We had been here in the past when it was "City Limit", so entering the restaurant brought back a lot of fun/hazy memories from college. The look of the restaurant is similar, the old booths appear to stil be there & the layout was the same. The restaurant was somewhat busy at 6pm on a Friday evening but we were seated right away.
The service was great & there was a happy hour going on until 7pm so we got good drink specials on my wine & my husbands mixed drink. The restaurant had a lot of couples & families with older children but was also kid friendly for us, we brought our 1 year old & they gave her crayons & something to color.
The food was really good. I ordered the crawfish "lousiana lobster roll" with a side of parmesan truffle fries. It was delicious! I would definitely recommend this place for an affordable, unique dining experience.
We will definitely be back to try their brunch on the weekend!
Fried pickles.
I've always been fascinated by these, have ordered them whenever I've seen 'em, and ... have always been disappointed. State fairs? Soggy, salty mess. Various diners across the south? Hideous.
These guys have a fried pickle & jalapeño appetizer that's OUTSTANDING. Served with a sriracha aioli. Perfectly fried-to-order pickle chips that hold their light crusting, rubbing up against jalapeño slices in a tight little basket of awesome. With sauce.
Thought Toast was a very good place to have dinner in the West End. Started out with Shrimp & Crab Nachos - definitely recommend it. Dinner has the Grilled Avocado and Corn Chip salad and that was also very good. Will definitely be going back.
Awesome selection of craft beers on draft as well.
Dinner time ambiance is awesome. Very lively.
Carribean Black Bean Burger - delicious!
Drinks here are to die for!
Curried Indian pakoras were delicious so we ordered a second serving and they came out burnt :( So, I have to take away half a star.
Veggie corn dog.... No taste at all so need to take away another half star.
Overall I will be coming back.
Love the feel of this place... They are clearly "different" than other places in the area. Â They bring you this glass bottle of water with little shotglass size glasses.... it reminded me of Miami...however, The food was awesome. I had the shrimp and crab nachos appetizer..They were finger licking good... Â And they had a special that i chose.. Called "Far East Poutine". It was sweet chili and ginger marinated sirloin tips over top of sweet potato fries and broccoli. Â I was a little leery at the idea of the fries being soggy but the sauce was so yummy I barely noticed! Â I was there during happy hour so... I had to order a couple drinks. My bf who is a beer lover was a little disapointed at the size of the beer glass..he said it was too small, in fact he said it was too close to the size of the water glass. I ordered a margarita,it tasted too salty.. i didnt like it, but the waitress recommended I try a drink the bartender created called " hey jealousy" it had bluecoat gin, st. Germaine liquer, , lemon, hibiscus blossom and sparkling white wine. It was everything the margarita was not. Yummy :).
Oh my goodness the star of this meal was the throwback to my childood banana pudding with vanilla wafers... I almost licked the bowl!
Service was great.. Our server was very friendly and knew the menu well, that always helps. My only complaint was the bathroom.... It was filthy. The toilet was disgusting, the stall door had no lock so I had to reach and struggle to hold it open... Ugg.. It was too much...
My only complaint about this awesome little neighborhood joint is that it is too popular!
On a recent trip I was amazed by how packed it was on a weekday evening - but we were able to snag one of the last available tables. Â Ordered the fries (with yummy homemade ketchup) for an app and I had the salmon and beet salad for my entree. Â The salmon was cooked perfectly - crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside - and wonderfully seasoned! Â The dressing and the toppings on the salad were so good I tried to recreate it at home the next week.
If you are in the area go. Â If you aren't - take a trip out to this end of town and give it a try! Â Would be a great place for a casual family get-together!
I've been looking forward to trying out Toast since it's near my work and I love that it's a "Fan-ish" restaurant located in a random shopping center.
Went here for lunch; sadly, I wasn't particularly impressed. Â Ordered the grilled fish reuben which was tasty but they put way too much dressing which resulted in soggy bread. Â I got the sweet potato tots as a side and they were good except I didn't like the sauce served with it (it might be their creole tartar sauce?).
Service was great and the decor is nice; lots of booths and plenty of seating at the bar. Â I heard good things about brunch at Toast so I'll give that a try the next time I visit.
I really enjoy this establishment. Â My first visit was back in January for a Richmond Social Media event. Â It was crowded in the bar area, but there was still something very comfortable about it.
I make it a point to go for happy hours because I love the wine on tap and they also have an eclectic beer on tap list that never disappoints (I LOVE IPA'S). Â The corndog appetizer is divine and the homemade ketchup is not to be missed.
If eating a full meal or brunch I tend to go with the daily aspecials and am always satisfied, usually surprised as well (Grilled Watermelon BLT???? - DELICIOUS).
The atmosphere is conducive to stopping by for a late cocktail as well -- I have been there as late as 11pm on a weekday and not felt rushed.
PS --- Â Dominic is an RVA-Bartender-extraordinaire !!! Â also, they do have wifi (it says no above) and check the "tips" section for the password thanks to Chad W.
This place is awesome! Â From the art on the walls to the food to the A++ service, I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch here.
First off, the decor is pretty hipster, right down to the lower case font the restaurant name is written in. Â The music is chock full of the indie type, from Coconut Records to Tegan & Sara to Modest Mouse. Â A cute touch I liked was that the drink menu and your bill are presented on mini clipboards.
I got the caprese panini because I was in the mood for a grilled cheese with tomatoes, and it was exactly what I wanted. Â The balsamic also gave it a great flavor. Â My boy was feeling adventurous and ended up getting the BLW, a BLT twist with watermelon instead of tomato! Â It sounded crazy to me (watermelon and bacon on a sandwich?!) but the juicy, watery melon fit right in the spot of a juicy, watery tomato. Â I had one bite without tasting the accompanying bleu cheese and one with, and I have to say I preferred it without. Â Both bites were delicious but the bleu cheese was another strong flavor that didn't seem necessary. Â The bacon really grounded the watermelon and stopped the sandwich from becoming too sweet.
Speaking of sweet, once I saw that the donuts with mascarpone were only $5, I had to try them. Â It didn't feel like we were waiting that long, but our server came by to tell us that the first donut batch burned so she told the kitchen to try again. Â When she brought us the donuts, she said they were on the house since we had to wait "so long." Score!
The donuts themselves were so yummy, with a healthy sprinkling of cinnamon sugar -- slightly crisp on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside. Â The mascarpone was a good complement but I found myself wishing for the sourness of cream cheese. Â Probably just a personal preference.
Our server was super sweet and cheerful, but not annoying at all. Â Just a cool cat really. Â I checked out their beer list and they've got Devil's Backbone Vienna Lager on tap (win!) and Yuengling bottles for $3.50 (double win!) so I will definitely be back.
The bacon nachos were great, I didnt want them to end. I also ordered the drink "Hey Jealousy". This drink had a habiscus flower in the bottom. I never would of thought you could eat a habiscus flower but I did! When I scooped it out of my drink it looked like a baby octapus, but when I ate it- it tasted like a fruit rollup! Needless to say my date was very jealous hence the name of the drink!
Review Source:I was excited to try this new restaurant a few Friday nights ago. The atmosphere was nice and cozy- not too much different from City Limit, but enough of a change to make it feel like a new restaurant. I was pleasantly surprised by the menu options and pricing. I had to ask the server for suggestions because I was torn between 3-4 selections.
I ended up ordering the Pickles and Caps App, and the Toast's take on the Sloppy Joe. The Pickles and Caps were great- these were fresh cut jalapenos- not the frozen stuff- HOWEVER about half of the bowl was hard, fried nuggets of nothing, which was very a huge letdown. The sloppy joe was VERY good, but its nothing like a sloppy joe you are used to- had more of a middle eastern flavor to it.
They make their own ketchup, which is ok, but you really shouldnt try to mess with traditional Heinz... I like the effort, but ketchup is the one battle you are going to lose. Heinz has the market!
Overall the experience was great, and I am looking forward to trying it again.
EDIT: I returned since the first time and tried the Pickle and Cap appetizer again. This time there were no dried, hard pieces!
I've been meaning to try Toast for awhile but never got a chance to.  Overall, I was pretty happy with the experience and would go back.  The restaurant was actually bigger than I imagined it would be.  I'm used to the smaller hole in the wall places in the fan area of Rva so  the open space was a welcome surprise.  We arrived just before 7pm and we were just in time for happy hour.  Decent happy hour but the local drafts weren't on special.  Wine was relatively cheap though.  After doing my research on yelp and seeing what recommendations others had, we decided to go with the burgers.  I had the "My favorite" which was pretty awesome.  Apparently the chef came up with the idea himself I think it was a blend of different meats, topped with bacon and a fried egg!  I also tried the original as well which was pretty solid.  The burgers are served on a brioche bun which I LOVE.  I ordered the sweet potato tots which I actually thought were underwhelming.  Too sweet for my taste.  The sauces were a little off as well.  I had a good dining experience and would recommend the burgers and there is a pretty good selection of drinks as well.
Review Source:This place has left such an impression that I have been compelled to write this review immediately after coming back from this place. We'll start with what this place did well. First of all, carrying Hardywood beer is always a plus. Signals that the bar is great. The Louisiana lobster roll was great. Full of flavor, and the addition of alfalfa sprouts gave it a distinctly pleasant taste. Oh, and the decor was definitely homey with nice booths.
Okay, now for why we can say that I left this place with the feeling "I'm over this". First of all, let's talk about the apps. The shrimp and crab nachos were good, but the cheese was not melted, and the chips were definitely fried on site while being too oily. What probably happened was, the dish wasn't heated all the way as it should have and was left sitting at the hot line waiting for the app. Now to that other app, Seared Scallops and Crispy Pork Belly over Minty Greek Yogurt topped with Kiwi and Watermelon Salsa. The scallops were cooked perfectly expect there was no seasoning on it, but the pork belly definitely made up for it. it's just a shame that perfectly seared scallops were not seasoned, such a rookie mistake.
Now the entrees. I already mentioned the Lobster Roll; so let's talk about the Rib Gouda Mac. As someone has mentioned earlier here, the ribs aren't just dry, they're beef jerky dry. It was so tough and unpleasant to chew on, that I basically had to pull the ribs off of the Gouda Mac plate and put it on another plate. A waitress came up to me asking how things were, and I told her that the ribs were dry, and she responded with "do you want more sauce for your ribs". Like what? How does sauce make dry ribs better again? Is she going to give me a steamer then and let it just soak and magically not be dry then? Well finally she took it back, and the manager came back with a new set of ribs and apologized. At first, the ribs were decent in the sense that it was moist but not tender at all. They probably use some pretty cheap meat, which I would expect form a $16 dish. After eating the ribs from the thin part to the thicker part, something became clear. The ribs were undercooked. The ribs that were turned back once were pink. Very disappointing. That was the last straw, and the ribs were forever sentenced to the small appetizer plate to be never touched again. On the bright side, the Gouda Mac was amazing. Very unique, and I would order it again, without the ribs.
And finally to the last disaster of the night. The great Hardywood blonde was found to have a little winged swimmer enjoying all it's deliciousness at the end of the meal. To be honest. I can't necessarily blame them for the fly, because crap happens, but after the unseasoned seared scallops and the dry then partially raw ribs, I was just over it. I mentioned the fly to my waitress, and she just offered to replace the beer after all that has happened when I was getting the check, and I said no. No offer for a comp, which should have happened after the ribs, but none to be offered. The waitress with all of her innocence still came back with another beer right when I was getting up to leave. Maybe she should have offered to comp my check, but none to be seen until I was outside the restaurant stopped by a manager, who admittedly said that it was too late for a comp after I signed the credit card receipt.
It's sad that this place was so highly recommended to me by my friend. Maybe he just ate the lobster roll, but everything was just a disaster and just makes me sick. Maybe I should just induce myself to vomit to avoid any kind of food poisoning from the undercooked ribs and/or fly in my beer. Definitely not worth $32. It would have been better to just gone to McDonalds and get a McRib sandwich and get some Easy Mac.
On the other hand, the bar looked pretty nice, and there were a bunch of young adults drinking there with what seemed like a pretty decent selection.
Excellent wine, liquor and beer selection. My only turndown was their focus on whisky and rye. I understand a restaurant focusing on a liquor, but there was no real theme to accommodate the focus on whisky and rye. With their name and logo, it seems like it would be champagne or beer based.
The food was good and I loved the lobster roll and the shrimp and crab nachos. Definitely a diamond in the rough, and worth a taste.
Worst waste of time and money ever. Waited 10 minutes simply to place a drink order. While the beer and wine selection was good...that was the only thing positive about my visit. Ordered polenta veggie corn dogs as appetizer...another 15 minute wait. I ordered the fish tacos. The rice served with them was mushy and bland. I couldnt eat the tacos because the fish had bones in them! When I inquired with the waitress she appologized and offered dessert as compensation. Â I declined reporting I was hungry and had not had dinner. When the bill came I was still charged for what I could not eat. The knife in my silverware had crust on it prior to my use...and she did not keep drinks full. Over all took over two hours to simply have dinner and appetizer. Ill never go back...bad service bad food
Review Source:Toast is one of my favorite places in Richmond. While I've dined there frequently for lunch, dinner & happy hour, I tried their brunch for the first time this weekend.
The restaurant has a great vibe with lots of weathered wood in their decor for a very natural look. The lights are typically low and I enjoy that it's a trendier restaurant but in the convenience of the near West End with great parking.
As always, we were greeted upon entering the restaurant, promptly seated and served drinks. Their brunch menu has many traditional dishes with a twist. I got the huevos rancheros and they were phenomenal. Just enough food to be content without being full.
One thing you must try if you're ever there is the sweet potato tater tots!
Maybe want to give this a five. Â It's really close. Â I was disappointed because at 9 o'clock on Sunday night they were out of the special I wanted (I think that was an unrealistic expectation on my part). Â The pork belly and bacon nachos are MARVELOUS! Â Get them. Â Sweet, salty, bacon-y, yummy. Â Not a big ole mess, but a well put together bunch of complimentary tastes. Â Served on homemade potato chips was perfect. Â Next we had the grilled avocado salad. Â Another winner! Â The combination of fresh tastes - the lemon vinaegrette, the smoky avocado, the crunch of the salad...really good. Â We finished with the mascarpone donuts - you guessed it - another great combination of flavors. Â The donuts were hot and freshly tossed in cinnamon sugar at our table. Â Our service was totally on point too. Â I will be back! Oh - on a Sunday night at 9 o'clock, they were still busy. Â Totally understandable.
Review Source:My husband & I were really disappointed. We had read some good reviews about this place but it came up really short. We started out with Shrimp & Crab nachos which came out with cold crab & unmelted cheese. My husbands meatloaf came with veggies so hard & undercooked you could not even stab them with a fork. I ordered a burger, which had a huge hamburger patty but was very pink in the middle and I had ordered it well done. We got the french fries with parmasean and truffle oil for an additional charge but I couldnt really tell the difference between these and the normal french fries. I think there are a lot of really great ideas on the menu but they are very poorly executed. The only plus was the interesting bar menu with some exotic beer choices.
Review Source:I am NOT generally a fan of strip-mall dining, but Toast is pretty great. Â We were greeted and seated immediately (without a reservation). Â Our server took care of our order immediately and timed service perfectly. Â The food came out quickly (even though the entire restaurant was full), and my Cuban Reuben with sweet potato tots was on point. Â My friend said her Thai salad was great, too. Â Not too hot, either, which she was afraid of since it has wasabi in it.
I liked that the menu was big enough, but not too big. Â Outside of the Cuban Reuben, there were two other dishes on there that I could've easily gone for. Â The variety is also good. Â Someone planned the menu very well. Â
The decor is nice, too. Â Toast would fit in perfectly in the Fan.
I'm a fan of this place because of proximity and great drink specials. I've gone for brunch, which has a good selection of dishes and a killer blood orange mimosa. I highly recommend the huevos rancheros. For typical dinner fare, I do enjoy the veggie lasagna and polenta corn dogs. Great selection of drinks though I still go for ciders more than anything else and a reasonable price point. Highly recommend if you need a place in the U of R area.
Review Source:After a long week at work, all i wanted to do was kick back and a few drinks.  We decided to his this place since I've heard great things and because nothing makes me happier than a happy hour.  We walked in at 5:45 and were seated at the last available table (SCORE!).  We started with some brews and the Scallop and Pork  Belly app.  Super delish with tart ripe mango and cliantro sauce,  but they tried to pass of a half scallop as a whole (i'm sorry but for $12 and 3 scallops I want a whole one) we complained and the brought out a whole one right away.  For entrees I got the crab mac and cheese and my partner in gluttony ordered the  pepere's pork pie.  Nothing screams out happiness to me more than seafood and mac and cheese and i was one happy girl.  His pork pie tasted like Christmas.  I decided to switch from beer to elixirs and ended up with the cranberry "daiquiri".  great drink and I had to fight to keep his hands off.  I think I might have found my happy place.
Review Source:I don't know, I just don't know. Â You know when a place is so popular that you get the impression that it's like a rolling boulder that could serve cold cereal and people would still come? Â That's the vibe I got at Toast, a new "gastropub" in the Village Shopping Center, a strip mall still looking for its proper niche, although I've not seen it so crowded in quite a while. Â This is a fan-type restaurant in the far west end, and the low lights and dark-amber tones give it a boost of trendiness and heighten its already surging popularity.
Yes, Toast is popular, and the clientele is the type that doesn't care that you've been waiting a half hour or more for a table, they're there to hang out and be seen in the most popular restaurant in town, by others eating in the most popular restaurant in town. Â Oh well, at least the bar list of beers and wines is very impressive, with an emphasis on Virginia microbrews and plenty of red and white wine choices to fit every budget and palate. Â
To the food, a nice selection of appetizers that were different to say the least. Â On a tip, we tried their signature polenta corndogs, nicely battered and served with their house homemade ketchup and bbq aioli (more like a mustard). Â Good, but still a corndog. Â The entrees we got were better, and on the quality of the beef in the toast burger was clearly high quality and the mexi burger, a mix of beef and chorizo with excellent toppings, was good but the brioche bun couldn't handle the wet ones. Â The fries were handcut and quite good. I paid extra to have the parmesan and truffle fries, but the regular fries were good enough as I found myself going back to the regular ones. Â My wife got a scallop special she deemed "adequate" but it did not thrill by any means. Â Given the portions for the other entrees we saw, it seemed pretty small for the $18 dollars spent.
The dessert we tried were the homemade donuts with mascarpone dipping cream. Â Probably not something you want after a corndog and burger, but to each his own. Â I would say that an additional visit would be needed to really grasp what Toast is all about, but overall, we had fun, more with the drinks and desserts than the main courses, but more remains to be seen and eaten. Â Just remember to pack your patience and your appetite for adventure as you'll probably be eating something you didn't expect. Â More than likely you'll like it, but so far, I'm not sure it's worth the hype.
Kicking myself for not coming here sooner! Â You should kick yourself too if you keep waiting.
We started with the Shrimp & Crab Nachos, I ordered the Cali Sandwich, my wife ordered the Toast Club and we ended the meal with the Doughnuts with Mascarpone.
The Shrimp & Crab Nachos was very different than what I had imagine Nachos to be. Â It wasn't a greasy and sloppy mess of fattening goodness. Â Instead it had a very fresh taste with really good ingredients. Â First, they use real crab meat which is a bonus. Â I loved the slaw that was tucked underneath the guacamole. Â Overall a very solid appetizer.
The Cali sandwich was one of the best vegetarian sandwiches I have ever had. Â It was tasty, fresh and very filling. Â All major things I look for in a vegetarian sandwich. Â The really kicker in this sandwich is the chive cream cheese that is smeared on the inside of a wonderfully toasted baguette. Â Other ingredients included cucumber, guacamole and some greens. Â I am HUGE fan of their fries and homemade ketchup!
My wife's Toast Club sandwich was the pure AMAZING! Â Its fried lake trout, topped with some of the softest/juiciest pork served inside a brioche bun. Â They provide three house-made sauces: tatar, ketchup and BBQ. Â Their BBQ sauce is awesome! Â I had one bite and swore to myself that I should not of done that. Â I was filled with envy until I ate another bite of my sandwich. Â If they have the Toast Club on the menu its a MUST order.
Desert: Doughnuts served with Mascarpone. Â Wow! Â The server brings to the table a plate filled with brown sugar and a white bag. Â Inside the bag the server shakes up the doughnuts and then rolls them out of the bag onto the brown sugar. Â These amazing little things were steaming, crispy and very doughy! Â It was an awesome desert.
Either way we cut it this place is a must for us to return. Â In fact we already are trying to introduce this place to our friends THIS WEEK! Â Don't wait! Â Come check it out.
Bless Yelp, for without it I never would have stumbled on this place- it's in a section of town I don't reach much, in a strip mall I never realized was there. There's a large selection of beer in particular as well as a decent wine list and some tasty cocktails [my requirements for the meal had been 'good cocktails, open before 5pm']. I had a Duke [delicious blend of flavors with the espresso and benedictine] and my sister had a Garibaldi [blood orange medley, quite good, but much fruitier]. I'd like to go back to try the apple flip [I was too tired to order a second drink, long day sadly] and possibly the Louche which was gin-based and sounded refreshing.
Toast wears the title gastropub well, the entrees are fun but a touch rustic in some ways, which matches the decor. We started with shrimp and crab meat nachos which were light on both but heavy on tasty cabbagey stuff, herbed sour cream and guacamole, so worth the price. Next my sister and I shared clove-spiced meat pie [VERY clove, which is not my favorite spice but was good, and which came with an awesome salad] and pot roast poutine, which were super tasty. The waiter did forget to tell us what the specials were, but it turns out that probably would have been too many choices for my exhausted self, so no harm no foul. We ended with the little doughnuts [heavy, bready little things, bit... beer flavored? something, couldn't place it] served hot with delicious honey mascarpone.
I'll definitely go back, probably to try the burgers which looked awesome, and another cocktail, and i shall do it early, by the time we finished eating, the place was packed.
This place might have my holy grail huevos rancheros. Seriously, it was perfect and delicious without being over-filling. I've also had the bruncheladas and while they weren't my favorite, they were very good. The mexi-burger is insanely flavorful, but sadly mine was a tad dry. I tasted the pot roast poutine and that was awesome. Where has that been all my life?! The atmosphere is awesome so I really hope everyone keeps going here so it stays. Anyways, try this place ASAP.
Things I didn't care for? Didn't like the hashbrowns because they tasted undercooked. Anyways, still a must try place!
I think this might be one of my new favorite brunch spots. Rustic and warm decor. Friendly staff, decent prices. & delicious food!
I got The Chicken & The Egg. It's fried chicken on a biscuit topped with an egg and gravy sauce. The chicken was crispy and the gravy sauce was to die for! It was such a great combination along with hash browns on the side. My friend had the French toast and it was a bit too sweet. Overall, I would definitely come back.
Just the facts:
- My coffee mug was empty more than it was full.
- Our brunch meals arrived lukewarm at best.
- My wife's chorizo sausage huevos ranchero had no chorizo.
- My Monterrey Bennie was ok, the huevos rancheros were fairly "bleh"
Maybe this place is popular with the locals that live near by? Â I am baffled by the 4 star rating. Â Back to The Magpie for our Sunday brunch it is.
Hmmmm I'm not sure where to begin. I guess I'll cut straight to the chase. The service was TERRIBLE! I felt like our waitress hated us. I've worked in the food service industry for many, many years, so I can give a girl break if she's super busy or even having a bad day. But this was bad beyond forgiveness.
We walked in on a busy Saturday night at 7, and were told it would be about 15 minutes. So we waited at the bar. The atmosphere was very cozy, upscale, and casual. From looking at the specials on the chalkboard we were getting very excited for dinner. From coffee rubbed ribs over gouda mac and cheese to pot roast poutine, everything sounded amazing. The bartender wasn't that great, though. And when it was time for us to be seated at our table it took us a while just to flag her down to let her know we needed our check.
Once we were sat, the waitress asked if we wanted anything to drink. Since I'm preggo, I asked for just water. She glared at me as if I had just told her she's ugly. My husband had a glass of wine. A considerable amount of time passed before she asked for our order. We wanted to start with a salad to share, but she walked away before we could tell her our dinner order. Once the salad arrived, it was the wrong one. We almost didn't want to tell her for fear that she'd spit in our food. My dear sweet husband was SO apologetic when he told her it was the wrong one (as if it were our fault?). She was disgusted to hear this and took the salad away. Keep in mind we still haven't ordered our dinner yet. Â Another server brought out the right salad.
Once we finished the salad (which was decent, not great), we were about ready for  our dinners to come...oh wait...we still haven't ordered. About 5 minutes later, we had to flag our delightful waitress down to get her to take our orders. She didn't write anything down, so she had to come back and ask us again since she forgot (this was after 10 minutes or so). Finally, we got our food. It was after 9pm. 2 hours since we walked in.
The food was ok, but then again, I think the atmosphere and restaurant experience often times influences the taste of food. It may have tasted much better if we felt comfortable, like our waitress was glad we were there, rather than scared of her! Our wonderful waitress checked on us once during our dinner, and when we finally flagged her down again for our check, she brought the bill which had TWO salads on it (the first wrong one, and the second right one). My husband said he'd just pay for it, because he didn't want to deal with sweet waitress anymore. I refused and told her about the issue. As you can imagine, she was delighted to hear this news. My husband (again, dear sweet, generous person that he is) still left a 20 percent tip, but made me promise to write a review about it.
When we finally left, we were a little bit in shock, but had some good laughs about the level of disrespect we were treated with.
Friends and I went to Toast yesterday for lunch; we all work at the university nearby, none of us had been and we wanted to check it out. We arrived at noon and the place was pretty empty. Had good service, but the food was pretty mediocre, at best. The place looks great (much improved from City Limit and even way back when it used to be Potter's Pub).
I ordered the turkey/avocado sandwich and it was pretty basic - nothing special here. French fries are my weakness and I was excited when I saw hand-cut fries. Again, pretty mediocre and everyone's fries came out luke warm. Two friends had the turkey burger, both said that it was pretty bland with little to no flavor.
I (along with my fellow diners) was also not a fan of the "homemade ketchup" either - it has a distinct cinnamon flavor to it, which I did not find to be tasty at all.
One more pet peeve that the folks at Toast do: fake Diet Coke (read: generic, off-label but still call it Diet Coke). I hate when restaurants cut corners on the little things...
Overall verdict: probably won't go back to eat, which is disappointing because I always am on the lookout for a good place near work. I would go back and drink there - seems like a good atmosphere for after-work happy hour.
I recently stopped by Toast for brunch. I live in DC where restaurants boast about what are actually mediocre brunches. Unreliable fare and disappointing experiences keep my brunch expectations low. Toast far exceeded my expectations, delivered fantastic fare, and restored my waning faith in a positive brunch experience.
Creative Menu
I arrived at around 11:30, got a seat, and ordered a coffee, which arrived quickly and remained full throughout my meal. I commenced to pore over the extensive and creative menu. With so many options that appear so good, it took me a while to decide to go with The Chicken & The Egg.
Impressive Decor & Environment
As I waited for my order, I took in Toast's casual, hip environment. I appreciate the exposed ceilings, the beautiful booths that account for at least 75% of its seating, the lighting fixtures, and the decor, particularly the use of doors as decorative pieces. Though I didn't spend any time there, the well-stocked bar was long, clean, crisp, and in incredible condition.
The Chicken & The Egg: "Absolutely Incredible"
Then, my doubling-down on chicken products paid off. The structural foundation of the dish is a homemade biscuit with tasty and tastefully-applied sausage gravy. Atop the biscuit and gravy was a well fried, crispy piece of chicken which an over-easy egg crowned. Absolutely incredible.
Ketchup -- Do It
One element stood out. The hash browns were good, but they were made all the better with homemade ketchup. Under whatever circumstance you find yourself at Toast, make sure you order something that can be served with ketchup.
I strongly encourage any Richmonder or out-of-towner in Richmond to check out Toast.
Toast is A-OK in my book. Â It has a cool and comfortable atmosphere. Â Service wasn't bad but it wasn't great either. Â It did take a while to get drink refills.
They have a good drink selection with some cool beers and wines to choose from. Â I had the Devils Backbone Vienna Lager which was awesome.
I got the Sloppy Joseph with tots. Â The tots were really good and came with this special sauce. Â But the sandwich was just not doing it for me. Â It was ok.
They did a much better job with the appetizers. Â The fried pickles and jalepenos were really really good and the guacamole with chips was really good as well. Â Although one could argue it's hard to mess up either one of those dishes.
It is a lot better than the previous restaurant that was in this spot and I will definitely be back to try something else.
I've been here several times, and I can't say enough about how great everything is. The staff and owners are attentive and friendly. They have a great selection of craft beers -- nice to have the usual suspects as well as some interesting choices that you don't see everywhere.
Everything on the menu (and the specials!) has been wonderful. Good food without being crazy expensive or pretentious. Great soups!
Toast has a comfortable atmosphere with dim lighting that makes you feel cozy inside. The booths and tables are all hardwood finished and coated. They look great and are surprisingly comfortable; it's a nice change from the usual. I don't know if our drink orders were lost or the server was overbooked with tables, but it took us a little while to get our first round of drinks. I'm not one for wine and I don't do liquor out to eat, but I will say that the beer menu was extensive with drafts, bottles, and cans available, half of which seemed to come from in-state and several from local breweries in town. That scored major points in my book.
The two sided menus were really cool; the papers were rubber-banded on the front and back of a wooden slab; very simple, and very happy with that. On the menu were some unique choices (a delicious meatloaf, mac and cheese with crab, some unique sandwiches) but the specials really sold us.
We ended up ordering four appetizers: a cup of chicken chili with chips to dip, a caprese salad with crostini, a cup of she-crab soup and a grilled Caesar salad, all of which were delicious and flavorful. The she-crab soup could have had a lot more crab.
As for entrees, we ordered the fried pork chop special, topped with a bourbon barbecue sauce and served with sweet potato tater tots and grilled veggies. The pork chops were breaded and fried to perfection. The tots were served with a delicious remoulade that had a hint of cinnamon. Â My girlfriend had a tilapia dish served with pesto and goat cheese on top and over rice and sauteed arugula. Spiced to perfection, but still able to taste the fish.
After our meal we ordered a cup of decaf, but were brought a cup a soup mistakenly, and when the coffee was finally brought out, was watered down and flavorless, but I suppose not many others are drinking coffee at 9pm. Overall, the experience was great. It's a great place, the menus are great, the specials are incredible, and the service was alright. It was a little slow, but the place just opened so there are still kinks to work out. Â I look forward to going back and experiencing it again, I'm sure the daily specials will be stellar!
Toasts dark wooden finishes, vintage light bulbs, and burled wooden tables reminisce of Fan or Church Hill restaurant stylings. It isn't until you peer out the front windows that you're gazing into the parking lot of the Village Shopping Center.
On my first visit to Toast, I made it in time for happy hour and I was pleased to find you didn't have to sit at the bar for happy hour specials (unlike other places). I was delighted to order a house pinot noir for $4. Later, after doing a little research, I discovered this is was not just any wine, Toast has their vino on tap. Yes, on tap. Richmond's first restaurant to have this, one of those hip newfangled "We did this before you did" thing that makes Toast stand out. As I sipped my wine, I couldn't tell but it's pretty darn cool.
My girlfriend and I started with the polenta corn dogs ($7), we hoped they'd be more of a mini corn dog so we were surprised when two big corndogs (stick and all) arrived at our table. They were ho-hum, I thought the polenta would be thicker with prominent texture but it was remindful of a normal corndog. Not a disappointment but not a star. I did enjoy the three dipping sauces it was served with- a sweet homemade ketchup, spicy mustard, and a tangy delicious bbq. For my main plate, I chose the vegetarian lasagna  ($11) with squash, zucchini, eggplant, and ricotta topped with marinara. Unfortunately, it wasn't a hit either. The bowl it was served in had too much over-baked crust around so I had to work my spoon around the sides to get a bite.
This meal wasn't wonderful but I wasn't ready to close the door on Toast just yet. Later that week, I suggested to another couple that we should all have dinner there.
Second round, we went on a Friday night. The mood was certainly alive and opposite of the quietness I experienced that Wednesday evening.
I chose the Hanover tomato sandwich ($9) with a side of mixed greens. This sandwich was a winner- the warm thick tomato slices, creamy goat cheese, and fresh brioche bun was perfection. The sandwich redeemed the bland experience I had before. The side of mixed greens however, was...mixed greens. Nothing else- no cucumbers, tomatoes, or anything you'd find common. Besides the ranch dressing- I was a little bored.
My dining companions were a little underwhelmed with their meals portion size. My lady chose a quinoa veggie burger and fries- the few bites I took, it was pretty good.
The hit was dessert- mini donuts served with Honey Mascarpone cream. The donuts are served warm in a bag, our waitress even gave the bag a little shake to make sure they were coated with the sugar and cinnamon. They were incredible and plentiful.
I'll revisit Toast again soon. It's close to home and I look forward to discover more menu offerings- even though I'm jonesing for the tomato sandwich and donuts.
You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have dinner at Toast. Â Its a new "gastropub" in what used to be City Limit and I'm guessing that "gastropub" basically means that you have pub grub kicked up a notch with some slightly more interesting twists (see apple slaw on the Rachel).
The good -
fun menu
good variety of wines, beers and cocktails
the atmosphere (funky and retro)
they still have sweet potato tots - double yum!
The bad -
the service (slow and inattentive)
the sloppy Joseph (way over spiced)
the beer list (show me the prices, please)
no happy hour specials - or at least none that we were made aware of
So, look at that, the good and bad balance out which would indicate a 2.5 star review but I will give them the benefit of the doubt as a new restaurant and round up.
I wanted this place to be awesome, I really did. I have always had visions of a great neighborhood spot popping up in the Village Shopping Center so I was very excited when I heard about Toast. However, I was a little disappointed with my initial experience.
Service was not great, which surprised me considering we went during their inaugural week. I would expect everyone to be going above and beyond but instead our server was indifferent and inattentive. Lame.
The food was just okay. We had the turkey burger and the mexi burger and both were meh. The turkey burger was overcooked although the apple slaw was really tasty. We also tried the fried pickles and jalepenos which we really liked - they have a nice batter that isn't too heavy. We also had the parmesan truffle fries, which were good but nothing to write home about.
I will say that the atmosphere is neat and I'm loving the idea of wine on tap. I tried the Cabernet and it was good. Glasses are $6 but $4 during happy hour. Score! Overall, I will definitely give this place a second chance but I'm not jumping the gun to go back. But please, Toast, give me a place to LOVE in this shopping center!
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