Bräuburgers Craft Burgers & Beer of Forest — Restaurant in Virginia

Revised Revised Review: 09/19/2021:

Bräuburgers has seen the light. On the date of my previous revision they subscribed to the Sunday Ticket.

Wait staff now has a fighting chance at wages.

Still out of chicken wings due to “supply,” which is a slight surprise since they’re still available at the grocery store next door.

I understand Kroger’s isn’t Sysco, but no harm no foul. At least Bräuburgers still has burgers.

As an aside, I’m not sure the menu has been facelifted since this location originally opened in 2014. It may be time to revisit the menu for an update, my friends.

The food is still respectable+ (especially when the kitchen remembers to apply the Old Bay to the fries) and the wait staff is still friendly and attentive.

They’ve got me back. For now. . . (!)

Previously Revised review: 09/12/2021:

Once upon a time, “sports bar” or “bar and grill” meant football games on all the TVs, ESPECIALLY on Sunday.

Unfortunately, those times seem to be long gone at Bräuburgers.

Management (or lack thereof) has deemed, in their infinite wisdom, the NFL Sunday Ticket to no longer be a necessity.

Unfortunate. On the positive side, I have discovered a new sports bar (Scoreboards) a couple miles away in Wyndhurst.

Effectively staffed, friendly, many beers on top, reasonable prices, respectable prices, and a fun atmosphere. Oh- they also have the NFL Sunday Ticket!

I will keep my fingers crossed that Bräuburgers will someday (soon) return to their former glory. Until then, you’ll find me at Scoreboards on Sundays!

Original review from 2020:

4 stars

Pleasant atmosphere, friendly waitstaff, and quirky decor.

Beverage selection is off the charts.

Food selection is also extremely varied, but all very respectable.

Prices are slightly above average, but nothing horrendous.

Also a great spot on game day, there are typically a half dozen televisions or more with a variety of games on.

Seating is your choice of a large and welcoming bar or roomy and comfortable booths. They also offer outdoor patio dining.

Would...

Unfortunately, I would give less than 1 star if possible. On a trip from Charlottesville, we thought we would give Brauburgers a try based on the Yelp reviews. We had a brief wait while they cleared a table for us, but when we got to the table it was still dirty having only been half wiped down; however, due to the length of time it took for our waitress to get to us I was able to wipe the table down myself, rearrange the silverware, go to the restroom, and feed my 1-year-old the banana I thankfully had in our go-bag! And....this was Thursday at 6:00 p.m. When the waitress did get to us, she seemed very rushed and even though we knew exactly what we wanted to order, only took our drink and appetizer order before walking off. We are patient, so no problem. Would much rather have the appetizer, soda and beer, and then our burger. Again giving this place a fair opportunity to turn this around...and we waited and waited and waited to finally be informed that she was waiting on pint glasses as they were "all dirty," and no word about the appetizer order. By this time, my husband and I had discussed the daily news, our next road trip, and planned our retirement which was obviously going to be in Brauburgers by the time we got either soda, beer, appetizer, or burger! Again, thank goodness for the bagel I had in the go-bag for our 1 year old. We really wanted to give this place a try, but here we sit in the parking lot of Taco Bell (which actually I would give a solid 4.5 stars) as I write this review due to walking out of Brauburgers. I'm almost certain our waitress hasn't even noticed our absence as not one single employee said a word at our departure. We tried to find her or a manager to address the issue, but they were nowhere to be found, so we left as they were obviously unable or unwilling to provide service. I understand busy, but this was not simply busy - it was...

We were seated quickly. My wife is German, and was excited about a good brat, but apparently the restaurant doesn't serve them any more.

After receiving our burgers, the server asked if there was anything else we needed. We indicated that we would like utensils and she said she would get them. Ten minutes later, we went looking for utensils on our own and I was able to find some and begin eating what was a really great burger.

I'm not sure if it's the new norm, or what, but many restaurants don't offer utensils any more, even when you order something that you need them for. I guess we are supposed to eat our food like animals.

The service was mediocre at best.

If you're planning to order for carry-out, you should know this: they expect a gratuity for carryout orders. Depending on the size of your order, they will automatically add 18% to it as a gratuity. Considering that delivery services, such as GrubHub, have entitled cry-baby drivers that post online that they won't even pick up your order without at least a $10 tip for them, you might be spending quite a bit on the tip by the time the restaurant charges you 18% for putting it in a bag and the driver charges you at least $10 to even consider bringing the food to you.

I don't tip McDonald's for putting my food in a bag, and I don't see why the employees here feel entitled to it for doing the same thing. I will not order carry-out from here, but will certainly be back again to dine-in. I might even bring my own utensils next time....