The Golden Pony

I’ve been supporting the Golden Pony since it first opened last year. As a JMU alum and former Harrisonburg resident I think it’s important for establishments like these to come up in the community. It is always my first stop when I come into town. My favorite is the pizza and good variety of beers on tap. I love how they support the local arts with the art work on the walls and live music in the basement. I even bought a painting and the management took care to ship it to me across the country. Keep up the good work and can’t wait to see you all again.

What can I say that has not already been said. The pizza is on point, the atmosphere is great, and the music is spot on. The venue downstairs probably has one of the best line ups in the valley. Do yourself a favor and go to the pony.

I’m a big fan of the Golden Pony for so many reasons.
1. The food — always delicious! I’ve been for brunch, dinner, and happy hour and every single time, I’ve been so pleased with consistency, taste, and variety. I have food allergies (dairy) and the kitchen has always been so helpful in modifying dishes so that I can enjoy them. Bonus points: my fiancé and I LOVE the nachos but he can eat cheese and I can’t. On multiple occasions, the kitchen went so far as to split the order into two plates and make one with cheese and one without. And they never made it seem like an issue — even when they were busy! That kind of willing customer service is so hard to find.
2. The staff — every member of the waitstaff is kind, super capable, and make you feel unrushed. The owner is one of the nicest people you will meet.
3. The atmosphere — the dining room is always decorated with beautiful artwork and the seating is very comfortable. I love how they have created a space that feels both welcoming and warm.
4. The drink — they have a great selection of craft beer (local and not) and bourbon/​whiskey. Their cocktail menu is fabulous and I like the unique twist on standards like the margarita.
Overall, this place absolutely gets a ⁵⁄₅ stars. I’ve since moved from Harrisonburg but will definitely have GP on my list of places to pop in when I’m back in town.

Unlike one of the other reviewers I think this place is very reasonably priced. We just went for a quick breakfast without drinks, but checked out the drink and dinner menu. The place looks good. The servers was nice. The breakfast was very good but the sausage tasted a bit strange to us. I know they make their own maybe it was an off morning or maybe we just aren’t used to the spices they use. I was nervous about bringing our kids here (as I had heard it w as more of a bar type location) but it was a great place to bring the kids for breakfast. I would bring them here for lunch or/​and an early dinner. I look forward to eating and even having a drink or two here again in the near future.

eh honestly it’s a little over priced and I expect it to go out of business soon. I never seen anyone in here. Not even for drinks. Not on weekends. Come here if everything else is busy in Harrisonburg.

My husband and I are always on the lookout for vegan eats on the road, serving craft beer is a huge plus of course. I had the tofu sandwich and my husband had the black bean burger. Neither were bad, but nothing to go stark raving mad about. The inside of this place is rad and a semi-​decent selection of craft beers. Menu had a few other vegan options we didn’t get to try. It’s close to the highway and a nice stop on a long road trip to relax for a few, have a bite to eat and a drink.

We ordered from here for lunch as a group one day recently. I was super excited to try a new restaurant (as I always am) and was interested to see what an old employee (the owner) in the old Blue Nile spot would do with the place and the menu. A small part of our order was wrong (which seems to happen to us at a lot of restaurants when you order 4 or more menu items at a time), the burgers were dry and very peppery (black pepper) and the fries weren’t good (not because they had been in a to-​go box). All of us only got sandwiches, so I cannot speak for their pizza or late night brunch. I have to say I was disappointed for a downtown burger & pizza joint, that has to compete with places like Cuban Burger, Jack Brown’s, and Clementine’s. Their menu isn’t anything super special either — most everything you can get somewhere else in town (and tastes better). The up-​side is their prices were reasonable. On a side note, their website is difficult to navigate, particularly if you’re on a smart phone and trying to get to their menu. I probably won’t be back, as there are other, better options around town.

Don’t miss out on this restaurant/​venue. Fantastic food, entertainment, and atmosphere. Highlights include the outstanding pizza buffet, craft beer selection, and music at the downstairs venue/​bar. The arcade games and bartenders choices of indie & folk Spotify playlists are nice touches as well!

Cool place. Nicely decorated inside with exposed brick. Great outdoor deck and patio. Brunch is for lunch on Saturday and Sunday and it’s all good. Especially love open face egg and guacamole sandwich. Huevos rancheros is another must try. I did not experience it for myself, but I imagine this place is cool and lively in the evenings with live music and a few beers.

Waitress was very accommodating for dietary restrictions. But very little to work with if a vegetarian and gluten free. Real issue had to do with timing. We arrived and only two tables were seated, one guy at the bar for what it’s worth. After deciding what to order in roughly 15 minutes, our food took 50 minutes. Three tables who came in after Us got their full meal. When we asked were our food was the waitress disappeared into the kitchen– if she forgot to put the ticket in thats fine mistakes happen, it just would have been nice to be told rather then be left under the assumption the kitchen is that slow all the time. Didn’t order anything wild either– two burgers and a salad. When the food did come out, the fries were cold on both burger plates. While the smokey Robinson was a great burger it would have been nice warm. The salad and hummus were the easiest to make and the last to come out further proving my hunch that the waitress forgot to put the ticket in. Hey I waited on tables once too. Best to just let the table know what’s going on in the future. Don’t think I’ll be coming back here, maybe for second chances but doubtful.

Heard this was a new spot & wanted to give it a try since we’ve been going to Benny’s pizza. The hostess at the door was very pleasant & welcoming. We got seated immediately & it was busy for a rainy night. Our waitress was also very prompt & pleasant. We asked what she had for local beers, being that we’re just visiting Virginia for a short while. She didn’t know them off the top of her head, but she did have them written down. We tried a local beer that wasn’t that great & a cocktail, the caipirinha… Which was just 5 limes squeezed in soda water… Nothing near a caipirinha. We ordered the bukowski which was the specialty pizza. Nothing special at all… & the pony boy burger was nothing great either. We would’ve gone back for average food & good service… if it wasn’t for the hair on the pizza.

My husband had a cheeseburger and I had pizza and the marinated tofu on a bed of spinach. I can honestly say after tasting his burger also, everything was excellent. I need to address an issue, however. His burger patty was probably 3 ounces (COOKED) and only covered ²⁄₃ of the bun. That’s not good. Charge a little more and cover that roll! Att the cost of 8.00, the tofu appetizer was barely enough for me, much less sharing with anyone else. For 8.00 the pizza buffet was a deal during lunchtime.

Got my oil changed down the road and stopped by here to waste the time. Atmosphere is great. I could chill with friends here for awhile. I got the cheese pizza (only one size 16″) and as the atmosphere, awesome. Crust was thin and crispy and the ingredients were fresh. The staff is also really nice.