Oakhart Social — Restaurant in Charlottesville

We were on a weekend trip to visit Monticello, and stopped here for dinner. To give you a heads up, I am easily impressed with food. If it doesn't make me sick, I think it's great. So no points for me liking my food. In fact, I deducted a point for service because they didnt have Yuengling, but the waitress told me some weird beer I never heard of was just like it. It wasn't. Now my wife is VERY difficult to impress. Her father owned a fish market, and we live on the Atlantic, so fish is often on the menu. Beyond that, she has also told me that flounder is a gross bottom feeder. So I was floored when she ordered the flounder. She said she liked what she read on the menu. Once she was served and took the first bite, her eyes lit up and she didn't speak for about 2 minutes because she just kept taking bites. Then the praise just kept coming. She said it was the best "meal" she has ever had. Not just fish, the best meal. It has been a few days, and she has talked about that flounder to everyone that will listen. She did let me have a bite, and I got so mad that I didn't order it. She would not let me have another. Since it was her birthday, I let it slide, and did not hound her about it. The kids and I ordered the brick oven pizzas, one of each kind. The kids range from 7-10. So the older ones can throw down when it comes to pizza, but I was shocked they almost finished 3 pizzas. They did not want to stop. All three pizzas were amazing!! So the wife says we are going to go back. I don't have the heart yet to tell her I'm not driving six hours for dinner. So a couple things beyond the amazing food. The staff was very friendly even by Southern standards. They were kind and attentive, and our waitress really made my wife smile which made her birthday so much more enjoyable. She was awesome. Except for my beer. I'm not forgiving that. The restaurants location was a bit busy. So if you get anxiety about parallel parking, don't worry. They have a parking lot. Our total meal for five plus tip was about $175. For the quality of food and service, I'm not going to complain. For anyone living in the Northeast, that is an amazing deal! Maybe I...

Not only do I not recommend this establishment, I recommend you go anywhere in Charlottesville other than this place. I can’t tell if their management/staff is just incompetent or if they deliberately lie on purpose. To make a long story short, I made a Resy reservation via google months ago. Unbeknownst to me, it was made on my Dad’s Resy account rather than my own. I needed to cancel this reservation in the days leading up to the reservation. I called multiple times to cancel and left a voice message to do so. I have outgoing phone calls to them on both the Wednesday and Thursday prior to my Friday reservation. Eventually when I got around to check my Resy account, I did not see the reservation there and had assumed someone got my message and cancelled it. But all along the reservation was hiding in my Dad’s Resy account which I’m sure he doesn’t even know how to use. So fast forward to the Friday of the reservation that I thought had been cancelled. Apparently they called my Dad, multiple times, who lives in California to see why he wasn’t at his reservation. Of course, my Dad doesn’t pick up VA calls as a CA resident. There’s nothing more scammy about a call than it coming from a state you not only don’t live in but have no other real connection to. He thought nothing of it, of course. Then, I get a charge on my credit card (linked to my Dad’s Resy account) for $50. I immediately, that night, called Oakhart Social to inquire about this mysterious charge. I explained this entire story, to which they stated that they would reverse the charge. Naively, I believed them. When I saw the charge was in fact not reversed a week later, I emailed Oakhart Social. Would you be surprised to hear that I never heard a response? For an alleged upstanding restaurant, this lack of communication, lack of understanding, and straight up lying to customers is really quite unbelievable. You’ll never get my business and never get a recommendation from me to any of my peers, colleagues or friends. Stop scamming people because you can’t manage your voice mail and email accounts...

Oakhart Social is a hipster’s wet dream. The repurposed garage space, converted into a chic, eclectic bar and restaurant is exactly the kind of place a person feels inspired to order a $15 cocktail with a plate of chicken “wangz.” The menu is interesting, but approachable with options ranging from pizza to lamb shank. Though the server suggested every plate was to share and guests should order 3-4 plates per person, the large plates were slightly larger than the average entrée and the small plates were portioned like side dishes. One large plate or 2-3 small plates would be suitable for each guest.

Highlights of the food that my guests and I ate included the lightly fried catfish on the most crunchy, delightful bed of spicy kimchi and the roasted squash tortellini with a tangy, lemon meringue-like filling. Skip the Brussel sprouts- the skimpy portion and slightly roasted veg isn’t worth the $11.

Though this may seem like a prime spot for a date (dimly lit by Edison lights and quite cozy), the open floor plan of the dining room makes for a bit of a noisy experience when there is a full house. I would definitely recommend this space for a group or for a less intimate occasion.

Minus one star because our server was senselessly uppity and less than hospitable (other servers seemed...