Kahill's Restaurant and pub

Myself and 8 friends went to Kahills for dinner on Friday, April 14, 2023. Due to the number of us we made a reservation. Two in our party arrived about 15 minutes before the rest. They were seated and their drink orders were taken. When the rest of us arrived we were greeted by the server and our drink orders were taken. At this time the original couple, that was there early, told us they had ordered their drinks when they came in and had still not received them. The waitress was young and clearly had very little experience. She knew nothing about what beers were available, in bottles or on tap. She was unable to answer any questions about the menu. A blind person could see that she was struggling. Absolutely no one at our table was rude in any way to this server. However, as things just kept getting worse , she became even worse at her job. Only 4 of the 9 of us had received their drinks after we had been there for 30 minutes. She just seemed to disappear after taking our food orders. The restaurant was steady but there were empty tables and plenty of other servers waiting tables. We saw the owner in the dining room and asked him to get the rest of our drinks, which he agreed to but he walked away as soon as 2 people said their orders. This required him to make 2 more trips for drinks, on the 3rd trip he stated that he was not coming back again so tell him everything. One in our party told him that we were trying to do just that but he kept going away too fast. Our food began coming out slowly but surely shortly after this drink scenario. There were large time gaps between plates being served and eventually we had to ask the server where the last unserved persons food was. So, we had 9 people and only 8 meals were served. The server looked sheepish and returned to the kitchen. A few minutes later she returned to the table with the wrong order. She again went to the kitchen, about 15 minutes later she returned again, and with another incorrect order. At this time our hungry friend told the server to simply forget it as she no longer wanted anything from this restaurant. Everyone at the table was more than half finished with their meals at this time. We had all been eating slow in hopes of our friends dinner coming out before we all finished. The server was visibly upset and we never saw her again. A short time later another person came to the table, this time with the correct food order. The hungry friend again stated that she did not want the food and to please remove it from the bill. This person looked angry and walked away. Another minute or 2 passes and yet another person comes to our table and begins clearing dishes. While clearing the dishes this female decides to start reprimanding us for "making the waitress cry". None of us could believe this was happening. Eventually a few of us responded back to this person that none of us had done anything to make the waitress cry. She was poorly trained and should not have been working on her own. We further stated that we want our checks so that we can leave. We talked to the owner about everything that had happened and he kind of laughed it off and said she should have taken the food anyway because he would not have charged her for it. He then claimed that he did not have an employee matching the description of the person that was reprimanding us. We will, obviously never return to Kahills. Also, just to be clear about who we are, we were all in our 50's and 60's. We were not a bunch of young people looking for a free meal...

Extremely subpar but they tried to make it right. Initial feel of the place is different than what we're used to coming from NYC, it definitely has its own country charm. You can tell it's been around a long time in both good and not so good ways. I'm sure they have their large share of loyal customers. Stood around for about 8 minutes up front with only 2 small parties seated in the whole place. At least the barback nodded after he dried his 7th glass. We're not wary of people during Covid but we did notice this was the only place we've been to since we've moved down where no one wore gloves or masks. Eh whatevs. What did take stars off was mainly the food. Our appetizer was calamari - decent, solid 3.5 of 5. Batter was on the thick side but nicely seasoned, tentacle pieces were a bit on the mushy side though at the ends and we had a lot of those pieces. I had the Hawaiian salad (trying to be good for once) and was sorely disappointed. The chicken was the best part, but the pineapples had no color, super dry, clearly not ripe - should've 86. The waitress gave me a side of grapes to cover for it. I LOVE red onion, but they were haphazardly chopped way too large in comparison to the other toppings and too many. The different types of cheeses made no sense and lent nothing to the dish. I tasted zero teriyaki. The salad overall was a fail. Less Hawaiian more left over prep scrap salad. Had a flavor profile in mind that it didn't even remotely touch on. Need to add all the extra bits that were in the salad onto the menu. I would've never ordered it if I had known what all was in it, because it really didn't make sense, lol. Hubby had the steak. Kind of pricey for the size especially in comparison to other steaks we've had in the area - even to NY standards tbh. He ordered medium, got it well done. Seasoning was okay, we never get steak sauce, he almost asked for it. Mashed potatoes were okay, a little on the bland side. Best part was the veggies which were delicious. Overall 2.5 of 5. Had a whiskey sour. Decent. Solid 4 of 5. We usually order dessert but just wasn't feeling it. Waitress was sweet. If we go back it would be for drinks at the bar and maybe stick to just apps. Worth maybe trying again, locals raved about this place, maybe the kitchen was having an off day - lord knows it happens. Happy to update review if we have a better experience...

Every once-in-awhile you run across a restaurant that delivers so much more than you expect. In a career that has taken me across the country and to hidden corners of the small towns, Kahill in South Hill, Virginia is one of the best. This small restaurant on US Rt 1sits half a mile from a truck stop in an unassuming building just off the road offering a selection of good food, outstanding service, and a welcoming attitude that just blew us away.

OK, we really liked it. So much that in a single day we stopped there three times. The service was so good that we left one of the largest gratuities we have ever offered. The whole experience was exceptional.

The restaurant itself is a converted house. Lots of wood paneling, kind of unique and little hard to understand seating plan, a very attractive wood lounge and bar and large gathering room that seems to be popular for large group get togethers. It has old south charm in a good way. The atmosphere is sort of "Cheers" like, you can tell it's popular with locals.

The menu is pretty traditional, you'll find your burgers and sea food and taco's and sandwiches, every one of them with a flair and unique touch. The french fries are delightful, the burger was great, we had a quesadilla the late evening we returned with an old fashion drink that were both outstanding. That's a quesadilla in Virginia served to two west coasters.

Nancy asked if they had fried oysters, and although not on the menu, they did and served them up with a chili sauce she loved. Loved so much that she went back and ordered a half dozen to go to take to a friend we were visiting. And what a hit they were.

We went back to watch Monday night football in the bar. (It was a week before halloween) We were welcomed by the staff that recognized us from earlier and had a great time. It is obviously the place to be for the game. Had some Fried Squid to nibble on.

Want to say too that the owner of the restaurant introduced himself to us at one point. And we had a nice conversation. The bartender was refreshingly friendly without being in your face. Yes we like the place.

This is a place to go for good food and good times. Wish we lived closer. You need to look out, you can go by it pretty easily, one sign on the highway, not a typical look and pretty dark at night. Worth taking the time...