Bistro 1834

I came in on a late flight and my only option was the hotel bistro. 1834 came through in the clutch. I hade a wedge salad followed by a turkey bacon burger with fries. Wow! Definitely the best hotel restaurant meal I’ve ever eaten (and I travel regularly). The turkey burger was delicious and the fries were outstanding. The service was also quick and friendly. I will definitely eat here again.

Originally, my family and I were going to try something else at Boar’s Head, but they closed before we could all get there. They suggested to go to Bistro as an option, so to not travel.
Atmosphere:
It was pretty quaint, and it is a nice place to enjoy the afternoon. There’s outside seating, there is comfortable living room kind of furniture, a bar area, and tables inside. They played music very lightly, so my family didn’t have to scream in there to talk which is nice.
Food:
Food left us wondering why they charge so much. We ordered nachos which came with crab, and they weren’t bad but I’ve had better nachos. For the price, a solid $ 19, you would think these nachos would blow your mind. but they didn’t, there could’ve been more to the portion size too. I shared with the lady, and I shared a cheeseburger and turkey burger. I’ll start with the fries, which were pretty regular, and didn’t really taste like fresh potatoes. The turkey burger was better just because it had some flavor, but it was lacking. Both burgers tasted pretty charred and dry. Both weren’t worth the price
Dessert:
The desserts were actually pretty good. We had the pumpkin crime brûlée and some chocolate cake my brother ordered. The chocolate cake was too sweet, but that was to be expected.
Drinks:
Nobody ordered a mixed drink. We all went off an ordered beer. They were priced either $ 5 or $ 6, and honestly, $ 5 is too steep for a Miller Lite. The $ 6 beers weren’t even craft beers or anything special, it was Corona, Sam Adams, and those kind of selections.
Service:
This is where I want to raise it a star but I just can’t with the food. The lady who helped us out was amazing, very interactive, very thoughtful, and on point. My whole family enjoyed her service!

The Boar’s Head Inn has a few dinner options. We had a later dinner at the Bistro on our first night in town. We happened to be staying in an Airbnb in the same neighborhood. It was Friday and we didn’t have reservations, but it was fine. It is a cute little bar type setting with TVs. The staff was very friendly and the food delicious.
We ordered:
The Scallop Ceviche — it was ok. Very different from any ceviche I have had. Probably wouldn’t order it again
Peanut soup — I usually have my peanut soup from the Home of George Washington as they have the best and most authentic version. However, though this one was different (it has some type of tomato soup included) it was very, very good and I would for sure order it again.
Salmon — delicious and cook perfectly
Crab cake — probably the best I have had. I was shocked as I have had ‘award winning’ crab cakes. The Bistro crab cake was nothing but crab and spices with no fillers.

We were at the Bistro 1834 last night Friday, Oct 12^th (UVA’s Homecoming Weekend). At 9pm the place was like a morgue. The F&B management had made no effort to have anything FUN planned for their guests (the majority being Alumns) and out-​of-​towners.
The ONLY thing happening was on television (the playoffs~Nationals/St Louis game). Only the patrons sitting at the center of the bar could view the game. So as you can imagine, those on the left side of the bar were looking out at patrons staring above their heads and cheering. The TV needs to be placed in the center of the bar!
The so-​called ‘pub fare’ is over-​priced and disgusting. The halibut ceviche should be banned! The sole female waitress was bored and unfriendly. She needs to watch Restaurant Impossible & Restaurant Nightmares and realize she is dispensable!
The ONLY time the Bistro was fun was when they hired the-​late, George Melvin to play his fabulous music in the late 1990’s. But he was axed by the stupid, cost cutting of (now-​finally-​retired) GM Jorg Lippuner.
The management needs to take a hard look at this place. The décor is so boring and pretentious.
Hire Gordon Ramsey, Jack Degel or Robert Irvine and make the needed changes. This place could really be fun and popular.
AAA gives this place Four Stars. We give it ONE!