Eat An American Bistro

The drinks were great! The cauliflower cheddar cobbler was awesome! The brussel spouts were delicious! Moms crab cake was out of this world! Shonie, our server did his job perfectly, he told us the good, the bad and the ugly about the menu and was prompt, helpful and kept up with us throughout the night. He also gave us a to go box full of ice, which sounds unusual but I needed it for my bourbon back at the house I was staying at that had no ice… I would highly recommend giving this place a try!

Hubby and I snuck away from kids to have a quaint dinner out. We had ventured here awhile back for drinks and an appetizer and loved the concept and atmosphere. We were very excited to go back to enjoy the «whole» experience with dinner.
First off, it was not overly busy. We thought we would get in and out fairly quickly. Hubby was starved and ready to eat. Server was very friendly and took order. She came back a few minutes later to confirm what hubby ordered as she had not written it down. No biggie. I ordered the spinach salad with spiced cashews and the tuna. Hubby ordered the wahoo special.
Waitress asked if we wanted bread and we said sure. It never came. Salad came out fairly reasonable in time and it was a little bland but decent. After this, we waited close to an hour for food. The wait time was insane compared to the small amount of people there. Hubby was getting hangry and I was just hanging out. Food FINALLY came. His was tasty but mine was luke warm. Highly disappointed in whole experience. Not sure if will return. Oh by the way, we got the bread after I requested again when meal came.
They did give hubby crème brûlée on house due to wait but it was too liquory for his taste.

The food was very good, not great, but overpriced for what we got. We had a large party which means they split the check EQUALLY. Who ever heard of such a thing?!! Some got $ 30+ meals and some got $ 17 meals. That’s not right to split the bill equally. The service was good. There’s no free parking and the Über app said it wouldn’t pick up there. The only bathroom there is a gross pool bathroom outside that goes with the hotel behind it. It was really warm in the restaurant too so we were sweating while we ate. Maybe our standards are different in Charlotte, but this place would never survive in a city.

It was absolutely great. Food was excellent. The service was good. Whole staff was very helpful and friendly. Only minus is the parking. Plenty of bike parking, but i have idea where one would park their car.

You really can’t go wrong dining. Unless of course you don’t have a reservation. The nightly specials Are just that SPECIAL!!! *As the bar goes you won’t find a better bartender at the beach!!!
I am sitting at the bar right now and looking at the chalkboard with the nightly specials… Wild boar… rockfish…plus the regular menu… I am torn. So glad my wife wants the boar. Oh if you want to try to eat the Hasslehoff go for it. That’s my mid week staple. Just ask anyone from the north end where they like to dine or drink and they will tell you EAT.

what a pleasant surprise. I was headed to another place and had fouled up the address. We decided to give it a shot. I can not wait to go back.

This place is one of the most fantastic finds on the beach front here in Virginia Beach! Although small for a restaurant, Eat is an amazing place to sit and enjoy not only a well made dirty martini but a mouthwatering, and delicious steak. This place surprised me, due to the location. I’ve found that most restaurants here in VA Beach are mediocre at best when it comes to food, drinks, and service. Eat, An American Bistro blows nearly every restaurant on the boardwalk out of the proverbial water.
The ambiance is quiet, cozy and laid back. Two dining rooms and a bar, this place is good for parties of about 8 people but I wouldn’t recommend larger groups. It has outdoor seating as well. Having a reservation is a must at peak summer and spring break times.
The menu is small but mighty. If you’re a lover of the almighty steak I suggest you try their iron seared steak. The duck appetizer is a must order as well, provided you like duck.
All-​in-​all this place is fantastic and I plan to make this place my «go to» for fun evenings on the boardwalk.

Wonderful dining experience. Service was great, our server and the staff went above & beyond. Food was top notch.

All I can say is YUM !!!
Ingredients are quality and the execution is bomb ! Such a lovely place

Simply amazing food!!!
I had the veggie lasagna, fried eggplant app, and the white chocolate bread pudding. The lady had the parpadelle pasta, and the butter grilled angel cake. Woooooooowwwwiee. A must eat place!

We had the oyster Rockefeller and found it good but not great. Also accompanied by a pear cider Crispin, also good. Service was attentive with suggestions as to best choices in menu categories.

I’ve had Eat on my bookmarks for a while, so this was an easy choice for dinner during Virginia Beach Restaurant Week. Be careful with parking here! I parked around the corner at a metered parking space, which is turned off during the off-​season. I didn’t really look around for other parking, but I think there is a garage nearby. I made reservations for 6 because I figured it would be busy, but I think we would’ve been okay not making reservations. The menu isn’t very large, so I opted for the three-​course meal because everything sounded delicious! For my appetizer, I highly recommend the oysters rock. You only get a few, but the flavor is so worth it! My boyfriend got a special appetizer with the tempura shrimp, which was also pretty good. For my meal, I ordered a seafood special with mussels, shrimp, fish, scallops and clams. It was a typical seafood dish, and I started to get full really fast. I tasted my boyfriend’s Hasselhoff burger with an egg on it. I loved that burger! The meat fell apart in your mouth and was juicy. The pomme frites (or french fries) were also very crispy and delicious. For dessert, I had the brioche bread pudding. It was pretty sweet and filling. My only complaint would be that if it wasn’t for restaurant week, the restaurant was pretty pricey, so I don’t know if I would only come here on special occasions. The food was pretty good and service was excellent, so I would recommend Eat!

This is really 3.5 stars. Ants on a log was delicious, and my dog loved the bone later on in the evening. The burger was also good, as were the fries (love the truffle oil on them). Crème brûlée was burned on top. Atmosphere is small and quite loud. We had the misfortune of having a very lively group sitting behind us, which is quite close given how small the dining room is. Not a huge deal, but not conducive to a quiet conversation. Server was very nice, but screwed up a couple of things and apologized by saying, «Sorry, I forget things if I don’t write them down.» Seems like a good suggestion is in there somewhere. Also, when they say no parking, there is literally no parking. No lot. Just a few spots on the street nearby, if you’re lucky.

Fantastic food. First time I’ve ever tried bone marrow. Great HUGE burger that was such great quality it’s hard to call it a burger. Excellent service. Adorable atmosphere. We’ll be back soon!
Only negative is that the bathroom is in a hallway open to the outdoors. Brrrr.

Such a great place to eat and socialize!
Our party of six had oysters, escargot, filets and mahi… everything was super. Our waitress was knowledgeable and kind. The atmosphere was warm and inviting… I can’t wait to go back!

Victoria. That’s all I have to say.
She was gracious and wonderful. We tried several items on the menu, most of which were interesting and/​or good, but Victoria made the experience for us. She was amazing, and her descriptions of the food were right on.

Wow-​wee-​wow-​wow. This place blew me away. From the service, to the wines, to the charcuterie that was well worth it. This is a Virginia Beach gem to say the least. You can’t go wrong with this place, everything we had was exquisite. I can’t say enough about the charcuterie, see my photos when you get a moment and get here!
The only thing I would change about my evening was my table, we were placed next to a rather loud table, when there were other open tables.

Fiancé and I ate here for dinner on a Sunday night during a short stay at Virginia Beach. We had a 6:00 reservation but got there at 5:30 and were seated immediately. The restaurant is designed well and makes good use of the small space. Our waitress was polite and knowledgeable. They were apparrntky changing there menu soon so they were out of several things on their menu, which we weren’t toldnuntil we started ordering and wanted two things they didn’t have. Not really an issue, but would have liked to know at the beginning.
We started with the some lovely cocktails. They have some unique drinks and a fantastic wine list. They even had a wine that is local to where we were from.
For appetizers, we started with the meatballs and the fried Vermont goat cheese. The menu listed the meatballs as being mozzarella stuffed. It came as two tastey meatballs and a parmesian crisp, but no cheese in the meatballs. They were still great. The fried Vermont goat cheese was fantastic. Three very lightly crisped (not breaded) balls of Vermont goat cheese with truffle honey and bagette. The menu listed it to have pear, but it came with pickled beats (?) I believe. It was an amazing dish and my favorite plate of the night.
My fiancé got the filet for his entre wich was just amazing. The filet was cooked perfectly and had a rich balasmic reduction with an onion that had been braised down in the reduction, sitting on top of the steak.
I ended up having the special, which was halibut with lump crab over butter beans. The fish was prepared well but could have used a touch more seasoning. The plate was over all good but a little bit one dimensional.
Over all a fun meal with nice service in a good atmosphere.

My review is coming in a little tardy. I visited EAT in November after consistently hearing positive press and awesome word of mouth. So on a rare evening at the beach by myself I thought it would be a treat to dine at EAT and see if the hype is for real.
Parking is off the street, or public garage. There are always challenges when it comes to finding good and safe parking at the beach. There is a public garage not far. Do NOT park any place that says they will tow you, believe me they will.
Since by myself I elected to set at the small bar room and it is small. Around eight stools and two tables total. There are a couple of TV’s behind the bar. The bartender immediately acknowledged me and welcome me to EAT. This was a great start and I ordered a house red that was so scrumptious, I wish I recalled the name. Do not expect a lot of tap selections, they have bottles and a nice selection of wine.
I thought the person beside me looked familiar and I did a double take and realized it was a local car dealer that has his face plastered on TV constantly, even as I write this review I see his commercials. He was alone tonight as well. We conversed most of the night and found out he is a regular. This is his very favorite place at the beach which really impressed me, that is saying a lot with as many choices at the oceanfront.
I reviewed the menu which is not large and decided to ask the bartender what he would recommend since I was a first timer. He did not hesitate one second. The Oyster Stew is terrific starting point, my new friend agreed. So I put in my order and did some people watching. The bar and tables were now full this week night. I ended up meeting another gentlemen who runs a coffee business at the beach.
Food was out in less than fifteen minutes. This is not something I would usually order, so I was intimidated and held my breath a little as I tried. It ended up being a home run meal. Served with lots of oysters, mash potatoes and yum broth at the bottom. It does have a slight spicy kick, but I tolerated which means i’s not too spicy for most.
The bartender was attentive the entire service. He was friendly and helpful and created the kind of atmosphere where you want to remain at the bar and enjoy your beverages. When it came time to clear he offered a desert which I immediately did not think I could handle. But after some coaxing from my car dealer friend I did order a delicious Pumpkin Blonde w/​Pecans. Served with white chocolate and vanilla ice-​cream, caramel drizzled and a crisp chocolate cookie wafer on top and bottom.
I received my bill and it was quite expensive for a solo dining experience, but worth every penny in my opinion. I will be back and I hope soon. I have told more friends about coming here than just about any place I have written up in recent memory.
Before departing I encountered a couple of cute friendly waitresses that were cleaning up as they were approaching close. I decided to snap a pic of them being silly and thought I would love to have either one serve me with that type of fun personality. EAT was just recently put on a list of one of the very top restaurants in all of Virginia and I get it, I get it.

YAY! This place is good.
We went here for my dad’s birthday. It’s a little fancy, and expensive but delicious.
The fried (coconut?) shrimp on special were fabulous. I would eat these forever if I could. They were perfectly crunchy and the shrimp were huge!
My crab cake was amazing — the best I’ve had in a loooonnngg time. Almost-​fall-​apart-​goodness and very little filling. The sauce to accompany it was perfect as well.
My fiancé and father split the 2 person paella. So much food. They loved it and had large portion to take home as well.
Our server was great as well and very attentive, although I got nervous for a minute that they weren’t going to bring out desert with a candle for my dad like I had asked.

Blue crab stack, escargot, delicious. Unibroue La Fin Du Monde, Dogfishhead Midas Touch. All excellent.