaning that it was definitely lounge-y; with what sounded like Pandora's MGMT radio playing in the background (we get it you're 'hip') via an Ipod DJ. But it was set up more like a bar with high top tables everywhere, I guess I think it would make sense to do what many other lounge-y places do and move the tables out of the way so people can dance, walk around anything. I did think that the menu looked really interesting although I didn't have any food; I would like to make it back to try the food. read more

Lyon Hall stands out among all the bars in Clarendon.I have been here twice, Friday night and Wednesday night for drinks. Hence, no comment on food here but the ambiance and crowd seem to be quite different from the rest of the bars in Clarendon. The first time when I was here, Lyon Hall was introduced to me by a friend who lives in Clarendon but rarely frequent any bar in Clarendon. As we all know, Clarendon is one of the bro-ist neighborhood and you expect to meet all the bros here and there. However, Lyon Hall is probably the least bro feel bar here. It attracts a more mature crowd. People come here to enjoy a meal or have a conversation over the drinks. The environment is laid back and chill. Service is friendly and bar tenders are quick. I like their selection of wines here although it is not a wine bar by any means. Friday night is packed. I would definitely come back for a casual night and catch up with friends here. read more