RA Bistro

Had the cutest, most adorable red headed waitress at RA Thursday night on the patio! She made our evening so enjoyable! Great recommendations, the right amount of attention and so fun! Thanks RA!

Great food and service. A must for a great time out with friends.

Excellent food! Everything was done perfectly. The hostess and the server were wonderful!

Apart from the rib-​eye, you really could get a similar quality meal in the frozen food section of Walmart/Sam’s Club.

Called 7 times to make a reservation. Got hung up first 3 times and they didn’t answer the phone the last 4. Spend your money elsewhere.

Ate lunch here last week, was just ok for me. Our server was great so that made things good. I had the chicken sandwich. Sandwich wasn’t bad but the chicken was a little tough. Coworker had the salmon and said it wasn’t bad.

The atmosphere and the décor are not only inviting but the perfect setting for a date night. You have the option to sit inside with candle light at the table or out on the balcony under the lights hung up. All of the staff are inviting and our waiter was wonderful. The menu has lots of options and our food came out quickly but was prepared to perfection. I highly recommend the Tuscan Chicken and the Sirloin. There are weekly drink specials and then they also offer brunch on Sunday’s. I normally do not give five stars but this one deserves it! We will definitely be back many times! My new favorite place in Lburg!

The dishes are some of the best in the area. This is definitely semi-​casual foodie dining. The food is always served well with great sauces and quality products. It’s not cheap, but well worth what you pay. Also, dinner service is slow, but the waiters and waitresses are polite and attentive. They’re just busy because they have great made to order food. Lunch is more fast paced. I recommend lunch if you’re in a hurry (or impatient) and dinner if you have time to relax and enjoy a great meal. I can’t wait to return!

One of our favorite date night locations. The drink specials throughout the week are great and their food is always amazing! The atmosphere is inviting but still a different feel than what you find in other lynchburg restaurants.

We were a group of 4 when we ate here last January 15, 2016 and everything we ordered were delicious. My son though ordered their Pad Thai, it was good but didn’t taste like Pad Thai at all. The desserts we had were the perfect ending for a good meal. Service was good too. I would definitely dine here again when I get to visit Lynchburg again.

Excellent food and authentic environment. Good for groups as well. Great bar and pub food.

American Call it a 3.8 on the rating scale.
Pretty solid place with a decent sized menu — I would term it as American.
RA is one of the larger places in downtown Lynchburg and can be pretty packed out especially in the summer months when their outdoor seating areas are open. You may want to call ahead no matter the season though.
Servers are very attentive and the know the menu pretty well. I have hit both the bar area and sat to eat and I feel the servers are the better choice if you are trying to find something for your food allergy folks that are with you. The bartenders do make good drinks but seem not as sure on the menu.
On the bar side of the house, there is a large listing of drink specials if that is your sort of thing.
Food is solid — there are a lot of interesting things on there beyond the usual suspects for appetizers. Moving to mains there is a lot of burgers on the menu, which all look good, but I am trying to stay away from burgers these days. Beyond the bun there is a nice selection of everything from seafood to steaks and there are daily specials to try.
The atmosphere is «warehouse-​ie» with open ceilings and brick walls. The place gets on the loud side, so be aware of that.
All in all a good experience with solid food and help.
Parking is scattered with some lots around but nothing specifically marked for RA (at least that I could see).

This place is a great dining experience. The food selection is wonderful and very reasonable. The Bar area is fine and they always have great Specials. This is a must dine in experience when I travel to Lynchburg.
The wait staff is professional and just in time service throughout the meal. The Key Lime Pie is as good as it gets.

Always great at RA. Tuscan chicken with goat cheese my favorite by far. Specialty Burgers always loved by all. Cocktail selection amazing.
Waitstaff always wonderful.

Awesome House Burger!!! Would absolutely recommend this restaurant! Service and food were exceptional!!!

I’m late writing this review but this establishment was too good not to review. The menu is awesome, so many things choose from that it’s actually kind of hard to do so. But; the martini menu is extremely impressive, it’s the best bets to go on Monday for «Martini Mondays» and get them for half-​price. The staff was very outgoing and extremely friendly. I have to say the food was very enjoyable, presentation was spot on and the flavors were out of this world. Definitely making this price a regular every time I come back to Lynchburg.

Came here in mid-​June. We stopped by for a bite to eat based on the Unilocal reviews.
When we arrived, we were seated immediately. It took a while for our server to show up, but she was friendly. Unfortunately it took about 45 minutes for our food to come. My friend ordered the lunch prix fixe which was a breakfast wrap and fruit, while I ordered a Santa Fe Chicken salad.
Two tables who came in after us got their food 30 minutes after we sat down and when we asked our waitress why our food was taking so long, she apologized and said that the ordered probably got moved and went in a different order. Really? While we were waiting for 45 minutes, I came across the free artichoke dip when you check into RA. That came out hot 15 minutes later.
The food was mediocre and we were disappointed with how long our food came especially when our orders involved plating fruit, lettuce into a tortilla shell, and rolling up a wrap. We were definitely annoyed when other food came out before ours when we sat down first and the chefs in the back got the orders mixed up?
If the manager came out to apologize and offered a free soda or something to offset the wait, we would have had a different experience. Probably won’t go back if in the area again.

We came to RA on Mother’s Day and got a free petite spinach dip for checking in. The dip was good but a bit cold. Our server was very friendly and did a great job of being attentive. Mimosas were $ 2 and they also had a brunch menu.
I ordered the «Merica burger» which was a burger with a hot dog, macaroni and pulled pork on top of it. Sounds like a lot… it was but it was very good. I got sweet potato fries on the side and those were also very good. Everyone else at the table seemed to enjoy their food and my wife ordered the tiramisu for dessert.
Overall the meal was great. Some prices seem to be a little high and the temperature of the food when it gets to the table is something that can be worked on. Would come back again.

Eh, this place is ok. I want to support it because it is a local place and it is downtown, but this place is hit or miss for me.
First of all, I feel like the menu changes every few months. The pictures you’re viewing on here may in fact not even be menu items anymore. There’s no sense of familiarity when you keep changing the food. Sometimes the changes are better, sometimes worse. It seems like once they went super fancy and expensive, then next it was all seafood, then an emphasis on burgers. I just wish they’d figure it out. I commend them for recognizing when things aren’t going well and trying something else instead, but, a lot of people keep coming back to a restaurant because they like something on the menu. The food overall is fine. It’s nothing out of this world, but it’s not bad. A bit pricey, and then you’ve got the 11% downtown tax.
Pay attention to the weekly deals. Monday is $ 5 Martinis (their martini list is almost obnoxious — desirable if you love super sweet girly drinks), Tap Out Tuesday $ 2 for beers they are trying to get rid of (we used to love this, but it’s gone DOWNHILL as far as the beer quality), I believe Wednesday is a wine special. They also do a Sunday brunch with fairly cheap mimosas.
I do love their patios, yes, plural. They have one that’s nicely tucked away in the back beyond the bar and then one off the side, both of which are covered. Overall, I’m not saying I’ll never go here again, but it is not anywhere on the top of my list of places we go when we are heading out to get a bite to eat. There’s lots of seating inside and outside and this place is good for groups, they even have a private room for corporate meetings or private birthdays.

Went on a first date here.
Very pleasant atmosphere,
Nice and warm inside,
Great food,
Pretty good drinks,
Great service,
Quick service,
Clean restrooms.
Definitely enjoyed my time there,
and I’ll definitely go back.