Had the Char last weekend, and was seriously disappointed. Dry fish and bland sides. Seems like they are getting complacent. Service was OK but not great. We won't be back based on the high prices they charge.
Sugar T.
Wasn't impressed with the food selection and everything was very expensive. Need to add some spice to the food and a lot more if you want people to pay top dollar.
Thomas R.
I had the best meal in some time. This intimate restaurant is first rate. Be sure you have a reservation at leas for weekend nights.
Don J.
Small portions, over priced and no wow factor. I'm all about farm to table and understand quality costs but this place offers nothing special and the space itself is tiny, congested an as underwhelming as the food. Plenty of other spots don't waste your time nothing special to see here.
Natalie G.
My favorite restaurant here in Lexington (and probably all of Virginia). I have been here three times and not once has it disappointed. Everything tastes amazing. I have ordered food here that I would typically never order in a million years, but every time it comes out excellent. The service is always excellent, and everyone is happy to give recommendations and make changes based on dietary restrictions. The restaurant is quite small and cozy with a great atmosphere and lovely decor. I cannot recommend the Red Hen enough!
Andrew H.
Deep breath. We finally got here and had a wonderful experience. After learning about Red Hen in the media (sigh), we looked into the restaurant and were intrigued by the food images and their 'farm to table' philosophy. Also curious to know what 'good food' would be in a small VA town that caters to W&L and VMI staff, students' families and locals. Reading the reviews, we were surprised how they fall at both extremes. Most people were delighted. Really bad reviews usually focused on unfortunate service happenstances. But the brief ones slamming the food and 'pretentiousness' didn't ring true to me. See media above? So here's our experience. Lovely atmosphere, warm welcome, clean and courteous, delicious food. Shared the cheese block and fall salad (they thoughtfully split for us). The mains were chicken confit and lamb ragout over fresh pappardelle. Both superb. Finished with perfectly baked brownie and spice cake presented as 'cupcakes' with delicious ice cream on top. With a bottle of wine, and coffee and tea to finish, we were pleasantly full. Thinking about the criticisms that the place is 'pretentious', do you feel this way because they are proud of serving local ingredients and go to the trouble of telling you? Our waiter was very polite with a youthful enthusiasm about 'who they are' that was sweet. Some criticized the 'attempt' at fine dining. I'd call the place 'rustic modern' - good ingredients carefully prepared in a small, open kitchen with modern European influences. Delicious, eclectic food served on locally-made 'hippie pottery'. What's not to like? And portion size? Did they seem small to you because of the smaller but deep dark pottery bowls used to serve food? We are big eaters and we were full. And then price. The food quality and care of preparation was comparable to Harrisonburg, Richmond, Annapolis and pricing is similar if not less. The broad wine list is a bargain by comparison. So, like all restaurants, there are good and bad nights, personalities and too many people or too much noise for some people's liking but really, this place is well worth the time and cost for a memorable experience.
Ryan C.
I was visiting a friend in the DC area and we decided to give this place a try. Great food, very rustic, nice local ingredients. However the food is very over priced for what it is. The atmosphere was very nice. The service was not great. A little slow and a the waitresses tone was a bit condescending. It's hard to recommend this place based on the service. For your money you can get the same meal at many other places and get a better de
Ellen J.
Not a great place to eat, mediocre at best, small quantities for fair quality and very expensive....Took a trip here and this place was recommended...I would not waste my money, just not that great, and when you have a hungry husband, definitely do not go. Portions size is for a child...
Brenda G.
My husband and I visited this restaurant around October 2018. My husband had Short Ribs and I had Pan Seared Pork Chops. The salads we had were great, but both meat plates were very much under cooked and lacked taste. We had these dishes at many other restaurants and they were much tastier and were NOT undercooked like they were at The Red Hen.
Rusty J.
We made reservations over two weeks ago in anticipation of visiting Lexington for the first time ever. We made the four hour drive from North Carolina and built a weekend around our 5:30 reservations at the Red Hen. Tomorrow, we will return home happy and satisfied. It was worth the drive. We arrived at the restaurant early and decided to check in and wait. They went ahead and seated our party of four. Our server was extremely friendly. Every staff member we came in contact was friendly and very welcoming. We ordered water to drink as well as a cocktail- two margaritas and a salty Dog. The server explained to us that they make their own sour mix for the margaritas and the grapefruit juice for the Salty Dog was fresh squeezed. When our drinks arrived you could tell it was fresh. We ordered a fresh salad to start our meal off. My salad consisted of mixed greens, fresh pear slices, and goat cheese. It was topped with a house-made balsamic vinaigrette. It was a great preview of what was yet to come. The server also brought us cornbread muffins with a salted butter pat. They were great. We asked if we could get another muffin with our meals and they happily accommodated us with another round. The special for the night was rosemary dijon braised beef served on a bed of mashed potatoes and a side of sautéed fresh vegetables. The beef was topped with gorgonzola bleu cheese. Our entire party ordered the special. We are still happy with our choices and would make the same choice again. Following our meal we were presented with the dessert menu. I got the lemon meringue. The others ordered the spice cake topped with ice cream and the chocolate brownie topped with dark chocolate ice cream and chocolate ganache. The lemon meringue was spectacular. Everyone was impressed by the presentation and divine taste. The lemon meringue was served in a footed sherbet dish sitting atop a crocheted doily. Our server presented us at the end with our cheque and a piece of dark chocolate for each guest. I was sad to see our dining experience come to an end. We had a memorable night. The historic is small by today's standards but it adds to the amazing dining experience. Built in 1890, it is part of the Historic Lexington Foundation. Everything was very clean. The restrooms were immaculate. The ceiling is beautiful. A perfect setting for a perfect evening.
Was there for early dinner with my cousin passing thru Lexington. Cozy Restaurant. Service was a little brisk for my taste. The fish was quite salty. Can't say I would repeat my visit here. Disappointed.
Lynette S.
I thoroughly enjoyed the evening I spent at The Red Hen. Of course, I would never have heard of it if not for the current political climate, but nevertheless I journeyed 500 miles to see what it was all about. Certainly there are local to me farm-to-table restaurants but a friend was taking a road trip and I tagged along. As soon as I walked in the door I felt like I was coming to visit a friend's home. The dining room/kitchen is very cozy with 25 seats - more or less. You can wave to the chef as you are being seated. The wine list was very good and many reasonable options are available. The menu is small and changes frequently. On the night I visited there were 5 choices - fish, chicken, pork, beef and vegetarian. I would imagine those are the options most nights. The dishes were all light comfort food. They were well prepared and nicely presented. It is a nice touch to use local products - from the food from local farms to the dishes the food is served on. The prices are very reasonable considering they are serving real food, not some bulk purchased, cheap, factory food product. The Red Hen has many glowing reviews and they are well deserved. I would give 5 stars as well but the lentils that were served with the chicken were under cooked; they had a chalky texture. Also the cheese board was a bit meager. In any case I would not hesitate to visit The Red Hen given a chance. I think integrity is important and The Red Hen keeps it in their cooking and business practices. And thanks to Jaike and Darrin for putting up with my party's antics!
Tom O.
Nice quaint farm to table restaurant. Good wine selection. Small outdoor seating in the garden. Chefs prepare food from a visible kitchen. Been here several times over the years when in town on business. Great place. Good service and great food. Had the short ribs and bacon date salad with a nice Oregon Pinot. Nice!
Be E.
We look forward to our annual pilgrimage to Lexington for the Va State 4H Horse Show. We love the show. We also love The Red Hen and eat here at least once every year. My husband is vocal about the **best Whiskey Sours** he has ever had. I'm am a devote of local and slow food. (But I also love the drinks!) The good, staff, service, and the building itself all lend to the perfect, relaxing dinner. We are visiting twice this year!
Matt M.
We drove down from Arlington this weekend specifically to dine at the Red Hen. Well worth the trip. Everything was what we hoped it would be: great farm-to-table dining in an intimate (but far from stuffy) setting. Totally relaxed, totally casual, totally friendly. Our halibut was seriously delicious. So was the potato and leek soup that we started with. (Actually, we started with a non-alcoholic version of the ginger and coconut cocktail--the drive was longer than expected in torrential rains and we didn't want to fall asleep!) I was just at the Inn at Little Washington a week ago and I felt more at home at the Red Hen. The Inn is great an all, don't get me wrong, but you feel like you're always on your best behavior there. The Red Hen is the opposite--the ambiance is lively and fun and local. It's like you're dropping in on a really great group of people. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the lemon meringue my wife had for dessert. I went for the flourless chocolate cake, because I'm a d*** guy, but the lemon is the way to go. Holy cow was that good! Thanks for a great excuse to take a road trip for the weekend, Red Hen!
Had the Char last weekend, and was seriously disappointed. Dry fish and bland sides. Seems like they are getting complacent. Service was OK but not great. We won't be back based on the high prices they charge.
Wasn't impressed with the food selection and everything was very expensive. Need to add some spice to the food and a lot more if you want people to pay top dollar.
I had the best meal in some time. This intimate restaurant is first rate. Be sure you have a reservation at leas for weekend nights.
Small portions, over priced and no wow factor. I'm all about farm to table and understand quality costs but this place offers nothing special and the space itself is tiny, congested an as underwhelming as the food. Plenty of other spots don't waste your time nothing special to see here.
My favorite restaurant here in Lexington (and probably all of Virginia). I have been here three times and not once has it disappointed. Everything tastes amazing. I have ordered food here that I would typically never order in a million years, but every time it comes out excellent. The service is always excellent, and everyone is happy to give recommendations and make changes based on dietary restrictions. The restaurant is quite small and cozy with a great atmosphere and lovely decor. I cannot recommend the Red Hen enough!
Deep breath. We finally got here and had a wonderful experience. After learning about Red Hen in the media (sigh), we looked into the restaurant and were intrigued by the food images and their 'farm to table' philosophy. Also curious to know what 'good food' would be in a small VA town that caters to W&L and VMI staff, students' families and locals. Reading the reviews, we were surprised how they fall at both extremes. Most people were delighted. Really bad reviews usually focused on unfortunate service happenstances. But the brief ones slamming the food and 'pretentiousness' didn't ring true to me. See media above? So here's our experience. Lovely atmosphere, warm welcome, clean and courteous, delicious food. Shared the cheese block and fall salad (they thoughtfully split for us). The mains were chicken confit and lamb ragout over fresh pappardelle. Both superb. Finished with perfectly baked brownie and spice cake presented as 'cupcakes' with delicious ice cream on top. With a bottle of wine, and coffee and tea to finish, we were pleasantly full. Thinking about the criticisms that the place is 'pretentious', do you feel this way because they are proud of serving local ingredients and go to the trouble of telling you? Our waiter was very polite with a youthful enthusiasm about 'who they are' that was sweet. Some criticized the 'attempt' at fine dining. I'd call the place 'rustic modern' - good ingredients carefully prepared in a small, open kitchen with modern European influences. Delicious, eclectic food served on locally-made 'hippie pottery'. What's not to like? And portion size? Did they seem small to you because of the smaller but deep dark pottery bowls used to serve food? We are big eaters and we were full. And then price. The food quality and care of preparation was comparable to Harrisonburg, Richmond, Annapolis and pricing is similar if not less. The broad wine list is a bargain by comparison. So, like all restaurants, there are good and bad nights, personalities and too many people or too much noise for some people's liking but really, this place is well worth the time and cost for a memorable experience.
I was visiting a friend in the DC area and we decided to give this place a try. Great food, very rustic, nice local ingredients. However the food is very over priced for what it is. The atmosphere was very nice. The service was not great. A little slow and a the waitresses tone was a bit condescending. It's hard to recommend this place based on the service. For your money you can get the same meal at many other places and get a better de
Not a great place to eat, mediocre at best, small quantities for fair quality and very expensive....Took a trip here and this place was recommended...I would not waste my money, just not that great, and when you have a hungry husband, definitely do not go. Portions size is for a child...
My husband and I visited this restaurant around October 2018. My husband had Short Ribs and I had Pan Seared Pork Chops. The salads we had were great, but both meat plates were very much under cooked and lacked taste. We had these dishes at many other restaurants and they were much tastier and were NOT undercooked like they were at The Red Hen.
We made reservations over two weeks ago in anticipation of visiting Lexington for the first time ever. We made the four hour drive from North Carolina and built a weekend around our 5:30 reservations at the Red Hen. Tomorrow, we will return home happy and satisfied. It was worth the drive. We arrived at the restaurant early and decided to check in and wait. They went ahead and seated our party of four. Our server was extremely friendly. Every staff member we came in contact was friendly and very welcoming. We ordered water to drink as well as a cocktail- two margaritas and a salty Dog. The server explained to us that they make their own sour mix for the margaritas and the grapefruit juice for the Salty Dog was fresh squeezed. When our drinks arrived you could tell it was fresh. We ordered a fresh salad to start our meal off. My salad consisted of mixed greens, fresh pear slices, and goat cheese. It was topped with a house-made balsamic vinaigrette. It was a great preview of what was yet to come. The server also brought us cornbread muffins with a salted butter pat. They were great. We asked if we could get another muffin with our meals and they happily accommodated us with another round. The special for the night was rosemary dijon braised beef served on a bed of mashed potatoes and a side of sautéed fresh vegetables. The beef was topped with gorgonzola bleu cheese. Our entire party ordered the special. We are still happy with our choices and would make the same choice again. Following our meal we were presented with the dessert menu. I got the lemon meringue. The others ordered the spice cake topped with ice cream and the chocolate brownie topped with dark chocolate ice cream and chocolate ganache. The lemon meringue was spectacular. Everyone was impressed by the presentation and divine taste. The lemon meringue was served in a footed sherbet dish sitting atop a crocheted doily. Our server presented us at the end with our cheque and a piece of dark chocolate for each guest. I was sad to see our dining experience come to an end. We had a memorable night. The historic is small by today's standards but it adds to the amazing dining experience. Built in 1890, it is part of the Historic Lexington Foundation. Everything was very clean. The restrooms were immaculate. The ceiling is beautiful. A perfect setting for a perfect evening.
Restaurantji Recommends
Was there for early dinner with my cousin passing thru Lexington. Cozy Restaurant. Service was a little brisk for my taste. The fish was quite salty. Can't say I would repeat my visit here. Disappointed.
I thoroughly enjoyed the evening I spent at The Red Hen. Of course, I would never have heard of it if not for the current political climate, but nevertheless I journeyed 500 miles to see what it was all about. Certainly there are local to me farm-to-table restaurants but a friend was taking a road trip and I tagged along. As soon as I walked in the door I felt like I was coming to visit a friend's home. The dining room/kitchen is very cozy with 25 seats - more or less. You can wave to the chef as you are being seated. The wine list was very good and many reasonable options are available. The menu is small and changes frequently. On the night I visited there were 5 choices - fish, chicken, pork, beef and vegetarian. I would imagine those are the options most nights. The dishes were all light comfort food. They were well prepared and nicely presented. It is a nice touch to use local products - from the food from local farms to the dishes the food is served on. The prices are very reasonable considering they are serving real food, not some bulk purchased, cheap, factory food product. The Red Hen has many glowing reviews and they are well deserved. I would give 5 stars as well but the lentils that were served with the chicken were under cooked; they had a chalky texture. Also the cheese board was a bit meager. In any case I would not hesitate to visit The Red Hen given a chance. I think integrity is important and The Red Hen keeps it in their cooking and business practices. And thanks to Jaike and Darrin for putting up with my party's antics!
Nice quaint farm to table restaurant. Good wine selection. Small outdoor seating in the garden. Chefs prepare food from a visible kitchen. Been here several times over the years when in town on business. Great place. Good service and great food. Had the short ribs and bacon date salad with a nice Oregon Pinot. Nice!
We look forward to our annual pilgrimage to Lexington for the Va State 4H Horse Show. We love the show. We also love The Red Hen and eat here at least once every year. My husband is vocal about the **best Whiskey Sours** he has ever had. I'm am a devote of local and slow food. (But I also love the drinks!) The good, staff, service, and the building itself all lend to the perfect, relaxing dinner. We are visiting twice this year!
We drove down from Arlington this weekend specifically to dine at the Red Hen. Well worth the trip. Everything was what we hoped it would be: great farm-to-table dining in an intimate (but far from stuffy) setting. Totally relaxed, totally casual, totally friendly. Our halibut was seriously delicious. So was the potato and leek soup that we started with. (Actually, we started with a non-alcoholic version of the ginger and coconut cocktail--the drive was longer than expected in torrential rains and we didn't want to fall asleep!) I was just at the Inn at Little Washington a week ago and I felt more at home at the Red Hen. The Inn is great an all, don't get me wrong, but you feel like you're always on your best behavior there. The Red Hen is the opposite--the ambiance is lively and fun and local. It's like you're dropping in on a really great group of people. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the lemon meringue my wife had for dessert. I went for the flourless chocolate cake, because I'm a d*** guy, but the lemon is the way to go. Holy cow was that good! Thanks for a great excuse to take a road trip for the weekend, Red Hen!