The Cove

I love it here!
Dined here today and had a great experience! !
The weather was superb so we dined on the outdoor patio with a gorgeous view of the fountains at Oyster Point Center Center. The sun was shining just enough for the outdoor table umbrella to shade us but still offer a nice breeze as we enjoyed our time before our food arrived.
Our waitress Jocelyn was on point and a pleasure from start to finish.
Perhaps I’m giving the five stars based on me loving the outside seating and the view, but idk the food was super great too!
My hot and spicy turkey burger was cooked to perfection and my sweet potato fries although not hot in temperature, they were just right for me.
I tried a glass of the Roscato Red wine… well first I tried a sample (Yup they can give you a sample), and I absolutely loved it. So yup, I had a glass with my meal. I was throughly pleased. Only $ 7 too. And a bottle $ 23.
We parked in a nearby parking garage and a short 5 min or less walk we reached the restaurant with no wait in line.
I’m still all cheers for this location and I recommend you give it a try. And if the weather is awesome, like today, omg you’re in for a real treat.
And after you dine, take a stroll around the fountains and enjoy the breeze and the quietness. This part of Newport News is a breath of fresh air.
There are other dining options around too, something for everyone. But I’m a proud repeat customer at the Cove Tavern!
Have fun | Enjoy :)

I was not pleased. The calamari did not have any flavor and it wasn’t fried hard enough. The crab dip was mediocre… but the killer is the bread that was served with it… they use hamburger buns with butter that was grilled. I will not be returning

The flounder is near local. Fun atmosphere and nice service makes this a great place for locals and tourists, for personal or business meals. The lump crab was phenomenal.

Service was rude and I ordered a top shelf margarita and drank a bottom shelf one. The hamburger is not award winning in my book will not be coming back.

My husband and I chose Cove Tavern for our Valentine’s Day date because, honestly, we couldn’t get reservations anywhere else. Our server, Stephen, was fun, very polite, and attentive. The food was absolutely delicious. My entrée was the best salmon I’ve ever had. The garlic mashed potatoes were to die for. My husband said he steak wasn’t fantastic but it was «pretty good,» which is high praise from a man of few words. We will definitely be back.
*the restaurant is a bit hard to find. It’s between the two parking garages. Anyone with average reasoning skills can figure it out.

Got there around 7 on a Saturday night and it was pretty empty– that’s never a good sign to me. We had great service, the waiter was extremely friendly and very personable. I ordered the turkey burger and fries, and while it wasn’t bad, it’s not something I’ll order again. The look and texture of the turkey burger made me question whether or not it was actually turkey or if it was beef. Overall, just not super impressed. We are the deep fried Oreos for dessert and they were delicious! I wouldn’t mind coming back just for those.

I was pretty impressed with this place. The server was very friendly and the food was good. I ordered a salad and was very picky in how I wanted it made. For example, I added some things and removed other things. They were very willing to do this and did not charge extra for the other items. The salad was very good by the way. I tasted my husbands greens and Mac n cheese and that wasn’t bad either. I heard they have the best Burger in the area. Will definitely return to try other items on the menu.

It seems like this location used to be nicer. Now it looks as though it’s a rowdier place. I guess it depends on what you like! The food is good and they did put some cool desserts on the menu, so that is pretty awesome.

Went here for the first time and enjoyed myself. Our waiter Ryan was friendly and funny and the food was really good.
I ordered the shrimp and grits. My only complaint was that there was not enough grits and the ham was a bit salty. But it came with garlic bread which i used to soak up the delicious sauce. I loved it. My friend got the seafood tower and that was awesome. For apps we got the thai spiced wings and calamari. The calamari was good and i would come back for the wings alone.
Overall great atmosphere good food. Would definitely come back.

If you’re looking for something new and refreshing, this is the place. A GREAT mix of excellent food, beverage and friendliness. It all comes together, at ‘The Cove.’

Ate here last night with a friend. I was impressed at the level of service from our waitress (Elizabeth) considering we were on the patio and that’s not always a recipe for good service. She kept our water glasses full, checked on us regularly but not too much and was very friendly. I went for the shrimp and grits. WOW. The sauce was flavorful with just enough kick to it. The thin fried onion rings were a great touch and added some different texture. The shrimp was delicious and the grits were perfectly cooked. Big fan of this meal and the presentation of the food was fantastic. They know what they are doing for sure!

My cousin and I visited this restaurant on the night of the Mayweather/​Pacquio fight, which we did not know at the time. We found out when we were asked to leave our table because another party had paid to reserve it for the fight. I guess this was an unusual situation because no one told us until the reserving party was standing there waiting for us to get up and leave. It was also apparently DJ night because at some point during our meal the music went from background to nightclub, hence no more conversation without yelling. I asked and was told that after a certain hour there is a cover charge to come in for dancing and music. That was our second surprise of the night.
Of course, before I can even review the food I have to say that even with some familiarity with City Center, and a GPS, we drove around and around and around until we finally found this place, because it is off the road and hidden by a parking garage on one side and a large fountain on the other. We called and had 2 staff try to tell us how to get there before we finally saw the place. What also made it hard to find was a line of limos parked along the curb waiting for a million prom goers to have their pictures taken at the fountain. Suffice it to say it was obviously a busy night for Cove Tavern goers.
When we entered we saw several families with toddlers, as it seems no place is off limits when it comes to dining out with little kids, but we asked to sit away from kids. We were seated next to a table of high school prom goers all out for a formal evening.
My cousin was drinking Cosmopolitans from the bar like a fish, and she said they were made just the way she likes them, which is a good thing considering how many she consumed. I ordered an open face Arapas for an appetizer and it was very good. For dinner I ordered the brisket which was amazingly delicious. I savored every bite. I did not finish all of it as the portion was very generous. My cousin got the Cobb Salad and said it wonderful. It was a very large salad but she managed to finish it.
We wanted dessert, something like crème brûlée or something light, but none of the desserts appealed to us so we passed. I would return here just for the brisket, but I would probably come at lunch or during the week when a quiet, relaxing dinner doesn’t have to compete with dance music, proms and pay per view.

Delcious. I got the burrito, it was so good, who know there would be a burrito on the menu.

GREAT burgers, fries are good, very friendly staff. A HUGE bar. Little complaints. Nice place to go for a drink or two after work.

One thing… fix your broke ass, wobbly tables. Check them. If they are wobbly, fix them. Otherwise, LOVE this place!!!

Surprised to see so many negative reviews because this place is awesome. I’ve been here at night and in the daytime and I’ve had good experience both times. My BF bought me here on a date and recently I brought my friends here while we were in the area since I liked it so much the first time.
The food was great, drinks were reasonably priced, and our server Dontrel (I hope I spelled it right) was fantastic. I’m a Pescatarian so I’m very critical of seafood dishes and the ones I’ve had here are very good. My friends were also impressed with the food and service. I’d definitely come back.

This place has really gone down to nothing when it was the red star tavern it was more sophisticated. And it drew a more sophisticated crowd. Now it’s ridiculous and the type of people that come there are questionable doesn’t blend well with the area now. the food is mediocre the wait staff the young man that did serve me displayed great customer service skills, kudos! to him but that’s all I can say.

My friend and I were roaming around at about 9pm on a Saturday night. We found this place and saw it was open til 2am — so we decided to try it out. He had the steak and asparagus and I had a few glasses of sangria. The food and the sangria were phenomenal. After a few glasses I was ready to stay there for alittle while. Our waiter, brought us our check without us asking for it. I told him I wanted another glass. As he brought us another glass of sangria he ALSO brought us another check… really dude. We felt like he was pushing us out the door because his shift was up, but there were many more people in the restaurant. Cool.

The first two drinks were great. Then ten o’clock rolls around, the lights dim and the DJ comes on and they shrink our glasses and lower the alcohol content. Then they lie about it. We tell them we can’t taste the alcohol and the waitress claims they can only put so much alcohol in the drink. We tell her to take the drinks off the tab and the manager magically puts more alcohol in the drink for us. Absolutely ridiculous. Will never come here again.

I like it here! This last time made visit number 3 or 4! I haven’t had a disappointing visit and that’s a great thing! A few bumps but no biggie to made a hoopla over!
I always enjoy the painkiller (alcholic beverage) and the baja fish tacos :) But this last time, I decided to try something different.
The salmon dinner with mixed veggies, citrus rice and a side of asparagus! Very good! Mmmmm sounds good right about now! ok ok…
I ordered the salmon well done and it was cooked to perfection. The veggies were tasty! A fullfilling meal indeed! Now before the meal arrived, they brought out little cornbread muffins. They were just ok. I did try one just because, but definitely not a fan!
Our waitress (we sat at a booth around the bar), Alyssa, super cute and attentive! She definitely made our dining experience more enjoyable! So enjoyable that we decided to sit at the bar top to be closer to her :) and had a few more drinks and ordered some BBQ wings.
She informed us on Friday nights a live DJ spins, but the past Friday no DJ was present. Hopefully, they have things under control going forward. But on Saturday afternoon, it seemed as though Pandora was playing the tunes and it was a great variety. I loved it!
There are several televisions visible for your viewing pleasure. It’s an upscale sports bar in my opinion. Along the sports bar scene, because sports is heavily present on the tubes. And the restaurant is affliated with Roger Brown’s in Portsmouth, VA. Roger Brown… hence a former pro footballer.
Overall, I love the set up and vibe of the restaurant. It is always a pleasure to visit!
See you soon. Hopefully on a warm summer night… they have patio seating with views of the City Center Fountations. It is super gorgeous and sexy! Definitely a great place to have a date night!
Have fun :)

Do not waste your hard-​earned money and precious time on this joke of a restaurant. I beg this of you. If I could «award» it a half a star, I would. The food was insulting, I had concerns about its safety, and the manager was quite rude when we respectfully expressed our concerns about the food. I’ll do my best to describe it.
My 3 year old son ordered shrimp and fries. The fries both looked and tasted as if they had been left out overnight and then refried various times throughout the day before being served to him withered and cold. My son refused to eat them. I tell you, when a toddler refuses french fries, you know there is a serious problem.
Next of concern was my crab cake «sandwich.» My sister also ordered this. This dish was truly the most horribly presented, unattractive, unappetizing thing I have ever ordered at a restaurant. I was speechless when it arrived. There was a bun, both sides burnt, with a few shreds of iceberg lettuce, and a small tomato end (as in the end of the tomato, which consists largely of stem). And a crab cake that was charred on the outside and gooey on the inside. Nothing comforting about gooey seafood. This is what happens when FROZEN food is not appropriately cooked. Yum. We asked the server for a small plate of tomatoes because of the unacceptable nature of the tomato on my sandwich. What he brought out was laughable. They were grainy, the peels were frayed, and if tomatoes could look «sad» and «sickly,» that is what they were.
The other disappointing dish was the calamari. ZERO calamari rings. Just a few big blobs of overly fried tentacles. Horrible.
We were seated in the back of the restaurant, right beside the door to the kitchen– probably because we had kids. The silver door was smeared in gunk, fingerprints, and overall gave me a queasy feeling to look at.
The most disturbing part of our experience at this restaurant, though, was the manager. He could stand to take a class on successful public relations. He was quite rude. For example, when we expressed our concern about the tomatoes, he held one up in front of my face and claimed that there was nothing wrong with them and that they were simply cut too thin. If this is the manager’s standard for food, then this restaurant is doomed, because it means that this experience was not just a fluke.
We left having each eaten an average of only two bites of our meals. We paid and got out of there and still felt sick afterwards. Save you money, time, and well being and avoid this place like the plague!

Last night I went there for the first time and it was horrible. The service is super incredibly molasses slow and not to pull out the racial card but the red headed bartender looked at me dead in the eyes and went to a white guy. The other patron was kind enough to say, «he was waiting here first» (so I ended buying his drink out of generosity). She actually passed 3 times, just saying.
I got an overpriced Stella and holy F-​word it was crappy. The glass was dirty and beer was piss warm.
I will never go back and I encourage people to do the same.
Have a good day :-)

Y’know, the service was just OK (a little slow), but the burgers really hit the spot. The beer selection was pretty good, too. I always like St. George’s English IPA — tasty, with a sweetness that makes the hops not so hoppy but still hoppy, know what I mean? No… OK then. (Stay away from the house «wine».)
There was good music, it was clean, and the other diners were having a good time but respectful despite the beer. Great? Nah. Good for the price? Definitely.
Go there.

I’m really surprised by seeing so many poor reviews about The Cove. We recently moved in across the street and have been thrilled with having a place that serves such good food, has a wide drink selection, and with such a great view of the fountains.
My wife and I often try new things every time we come and we’re always very happy with our selections. I saw that many of the complaints have been price related and I think places that substitute quality for quantity aren’t really good places and we have felt that The Cove is of good quality with great service. We’re regulars and I hope you become one too.

After visiting a few more times I believe Fridays are local DJ night. Gets very loud and club-​like. Or at least it tries to be. Saturdays are much more chill. Good time to grab some drinks and you’ll actually be able to hold conversation. Mixed drinks are surprisingly well priced.
I’m going to add a running tally of things I’ve tried…
Caesar salad– pretty good
Caesar with salmon– good
Ahi tuna wrap– meh
Flank steak– great
Chicken quesadilla– good
Fries– awesome
Burger– good — especially $ 5 (might be 6) Wednesdays
Chicken or Steak Tortas — great — Steak was pretty messy
Chicken fingers — good
Chicken wings — amazing, but not really worth it — like 8 wings for 10 bucks IIRC