Hatchet Tap & Table

Small food selection, but what I’ve had was firmly in the C+ to B+ range. I do really love the beers on tap and the bar tender is patient and knowledgeable and happy to help make a selection with you. For the menu, I’d love to see another vegetarian option added such as pasta with a bunch of fresh veggies but overall, I am glad this addition came to Richmond and I’ve had several satisfying meals here (though dinner for one with 2 drinks is over $ 40, which is pretty expensive considering the atmosphere).
Aesthetically: the wood and dark room is lovely and the bar is attractive, though its plastic stools aren’t exactly welcoming. Unfortunately 25% of the dining room suffers during the winter months when the door opens because there’s no buffer against the blast of cold air. I’d also really like them to add little hooks at the bar for somewhere to put a coat and purse. Lastly I’ve seen other reviews mention the noise level and it does reach a painful level if the room is more than half full.
Because having a conversation with your companion (date) is not possible, I don’t feel a $ 40 per person cost is the right fit for the space, and that is why I’ve given 3 stars. Considering the environment it should either be a cool beer bar that serves above average food and you can get dinner and drinks for yourself at around $ 28, or it should be a fancy date place that costs $ 40 each but you can have a lovely time sharing a non-​shouting conversation with your date.

This check-​in was really for yesterday (Friday night.). We were celebrating my boyfriend’s birthday with a friend.
AMBIANCE
As others have noted the venue is quite loud, even louder than many places in Manhattan. I commented on this upon walking in because we could hear the bar all the way from the corner of the street. The hostess said they were aware of the problem and they plan to install some acoustic tiles, which I think will help greatly… we were seated at a booth in the middle of the restaurant and it was necessary to yell during our whole visit in order to talk with each other. Otherwise, the place does a good job at freshening up the Richmond scene a bit, for the industrial chic look works well in this town. And I have to say that I was super glad not to see any filament bulbs (until I saw the bathroom). By contrast, the bar itself is an architectural, pleasant contrast to the rough-​hewn look of the rest of the place.
FOOD
As a litmus test, I decided to dive into a plate of fish and chips. In a word, disappointing. At $ 19 in Vermont, the proportion should either be massive (not that any of us need massive portions) or the presentation or interpretation should offer something unique. Neither of these qualities were present. The two strongly positive qualities about the dish were the bread batter for the fish and fries themselves. The bread batter was fried to perfection, but sadly lacked any seasoning. The french fries were seasoned perfectly and were really good, but by the time they reach the table they were cold. Another note on the positive, the fish was not overcooked.
By way of suggestion, I would always serve fish and chips with vinegar. And the slaw (as has been mentioned in at least one of the review) is entirely unimaginative and boring… It’s something akin to warm, raw cabbage dressed in olive oil with maybe a hint of Apple?
SERVICE
At the end of the meal, the server came over and asked for feedback, which as frankly as I offered this review, I provided to her. I think she was a bit taken aback, but she immediately suggested ways that she could compensate us for our perceived lack of value, without the slightest bit of condescension nor even defensiveness. After I assured her that I was simply offering feedback out of pure good will so that it could make its way to the kitchen for improvements, and I declined any compensation.
She nonetheless came back with the bill having removed the drinks from our tab (which I returned to her in the tip, by the way.)
WORTH ANOTHER VISIT?
All in all, I would consider going back to Hatchet especially considering I was happy to eat at any time in the restaurant that was there before… But it really is more of a drinking place right now than an eating place.
That said, I offer three stars for truly strong effort in the right direction: 80% there to justify the prices… Just keep forging ahead and I’ll be sure to be back!

Their pickle plate, corn bread and mac & cheese are favorites. Fun atmosphere. They do a lot of community outreach, too. Eat good, do good.
Fresh beef and really tasty fritters

I had dinner here last night while on a date (rolling the dice with a new restaurant on a 3^rd date, why not!) and I was not disappointed! We had the buffalo wings to start-​the blue cheese was think and chunky and the wings were mildly spiced and tasted good. I thought they could have been cooked a little crispier, but I would order these again.
I had the fish and chips; the fries were some of the best fries I have ever had. I don’t know what was on them for seasoning, but damn, they were good. They too could have been a little crispier (maybe need to tweak the heat on your oil?). The fish was moist and tasty inside a very crispy batter coating. The slaw that came with it was really the only thing I did not enjoy. It didn’t have enough vinegar or tang to contrast the deep fried fish and fries.
My date had the lobster roll which was loaded with lobster meat and tasted delicious. She got the salad and the dressing was very tasty. They had a good beer list and some interesting looking cocktails. Not much for a wine list though. Based on previous reviews, we were concerned that it may be too loud, but we did not think it was too loud. We arrived at 7 and quickly got a table, but it did fill in after that.
I would totally go here again and would have given them 5 stars if the slaw was dressed a little more and the fries and wings were a little crispier.

It was so good that I forgot to take a picture! BBQ chicken sandwich mmm — hubby got the burger and gobbled it without sharing a bite lol
Huge tap list– we had 4 different Hill Farmsteads including two personal favorites (the colab Limencello and S&S#5)!!
We will be selfishly coming back here often, the waitress was bright and all smiles, the décor was very cool, and the experience definitely calls for 5 stars!

We met some friends for dinner tonight to try tour new local restaurant. We had about a 20 min wait. Reservations for groups over 10 only.
What a difference from the old bridge street café. They really did a nice job with the interior, the tall table could use different stools as they weren’t very comfortable They also out in a «shuffleboard» style game down the center of the space. While it looks nice it seems to take up valuable table space for only a few people to utilize.
Service was really great, attentive and very friendly.
We tried appetizers; fritters, fries w Rosemary and maple ginger glazed wings. The wings were addictive.
For dinner we all tried different options from pierogi, burger, steak and fish. Think the winners were the steak and fish but all were really well thought out and prepared. All their bread is from Sweet Simone’s next door. Yay!
Nice beer and cocktail selections as well
Overall love having them local and great addition to the Richmond community.

My partner and I stopped by for the first time on Sunday afternoon. We had planned on just swinging by the creemee window, but I grew up with the Bridge St Café & the curiosity was too strong. We peeked inside and took a seat at the bar. We had Hill Farmstead — Society & Solitude and an Edward — and ordered a basket of fries. The portion was easily enough for 4 to share — much more than we’d get in Burlington.
The menu looked so good that we took my parents for dinner the next day. Our table had the buffalo wings (small, but meaty & tasty), the pierogi (good, but kind of boring compared to everything else), the pulled BBQ chicken sandwich (a winner & gorgeous bun), the beet salad (had more greens and dressing than expected, but so delicious), and the table favorite of the evening, the tempeh Reuben. Even my parents, who were pretty skeptical when I told them what tempeh was, loved it. My partner kept stealing bites and finally just asked if he could finish it… it was that good.
The waitress was attentive and friendly, the interior looks beautiful. It does have a lot of hard surfaces, so noise is a bit of an issue when it’s busy. Overall, great experience — can’t wait to pass though Richmond again