The White Hart — Restaurant in Lynchburg

We visited White Hart for brunch while visiting a friend in Lynchburg and we were severely disappointed. First, when we walked in we were not greeted and given no instructions on where or how to order. We saw no staff at the cash register and one woman ordering at a kiosk. The kiosk was very confusing and they seemed to be out of several menu items, however we ordered food and coffee. We sat down and waited for our order to be called. After about 15 minutes of nothing I walked up to the coffee bar and found that our coffee had been sitting at the bar for who knows how long and the staff had made no effort to try to locate us. My friend ordered a hot coffee and was very unimpressed by the tiny paper cup they served it in. This review gets 2 stars simply because the coffee was very good. Still waiting on our food, we realized multiple people were receiving their food before us who came in and ordered after us. After about 30 minutes my friend got her order even though she ordered after me and she was missing her biscuit. She told the staff and they said they had been out for a while and gave her a cookie instead…. Several other people got their order who we know came in after us so my husband went up to ask where our order was and the cook pointed to a meal that had been sitting out for about 10 minutes and told him they were waiting on my meal. They then realized the other cook had left my meal on the stove, forgotten, and my fries hadn’t even been placed in the fryer yet. We waited another 5 or so minutes before my fries were done and more people got their food. At this point my husband went up to get the food as they still hadn’t called our name even though the food was sitting on the counter. By this point we had waited over 35 minutes for a wrap and a sandwich. My husbands food had started to get cold and my wrap was very salty and the chicken was fried even though I asked for grilled. At this point I was tired of waiting and didn’t want to wait even longer for them to remake my food. We then had to bus our own tables, get our own Togo boxes, and left very dissatisfied. Not to mention a $45 bill to boot for food I could have cooked better at home. We will not be returning to this restaurant next visit to Lynchburg. Very...

White Hart was the very first cafe I visited in the Lynchburg area. If you were to ask me that day what I would rate it, it would easily have been a 5/5. The coffee was tasty and I loved the atmosphere. So why 3 stars? I work remotely from home and find it easier to motivate myself if I buy myself a cup of coffee and work at a coffee shop. This means that I need three major things: a nice atmosphere, good coffee and working wifi. The Muse in Wyndhurst is my go-to shop but occasionally I like to venture downtown and take a little walk to get to this place and The Muse is closed Sundays so its a good excuse to make the trip. The wifi here is always spotty. I have to disconnect and reconnect about every hour and its SLOW! Silver lining has been the Black Bear Latte. Yesterday, I visited and the wifi was not working at all - I could connect to the network, but their pop-up browser to enter the password never showed up (this was tested on my macbook, my iphone, my husbands HP laptop and his iPhone and we did all the normal troubleshooting). Clearly this was not the fault of the devices. I notified an employee and he asked a few other customers there if theres was working (only 1 person said theirs was). Not his fault that it wasn't working, but he kinda shrugged it off as if it was just the way it was. I had already purchased my drink (which was not nearly as good as usual - but forgivable since this was the only time it was like this) and my husband was waiting to purchase his. Instead of staying there, we left and went to the Dublin Coffeehouse down the road where we bought delicious tea and enjoyed zippy, reliable wifi. Until the wifi issue is resolved here, Dublin will be getting my Sunday business.

Update 9/26: White hart was actually okay lately. Until today. Do not come here if you have studying or business to do unless you have a hotspot. Came in today to a broken espresso machine, thats all right I just got coffee instead. But again their wifi was at a snails pace. Notified employees and they said there was nothing they could do after I told them their speed was really slow and ran...

TL/DR: Quickly has become a favorite. Coffee/Lattes always good. Food is exceptional. Hard to beat a coffee shop in the middle of downtown that serves good food.

Why My Rating? Atmosphere: There are spacious tables if you have work to do or small tables if you are just catching up with a friend. Big windows for a view of downtown or sit in the back away from everything. This is why it is steadily becoming my go-to.

Food: Watching this team prepare food is cool. I told them on my last visit that they are simply artists using food as a medium. I'm working my way through the menu but I have never been less than pleased.

Location: Downtown Lynchburg immediately across the road from the Lynchburg Farmer's Market. Plenty of parking down the hill behind the shop in Public parking. Sometimes parking available in front on street.

Staff: Two different groups and both have been great. Coffee and food are prepared on opposite ends. Both crews seem knowledgable, efficient, and hospitable. Always have felt welcomed.

Atmosphere: As noted above. Has its own charm and personality. Plenty of space for those staying a while or just enough space for those needing a quick boost and a conversation.

Cleanliness: Very clean and comfortable

Prices: The menu for food is definitely on the higher end of the price scale but the type of food is why. Coffees are on par for...