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Williamsburg, VA


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I'm still partial to the Green Leafe Cafe on Scotland Street after all these years because my grandparents owned it when I was growing up. It's still the local for most of the W&M faculty and upperclassmen and they have a ton of beer on tap and available these days. It's a nice place.

The Trellis and Berretts are a little more high end, but not exactly Citronelle quality. There are tons of Italian and "family" restaurants as well.

Other all time favorites include Mama Steve's Pancake House, the College Delly, and Paul's Deli.

Finally, this place is new to Williamsburg in that I haven't eaten there in a recent visit to my grandparents, but it looks interesting and I think I'm going to have to take them there: Cities Grille

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STay away from the estabilshments in the historic area.  Is the "Trellis" still open?  If so, I recommend it.

I was not at all impressed with Trellis when I was there last. Williamsburg has lots of places to eat that are suitable for children in tow. I second staying away from the Historic area establishments, except if you are willing to pay the money, Shield's Tavern is kind of neat and the older kids will get a kick out of eating in the same place that George Washington, etc. ate.

For breakfast, there are several pancake houses around the historic area (where all the hotels that are next to the historic area are.) that are not bad for what they are.

If you visit Jamestown, and you should, the Polo Club Restaurant & Tavern (135 Colony Sq) is a good place to have lunch on the way back. Large portions and not expensive, good food (burgers, shrimp, etc.)

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I would avoid the Trellis too. It's not a family-friendly place & the food isn't worth the price IMHO. If you must go, stop by just for dessert & coffee. Second Street restaurant and the Library Cafe are both good for burgers and casual eats. Regarding the delis, I would recommend Paul's. If you've never been to one of the taverns, you should definitely go. Each one serves different fare, so check out the menus online to help you decide. I like Christiana Campbell's for Chicken Chesapeake and spoon bread. King's Arms is very good too -- has a lot of game and hearty fare.

And, whatever you do, don't miss the Cheese Shop. Get the house dressing on your sandwich. Mmmm.

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thanks folks

hellish weekend - felt like it was 150 degrees at Busch gardens on Sat, long lines for everything - by the time we left and showered at the hotel, the most energy we could muster was to trek across the street to a Cracker Barrel, where we had, yes you guessed it, a 45 minute wait for a table!

by this time I was in a foul mood, and then as if by magic, a very good medium rib-eye steak arrived at my table!

I did stop by the Cheese Shop on Sunday for a look around - seems like a nice place - the timing wasn't right to get food there but they had Cashel Blue for $15 a pound which I thought was reasonable......

bad weekend to go to W'burg though...too hot

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Has anyone been to the Fat Canary in Colonial Williamsburg? The only information I have on the restaurant is that it has gotten some great reviews, andt is owned by the same family that runs The Cheese Shop next door. Interestingly enough, the chef is a recent CIA grad named Thomas Power.

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My husband and I spent a long weekend in Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg recently. We had the opportunity to visit the town and sample some of the shops and restaurants. The Fat Canary is connected to the Cheese Shop and there is a wine store downstairs. I inquired to see if they had a deal similar to Evening Star Cafe and Planet wine, which they do. If you see a wine downstairs that you would like to have with dinner, ask your server to get it and they charge a $10 corkage fee. Even better, if you want a white chilled, tell the person in the wine store to go ahead and chill it while you go on up to your reservation.

We attempted to get a reservation there on Sat., for Sunday dinner but alas they were booked and while we were put on the wait list, we didn't get a call. They do however, offer the menu at the bar.

We found ourselves on a very cold night, in the mood for bistro fare and sat ourselves at the bar of "The Blue Talon" bistro, were the bar service was genial and accomodating. While sipping a nice house white and watching on the large plasma tv not Olympics (thankyou) but classic Julia videos, we settled on an asparagus salad, braised beef and rotisserie chicken with side of frits.

The salad was greens lightly dressed in a sherry vinegarette, chilled roasted asparagus(salt, pepper, olive oil)sat atop, then topped by thin baguette slices with melted brie and finally topped with a poached egg. Lardons were interspersed generously.....very generously.

My braised beef was fork tender, but not falling apart. Carrots, pearl onions, turnips and fingerling potatoes were all happily sitting in a red wine sauce.

My husband's chicken looked juicy and the frits were crisp and perfectly salted, sitting upright wrapped in paper.

The entrees were under $20 and the salad was wait for it...........$7.95.

The Blue Talon Bistro website:

http://www.bluetalonbistro.com/indexAdam.html

Located near the intersection of Prince George St.and N. Henry St. Park at the garage (P1) entry on N. Henry. Only a buck an hour and beats the hell out of insane and impatient SUV drivers whipping through the free lots surrounding Merchant Square shops, looking for a space.

Other than that, we visited the Cheese Shop for lunch, but decided that in the time it would take to belly up to the 20 deep counter for a sammy, we could take a brisk (well, fricking face numbing) walk down to The King's Arms and get a seat and begin sipping peanut soup before we'd have said sammy in hand and then try to figure out were to park ourselves and eat. I mean, I like the Cheese Shop fare, but standing hungrily, shoulder to shoulder with my fellow hungry colonial interlopers for a half hour just to give my order would probably end in a violent act on my part. I don't know what, but I just had a feeling.

At The King's Arms, we were greeted? by a young woman who I can only assume was playing the part of Colonial Wench, very well might I say. After giving the number in our party, and asking timidly about the wait time, she snapped back that it would be about 15 minutes, which it was.

While warming my butt by the real fire in the waiting area, I lamented that it was a shame that Midol wasn't invented during Colonial times and that those poor women must have suffered only second to the men around them.

On to lunch, our server was kind, the place itself is rather shabby and run down, but the peanut soup brought me back to why I like eating there every now and then, even though it's overpriced and very underwhelming. By that, I refer to the ham and cheese sammy for $12, and cheeseburger, um grilled chopped sirloin, for the same.

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Any recent recommendations? Fat Canary still worth a visit?

I enjoyed the Blue Talon, a french bistro nearby W&M. I had a classic salad with asparagus, lardons and topped with a poached egg. My husband had a nice roast chicken with frites. I'd highly recommend it. And, the prices are fantastic. Peruse the website for food and wine specials.

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I second the suggestion for the Blue Talon, which reopened a month ago after a fire last fall. And unfortunately, I must also second the advice to avoid the Trellis. The Trellis was one of my favorite restaurants for a number of years (beginning with lovely lunches outside on Merchant's Square when it first opened and I was still a student at William & Mary). I have not been to the Trellis for several years, but I have recommended it to several friends, each of whom has reported a mediocre, overpriced experience.

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Friends in the Williamsburg area took us to A Chef's Kitchen a few months ago. We'd never seen a restaurant being run this way before, and had a great time.

As the Chef explained, he and his wife happened upon an episode of Emeril on a bar tv when they were out one evening. (Strange, no?) He noticed that only the "special" people in the front got to sample what was being prepared during the show, and felt bad for the rest of the audience. Thus, he decided to create a resaurant where the cooking was done in front of the guests, similar to the live tv format, and everyone gets to eat.

Dinner consists of hors d'oeuvres & champaign when you walk in, followed by five courses with matching wine. There is only one seating per evening, Wednesday through Saturday. Guests walk away with recipes for everything that was served that night.

The food was consitently good, sometimes very good. The format of "dinner as a show" does lead to some limitations, but it's pretty unique for the area (if not unique overall), and may be just the break you need from the historic triangle & Busch Gardens.

Due to limited seating, this is definitely something to plan ahead if you want to go. The FAQ on the restaurant site suggests that parents use their best judgement about whether to include kids in the reservation. To paraphrase, dinners last about three hours, and might be a trial for many kids.

We liked it enough we've already been back for a second visit.

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Stayed at Kingsmill a few weeks ago and must agree that The Fat Canary blew the Trellis out of the water. Nice atmosphere and well priced wines. I had a lobster pasta with lemon butter sauce that was bland at first but really tasty after a few hits from the salt shaker, and a nice, well-seasoned and tender lamb shank.

The meal at the Trellis was very unmemorable - cheapest stemware I've ever seen in a place with $20+ entrees, and they didn't let me know when they ran out of the sweet potato side (the main reason I ordered the pork tenderloin entree), they just slapped some regular mashed potatoes on the plate and hoped I wouldn't notice.

I'd be more likely to return to the clubhouse at the River Course on the Kingsmill resort for their cloyingly sweet (but very much to my personal taste) peach crepes with maple butter and crispy bacon...

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My Williamsburg rotation

Cheese Shop: For the sammies. I usually get the VA Ham and turkey combo with cheddar and the house dressing.

Pierce's Pit BBQ

Green Leaf Cafe

Blue Talon Bistro: Went there for the first time my last time down there. It will be part of our rotation.

Whaling Company: Nothing great, but I haven't found any great seafood places.

Casa Maya: Again, nothing great, but I get in the mood for Mexican every once in a while.

Aromas: I've had some decent fondues there and it's one of the few places open on a Sunday night.

Those are my usuals. Haven't been to Captain George's or Trellis in a while. I'd love to try Fat Canary, but I keep forgetting to call far enough in advance to get a reservation.

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Recent highlights included:

A pulled pork dinner at Pierce's BBQ - the pork was tasty but the coleslaw was pale and meh. The hushpuppies are oblong and for an instant I thought there were corndogs made with cocktail weenies. This is the season for Brunswick Stew which improved greatly with the addition of a couple shots of BBQ sauce. Definitely drive past the Sonic and the Great Wolf Lodge and hit this place if you need to get out of the car.

If you get symptoms of acute Yankee withdrawl, the Ukrop's grocery cafe/grill [not as nice as Wegman's] has the NYTimes in their newspaper rack.

Lowlight: Christiana Campbell dinner - the food was passable, but during this winter season it was the only historic restaurant open for dinner. I'll just say it was historically accurate. Who knew the Sir Walter Raleigh Inns dotting suburbia actually resemble the authentic exterior?

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My wife grew up in Richmond and on special Episcopalian days would get to put on special Episcopalian clothes for reenactments of the first sacrament in the new world. The only thing that could make her frantic childhood self sit still through hours of pageantry in the hot sun was if her mother would stop in colonial Williamsburg on the way to Jamestown to pick up a sack (they come in real sacks!) of ginger cakes from the reeanactor bakery.

They're fantastic, but are apparently made authentically enough that they go stale in a day. Tossed in the blender, they make excellent pie crust crumbs.

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We were in Williamsburg over the weekend. Our first (and best) meal of the trip was at Pierce's BBQ. The pulled pork was excellent, and definitely the way to go. The hushpuppies and coleslaw were OK, at best. I really liked their BBQ sauce, which had just the right amount of tang from the vinegar.

Our other meals included lunch at Cracker Barrel, which was adequate. My wife's roast beef dinner was surprisingly good.

We also got take-out from Sal's By Victor(?). The pizzas (both regular and sicilian) were a step up from Domino's. The chicken fingers were horrific, as they were 90% breading and 10% chicken. They came with a side of fries which were in desperate need of Viagra.

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I grew up in Virginia Beach, and would whenever we would trek over to Williamsburg a stop at Pierce's Pit BBQ was always in order. It is delicious BBQ and am positive that you will enjoy yourself when you stop by.

This review made me decide to make a detour to Pierce's last night before we headed home from Williamsburg. I'm not sure if the place has changed ownership, or there was a revolt in the kitchen last night, or they ran out of all of the good stuff by the time we got there, but the food I had at Pierce's last night was TERRIBLE. It tasted like fast food that you would get in your typical airline terminal, except this had sweet BBQ sauce on it. They were out of the ribs, so I didn't get to give them a run, but the BBQ Platter that I got should have been a pretty good judge as to how this place would be in general. My pulled pork tasted either like oil or lighter fluid, I couldn't quite place it, but I don't think I should have to. It was quite simply the worst version of a really easy BBQ dish that I have ever had. Rocklands and Capitol Q are award-winning recipes compared to this. The accompanying fries were the frozen krinkle cut variety and the hushpuppies were overcooked and had a strong onion flavor to them, which I found very odd. My wife's BBQ Chicken Platter was, if you can believe it, worse than mine. She had a breast of chicken that was identical to the ones you get in the frozen food section at Costco. You know the ones that kind of look like chicken breasts, but when you cut into them, the texture inside resembles in no way what a real breast looks like. So for $8.99, she got one of those with a watery, vinegary sweet sauce and the aforementioned fries and hushpuppies. Abominable.

I wouldn't usually get on here and blast a place like this, but after reading this thread, my takeaways were Blue Talon, Cheese Shop, and Pierce's. Pierce's, at this point, is absolutely not a place to go out of your way to, and I would recommend going there only if every other restaurant is closed at that time and you're starving. And a bit of a masochist.

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Have to spend the day at W&M tomorrow-any suggestions on where to grab quick bite without a long walk from the campus? I'm hoping to avoid eating cafeteria food. It's been more than a decade since I last spent time on campus but I seem to remember the Cheese Shop being a bit far for a 30 minute lunch break in heels. I'll be with a vegan so any suggestions that will appease her are welcome.

Also, any other recent opinions on Pierce's? I was thinking of grabbing some take away to eat when I get home.

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Have to spend the day at W&M tomorrow-any suggestions on where to grab quick bite without a long walk from the campus? I'm hoping to avoid eating cafeteria food. It's been more than a decade since I last spent time on campus but I seem to remember the Cheese Shop being a bit far for a 30 minute lunch break in heels. I'll be with a vegan so any suggestions that will appease her are welcome.

Also, any other recent opinions on Pierce's? I was thinking of grabbing some take away to eat when I get home.

With only 30 minutes, I guess it depends where you are on campus. The Cheese Shop is easily accessible from the east end of campus. If you're closer to the football field (NW part of campus), the Green Leaf Cafe at Scotland St and Richmond Rd is good. I'm not sure what the vegetarian options are, though, so I can't help with that.

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Probably heading down to Williamsburg this weekend. Anything new and exciting this year? If not, the wife and I will probably hit Blue Talon again and there's certainly nothing wrong with that.

Ended up at Green Leaf over the weekend. It was somewhat disappointing; not as good as I remember from previous visits.

I noticed a new pho house, but didn't try it. Maybe they'll get a couple more soon and get some good pho competition going. Pho sure is spreading like crazy.

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Ate at Food for Thought and had a wonderful meal. I had chicken with parmesan & pistacio over potatoes; my wife had 3 of the sides. The kids had shells with cheese sauce (they always order the local version of mac and cheese unless forced otherwise.)

The chicken was nicely done and very tasty. There was a wine list, but I'm not a wine drinker so can't comment.

Overall, the place was nicely appointed with quotes stenciled on the wall, clean lines and nice lighting. Service we efficient. The speed is pretty quick but they won't rush you if you wish to take your time. The tables were a little close, but not too bad - in fact the only downside to our meal was our neighbor, an annoying "foodie" who kept asking things like if the beets were freshly chopped for the beet soup. Note that being a foodie and asking about freshness isn't the issue, its how you do it, and with what expectation. This was done in a kind of pushy fashion.

Anyway, the place seemed a great value for the price, about $70 with tip for the 4 of us, including appetizer and a beer. The menu items were interesting yet homey, including items like pot roast. And while I doubt each side item was carefully custom cooked for my plate, those same sides seemed carefully made from quality ingredients. Therewere vegetarian options and the kids meals were decent - not the usual brush-off for them.

The place isn't a secret. It is easy to find and we had a short wait. Well worth it.

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We will be in Williamsburg for a couple of days later this month. This restaurant was recommended to us by friends: http://www.fatcanarywilliamsburg.com/home.html

Anyone ever been there?

I was there last September, and had a wonderful meal. I can highly recommend Blue Talon Bistro as well. Very good food, cocktails, and wine, reasonably priced. And the gourmet sandwich shop next to the Fat Canary has a wine store downstairs. Get your sandwiches upstairs, head downstairs and buy a bottle, borrow some glasses from them, and head out to the patio for a nice afternoon lunch.

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We were in Williamsburg this past week we did eat at the Fat Canary. I had corn soup with bacon and mushrooms, and sweet soy grilled pacific salmon for the main course. The soup was excellent, and the salmon quite good. My wife had a pork chop with toasted walnut and Gruyere bread pudding, which she said was very good. The restaurant was crowded, but not too noisy, and the service was quite good. I don’t know what the competition is like in Williamsburg, but if you’re looking for a nice meal there I would give the Fat Canary serious consideration.

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A pulled pork dinner at Pierce's BBQ - the pork was tasty but the coleslaw was pale and meh.

Stopped at Pierces for a quick lunch on the way to the beach. The pulled pork sandwich (which came with slaw on it) wasn't bad. The sauce, while flavorful with a bit of heat, had some cinnamon/nutmeg/clove notes which aren't my favorite. Greens were very good and of course you have your choice of sweet or unsweetened tea. A decent spot for a stop to break up the ride.

A few exits down (#242) is the storefront location for La Tienda. It's not a restaurant, but there may be some tasty morsels to sample and plenty of Spanish goodies with which to stock your larder. Alas, the Pimentons de Padron are only available through mail order, but I'm happy to even have that as an option (which I have made use of twice in recent weeks).

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The Cheese Shop is the type of place that I could spend a lazy afternoon looking around. I may not buy much there, as everything seems ridiculously overpriced, but it definitely has some interesting items. My sandwich (ham, turkey, havarti, house dressing on french bread) was good, but not ground breaking by any means.

We would have loved to try the Fat Canary, but they were booked solid two weeks out, so we ended up at the Blue Talon Bistro. I liked the vibe, but the service left something to be desired (amateurish) and the menu read better than it was executed. The gateau basque, however, blew us out of the water. I have never had one before, so it could have simply been average, but it was almost worth the other disappointments (pied de cochon, chicken and mushroom crepes) just to taste that dessert. By the way, I also loved the fries, but I hadn't had a french fry since 2011, so I could have devoured anything that resembled a french fry at that point.

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Haven't seen it mentioned here, but I'd recommend checking out artcafé26. We stopped in here for breakfast during our trip, and we really enjoyed it. I'm kind of sad we only ended up going there once on our trip, there were a lot more items on the menu we wanted to try out.

The place itself was pretty cute, lots of local(?) art on the walls, art books sitting about, lots of weird looking chairs. There were only a few other people who were in while we were, they seemed to be regulars since the staff knew them all. Staff did a very good job, nothing to complain about.

I ordered a four cheese omlet (Cheddar, Havarti, Swiss, Feta), which was gigantic and very rich. I think it would probably be a good plan to split it between 2 people, as it was way too much for me to handle alone. I got a special coffee drink that was very good as well, though the drinks don't seem to be listed anywhere online that I can find.

My wife got a special breakfast combo, which I believe was some slight variation on the one listed on the online menu ("Flaky Croissant w/Brie, scrambled egg, homemade jam, small Salad, coffee"). She enjoyed the whole thing of course. Worth noting that the slice of Brie that came with it was pretty significantly large as well.

We got a few cookies to go as well, and were certainly glad we did.

We also managed to squeeze into the Fat Canary (with a reservation made earlier in the day no less). Happy to report that it was even better than advertised here. I ended up ordering the stuffed quail, and boy was that the right choice. The service was just as spectacular as the food as well. Don't miss out on this place when you visit.

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Warning: This review is almost a year old, but in my defense I wasn't a member of this fine establishment a year ago. That being said, it was partly because of this thread that I ended up at Food for Thought for an early dinner last March. The other two reasons were the proximity to my hotel and the introduction to the "undercooked and raw" disclaimer, which is as follows: "With its omnipotent wisdom our government requires that restaurants reprint their menus and post the following shocking information. . . ." Further snark is added after the disclaimer. That kind of sarcasm is right up my alley.

Since I arrived rather early for dinner was practically the only person there. I remember having the Shrimp Boat, because the idea of breaded shrimp in a potato skin was intriguing. It was excellent. I know I had something else, but I can't remember what it was (either another appetizer or a salad). But I do remember that I ended up full and happy.

Service was nice and attentive, and after I was done eating I finished my glass of wine while watching the NCAA tournament at the bar with various staff members. A few hours later the whole area went nuts after Norfolk State defeated Missouri. I was elsewhere when that game ended, but I bet I would have been having a good time if I was still at the restaurant.

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We were driving through Williamsburg, and stopped at Peter Chang's to check it out.  The decor is typical Chinese restaurant--complete with neon ceiling lights. As we were eating, the place filled up quickly.  The clientel was about 75 percent Chinese, which is pretty impressive.  Lots of Mandarin spoken at other tables except for one table of Cantonese speakers.  They all seemed happy with their food.

We started with the fried pork belly--good flavor but it could have been crispier.

My BF had the hot & numbing combination hot pot.  The portion was very large and could easily feed two.  He said it was spicy and flavorful (rather than just crazy hot.)  I will have to take his word for it since I cannot handle that heat level.  He happily packed up the leftover which filled a quart size soup container.

I had the shredded pork in spicy garlic sauce--only 1 chili pepper rating.  Nice heat but you can still taste the ingredients.  If we pass through the area again, we would definitley go back.

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My husband just attended a conference in Williamsburg and had very positive things to say about Fat Canary.  Between him and a colleague, they had the house-made mozzarella, a couple of orders of hearts of romaine, sea scallops ($32) and duck breast ($29).  My husband got the dusk breast, and I was practically drooling reading the menu description:  "Duck Breast, Rye Spätzle, Turnip, Swiss Chard, Black Cherries, Thistle-Honey Gastrique, Beggar's Purse of Confit."

Most meals were accounted for by conference events, but he also got a meal at Peter Chang Cafe.  They ordered pretty much the most American of the Chinese-American menu (e.g., he had spring rolls, hot and sour soup, and pork hot pot).   He didn't remark on the hot pot being very hot, so he likely got a less spicy version.

His comments were mostly about the quantity of the food. He could barely make a dent in his hot pot. It would easily have served two. Since they had a lot left over and two of them were in hotels without refrigerators, the man who had a room with refrigeration and was accompanied on the trip by several of his kids took all of the remaining food.  They had quite a spread for the next day, apparently.

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Just got back from a long weekend at Great Wolf Lodge whose food is atrocious and expensive affording us many opportunities to try other places for dining.

First dinner was at GWL at their pizza/pasta place which we got carryout to the room. Spaghetti and meatballs were basically overcooked pasta, jarred sauce and wolf droppings for $15 for a serving for 2-4. Caesar salad was similarly overpriced. What made it worse was the cashier told us that the food had been sitting there since 3:00, it was 7:00. I guess we couldn't say we didn't know what we were getting into, but with kids, sometimes convenience trumps everything else. Just stay away from this place if you are ever at GWL. Instead, go to the snack stand inside the pool area. We actually got a decent cheeseburger there for around $8 and hot dogs for the kids for around $4. Also had both regular and sweet potato fries. Full meal was under $35 and not gag inducing.

First, and best of the trip was Nawab Indian for their lunch buffet. For only 9.95 they have a buffet that puts any I have been to in DC to shame. Of course they had the chicken tandoori and a basic chicken curry, but also had another fantastic chicken dish that consisted of a grilled chicken with vegetables, and a lot of them. While on the vegetables, there was also okra, mixed vegetables, and the standard chickpeas and lentils. Also a paneer dish and the coup de grace, lamb. Some of the dishes had some heat to them, but nothing to the point where our kids couldn't eat it. Generally it was much lighter and the variety of vegetables was further refreshing.

Spent a day in Colonial Wiliamsburg so ate at the Kings Arms Tavern. Did not have high expectations for this, but the salmon BLT was actually a decent option. Salmon was of course a little dry and overcooked, but otherwise it was a nice sandwich. The fried chicken was pretty greasy and the mac and cheese accompanying it just a step above kraft. The vegetable ravioli was a nice vegetarian option and had a nice sprinkling of vegetables and nothing offensive about it. Kids loved their kids meals of hot dog and mac and cheese though.

Also made a stop at Pierce's and got a pulled pork, ribs, and pork shanks. First, I do not like the fact they mix the sauce in with the pulled pork and it is not an option to get it without. Always trikes me as a reason to be hiding something. The pulled pork was OK, but if this is the best Virginia has to offer as a state, they've got a long way to go in the BBQ wars. The ribs were cooked nicely with the right amount of tenderness to sticking to the bone balance. As I find with most BBQ sauces, the sauce was too sweet for me, another reason I don't like too much sauce pre-mixed with the meat. The pork shanks were the one place where you could control the sauce yourself, and probably my favorite. Plus they apparently get finished in the deep fryer, so who can argue with fried pork. Collards were bland and onion rings were likewise pretty blah. While it was a step up from GWL, not something I would go out of my way for. Plus I forgot to use the 10% off coupon from the tour book. It is definitely a good option for takeout dinner when staying at GWL since it's less than 5 minutes away. Went to get the food while kids were still getting bathed after coming out of the pool.

Spent two very good lunches at Peter Chang's which I wrote up already in their own thread. Also make sure to use the coupon for 10% off there.

Breakfasts were generally dunkin donuts at GWL though we did get some nice cinnamon raisin bread from the Cheese Shop in Colonial Williamsburg for breakfast on our last morning there.

We had gone down with hopes of trying some of the nicer places for dinner, but unfortunately inertia kept us at the lodge for every dinner. Perhaps next time.

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Also made a stop at Pierce's and got a pulled pork, ribs, and pork shanks. First, I do not like the fact they mix the sauce in with the pulled pork and it is not an option to get it without. Always trikes me as a reason to be hiding something. The pulled pork was OK, but if this is the best Virginia has to offer as a state, they've got a long way to go in the BBQ wars. 

Pierce's is not among the best 100 BBQ joints in Virginia, let alone the best.

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Pierce's is not among the best 100 BBQ joints in Virginia, let alone the best.

It was named in some online newspaper or magazine's list of the best BBQ in every state. I've seen it on a few different lists for best in VA. I now know that I do not agree with those lists.

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In a weeklong trip through Virginia, I will spend one or two days in Williamsburg. If some of the members of the forum could provide me with one or two recommendations I would be most grateful, as some of the establishments I was considering seem to less than ideal after having read some of your reviews.

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On 4/5/2016 at 5:09 PM, gibmrm said:

In a weeklong trip through Virginia, I will spend one or two days in Williamsburg. If some of the members of the forum could provide me with one or two recommendations I would be most grateful, as some of the establishments I was considering seem to less than ideal after having read some of your reviews.

I had a terrific meal about a year ago at Peter Chang Williamsburg - this is when he, himself, was up in the DC area opening Arlington and Rockville, so he was not at the restaurant. The bamboo fish and the scallion puff were just as good as they've ever been.

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In a weeklong trip through Virginia, I will spend one or two days in Williamsburg. If some of the members of the forum could provide me with one or two recommendations I would be most grateful, as some of the establishments I was considering seem to less than ideal after having read some of your reviews.

Several years ago, we lived in Yorktown, and Pierce's was always one of our go-to spots. I happened to be in the area last year, and nothing had changed.

While I wouldn't necessarily put it on my national "best barbecue" lists, I always enjoyed their pulled pork sandwiches.  The flavor is somewhat unique--it's tangy/sour, sweet, and has a bit of heat. The sauce is ketchup and vinegar-based, and it's certainly thicker than NC style, but it's not as thick as KC style.

A good spot for a quick bite.

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On 4/5/2016 at 5:09 PM, gibmrm said:

In a weeklong trip through Virginia, I will spend one or two days in Williamsburg. If some of the members of the forum could provide me with one or two recommendations I would be most grateful, as some of the establishments I was considering seem to less than ideal after having read some of your reviews.

Nawab is very enjoyable Indian just a bit up Richmond road (great $10 lunch buffet, or at least used to be $10), while the Cheese Shop has excellent sandwiches. The Blue Talon is a very solid french bistro, and Five Forks cafe has an outstanding diner breakfast. You can't go wrong with any of these.

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Made a one night trip to redeem our son's free summer PreK pass to Busch Gardens/Water Country so made a couple stops for food outside Busch Gardens. The night we arrived we pretty much went straight to Peter Chang's after grabbing a coupon book at the hotel for 10% off. Started very well with both the fired pork belly and fried fish. Basically the same dish with fish and prok belly, but I love both and each varies from the other enough to make it worth getting. The mains were a contrast in disappointment. The flounder was prepared well, but definitely not the freshest fish. It was still on this side of being OK, but I could definitely smell the beginnings of its decline. My wife said she didn't sense anything and no one got sick. The bok choy was good, but what was disappointing was that it was the only vegetable available. No other greens such as watercress or snow pea shoots, or even chinese broccoli. Dinner was OK, but not what we have come to expect from our meals here based on several other visits.

After a long day at Busch Gardens, we took a chance on a late dinner at Blue Talon hoping there would be no meltdowns. Started with the charcuterie plate which was a big help in getting our son happy. Came with a nice variety of items, all very good. He also got a half order of the chicken and mushroom crepes which I really liked, but he was a little surprised because it was baked, which was different from crepes he had previously, and therefore initially "not good." He warmed up to it and did eventually eat about half, which was fine since he had eaten the charcuterie.

Wife and daughter split the salmon which was really nice and a good light dinner just before the drive back home. I unfortunately opted for the meatloaf which was a delicious, but much heavier meal. Should note that after the waiter had sold me on getting the short ribs, they ran out of the short ribs just as I was ordering.

The highlight of the meal I think was the hot chocolate. The kids were a little cold after a somewhat rainy day at Busch Gardens so we got them hot chocolate, which they drank about half and left the rest for us to finish. This was the best hot chocolate I have had with rich dark chocolate flavor. It was rich enough that it could be a full dessert. 

We were also grateful that they got us in and out within just over an hour both for kids impending potential for a meltdown and our desire to get on the road, which we mentioned to the waiter upon sitting down when he asked if we had been before.

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Had a nice weekend in Williamsburg with some decent and good eats. Best food was lunch Two Drummers Smokehouse bbq restaurant in Toano (this is 20 minutes outside of Williamsburg about 10 minutes detour off the highway on the way toward Richmond/95 - I found it on yelp). I had the two meat combo for $15 for a large amount of food includes good cornbread and choice of 2 sides. Brisket was spot on - nice smoke, juicy, a bit fatty, nice bark. Chicken was juicy breast meat, but a bit plain. Both went well with the red memphis-style sweet Rudimentary sauce. On the table are also a mustard vinegar that was ok, a hot red sauce that wasn't too hot, and upon request a bit too sweet peach bbq sauce. The Rudimentary was good, the rest were ok - although the vinegar may have been great with pulled pork which I didn't try.  The sweet potato fries were delish and cole slaw was pretty good (not too vinegary and not too laden with mayo or maybe none at all if I recall right). Hushpuppies were ok - a bit plain and dry.  Kids liked their chicken fingers and wife like the pecan crusted chicken.  Place is cozy, a bit dark with a bar and waiter service but very casual. It looks like some evenings they have live music. I'd go again for the brisket, cornbread, Rudimentary sauce and value meal.  Another place we went was DoG Pub, which was rather good and is in the merchants square just steps west of the west end of the historic area. We had a very nice 3 cheese plate, pretty good/not great fish and chips (good quality fish but both fish and chips could have been crispier), washed it down with a very nice Mead from nearby VA. This place was very busy and I recommend getting a reservation. They had a huge beer and drink list. Very friendly and quick service. Also, if you are in the historic area and want some quick snacks that are not "historic", the Williams and Mary B&N bookstore is next to the DoG pub just west of the historic area - they have a cafe with all kinds of snacks and starbucks coffee.

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Shields Tavern accepts reservation.  That was the best part of the restaurant.  The atmosphere is nice too, with a strolling musician.  

The food was decent.  From the Tavern Sampler, the kids enjoyed the grilled shrimp.  The glazed chicken is similar to Buffalo wings, with a less spicy/vinegary sauce.

The savory beef pastry is a mild pasty, with just a hint of curry seasoning (I'm saying it could use more seasoning).

The fried chicken was nothing special - not really crispy, not really well seasoned.  The green beans were a little undercooked to me.

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