Sedona Taphouse — Restaurant in Chantilly

I had visited a Sedona Taphouse in Short Pump, VA outside of Richmond a few months ago and had a very enjoyable meal, so I was pleasantly surprised to find a brand new one that just opened near me in Chantilly.

We made a reservation 4 days in advance via Yelp. When we arrived at the restaurant, there was a considerable wait with approximately 25 people standing around the vestibule waiting to be seated. I went up to the hostess station, and she could not find my reservation right away. I had to pull it from my email on my phone to show her, and then miracle of miracles she found it right in the queue on her tablet. She checked us in, and then we waited an additional 35 minutes to be seated. This was very disappointing, as we made the reservation several days in advance to avoid an unnecessary lengthy wait.

This particular location is not as large as the one in Richmond, and there are not as many tables. Some of the tables are in the center of the restaurant which has very high ceilings, so the noise level is deafening especially on a busy night like a Saturday night. When the hostess first seated us at a table in the middle of the restaurant, my friend and I could not hear each other at all. Since this was a special birthday celebration, and my friend drove two hours to meet me, we asked to be reseated along the wall or in a booth. Luckily another four-top was leaving along the window, so we were able to be reseated fairly quickly.

Our waiter was very friendly, but I don't know if he was overwhelmed or the bar was overwhelmed or the kitchen was overwhelmed, but things just did not come out very quickly. Our first round of drinks took maybe five minutes, which gave us some time to review the menu. But our second and third rounds took quite a long time to come out, even as the restaurant starting clearing out as the evening went on. It was the same for food. The appetizers came out quickly, and the entrées took quite a while. My friend did not care for the filet she ordered, stating the steak was flavorless, and she ordered scallops instead since mine were very tasty. It took 35 minutes for her scallops to come out, and I was already completed with my meal and a third cocktail by that time. I will point out, to the server's credit, that he asked a manager to take the price of the filet off our bill and discounted her scallops since the kitchen took so long to make a second meal for her. We tipped him well for that courtesy.

We ordered the ahi tuna as one appetizer, and the goat cheese bruschetta as a second appetizer. Both were very delicious. We ordered the prickly pear margarita for our first round of drinks. My friend ordered a regular margarita as a second round, and she found the taste to be quite sour even when she restirred it, so she went back to the prickly pear one for her third drink. I opted for the lemon basil martini, which was absolutely delicious. It had a nice tang to it, very well balanced, and very refreshing. Highly recommend.

After dinner, we ordered two coffees and the caramel cheesecake to share. A French press pot arrived at the table, which was a nice classy touch and made for a flavorful pour. The cheesecake was a large portion with some extra to take home.

In the reservation, we mentioned that we were celebrating a 50th birthday. That went totally unnoticed by the restaurant, which was a bummer. Why bother to include a section for notes or special requests on the reservation if they're just going to be ignored?

I think this location is still fairly new and perhaps working out some kinks. I give it 3 1/2 stars, and I think it would've been a solid four if the service was a little better and we were seated within five minutes of arriving at our reservation time. When the weather gets nice in the late spring and summer, we look forward to returning and trying their outdoor...

Updated: 5/19/2025: Follow-Up on Our Recent Visit

Dear Marcus, Thank you for your thoughtful response and for taking the time to address our concerns. I truly appreciate your acknowledgment of the issues we experienced, as well as your willingness to follow up with your team. While we were initially disappointed with how the evening unfolded, your message—and your proactive approach to making things right—definitely makes a difference. I understand now that the fire pit area is better suited for a lighter, more casual experience, and I agree that more clarity from the host staff would have helped us make a more informed decision at the time. Thank you as well for offering to credit the salmon and tuna—it's a generous gesture and very much appreciated. I’ll reach out to you directly at the email provided with the details you need to locate our check. Again, thank you for your professionalism and for taking the time to make this right. We’ve enjoyed dining at your restaurant in the past, and your response gives us confidence in returning again in the future.

Best regards,

We visited Sedona Taphouse for Mother’s Day brunch with a party of eight and had a reservation. Surprisingly, even though more than half the restaurant was empty, they didn’t have an indoor space that could accommodate our group. The only available option was outside, around a fireplace. While the atmosphere was lovely, there was no fire going—understandably, since it was hot in May—but the seating area was cramped and awkward for dining. There was barely enough room for our plates, and the tables weren’t clean when we were seated.

Service throughout the meal was disorganized and slow, despite the restaurant not being busy. It seemed like management was overwhelmed or confused, which didn’t make sense given how empty the place was. We didn’t receive silverware until we asked—after our starters arrived. One person in our group asked for a drinks menu three separate times before giving up.

At one point, the manager brought out a main dish while no one else had theirs—and it was the wrong order. He insisted it wasn’t, which was frustrating. I ordered the seared ahi tuna, but it came out completely overcooked—almost well-done instead of nearly raw. I also ordered a salmon salad and instead received a piece of very dry, overcooked salmon with two sides and no salad. The fish was so dry the edges were hard.

The prices were high given the poor service and food quality. For the same price, you could have a much better experience at a place like Bonefish Grill. Sedona Taphouse is beautifully designed and clearly has potential, but it desperately needs better management and coordination to live up to that promise. Disappointing for such a...

Party of 3, Wednesday evening, arrival 6:30 pm. Circled parking lot several times for a spot to open. Quoted 30 minute wait; actual wait time 45 minutes. While waiting, ordered drinks from bar, which was standing room only. Bartender took my order for our 3 drinks, asked for clarification on 2 of the drinks (sugar rim or salt rim?) and then rang up & gave me the bill, which I had to pay before he even began making our drinks. Ok, super weird...but maybe I'm out of practice. Received drinks a few mins later and the two he asked for clarification on were made wrong. Not a huge deal but it's setting the tone of the entire evening.

We got our table and almost immediately, I'd say within 2-3 minutes, our waitress came over and got our cocktail orders right off the bat. One person ordered food and two needed a minute more to look over the menu before ordering. Huge mistake. The waitress came back 15 minutes later and asked if we knew what we wanted to eat yet--but what we really wanted was our drinks to sip on while we waited on our appetizers and reminded her we ordered drinks but hadn't received them. She said she didn't put anything in the computer yet because she was waiting on our food order. Ohh, yikes. This is mom's night out...we came out to have some cocktails! So we give her our food order and remind her what we wanted to drink. Fifteen minutes later they come over with our food and....still no drinks! At this point it's just comical. She comes over a few minutes later and asks if everything's ok. We tell her we never got our drinks and she seems pretty offended that we have the nerve to say something to her again and says that our drinks are coming; she wanted to get our food out first. Well, that's unfortunate and I guess the product of just really poor training. But I Know that it's not going to fly with many more people. She's lucky she had three ladies who are used to being patient with young kids. All in all it was a pretty negative experience from the get-go and I doubt we will be back for a girl's night anytime in the...