Had the pleasure of taking in lunch at RA Bistro for the 1st time today. So glad that we picked this place! We started with the calamari that was crispy and paired well with the remoulade sauce and the cajun bites that were sweet and spicy! Next we had the jambalaya and the steak pasta, both were excellent and were recommendations from our friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable wait staff. Our "arms were twisted" into getting the salted caramel blonde which was another on point recommendation. All in all we had a lovely first experience at RA and we will be back. read more

We had lunch here in January 2025. The service was excellent and the food was delicious. The interior decor has an industrial, yet rustic vibe. Exposed metal ceiling trusses and ventilation ducts combined with masonry walls and hardwood flooring certainly grabs your attention when entering for the first time. My wife had the backyard burger, my daughter had the Swiss chicken BBQ, my son had the honey spiced chicken and I had the mahi Oscar, which is gilled mahi-mahi topped with crab cake and asparagus. We also ordered the seafood Mac n cheese as an appetizer, which was probably the best dish. Although it was a single entree, they brought it out to us in four separate bowls, which was very thoughtful. No tip is required because they do charge a 20% dine-in service fee. read more

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Stopped here for lunch on our drive home from Tennessee. We were one of the only ones there and loved how spacious the place looked. It was very clean and it used to be a Levi's factory which makes it have the industrial look. All our food was flavorful and the service was great. Our waiter checked on us often and the food came out with great timing. Would definitely go back for sure. read more

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The food here was above average. The Waite staff were friendly, but a little haphazard. I don't think I will go back though because they have a mandatory 20% dine in service fee. I HATE THIS! It's a nice restaurant. Trust that your patrons are going to tip appropriately. I normally tip 20% or more. I won't give a dime more if it's forced upon me though. My rating of this place goes down as a result. read more

I had the pleasure of dining for the first time at RA Bistro and was absolutely blown away! From start to finish, it was an exceptional dining experience. For starters, I ordered the Mahi Oscar, and it was delicious! The Mahi Mahi was perfectly cooked - tender and flaky - and had a wonderful flavor from the lemon butter sauce or something that topped it. It was served with grilled asparagus, which added a nice touch. Our friends for my main course went for traditional fish & chips. Talk about amazing!! The fish was expertly battered and fried to perfection; each bite was crispy yet still succulent. The accompanying fries were delicious, too - crunchy on the outside yet fluffy in the middle. One of our friends tried their grilled salmon, which was quite good. It was perfectly cooked - just the right amount of char on the outside, yet still moist and juicy inside. Overall, I highly recommend RA Bistro! The food is absolutely delicious, and the service was top-notch. 5 stars all around! Something unique was that the wait staff did not expect to be tipped, as their gratuity was already added to the Bill. Go check it out! You won't be disappointed! Thank you for the memories! read more

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Ok!! This place is legit! I really wanted to come here for Saturday brunch but was unable to make a reservation for a party of 3 via their website. I was disappointed. Took a chance and popped in on a Friday night for an early dinner with my niece and sister. There was about a 30 min wait. No problem. I grabbed a happy hour glass of wine at the bar during the wait. Great happy hours drink specials overall BUT only one white and one red wine. I don't like white wine so I went with the merlot. It was decent.... I prefer a Cabernet or a red blend (personally). We were seated before the scheduled wait time. This was a plus. Our service was superb. Our little server was the cutest and took really good care of our party of 3. For an appetizer, we went with the funnel cake sliders. Huge portions. My niece wasn't a fan. My sister and I loved them! The outer layer could have been a little more crispy but definitely a nice app to get the meal started. My niece had some kind of chicken sandwich w/t fries. My sister had a fish dish and I settled on a steak. We enjoyed our entrees. Only regret I had was not going with the bigger steak, not getting my steak prepared medium instead of medium plus. All very fixable for future visits. I will definitely be back to partake in their brunch! The atmosphere is low lights, very warm and inviting. There's comfortable seating with booths and non booth options. Patio and bar seating is available. I didn't like the parking situation. We parked on the street and walked up to the restaurant. I did notice a lot across the street from the restaurant. I believe it's a for pay lot. RA Bistro is certainly one of the best spots we've had while visiting the Lynchburg area. Check them out! read more

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Went to RA to celebrate my husbands birthday and had great food and drinks. The gummy bear martini was amazing! My surf and turf was yummy but the cheesy rice was the best part. I wish they had a birthday dessert but overall good experience! read more

RA Bistro - San Fran Surf & Turf - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

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Very nice in the beginning! But once you tell them that their steak is cold and undercooked and their calamari is chewy, they don't want to give you money back for the food that was terrible! Then the manager goes here with an attitude when we leave after we waited 20 minutes for our bill to be changed. read more

Do not get the waffles. The have balls of granulated sugar that makes you feel like you're eating diabetes on a plate. Also, our waitress was lack luster. I guess because they assume they already get their tip no matter what (it's their policy to add in gratuity) that they can ignore their tables and talk over their customers. I wouldn't go back. I will say their fries and tater tots were good. read more

Lemme tell ya everything about this place is amazing. The food, BUSSIN. I got the seafood Mac and cheese and I gobbled that ish up in 5 mins. My dad got the sirloin and he nearly cried tears of happiness when he was eating it, it was so good. Our waitress was a sweetheart and cracked some jokes. The environment was very relaxed and they had the Colombia game on so if I could give yall 6 stars I would just for that. read more

RA Bistro - Key Lime Pie - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

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Staff was very nice and welcoming, but my food: Maui Maui was average at best, and my Thai Brussel Sprouts and Green beans were satiated in oil. Crab cake was awful bread puck with little meat. Sauce was nondescript and certainly not creole like I asked. read more

#ignore the high number of reviews! This place has a warm setting and the staff were friendly. Food is not good. The waiters also mixed up our checks; our party was large so they knew they were guaranteed a 20% tip either way, and they treated us as so. There are better options for dinner in the area. Shoemakers, Bootleggers etc. read more

Great ambiance, food, and service! Ordered a Mahi Oscar which had a crab cake over it, garlic mash potatoes, and a RA burger with sweet potato fries. Food was really good except for the garlic mash potatoes which lacked a bit of flavor. Very nice staff. Bill includes gratuity no matter how many people in your party. Clean inside and out. read more

RA Bistro - Entrance - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

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Went in just to check it out. What a great place beautiful. Family run. And the food was spectacular. Highly recomend

My friends and I came here for a later lunch on a Sunday. There was no wait and we were shown a booth right away. I shared the pork chops and jambalaya with a friend. Although a bit dry on the inside, the pork chop was beautifully marinated on the outside. The jambalaya was an explosion of flavor with tons of meat and seafood. Definitely would recommend it! The service was great and attentive. There are also outdoor seating if preferred. read more

RA Bistro - Jambalaya - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

Went to RA for their Martini Monday... ended up staying for dinner. The warm whipped feta appetizer, the caesar salad and the Tuscan chicken were all delicious. The atmosphere was welcoming (for a rainy night) and the bartender/server Kelli was particularly gracious and knowledgeable. read more

Excellent in every way! It's definitely one of my favorite restaurants! Tasty American food, great service & the ambience is appealing. If I was to suggest anything, it would be to include a history of that location in their menu. That building has quite a history in the Lynchburg area. They have both inside & outside seating! Debbie read more

This place is AMAZING! The food was fresh and delicious. We each got a salad. My husband had the salmon and I had the steak. Both were delicious. No up charge for the protein which is nice. The peach margarita was also wonderful. We would definitely go back if it wasn't so far from home. The server, Ben was very attentive and informative. All of the staff was helpful and made the experience pleasant. read more

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We had the beyond burger (vegan if you get it with gluten free bun) and it was really good! The waiters were all nice and helpful. Would love to come back and try the outdoor seating, it looked really pretty. read more

My wife and I were in Lynchburg and decided to have a date night before the 3 hour drive home. We settled on RA Bistro and, boy, are we grateful. We arrived right at 5 on a Saturday so we were early for supper and were seated right away without a reservation. We started with drinks and an appetizer. I had the Bourbon Old Fashioned ,my date had a Vodka Lemonade(?), and we shared the Bacon Pimento Cheese dip. The drinks arrived quickly and were both very refreshing. The pimento cheese dip was nothing like I was expecting. I was expecting a homemade concoction of shredded cheese, peppers, and mayonnaise. What we got was this warm, flavorful melted melange of cheeses that was more kin to a thick, beer cheese served with crisp tortilla chips. Amazing! We had a small teaspoon of dip left after the chips were exhausted and I polished it off right from the spoon rather than let it go to waste. It was that tasty. For our main course we decided to share the Chicken Parm Pasta in hopes of saving room for dessert. The chicken was moist and tender and the breading was flavorful and not oily. The pasta was slightly over cooked but not mushy and the creamy tomato sauce was, again, a great surprise at just how delicious it was. Having traveled in Italy we have a better appreciation of the cuisine and this sauce held its own! The best of of our meal was not the food but the staff and how attentive they were. RA Bistro uses a European model of tipping where the gratuity is built into the meal so everyone that passed by felt free to check on us and we never had to try to catch the attention of Sierra if we needed something. Their attention to detail went so far as to have noticed that while we ordered the dinner portion of the pasta to share, we actually received the lunch portion with only one piece of chicken rather than two. We would have never known this until a member of the staff walked by and asked if we had one or two pieces of chicken on our plate. She then adjusted our bill without our asking in order to do the right thing. Who does this in this day and age? The dining area is clean and inviting. The atmosphere, casual, but still ready for dressing up for a nice night out. If we lived closer than 3 hours away we would become frequent guests. As it is, we will be sure to make time to return the next time we pass through Lynchburg. Oh, and we skipped dessert at the restaurant because we were stuffed. We did, however, slide next door and brought cinnamon rolls home from Cinn City for breakfast the next day! read more

RA Bistro is amazing! My boyfriend was traveling for work and I wanted to treat him to a good food, drinks and vibe with it being our first time in Lynchburg. RA Bistro delivers on a good time, great ambiance, absolutely delicious food, awesome drinks, great service and the staff is outstanding! The first time, we went was during the evening for a special date night. Unfortunately, I can't remember our server's name, but, it turns out she's a manager and was in training to learn each staff's role. She was outstanding! We were reviewing the menu and she recommended the Funnel Cake Sliders and Cajun Bites for the appetizers. Those Funnel Cake Sliders were sweet and savory! They're essentially mini bacon and onion relish cheeseburgers with funnel cake coating, dusted with powdered sugar and a side of spiced raspberry sauce. I was skeptical at first, but blown away! My boyfriend enjoyed the Cajun Bites and he raved about how delicious they were. For entrees, my boyfriend had the RA Ribeye with asparagus and macaroni & cheese and I had the Grilled Pork Chops, which were two chargrilled, center cut pork chops with an apple cinnamon compote and broccoli. We had their various drinks and it was a great experience overall! A month later, we chose to dine in for their brunch during my boyfriend's birthday weekend (5/14). We had an outstanding server, Shakira, and she was on point! We did the Mimosa flights with different flavors for our drinks to start off our morning. My boyfriend ordered the Creole Benedict and Chicken & Waffles while I ordered the LumberJack French Toast and a Bistro Bowl. Everything was so good! My boyfriend and I are not fans of tater tots, but, their seasoned tater tots are absolutely delicious! Shakira was excellent! She consistently checked on us, offered recommendations throughout the brunch, and provided good conversation. Whether for brunch or dinner, RA Bistro delivers! read more

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I was in town for my grandma's birthday and decided to bring her here. The menu had several things that appeal to me so I thought it would be a good place to try. We were seated immediately and given our waters pretty quickly. I tried a strawberry lemon drop which was pretty good, a little tangy. My boyfriend got a bourbon and coke that was very light on the bourbon. We ordered the funnel cake sliders, Cajun bites and Buffalo wings. The funnel cake sliders were cooked a little too long and didn't really offer the sweetness I was hoping for.There was very little powdered sugar on them and one of my sliders had no meat at all. Another one had a tiny little piece of meat. Cajun bites were underwhelming. They didn't come out super warm and they weren't really flavorful Wings were the best of the three. Solid seasoning. I'd be willing to try this place again, the drinks definitely have promise. read more

I can't count how many people have suggested this restaurant to me, which probably contributed to my disappointment in my underwhelming two experiences with this establishment. The food is just okay. I got the beyond burger, which I'm so happy they include as a menu item. There was nothing special about it. It wasn't seasoned at all and was slightly over cooked. I could do a lot better myself at home. There are far better places in town to get a better burger. My husband who eats regular burgers agrees with me on this as well. As for the sweet potato fries, again, so many places do this better at a fraction of the price. Again, it's not a terrible place, but for a restaurant that is often considered the best and one that is on the more expensive side, I expected a lot more. The service was okay; I don't remember having a bad experience either time (or noticed that they were particularly friendly). The TLDR is that this restaurant is highly overrated, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. read more

RA Bistro - Beyond Burger and Sweet potato fries - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

I ordered delivery from RA Bistro while staying in Lynchburg. It took just about an hour, which was a little long given my proximity, so order before you are hungry. The food hit the spot. I enjoyed my chicken parm sandwich and fries, which were still hot and delicious once received. The salted caramel brownie with pretzel bits was a nice way to round out the meal. It's not anything fancy but when you need some comfort food, this place is good. read more

RA Bistro - Chicken parm Parmesan Chicken Sandwich - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

A place where the owners do not care enough to fix the bathroom door nor reply to poor post.......Do you not care at all ??? The salad and sandwich were very good. The service was slow, and they could spend some coins and fix the door to the bathroom where it was kicked in. The bathrooms need attention, and they have limited ADD access for seating and parking. They are on the pricy side, and a 20% service fee is added to the bill...... No good service was not up to 10%. There are far better places, even in the chains. Recommend saving your money out to golden Arches. You will have a better experience. read more

I can't think of a reason to not give 5 stars. The service fee of 20% is added automatically, so I was concerned how service would be. It was great. I have one experience to evaluate this , but for that one, it was great. The sliders were so unique and good. The beef quality is very high and delicious. The crabby patty was good and what a cute name. Again , beef quality and the crab were both good. The jambalaya was so good. Rice, shrimp, crawfish were all cooked perfect and the spice was legit, but not stupid hot. The brownie with the pretzels was great too. Very cool decor, and super inventive menu. Executed perfect. Nice job. read more

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Exceptional food and service. A tad pricey but well worth it. At least as a once in awhile treat.

Went to VA for a family vacation decided to go downtown for a nice meal and let me tell you, it was absolutely great, food, service,ambiance etc, everything was perfect. Thanks so much, it make our trip unforgettable Edgar Allen NYC read more

I ordered the filthy martini, spinach salad with salmon, and the Tuscan chicken with Brussels sprouts. The martini was great except for the price I would expect the tiny, literally tiny, martini glass to be full. A little in the cheap side imho. Curious who drank the other half of my cocktail! I suggest ordering a beer and skipping the cocktails, this way at least you'll get your pour. The spinach salad was perfect! Loaded with bacon, dried fruit, blue cheese and a nice portion of salmon. With the balsamic dressing the flavors were pulled together into a party for my tastebuds. Everything was fresh and tasty. The Tuscan chicken, not memorable at all, except that it was tough. The dish had spinach goat cheese and tomatoes. The flavors were good, just very chewy! The brussel sprouts, hmmm. These little guys are my favorite I order them wherever I go. However these truly missed the mark. They also were tough. I'm all about al dente veggies, but these were very under cooked. The prep cook didn't bother to cut the brown ends off and that left them totally undesirable. All and all, my third visit was left lacking as was the second when I ordered Parmesan garlic wings, also something I order wherever I can. The size was good, the portion okay, but squirting Parmesan dressing in wings and calling it a day was a let down. Thank goodness for the sweet waitress and the cool atmosphere otherwise it would have been a one star review. read more

Made an unplanned lunch stop at RA; located right at the edge of downtown with its own parking lot. RA's style is a take on Southern comfort foods. Not as many vegan or vegetarian selections as mentioned. Delicious and ample portion sizes, nonetheless. Variety of seating options, including a patio with heaters. Staff is friendly, yet a mixed bag of skills. Being new to the area, we were unfamiliar with their "dine-in service fee"; i.e. an automatic 20% tip added to the bill. Our server did not explain; nothing like a 40% tip, right?! Overall, a good experience & worth a re-visit. read more

Meh. I was expecting more. The burger was pretty basic. The meat was dry & tough. My daughter loved her meal (pasta & steak) and my husband did as well. I would go back and try something different as others posted good experiences. read more

I do not agree with the automatic 20% surcharge. Tipping is meant to reflect the quality of service provided. In this case, the service was slow, and the food was just average. read more

AMAZING service and food!! The ambience was wonderful and they were welcoming and even opened the patio for me and my emotional support schnauzer. Food was incredible and the staff was team oriented. Our server, Alex was awesome and checked in on us plenty as well as gave amazing food recommendations! Will definitely be going back! read more

RA is my favorite restaurant in Lynchburg. The steak pasta is my go to for dinner and love their mimosas for weekend brunch. Servers have always been friendly and helpful. It's a good place to take family and friends who are visiting because they have room for bigger parties and good food. read more

RA Bistro - Mimosa and crepes - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

I absolutely love this restaurant! Great atmosphere and delicious food. Our server took great care of us and made sure we had a great dining experience. The seafood mac and cheese comes highly recommended! A blast of savory shrimp, scallops, and a crab cake over a bed of pasta and a creamy blend of cheeses. A seafood lover's dream! Not my first time there, and definitely not my last! read more

RA Bistro - Seafood Mac and Cheese - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

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I haven't been here in a long time because it's at the other end of town for me. But when you go out to eat on Sunday afternoon there aren't that many choices. And my first choice had a 45 minute wait so I just pressed on. Play please me by having a draft stout from North Carolina and jambalaya which is a rare find. And I'm sitting outside just where I want to be as I continue to be cautious with Covid. read more

RA Bistro - Draft stout for a Sunday afternoon eating outdoors. - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

Painfully average food for above average prices. The service was slow considering how few people were there on a Friday evening. Considering the other dining options around, RA Bistro just isn't worth it. Friendly staff and warm ambiance. read more

RA Bistro - Empty restaurant on a Friday evening - New American Near Me - Lynchburg, Virginia

Dinner was OK, but not great. How were the pork chops which were very tender and juicy with the sides of sweet, tater fries and broccoli. The broccoli came out like mush. I sent the broccoli back, and it came out like mush again . Service is really spotty because they got one girl working at the bar when you should have at least three. I know help is hard to find, but if you're gonna be charging these prices, you better have your game on. read more

Device inconsistent from visit to visit. Chicken Caesar missing croutons, when mentioned the waited bought out a mini cup of tiny boxed croutons Which is unacceptable for a premium priced dinner entree salad. Steak grisly and tepid. Drinks good though read more

Disappointing. "Euro Style Service" far from it. 1. Plates were whisked away before everyone at the table is finished. 2. "No tip required" Euro style the tip is included in the price of the meal. 20% service attached. 3. Meal: less than fair. Meager serving, 4. Loud and frigid. Warmer outside. 5. Staff more interested in socializing amongst themselves read more