C & O Restaurant — Restaurant in Charlottesville

My husband and I were in Virginia last week to celebrate our anniversary. Before leaving home I did a Google search for restaurants in Charlottesville, and up popped the C&O Restaurant. This was especially cool because my dad, uncle and grandfather all worked for the C&O Railroad back in the day. We were very fortunate to get a table (thank you again, Michael!), and the staff were all incredibly friendly and accommodating! Since I had mentioned my family's connection with the railway, Anthony gave us a brief tour of the building and some C&O background, which was very thoughtful. Jen was our server and she was amazing! She was efficient, friendly, and took the time to chat with us and make suggestions about other local establishments on the Mall. Michael, Jen and Anthony were all so hospitable and made us feel very welcome. The atmosphere was perfect - warm, cozy and welcoming. And then there was the food. We both ordered the Steak Chinoise. One of the best meals I've had in a very, very long time. The steak was so tender, we could cut it with our forks. And the dessert... one word: YUM. We live in North Carolina - but plan to visit Charlottesville from time to time and we will DEFINITELY dine again at the C&O. You should plan to make an evening of visiting that area of historic downtown. Dinner at the C&O first, then shopping/strolling along the Mall - and maybe a show at the Paramount Theater. You will not be disappointed! Thank you again to the wonderful staff at the C&O! You made our anniversary...

This place 100% lives up to its reputation! We were looking for a nice place to get dinner to celebrate my birthday, and wound up here because of the other reviews, and C&O did not disappoint! Everything we had was absolutely delicious!

We chose to split everything to try more items, so we had the brussel sprouts (which were amazing - I don't know how they managed to get them so fresh tasting, with no hint of bitterness, just lightly seasoned), the rabbit ragu (which was the special that day, with a wonderfully rich sauce and incredibly tender and moist rabbit), the steak chinoise (which is a classic on their menu and was mouthwateringly tasty), and the coupe ellery (which was a beautiful balance of sweet and tangy that finished off the meal perfectly)! They very considerately plated our entree and dessert separately so we could share it easily, so the portion sizes may look small from the photos, but it was very filling. The fresh bread at the beginning was also warm and just very good.

The service was also impeccable! I don't think my water glass ever got more than halfway empty (and I tend to drink quite a bit of water), and they checked in just frequently enough to make sure we were taken care of, without interrupting our conversations. We sat upstairs, which was lovely, with lots of windows, with a rose at each table. It was just very quaint and traditional and cozy. Very much enjoyed our visit and will...

We came here for a wedding anniversary celebration dinner, and the experience had its highs and lows.

Right after we sat down, we were offered complimentary champagne to celebrate—a fantastic touch and a great way to set the mood. Thumbs up for that!

For appetizers, we started with a shared salad, and they thoughtfully split it into two plates—another nice touch. Then came the Hamachi Crudo… wow! We’d return just for that dish. Absolutely delicious. Another big thumbs up.

Unfortunately, the beef sirloin carpaccio was a total miss—two big thumbs down. The beef was buried under so many toppings that we could barely find it, and when we did, it completely lacked that signature carpaccio taste. The overpowering vinaigrette didn’t help either. In my opinion, this was not carpaccio. We returned the dish, and they removed it from the bill, which was the right move for a restaurant of this caliber. However, no manager came over to check in, which was disappointing.

The Steak Chinois was flavorful but way too salty—we couldn’t finish it. We also ordered the Hand-Rolled Fettuccine as an entrée since none of the other main courses stood out to us. While the pasta itself was good, it was, again, overly salty. We ended up taking it home and adding our own noodles to balance the salt.

On a positive note, dessert was fantastic! If we return, we’ll definitely ask for low-sodium options. One last thing—parking was...