The Vanguard Brewpub & Distillery

This was my first visit here. It was quiet for a Friday night... (the live band canceled). The server was really attentive and extremely nice. The Vanguard burger and the mushroom Swiss burger were both good, cooked to order, and served hot. I wasn't a fan of the French fries though... I was told the Caesar salad was "too wet", so ask for the dressing on the side if you don't like a lot of dressing. All in all, a great experience!

⸻ I ordered a burger for delivery and unfortunately, it arrived nearly raw in the middle. There was not an option to choose how the burger is cooked or a place to write a note for it. I would think it should at least be prepared well-done by default — especially considering it’s going to sit in a delivery bag for a while. Eating an undercooked burger especially sitting during transit is not only unappetizing but also a food safety concern. Disappointed with the lack of care in preparation.

Good atmosphere. Gouda steak mac and cheese was awesome. It can be very loud when the band is playing. You may need a light to see the menu at night. No smoke inside . Great! A decent size dance floor. There was a DJ when the band went on break, decent! Check it out!

Service was exceptional. sat at the bar. ordered GOAT, mushroom swiss, and Vanguard burgers. All were amazing but the GOAT was a standout with the blueberry jalepeno BBQ sauce. Also had red ale and stout. stout was on the sweeter side with plenty of chocolate and coffee notes. the red ale is balanced and smooth. Enjoyed the caiseal bourbon and the single malt whiskey . Will be back!

Awesome place for a flight!!! Very friendly staff, with good beer. I did not get a chance to try the bourbon, guess I will just have to go back!!

We went for trivia night. The place huge with high ceilings. There were 20 people, maybe in there. My friend and I arrived late for the event and were not acknowledged by anyone. We didn't play and were happy we didn't. The trivia questions were so hard, few players got the answers. One question was "what is the chemical coposition of acitone?" Who knows that except a scientist? The kitchen service was slow. I ordered the pretzel appetizer and the Armory burger, no mustard, catchup and mayo on the side with a side cesar salad. Pretty basic stuff. I wasn't asked how I wanted the burger cooked. It came out medium rare. Slightly underdone for me. The meat was spoiled. It tasted and smelled funny. My friend confirmed before I complained. They comped the burger. The salad was good. They did not skimp on the shaved parmesian cheese. The pretzels never arrived and they were comped as well. The server was so cool about the whole thing. She was amazing. We will not be going back there again. I recommend that you stay far away from their food. We didn't drink alcohol. I can't speak to that.

Went to see the stones tribute band, “ Wild horses”. The band was fantastic. Unfortunately, the food Was horrible… Brussel sprouts or burnt so bad they tasted like ash. The chili was so overcooked that it was like chunky dry pudding. The service was great when we first got there then the bartenders disappeared and Service got worse during the night. I will probably come back for the concerts, but definitely not for the food!

First time going. I thought the food was good. The grilled cheese rib sandwich was good. I think it could have been better with a sauce to dip in for more flavor, otherwise the rib was tender and cheese was melted perfectly. The service was alright. The server did the best she could with about 20 people, but it did take some time.

Never been here before. Glad I came. Learned about the place and all they had to offer. Live music , brewery, food , and a distillery. Sort of a one stop shop in a historic beautiful brick building I believe the building was a armory I'll go back

I rarely ever leave bad reviews, I'm someone who will try a place that missed the mark 2-3 times to give the benefit of the doubt & today was my last time trying Vanguard. The attitude & blatant disrespect we received today by our server/bartender is an embarrassment to this business. We showed up today for a retirement celebration of someone in my old unit, most of us are active duty military, GS or veterans who have been to Vanguard before (mostly for drinks). The last two times, my food took well over an hour and we had to get it to go which wasn't an issue at the time since we weren't in much of a rush and I didn't make a big deal about it. Today's visit was absolutely brutal, I made sure to place my order as soon as I got there to prevent history from repeating itself on the time it takes to get my food. However, it seems no matter what I do I find myself with everyone at my table eating while my food is no where to be seen. This time our CMSgt who just got back from deployment was with me & she didn't get her food or appetizers either despite us asking if it would be much longer. Everyone finished their meals & when it came time for us to have to leave & get back to our unit we walked up to the bar and spoke with the lady with long brown hair and a baseball cap. Our goal wasn't to get a discount or ditch out, we actually were just wondering if we could get it to go so that we could eat it after our meeting in our office. We asked her if she could check to see if that was possible and she came back up and let us know our food wasn't ready and it would be another wait (it had been now an hour and 15 minutes since we placed our order). We expressed to her that we had to get back to the office & couldn't wait so we would need to cancel our order. She looked up at us rolled her eyes and said yep. When our Chief tried to tell her what her order was she interrupted her and said "I know!" Then completely dismissed her. No apology, no anything. If this is the standards for how customers are treated I will gladly go elsewhere. We are taking Vanguard off our unit outing list after this experience, we truly love the area, and space but it isn't worth the headache & leaving without the food you ordered. I'm not sure what time limit the server thought was appropriate for us to wait but an 1hr 15 mins wasn't it. I really had high hopes for this, but it truly fell flat.

Ordered takeout from Vanguard and was unfortunately served raw meat in my bulgogi tacos. Taste was decent until I found the meat had an unusual texture which caused me to check and it wasn't just one piece, it was the majority. I took it back and they offered to make something else which was nice but just opted for a refund after the experience. Just check your food!

The Vanguard is located in historic downtown Hampton and has a large room as well as comfortable lounge, sitting area behind the bar and an extra room with tables and chairs. The food was good and plentiful. Ashley, the event planner, worked with us and helped to make the party a great success. A bar was provide with two bartenders who served beer,wine, alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks. I can't give enough praise for this establishment. Everyone had a wonderful time.

Our service couldn't have been better. Our server was so helpful and seemed like she truly loved her job. She made small talk and made some great suggestions. Inside is massive. I love the old building turned into something new vibe, and while it seems weird to mention, the bathroom was big and really impressive! I got the soup special of the day, which was buffalo chicken and SO good. It was like a wing in soup form. I also got the pretzel with cheese and while it was good....it was absolutely covered in salt. I had to spend a good amount of time desalting it to make it even close to edible. It once again was tasty after I did that, but I shouldn't have had to. The server was super sweet when I mentioned it, and said she would tell the kitchen. I was only in the area visiting, but I'll make sure I mention it to anyone I know will be in that area.

I went for "The Prince Project" (summer, 2024) and paid extra for the VIP section, only to leave after 2-3 hours of no Prince project. The seating was not great (we were in the first come, first seat balcony/VIP area), and the only good thing about it was we had our own walk up bar. I'm not sure what was going on that night, but I couldn't get ahold of anyone about my tickets before or during, as I was wanting to know if we would ever see the Prince project for the $100 I spent. There was never a response, and I was highly disappointed. We got there around 6 and left around 8:30/9. I've been to the vanguard before, but this experience negated any good things about it, as it seemed chaotic & unorganized. Very disappointing & unorganized, and I'll be hesitant to pay for anything here again with the lack of communication. I will say we did end up ordering food and at behind the bar, which was a fun experience (even though not $100 worth and never seeing anything Prince related). That's the 2 stars- bar staff was nice & the food was good.

Great intro to an amazing music venue which serves excellent food and quality brews. We visited Vanguard last night for a blues show featuring local talent Jason Cale and the amazing Selwyn Birchwood out of Florida. The stage setup provides a great closeup view of the bands and tho the historic brick structure bounces the sound a bit, it also adds a raw element to the music. I liked it... a lot! Room to dance or get up close as you wish. Food was surprisingly topnotch with the jambalaya and Bulgogi beef bowl rated 5stars for quality ingredients and nuanced flavors. Way above average for a micro brewery. And the beers were excellent, but that part we knew coming in from the Vanguard's active role in local events and award winning offerings. Def worth the trip from VB. Get you summadat!

This is my second time visiting this establishment. My husband and daughter enjoy some of their beer and spirits. Maybe we chose the wrong day to try their menu. We waited a long time for our food which I can understand because they were pretty packed. However, what isn't acceptable is waiting so long for your food and for it to be cold. It wasn't even warm! It was straight out cold. It wasn't just one thing, everything we ordered came out cold. Based on the amount of time it took to get our meal, I think our food just sat before it came out. To say that I'm disappointed is an understatement. We will come back, but only for drinks but definitely NOT for food.

This is such a nice find. Simple, casual and affordable pub fare. They produce their own beers and spirits. My husband really loves their Bourbon. Live music. Great atmosphere. Always a nice experience.

6 years later and finally came back to try the food! The food was pretty tasty. We had the Pickle Chips, Chicken Spinach Mushroom Alfredo flatbread, and the Short Rib grilled cheese, and the Vanguard burger. I ordered a fish n chips to go (and my ol man really liked it). The server was very friendly and pretty spot on. There was a band that was playing which was a nice surprise. Will be back sooner than later to try their brunch menu!

The outside of the place is awesome. Get inside and it's nice layout but that is where everything changes. The food is disgusting, like really bad and overpriced. I like everything but the Brussels were more steamed then fried, the French fries were soggy, the pickles tasted frozen. The dinner was a joke!!! Never ever again! The only reason for two stars was their service which was impeccable.

Great place to see live music. The service, food, and spirits were all fantastic. Don't sleep on this spot! If ever I find myself back in Virginia I will DEFINITELY be back.

We came out tonight for a friends birthday and had a good time. They had a 90's cover band playing and the music was great! We ordered appetizers when we arrived, pretzels with beer cheese sauce, and Brussel sprouts. The appetizers came fairly quickly and were good, although the brussel sprouts were kind of heavy in the oil and the sauce drizzled on the top the flavor was good and they were well cooked. It took the waitress a fair bit to come back to take our entree order (like 45 minutes) and then another 45 minutes to an hour before the food came out. It came out warm at best, to the credit of the staff and management they apologized for the delay and removed the food from our tab because it was not even warm enough to eat. I feel the size of our party and the mayhem with the event going on contributed to the mess up with the order and i appreciate the lengths the staff went to to make it right. The food would have been amazing and we will likely be back to give it another try as we are new to the area and exploring fun places to hang out.

Got to try a advanced shot sample And really like the bourbon so I bought one The bartender and waitstaff provided excellent service Will be back when in town

When the Vanguard Brewpub & Distillery opened in 2018, it brought pieces of Hampton history back to life. This vibrant restaurant, concert venue, and distillery occupies a historic brick masonry building that was built in 1936 and listed in 2016 on the Virginia Landmarks Register and National Register of Historic Places. Built between WWI & II, the building was the site of The Hampton National Guard Armory for almost six decades. It was vacated in 1993 and fell into disrepair; now it has a new life. I first visited in March 2019 for a lunch special and thoroughly enjoyed it. At the time they were offering fresh mussels - I can't recall the preparation style, but they were delicious, and flecks of garlic and herbs are visible in the pic. I also ordered a buffalo chicken and bleu cheese spinach wrap, served with a huge helping of hand cut fries. Everything was delicious, and the portion sizes were huge, leaving plenty to take home. I love historic buildings, and the sky high ceilings and light pouring in added a lot to the experience. As The Vanguard is not just a restaurant, but a brewery and distillery, I had to go back and try one of their brews. I tried a Jamaican jerk inspired brew, just because it sounded so unusual. The flavors actually worked! In 2020, the FDA allowed craft distilleries to make hand sanitizer, and I purchased some from them. I'm glad my purchase helped the venue to stay open through the pandemic and beyond: On Saturday I experienced my first live music event at The Vanguard. The Bay River Band was awesome! This venue is a community gem. A beautiful historic building that once served to house military arms and hosted national touring acts that performed for segregated audiences, it now hosts regional acts for integrated audiences, and has even served the community during a pandemic. Next up, I'll be reviewing their brunch!

Bad service. Asked if they had a brown ale was given some random beer with out any discussion. That floppy-footed bartender in his clown shoes is slinging nothing but beer while this damn shitty Mexican music screeches, and this place stinks like a festering pile of Brussels sprouts--no pie to mask the rancid torture of this fart-filled cantina! I'm about to gag, smash a bottle over his honking toes, and scream for a sweet, flaky savior--ditch the brew and the stench, you sprout-soaked clown, and get me my pie!

Back in October, a buddy, my boyfriend, and I decided to try The Vanguard for brunch before homecoming. We picked this location since it was still close to campus but we expected it to be less crowded since it was also gameday. We were, indeed, correct. It wasn't very crowded while we were there. The venue is huge! Before they acquired it and transformed it into a restaurant, it was an abandoned military bunker. Bottomless mimosas and fried pickles were our first course. Both were fantastic, and I think I had three rounds of mimosas. Our waitress was quite kind and helpful, and she made several visits to check on us. I had a Vegi omelette, which was average and could have used more flavor. My friend had fried chicken bites with fries and my partner went with the grilled chicken sandwich with fries; both were happy. I'd love to return on a night when they have live acts because I'm sure the place gets busy later on such occasions.

My friend and I were looking for a place to eat for dinner that we had not tried yet and we were starving for some delectable food. I've had this establishment on my restaurants/bars to visit list for a while and I wasn't disappointed. Upon arrival I could tell they were busy based on their main parking lot being completely full, but we parked in their overflow parking lot located directly across the street. The hostess kindly greeted my friend and I and guided us to our table. She told us that the live music would be starting at 8pm. Yay! I was pleased with our waitress who was very knowledgeable about the food/drink menu. She informed us that all of their beers they curate and brew in house. They also offered free samples of their brews! I ordered the Bourbontini and my friend ordered the Strawberry Lemonade Fizz. If you like a strong drink I highly recommend the Bourbontini. It will definitely get you to your destination. Although it was strong, the cranberry was a great touch of tartness. The Strawberry Lemonade Fizz was lighter in the flavor of alcohol, but still enjoyable. For starters we ordered the Smoked Buffalo Lemon Pepper wings, fried Brussel Sprouts, and the Chicken, Spinach, and Mushroom flatbread. The wings were fried to perfection! They weren't too spicy or salty given the Buffalo and lemon pepper flavor. The brussel sprouts were seasoned well and I enjoyed the sriracha aioli they were topped with, but I wish I would've gotten it on the side for to-go purposes. The flatbread was my favorite. The cheese pull was out of this world! It could've used a bit more salt, but the Alfredo sauce made up for it. These are all perfect for group sharing. By this point, the live music started and I'm enjoying myself with the delicious food/drinks and groovy tunes. My friend and I moved forward with entrees in which I had the Jambalaya and he had the Gouda & Steak Mac and Cheese. For my Southern folks, this is not your standard Jambalaya. I've never had Mahi in a jambalaya, but it was surprisingly tasty. I just wish there was more of the Creole sauce! I probably would not order again because it is not the style of jambalaya I prefer. Nonetheless, this dish was packed with flavor. I had a bite of the Mac which was creamy. That Gouda definitely made a presence! If you're looking for a place with great service, live music, and pleasing food/drinks check this place out! I had a fun time here and look forward to revisiting!

This brewery is a pretty large building in downtown Hampton. I came here to meet a friend and try a new place. There is no happy hour here. So keep that in mind when you come. There was a cornhole tournament going on while we were there too, which was kinda cool. We decided to order a couple apps to share. We were interested in the salmon bites and the house wings. 6 wings came in their house bourbon sauce for $13 and they were pretty good. The salmon bites were disappointing to say the least. We thought we'd get more than three tiny balls for $10. We just stared at them when they got to the table like...wait is this it? lol. They were pretty good but I wouldn't order them again. Their sour beer on tap was pretty dang delicious. I'm a sour beer fan and that was one I'd go back for, if I were just going to drink. Other than that, it was a fun outing but we'd go elsewhere for apps.

Today we decided to try something new for dinner. The service was great! Our food came out very fast. Very spacious on the inside, and they must host some sort of dance classes as Salsa was being taught today. There is a good amount of bar space, tables, as well as a stage and dance floor. Food: butterfly shrimp and fries were amazing. Seasoned well. Country Fried Chicken was really good. How ever, the green beans could use a little salt, and the potatoes were over cooked. The green apple cobbler stole the show! It was sooo good. I would definitely return.

Horrible came for music found a table 2 waitresses I stopped asked FOR SERVICE!!! CLEARLY DONT WANT OUR MONEY been over a hour still nothing I should not have to track down a 3rd server after the show and our hungry belly's and dry mouths we won't be back I'm not begging them for customer service! First time here as well

0 stars if I could. After 2.5 hours for food, we cancelled. Everyone left in our party. drinks were served in shooter glasses for a whoppin' $10 AFTER paying $25 to get in for this "show". Manager offered to comp food which we never got. This place is a joke. I said after last bad experience I'd never come back but we had a birthday girl that really wanted to come here. Absolutely terrible experience and I can't imagine why anyone would come here.

I come here at least once a month. I was here for a Latin social event. They are an hour bachata class the. Dancing till 8pm with BachataVida held the event. I didn't drink this time around however I tried their pork rinds and it was tasteful. Home made rinds. Total worth for a little snack or appetizer. I also had a burger on a pretzel bun. My favorite burger so far. The string fries alone were cooked perfectly. There is plenty of parking outside and if it's full there is extra parking across the street. There is also an outdoor patio and an upstairs area.

I came here to get out the house and to get some food and drinks. It was a very cool vibe. They had music playing and seemed like I got there right before a night crowd. I sat at the bar. The bartenders were really nice and super busy. At times I could get their attention even though I was sitting right there. The food was pretty good. I had the steak and Mac dish. I definitely would come back here.

This place was really cool! It's a bar but they have their own distillery which is really cool!. My friend and we just hangout for a little bit and watch their corn whole tournament! Their drinks was actually good and bar tender was so knowledgeable and so friendly.

Recognizing that post Covid everyone is struggling I still need to ammend my previous reviews. Friends in the know had warned me this was not the same quality place I had held my retirement party 3 years ago. My son chose this establishment to celebrate a special event with friends and family. It did not meet our expectations for many reasons. We had a reservation and were seated in the back next to the brew room. We needed a high chair which we had to search for ourselves. Our waitress was inattentive at best. When she came to our table for drink orders, she asked did any of us want anything besides water. After about half of us gave a drink order she left without getting the orders of the rest of us. When she finally returned with the drink orders we were able to complete the orders. She didn't apologize for that or any other service mishap, of which there were more than a few. She never came to offer refills and gave the wrong burgers to the wrong people. When we showed her that one of us, who ordered well done had instead gotten rare, she offered another burger at the point we were done eating. Then she switched to telling us some idiocy about the meat blend of the burger resulting in a red appearance. I think we can recognize raw meat from red colored meat. If she had bothered to check on us at all we could have asked her to rectify the situation so it was slick of her to only come back when bringing the check. The menu is changed with previous favorites gone, including the steak from the previous review. There is no children's menu. I got shrimp tacos that were meh at best. I still tipped 20% instead of my normal 25%, which angered my family who wanted to stiff her for bad service. With the bill well over $100 she made out ok. The Vangard still has alot going for it, but today, service and food was not. We will likely choose someplace else in the future unless we hear it is significantly improved.

Quick and easy lunch date with the wife. A lot of seating here. They have an upstairs area but it was reserved for a private event. Menu had a wide variety of items. Had the shrimp and fries which was decent. Our server was nice, but was extremely slow. I asked for hot sauce and she gave me a bottle that had like 3 drops left in it.

The fish n chips is on point, fresh, moist on the inside with the right amount of flavor, and crispy on the outside. The chips/fries were even delicious. The customer service was decent considering the two nights in a row dining there because food was so good, and the restaurant was busy; and the ambiance was okay, there was local live entertainment the nights I went -- if it weren't so chilly inside, I would have given a higher rating than okay. I would have probably asked manager to adjust the thermostat, but it was during covid, so I had to give a pass on the climate. I would DEFINITELY dine here again.

Came in for lunch a bit before noon on a Saturday , and we were some of the first ones in the door. The initial service was prompt, but not great. We were promptly told that they were out of our first choice in appetizers. My wife asked to sample one of their beers, which is exceedingly common and in brewpubs, and were told that they charge $3 per sample. Not wishing to pay the cost of one pint for two samples, we made our choices and lived with it. The beers were perfectly fine, though honestly a bit unrefined. Ordered the food. It took 50 minutes for 1/3 of the order to show up at the table: the panini was lukewarm and the fries were cold and hard as a rock. I spoke to the manager on staff, who was very pleasant, and she remade the sandwich for us. Frankly, it was all simply lackluster. The food was okay, but not really good. The menu descriptions were incorrect even as compared to clarification for which we had asked when ordering. The location is pretty cool. It's in a former National Guard armory, and the stage looks like a great place to see a local band. Perhaps I was simply expecting too much.

We all got food poisoning from the Chicken Mac and Cheese. I would have gotten over it, as the food tasted good, but we had to catch a flight the next day which was miserable. We also had a Strawberry fizz, which was delicious and made the otherwise heavy meal better. Service wasn't great, but I'm not from here and it seems like it's just different here so I'll let it go.

I can't believe this was my first visit the Vanguard Brewpub! Unlike a lot of brewpubs in the area, Vanguard has a lunch and dinner menu with appetizers on top of their craft beer selection. Wife took me here for my Birthday Dinner Monday night. Vanguard is housed in a historic building (I forgot what it use to be) that is made of brick. The brick gives the place a really cool rustic look. I can tell this place is popping in the summer time cause they have a stage outside in the parking lot. I'm looking forward to that this year. Now the inside is very roomy. Seating is spaced around the place. Additional seating and lounging area is located upstairs. There is a big stage inside for concerts and entertainment. I was so excited to be here. Our server was more than AWESOME! She was very nice, attentive to our needs and consistently check on us through out the evening. She made a few recommendations, gave excellent explanations of the menu and beer items and just made feel over all comfortable. Now, the beer. Now I have been to other Brewpub that had hundreds of different kinds of beer and more than half of those should be thrown in the trash. Vanguard does have a smaller selection BUT, everything they have is GOOD! Did I try them all? No, I have the $15 sampler BUT each of them (for what it was) was absolutely DELICIOUS! Now I'm not a IPA fan, to me its too dry and bitter. But I tried one of Vanguards and it was not as bitter, Melo and sweet. I still don't like IPA but if I had to drink one, this would be it. Now the food. The Fish and Chips for some reason just jumped out the menu for me and my wife. so we ordered two. We also had the the Haus Pretzel with beer cheese and brown mustard. The pretzel was three to an order. It arrived to our table fresh out of the oven with nice chucks of either sea salt or kosher on it, what ever it was, it was delicious. The beer cheese was warm and gooey, the mustard was grain and tasty. Now for the Fish and Chips; again served hot and fresh! Lightly battered and deep fried. The fish seemed a little dark, like the oil was too hot, but the inside was moist and flaky, cooked to perfection. The fries would have been better but the oil from the fish, soaked into a lot of the fires and made them kinda oily BUTY, they were still good and I ate everything on my plate. Look over at my wife, I had to tell her to breathe between bites. AWESOME EXPERIENCE, I can wait to visit again!!! Happy Yelping !

Tried this place again and yet again the service was dismal. Our 4th meal never came out and the waitress never came back. Spoke to the manager several times. Never coming back.

Service was friendly but slow. Beers were good. Table of eight. Two were served and finished 15 minutes before four more got their food. The remaining two got their food about 10 minutes later. Fries and fish were cold and coleslaw was hot. Flavor was good. Might have been really good if it had arrived prior to spending so much time under the warmer. Very cool setting. Parking is terrible. Might be a good non event location or during off hours, but based on my experience, I would not return or recommend.

Both the service and the food were great. Flavor was fantastic. Highly recommend the mimosas.

2nd post: dinner review. Poor service. Decent food. Do not order the Tuna appetizer. I wanted to do 1-2 stars but the steak Mac and cheese was superb. One of our three meals. Only on happy customer.

My Dad and I were looking for a fun spot to have a craft beer. Glad we stopped in at The Vanguard. Beer was great and the service was outstanding. My Dad had the shrimp and I had the Maui fish. We loved it. We shared the jumbo wings appetizer and I would not recommend as they were not jumbo. Tasted good but not worth the price. We'll definitely come again.

Having had nothing but positive experiences at Vanguard, I was excited to bring my out of town guests to dine here for lunch. Our experience was *very* disappointing. I was embarrassed at having brought my guests here. Granted, the poor level of service was likely affected by another party consisting of about 40 guests who were seated when we arrived. The wait staff was *drastically* under-manned to handle this large a group, plus all the other diners. While I can understand why food would have been slow coming from the kitchen under these circumstances, having to wait more than 15 minutes before our first order of drinks arrived spoke to the poor service. The first trays of food were delivered about 45 minutes after we placed our order. The salads were not delivered until about 20 minutes AFTER the hot food arrived. That really puzzled me. I looked forward to enjoying a Reuben sandwich because the last time I had one here, it was the best I'd ever had. This time, the sandwich was a flop. The bread was greasy. There was an ugly slab of corned beef fat, about 4 x 1-1/2 inches large, in with the meat. Yuck! We had to ask for our second round of drinks three times before they finally arrived. It will be a long, long time before I return to the Vanguard after this experience.

Food is great! Service- to be desired. They had one waitress for the whole place. We deadass waited 45 minutes to get a box and a check. And asked multiple times. Also, check said $166.88 when we got it. Then after the card was run it came back at $173.51. Why? No sense in waiting around to find out... we would've waited another 30 minutes to get an answer.

The food was absolutely amazing, I got the French dip and paired with the Metallica Bourbon Beer that represents vanguard. Oh. My. God. Absolutely to die for. The Short Rib Boa Buns were so tender and so yummy. The Bulgogi bowl was absolutely delicious. The flight for $15?? Are you kidding me?? Absolutely a steal and the beers were super tasty. The service was alright but she was training so I will give the benefit of the doubt. The ambiance was very casual bar atmosphere. The bar felt very clean and you could tell the place gets super busy on weekends with the amount of taps and bar space they had. Was very impressed and will be back for more. My partner and I are getting a hotel for the weekend to come back for the live bands as we are from Richmond but that is how good this place is!!

I had high hopes for this. After reading the reviews, beer maybe the only thing to go for. The waitress was trying her best, it seemed like she maybe have been the only one maybe another was helping, wait tables. Either way 1 or 2 that is not enough. I'm not sure if this is COVID related or not. I know restaurants are having to close for the day or early because they just do not have the staff. If this was the case, it was not worth being open because it left me writing this review. The Korean BBQ Pork was extremely spicy. I could not finish it. There was 2 others in my group who also ordered it and could not even finish it. We either made it 1/4-1/3 of the way before giving up. No one liked their food. My salad was not too bad, but I could not finish it because it came out about 10 minutes later than my meal. It took about 15-29 minutes for the waitress to give us our bill. Just very slow. I apologize if they are truly under staffed due to covid. I just hate this for businesses right now.

We waited over an hour for food to be told it would be another 30 minutes. Disorganized, rude and unprofessional staff.

Came to town for a weekend and ended up at the Vanguard two days in a row... Day one was slightly better than day two, but both days were good. Beer and wine selection is find as well as their food offerings. Service is good, quick, and friendly. They have live music although I did not find it to follow the hours listed in their social media. Vanguard is nice and there is plenty of parking across the street if you don't find any in their main lot.

Yelp: "Things to consider in your review: food. Service. Ambiance." Ok yelp, good suggestion. Food: wouldn't know, sat with my (big) group for over an hour and no one stopped by. Went to get a drink for me and my toddler from the bar so I could get her something to drink quickly. No wait staff even came near the table while I was there. Service: the only reason I gave 2 stars was that the bartender made me a good drink and was pretty quick about it. But yet again, never saw a single staff member come close to our table while I was there. Ambiance: not bad. The lack of food and service put a sour taste in my mouth from the whole situation. I'll probably advocate for my organization to not use Vanguard as a meeting location for events ever again.

Super vibey venue with a bunch of different types of bands! Food is on point. Our bartender, Wes was super knowledgeable and friendly. We loved it. We're fans. Will be going back 100%.

Vanguard had a very cool and open industrial space. The menu had great variety with so many amazing options to choose from. The service was a little slow, but everything we ordered was so delicious. It was a great place to grab some lunch after playing a round of golf, and I'll definitely be back in the future!

Was looking for a good beer selection & a proper burger, The VanGuard came up in my search. It looked like everything I was looking for. The venue itself is intriguing & the little bit of history I've heard about makes it all the more. Warmly greeted on a Friday evening I decided to sit at the bar. An ample beer selection kicked it off. After sufficient pondering I decided on a burger. It was every bit as good as I had hoped. After dinner I enjoyed a flight of spirits. Didn't find one that I didn't like. When it came dinner time Saturday I was thinking fish fry. Remembering VanGuard had a fried fish I decided to try again. Glad I did. Fish was hot & flakey with no excessive breading. Great food & drink both nights.

It was a very chill date night. The band was later than we were willing to stay for, but the food and drinks were worth the drive.

Nice fun place to come taste testing. Cool atmosphere. Friendly staff and ambiance. Quick Service!

Fantastic food with great bands. Really friendly service. Love, love , love! Come support a bar that supports live music!