Remedy Burger — Restaurant in Staunton

UPDATE: The owner contacted me and we discussed my experience. I'm going to leave my original review (below), but I will add that if you would like to support a local business that is deeply concerned about their customers and running a sustainable business, this place is for you.

I've eaten here twice, and I'm still waiting to be impressed. First, it looks like a full-service restaurant, but it's not. At best, it's fast-casual (self-serve drinks and condiments, and bus your table). The prices and tip expectations are the only thing full-service here.

I ordered a black and blue burger (Blue Burner), fries, and a Coke for over $20 (before tip). Again, full-service prices for a fast-casual experience. They serve soft drinks in classic 8oz bottles, but no refills, so $3 each bottle. The novelty wears off quickly at that rate. The burger itself was way too small (see the trend here). If it were any smaller, it would be a slider. I'm guessing it's a 4oz patty, maybe smaller. Inexplicably, the black and blue burger came drowned in a sticky mango-chutney, which is totally out of place on this burger. It overpowers the blue cheese flavor (which is hard to do) and the blackened patty. Just call it a mango-chutney burger, please. The fries are the least impressive item on the menu. They are basic shoe-string style fries, like McDonald's, but somehow worse. There are no options for wedge, waffle, curly, etc. Just basic fries.

The second time, I ordered a Chicken Bacon Ranch Sandwich. It was the thinnest chicken patty I have ever eaten. I didn't see a steamroller in the kitchen, but somehow, they made the chicken thinner than the breading.

They need to decide if they are full-service or fast-casual. They have a great location and an interesting interior, so they should go all-in and be full-service, with bigger burgers, fountain drinks, and better fries. In the meantime, you can get all that and more for the same price at The River in Waynesboro.

Another thing: to pay and tip, the server hands you a pay-at-the-table device and hangs out while you decide whether or not to go with the recommended tip amount. It's cringy. And I'm not too fond of a full-service tip when refilling my water and getting my...

My first time experience at Remedy Burger was similar to some of the one-star reviews here. As a first-time customer, I was expecting something a little bit better based on the overall high rating of this establishment. I entered, waited to be seated as the sign indicated, was approached and told I could sit anywhere. I sat at a high table since there were no low tables available. The high tables against the wall are a little uncomfortable and a bit small even for one person, let alone two. I sat for some time without any attention from the staff, and then noticed the QR code on the napkin holder. Unfortunately, my phone wasn't reading the code, and I had to do some googling and fiddling with settings to get anything to work. Once I finally got the online ordering process down, it took me a while to get through the payment process. Maybe it's partly my fault for not being overly e-pay or phone oriented? I just wanted to sit down and get served a great hamburger with table service - that's what I was expecting. What I got instead was a tech-induced hassle that felt more like being at work than having a relaxed service experience. Also I will say that the Remedy Burger I got served was indeed smashed. In fact, I would say it's more smash than burger. I didn't know it was possible to pound beef patty that thin. Don't get me wrong - I like some grilled crunch on the outside of a burger, but there should be some body and moisture to it as well. Overall I feel that I paid a lot for what was essentially a not overly fantastic experience, and I will probably not return for a second go round. The waitress who did attend (I was brought a glass of water eventually) was friendly and pleasant, and I was asked as the burger was being served, if I needed anything else. Other than that, I can't seem to justify why when you check out at payment time, a 20% tip is the default setting. Even though I normally tip at or above 20% at many of the restaurants I eat at, in this case I felt like even 15% was a bit on the high side considering how limited in scope the service was. On the bright side, I think with a few minor changes this could be a really outstanding upscale burger place in...

The Good: The servers and staff were all very polite and friendly. Great customer service. The restaurant was busy, but we didn’t have to wait for a table. My wife and I both ordered a burger and we shared a basket of fries. The fries were very good. The burgers were just okay.

The Bad: It took 45 minutes for our food to arrive at the table. That seemed a bit long, especially considering that 95% of their menu is burgers and fries. You would expect them to have an efficient system in place for churning out burgers and fries. During our wait, a server only came by once to refill our waters, and this was just a couple of minutes before the food arrived. Our fries came out a several minutes before the burgers. By the time our burgers arrived there were not many fries left as we were starving. The burgers that arrived at our table looked nothing like what is pictured on their printed and online menus. I have included photos of what they served me vs what is pictured. My burger was flat, the bun was damp, and the burger was bland. I ordered the Oklahoma burger. It has lots of onions on it, which I like, but these onions had very little flavor. Drinks: the beer selection was generic. Beer offerings were lager, ipa, and amber ale. No specific brewer was listed and no brand name was offered when asked. Seven dollars got me a 12 ounce pour of a mystery beer. Too pricey for what could have been Milwaukee’s Best for all I know. My wife ordered a glass of wine and it was a ridiculously small pour. Also, no info about the winery it came from. Atmosphere: the walls are white and devoid of any kind of decorative accents. However, they do have a large version of their company logo stenciled on one wall. There was a large cardboard box near the front of the restaurant and an even larger one (as big as a dishwasher) against the wall near the bar. The overall vibe was minimalist millennial. Not for me, but it might be your thing.

My overall experience was okay, but I won’t return due to the flat, damp, bland burgers and the generic, overpriced...