Champps Americana

Ahhhh, Reston!  It's a very busy area and your first challenge in eating here is to get a parking spot.  I expected the restaurant to be packed based on the parking lot, but it was far from it.

The hostess seated us quickly and the waitress was at our table in no time to see what we'd like for our beverages.  I was in a hurry, so I ordered the pasta lunch portion of the Cajun shrimp penne which comes with a salad...but I wanted the salad to eat there and the pasta to take back with me to the office.  Another lady in our group did the same, while the remaining ordered the soup and salad to eat in the restaurant.  I figured that eating the salad there might take 15 minutes and I'd be on my way back to work.  We waiting roughly 25 minutes for the food to arrive...way too long during the lunch rush!  There were only five of us at our table.

The salad was good, the penne (eaten back at the office) was EXCELLENT!  The waitress wasn't the issue...she was nice, attentive, and got the orders right.

My biggest issue with dining here is they are simply too slow.  If it weren't for that, I would be here more often for that lunch.  It was definitely worth a repeat visit!

I have quite a bit of experience with Champs, having eaten there many times over the course of the last two years due to its proximity to the school I attend in the area.

Champs is not a bad place to stop by and get a few drinks. They have an okay selection of beers on tap. There could be a lot more, but there could be a lot less too, so I can't really complain there. The food at Champs is alright. It's definitely not amazing, but I have yet to have anything really bad there either. If you're looking for a place to do a happy hour, and you're close to Champs for work or whatever, it is not a bad option. If you are looking for a "nice meal," there are probably better options at the Reston Town Center and elsewhere in the surrounding area.

Once upon a time I was a regular at this Champps location.  Many years have past and mixed with variety of reasons my patronage to Champps ceased.  I stopped in recently when I had some time to waste and thought I would give them another try, heck, 6 years had past!

One reason I that turned away from Champps was the fact that they cut the Mongolian Egg Rolls from the menu!  Egg Rolls turned you away, really??? Yes, at least partially and you'll see why in a moment.  I had only 30 minutes so I quickly skimmed the menu and BAM, utter amazement when I eyes met the entry of "Mongolian Egg Rolls....$9.99"  Smile began to form!

These aren't your local Hunan Café or Lo's Family Chinese egg rolls; they're quite different.  First of all, they are HUGE!  You actually get two gigantic egg rolls sliced on a diagonal in half and then set on end like 4 pillars (see photo).  Filled with a mix or beef, pork, mushrooms and Asian veggies sauteed in sesame oil, each roll is then fried until golden.  Champps plates them on a bed of Thai peanut slaw.  They are served with two dipping options (I prefer to pour then dip) which are Thai Peanut and Sweet Soy.

Yes, as I sat there the other day 2 individuals passed by and asked "is that from the menu?"  They have indeed made one major rebirth on their menu. I didn't get much further than the first page but will return to examine closely.  So, the Mongolian Egg Rolls are $9.99 and I believe worth that price BUT during happy hour they are HALF PRICE! $5 bucks, whoooo hoooo!  See, I am easy to please.

Another reason I turned away from Chammps was an overhaul in wait and bartender staff.  When the change occurred they hired new off the street wait staff and made them bartenders (or tried)!  They gave them instruction booklets to make drinks from and had to follow to a tee, EPIC FAIL. Long Island's were like lemonade and barely drinkable 6 years prior.  On this past Thursday evening the Long Island was tasty and balanced in content. The drink didn't make my lips pucker with overloaded sour mix and it didn't knock me out after two sips because it was straight liquor, just right.

The final reason for deserting Champps was based on service from three different locations; it was bad.  This visit I was greeted cordially by both the hostess and the wait staff, served promptly and checked on routinely for my short stay.

I will return consistently and see if they give steady consistent service and menu and hopefully up the rating.