Spirits American Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Fredericksburg

Yesterday was my first time eating here and it definitely won't be the last! I travel a lot, eat at a lot of places, try a lot of food and have to tell you that the food here was amazing, best of its kind and overall my favorite bite in the Fredericksburg area so far.

I ordered the Patriot Burger & it was every bit as good as any burger we've had anywhere and we've been everywhere! DELICIOUS! BEST we have had in a long long time.

Burgers were juicy, flavorful with no fillers, toppings were fresh and everything seasoned perfectly and the buns were lightly toasted on the inside only, giving it a delicious soft outside then crispy interior before getting to the meat and veggies... amazing! Look beautiful as well! Almost too pretty to eat! I cannot overstate how pleased my wife & I were with their burgers.

Fries were seasoned perfectly and served at the perfect temp! Deliciously crispy on the outside & perfect texture on the inside, not too thick or skinny, had a melt in your mouth feel to them.

Their southwestern egg rolls are also a MUST TRY! You will not be disappointed with the hearty serving and amazing taste! My wife thought the southwestern sauce on them had a little kick (she's not into spicy items) but still gobbled them up. If you don't like spicy (honestly not very spicy at all... just in case you are like my wife and like absolutely zero heat) try the rolls with ranch instead. VERY GOOD either way.

Service was prompt, friendly, personable and high quality. Really enjoyed interacting with them.

We were surprised at the prices! The prices are low given the high quality and the prices of all other options in the area. About 1/3 the price but much better quality!

As for asthetics... It's definitely a dive bar asathetic. We were there right at 5pm on a Monday and it was pretty quiet so I can't speak for normal crowds but It could use a little aesthetic refreshing. The place had a slight smell of cigarette smoke when we were there, not strong, could have even been from a nearby source not inside the restaurant. I'm pretty sensitive to cigarette smoke and could definitely detect it but it wasn't strong enough to bother me.

Food is available for take out. Took about 12-15 minutes after we ordered to get our food, we used that time to visit a nearby antique shop. They've been there for 30 years, surprises me that I had never noticed it before. Now that I know about it, I'll be spreading the word and visiting...

Let me share my recent experience at this bar, which was a bit of a rollercoaster. My friends and I were there on a busy First Friday around 10 PM, and things didn’t start off well. I had been walking around the event earlier, so I had a tumbler with me to stay hydrated—nothing unusual when you’re out and about on a hot night. When we got to the third-floor bar, though, the bartender’s attitude turned things sour pretty quickly.

She told me I couldn’t put anything in my tumbler, not even water from the sink. Fine, I wasn’t about to fill it up with dirty bathroom sink water anyway—who would, when you can just ask the bar for a glass of water? I totally understood and said I’d follow the rules, but instead of just moving on, she got in my face and went off about it like I hadn’t already agreed to comply. It was way over the top, and even my friends had to step in because her attitude was so unnecessary.

Look, I get that bars have rules, especially on busy nights like First Friday, and I have no problem following them. I even explained I have worked in the industry and know the laws and will comply with them. But there’s a big difference between explaining the rules and being rude to a new customer who’s already agreed to them. That’s not how you treat people if you want them to come back.

After that, the service didn’t improve. We were ready for another round of drinks, but she ignored us for over 10 minutes while chatting with regulars, and disappeared from time to time. We were honestly about to leave at that point.

Luckily, my partner decided to check out the second-floor bar before heading out—and I’m glad he did. The bartenders there were fantastic: friendly, quick, and super attentive, even though they were handling way more customers. It was a complete 180 from what we experienced upstairs. We ended up staying longer, getting a few more drinks, ordering food, and actually enjoying ourselves. If we hadn’t given the second floor a chance, we would’ve left with a bad impression of the whole place.

So, here’s my takeaway: if you get bad service in one part of this bar, don’t let it ruin your night. Try another section, or maybe come back on a different day. There are definitely people here who know how to treat their customers right, and they’re worth sticking around for.

As for the other bar tender on the third floor, a conversation with management is definitely needed before she drives more...

Been to the Ritz a few times over the years but will not be returning. The last time I was there, a column fell on me and the staff did nothing to help me. A member of staff came out and put the column back up but no one checked on me or called 911. I was thankful a friend of mine closed me out so I could have my card back for when I went to the hospital. My boyfriend came and picked me up and took me to MW. Ended up with a concussion and neck strain and had to take some time off work. Luckily the owner did help with the medical bills.

As for the staff, Richard makes good drinks but the manager lied to my face. I returned to Spirits after the incident because no one would answer the phone and there was no voicemail so I stopped in to talk about the incident and how poorly it was handled. According to her, she talked to two guys who are acquaintances of mine (at best) but never bothered to speak to me. This was interesting because she was given my information that night by one of my bfs friends but never reached out to me. Kept insisting that the column never hit me (my skull would disagree). Also lied to my face saying she isn't a manager when I overheard her saying to another employee about her manager duties and that everyone said she is the manager at Spirits.

I used to go hang out with friends but it'll be a long time before I decide to spend my money there. I could deal with the lack of cleanliness due to the dive bar status, but due to the way the staff handled this situation I won't be returning.

Eta: updated post to change rating down after the way the situation was handled. Also, name is not Amber so apology feels disingenuous. Hopefully the staff had been properly trained on how to handle emergencies...