The Raven seems like a decent place to grab lunch near the ocean front. We were walking buy and the time was right so we grabbed a table in the enclosed patio.
Service was friendly and pretty good, the food was decent and didn't cost a whole lot. A had a french dip and fries and was pleased with what i got. Â
Over all i really have no complaints about this place, inside is a dark bar that may be a great place to have some drinks but i don't really know.
As far as lunch goes, this is a nice quick place to eat decent, simple food.
Would have been higher but, hostess did not tell the waitress we were in the front area. Â Food was good and prompt had the French Dip and they split the sandwich like we asked. Â Waitress was very friendly and had a great attitude. Â Like I said would of been higher but they forgot about us.
Review Source:The Raven has been a locals hangout for years. Â It is by all accounts a dive bar. Â If you go in expecting a fine dining experience, you will be disappointed. Â This is a place to belly up to the bar or grab a seat in the patio, away from the smoke, and enjoy drinks and a simple meal with friends - a burger, French dip or seafood. Â I do like that they offer steamed broccoli as a side - nice if you are not in the mood for fries.
The clientele is varied. Â Off season, I've noticed an older local crowd. Â In the summer, the tourists wander in. Â Service is relaxed - I've never had an issue, but I don't like to be rushed through a meal either. Â Some people prefer a quicker pace and might think service here is slow. Â
Drinks - best to stick to beer or simple cocktails.  They do offer wines, but selection is  limited and I would stay away from the by the glass options especially in off season.  I personally enjoy the Raven.  It's not often you find a small place like this that has been around as long as this place has.
For years, I've heard people talk about this restaurant, and decided to try it on the recommendation of my bf's mom. I could not have been more pleased with the experience!
We visited the Raven on a Saturday night, the week of 4th of July. I was expecting a long wait, but we were seated immediately!
The waitress suggested the scallops, and since I had been considering them, I took her recommendation. My bf had the tuna steak; we both really enjoyed our dinners. The scallops were seasoned perfectly and sitting in a bowl of butter. His tuna steak was blackened, which is a bit spicier than I prefer, but he had zero complaints.
For the portions, price and quality of the food, I would recommend the Raven to anyone visiting Va Beach. And I will be sure to eat there again!
We're locals of many years and just tried this place for the first time recently. While the food was good, drink service was slow, we had to continually ask fir refills  The smoking section is the entire inside of the building and the non smoking is outside on the patio. Which maybe sounds nice until you are melting from the heat or it starts to get cold. Or, If you need to go in and use the rest room and go through the smoke to get there. Good thought but just not thought out thoroughly.
Review Source:Nevermore.
The service was friendly but the food was the worst I've had in a long while. We decided to stop into the Raven because Mahi Mah's had a long wait and we were hungry. Bad choice! I ordered a shrimp cocktail and a bowl of seafood gumbo and my man ordered a pulled pork sandwich and a beer.
The shrimp cocktail arrived (on some pieces of lettuce, flat on a plate) with a small peel off package of cocktail sauce. They couldn't even be bothered to put it into a small bowl? The seafood gumbo was 100% out of a can. I recognized it as Progresso soup I've eaten and disliked at my own home. The menu said it would have shrimp, clam, and scallops. Nope, just a few of those tiny canned shrimp. I was really disappointed in this because we were a few yards from the ocean and this place actually served canned seafood gumbo to patrons.... Sad. The tiny bowl of canned soup was $4.95 and 5 shrimp in a BAD shrimp cocktail were $9.95.
The pulled pork sandwich wasn't bad but the BBQ sauce served on the side was obviously from a jar. It was just a so-so sandwich but not terrible like my soup. The onion rings were the best part of our entire "spread" and then we tried the coleslaw. I love coleslaw and I've had many different varieties: Asian slaw, slaw with weird veggies, coleslaw where everything is diced up, so I know my coleslaws. I believe that when done right, it can be the highlight of a meal. The coleslaw at this restaurant was so old it was MORE than borderline rotten. We could taste the sulfer-y old cabbage taste and were put off our meals.
The staff seem like nice people but the food was just really bad. Also the non-smoking section (I thought the entire restaurant had to be non smoking now?) was ice cold. We only had two dinners in Virginia beach and I'm sad to say that the Raven was a wasted dinner for us.
Eh... I'm not quite sure what to think. There was nothing great, or horrible, about lunch.
The service was a bit slow, the food was average/forgettable. We did have a 4 year-old with us that was amazed that her food was delivered on a Frisbee that  she was allowed to keep.
I may eat here again, I may not. I guess I'm mostly indifferent.
While on vacation I got a recommendation to try this place, and I'm really glad I did. Didn't get too adventurous with my meal, going with a burger topped with mushrooms and a side of broccoli, but I'd get it again.
The burger itself was a tad bit over done compared to the medium well that I asked for, but it wasn't dried out or charred so I was fine with it. And the broccoli was amazing. It was such a huge serving it looked like I had a tree on my plate, and it wasn't the soggy, butter-soaked stuff you get on some restaurants; this was definitely fresh.
The only complaint that I had is that this is still a restaurant that has separate smoking and non-smoking sections (not sure how much of VA is like this since I'm from OH), and since we only wanted the non-smoking section we were relegated to a smaller section on the side instead of getting to sit the very cool looking bar area inside. Even with this, I'd recommend the place and will probably be going back before vacation is over.
This is definitely the first and possibly the only time I am rating a restaurant based on one menu item alone. Â I give this rating based on a 22 year relationship with that one menu item. Â
This item would be the French Dip sandwich at the Raven Restaurant at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. Â
I first had this sandwich as a new bride of a Navy sailor a few months after arriving at his duty station at NAS Oceana in Virginia Beach. Â Life was never quite the same after that... Â Savory. Tangy. Â Generous on the meat with a roll that soaks up the au jus without falling apart. Â *sigh*
This place has been there forever. The main room is smoky and has early 1970's thickly resined dark wood tables and high back booths along with those stained glass lamps also from the 70's. Â There's a prominent and popular bar in that room as well.
There is a non smoking greenhouse room that is bright and comfy, decorated with nautical chart maps and a three season covered patio.
We moved away from Virginia Beach seven years ago after hubby retired. We still make a point of going to the Raven every year when we vacation there with friends. Â The sandwich has changed - they now serve it with 'regular' French Fries instead of thickly sliced "steak fries'. Â You can still opt for a huge nicely steamed broccoli floret. Â Other than that, my 1, 974th (or so, who's counting?) French Dip sandwich, eaten two short days ago, is as magnificent as my first.
I have no idea how any other menu item is.
Have visited The Raven a few times during trips to Virginia Beach, and have always been pleased. They have good food, decent service, and an interesting ambiance. The interior is somewhat dark and gloomy, but I think that's a part of the whole "raven" theme.
During my last visit, I ordered the steamed seafood platter, and it was amazing. It came with a cup of seafood gumbo to start, which was quite tasty although it didn't have as many chunks of seafood as I would have preferred. But no worries, because the steamed seafood platter was a HEAPING pile of crab legs, oysters, shrimp, clams, mussels, and a crab cake. Incredibly fresh, cooked to perfection, and simply delicious.
They lost a star only because our waitress went MIA not once, but twice. Literally, we couldn't figure out where the hell she went on 2 separate occasions when we were waiting for things (the first time, we were waiting for drinks and cocktail sauce, the second time we were waiting for our check). Also noticed later that in her haste to bring over our check after she had disappeared for 20 minutes, she had given us the wrong check. I was so hurried, I thrust my credit card at her without looking at it, but I saw later it was the wrong check, but was probably a little less than what our actual check would have been. Oh well.
Otherwise, it was an enjoyable visit to The Raven.
I came here a couple of weeks ago because of the Ocean Front Bar Crawl. First visit ever. Actually, never knew the place existed. I've heard great things about their food but my entourage didn't stay long enough to eat. One drink and off to the next.
What a cool place with a nice interior. The setting was dark and the place obviously screamed locals hang out. The raven statue/sculpture near the back table was pretty cool to look at.
One blah though... I did notice the smell of smoke and saw that smoking was allowed inside. I love me some cigarettes but I'm not smoking anymore... As such, I don't want to be in a smoking environment.
Our waitress was super nice and she checked up on us every few minutes asking about drinks and food. She was very helpful and eager to help us even though she knew we were in and out on a crawl.
I'll definitely come back to try their food but will most like eat in their covered outdoor section so I don't smell like cigarettes!
Our second stop on the 'Ocean Front Bar Crawl'. I've always had a soft spot for The Raven and have been coming here off and on for close to 20 years. They make a mean burger here.
Another thing I like about The Raven is the interior. Once you pass through their covered outdoor section you enter a dining room that runs the length of their long bar. The interior is made of wood  with a very dark stain. It's almost like being in an old lodge. At the end of the dining area there's even an old carved Indian statue. (Pic enclosed).
We picked up two more members to our Yelp group here and took over the very back table. All of us were starting to get hungry and we poured over the menus, but then someone mentioned taco's, so we held out, had our drinks and moved on to the next place. Honorable mention for our service as our waitress was excellent.
I would rate the Raven at four stars! Why? Well, for starters, they have separate seating for smokers and non-smokers. Another reason is because it's prob the best damn burger joint in Va Beach! My burger was well prepared, the shrimp was yummy (the sauce could've been concealed a little better,rather than bringing it out in Ken's packaging) but, all in all a good experience!
Review Source:Once you get past the dingy exterior & smoky main space, you're in for a tasty treat. Luckily they offer a non-smoking side-patio that is air conditioned because the interior smells like a dirty ashtray.
The Burger Champignon was delish w/ plenty of fresh mushrooms! We also ordered the shrimp cocktail and that too was great. The only down-side was the single-serve Ken's cocktail sauce.
Last year we walked past The Raven a few times and thought it looked like a dive, so we never went in. Â This year, we went in on our first night. Â Â We were starving and needed a drink real bad after sitting in traffic for 5 hours. Â Â It is kind of a dive, but the burgers are so danged good! Â Order the burger with the sauteed mushrooms on it. Â The mushrooms are fresh and super tasty. Â After a bit, we also ordered the steamed seafood platter to share and loved it. Â Â The crab legs were really sweet - 100 times better than the crab legs at Captain George's. Â We topped it off with a Chocolate Truffle. Â Wow. Â That dessert is delicious. Â
A few nights later after a less than stellar attempt at dinner at Mahi Mah's, we found ourselves at The Raven again, eating that steamed seafood platter. Â Â It was equally good the second time around. Â
The service at The Raven is also super friendly. Â Â The first night Becky took care of us at the bar and she was really great. Â Â When we went back later in the week, the servers that were working the first night we went in remembered us and stopped by to chat. Â Â
Don't dismiss The Raven because it looks like a dive. Â Dive right on in and enjoy it.
My favorite place to eat in Virginia Beach! As Katie C. said, it looks like a dive outside & inside. But the food is outstanding! It has a smoking section in the bar, which you do have to walk through to go to the bathrooms. We generally sit out front when we're there. We make sure to eat there at least twice every time we're in town. The service is good as well.
Review Source:I see a lot of mixed opinions about this place. When I go to The Raven I go with my family and it is always for the same thing, burgers! They have a good burger. In addition, they serve Raven beer. It's not the best beer in the world but I find it fitting to sit in the Raven having a good juicy burger and drinking an ice cold Raven beer. They also have a gift shop and sell the Raven beer by the case.
I will admit, I have not tried any other menu items. As I said, I always get a burger. I don't think you can go wrong on that one. If you want a nice dinner, a fat juicy steak or seafood and don't mind dropping some money, you have plenty of other choices along the ocean front.
UPDATE: Went in tonight and my wife and I ordered something completely different. She got the French Onion soup and French Dip and let me tell you, very, very good. I ordered the seafood gumbo and meatball sub. The gumbo was good but it was more like seafood soup. The Okra was not enough to thicken it I guess. Either way, it was very tasty. I should have went with the steamed seafood plate or the crab legs though. although I enjoyed the meatball sub, the gumbo set the mood for a seafood feast and I did not fulfill it. Also, the only real complaint we had for this meal was the fact that they used a multi-grain bread in the French Onion soup so bitting into sunflower seeds was a little odd. It really tripped my wife out. The flavor was really good though and they did not skimp on the cheese!
From the outside, this place looks like a total dive. From the inside, not much better: a bar with smoking on one side and a separate non-smoking area on the other. Very much a diner vibe - seemed like the kind of place where a burger and fries would be the only good choice. However, being from the midwest, I don't get very many chances to enjoy good seafood, so I took a chance and ordered the crab legs. How pleasantly surprised I was to find that they were fresh and absolutely delicious. The price was really reasonable too. Guess you should never judge a book by its cover...
Review Source:The service was pretty good, but the food was nothing to write home about! Â I had the penne pasta with grilled chicken. Â If you consider frozen Perdue chicken strips grilled chicken, then that's what I had. Â There were also pre-frozen rolls and shrimp (for the shrimp cocktail). Â
My friend had a Black Diamond steak with broccoli. Â She said the steak wasn't bad, but the presentation of this giant hunk of broccoli seemed a bit much.
My friend and I also found it interesting that they served packaged condiments- Ken's Cocktail sauce and Land o' Lakes butter. Â In addition, the A/C in the closed off non-smoking patio was way too cold.
In sum, my roommates in college (who did not cook in any way, shape, or form) could have made my meal which I wasted $12 on. Â I wasn't impressed.
It's expected that a restaurant will give you excellent service when they're slow. Â When a restaurant gives you excellent service during a time that they're obviously busy, it's worthy of recognition. Â The Raven deserves such recognition. Â The burger was cooked just the way I requested, and the drink glass never went empty. Â The staff was friendly despite the obvious hustle 'n bustle. Â It's rather uncommon for me to give a 5 star rating, but this place earned it on this particular night.
The bar area is a smoking environment, in case you're sensitive to such things. Â Also, the bar TV's were a bit small, however, I was still able to see the baseball being thrown. Â Considering this is geared toward being a restaurant as opposed to a bar, I guess it can be forgiven. Â :) Worth a future visit!
I went back over the weekend excited by the prospect of a smoke-free Raven. Â Sadly, they took the step of isolating the bar with doors and separate HVAC to keep it a smoking area.
The patio is non-smoking, but you will still have to walk through the smoking are to get to the bathrooms.
Can do lots better than going to the Raven. Went here on the basis of the Yelp rating but was very disappointed. Â The waitress didn't write down the order so she got part of it wrong and then disappeared so it couldn't be corrected. Â I had a seafood platter which included the worst crab cake I've ever had - more filling than anything else and tasted like the topping of a deviled crab rather than crab itself. Â What a shame for a restaurant at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay!
Review Source:
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