Up Lounge & Restaurant

What possessed me to walk into this establishment?!! My well-meaning husband booked us dinner here. Yes, I realized that was a huge mistake now! We walked in at 7pm and the place was empty, except for the "hostess." A few minutes later, the bartender strolled in to start his shift. We looked over the limited menu and finally settled on 2 cocktails. Our order is made and taken to the bartender. I looked over and saw that the bartender was preoccupied with his phone which we thought was strange since he should've been working on our drinks. Then we finally realized he was looking for the recipes!! Omg, a bartender that does not know how to bar tend, hmmmm! After close to 15 minutes and apparently with the help of the hostess, we were brought 2 drinks. I can't find another word than "awful" to describe the taste. I do not know what he mixed together but my drink was soooo sour and thick, while my husband's was sooo sweet. We took 2 sips and was ready to hurl. We did not drink the "cocktails" and made the decision to leave because even that food menu was suspect. Also, who was going to cook that red snapper?? The bartender or the hostess??!! Anyways, we made the decision to pay for our drinks even though we DID NOT DRINK them and wouldn't you know, the hostess accepted our payment without batting an eye. Did not ask us if there was something wrong with the drink or even out of business/customer service courtesy, offered to waive the bill. We left them 2 barely touched "cocktails " and they made $30 in less than half hour. Guess you can call that a win-win for them! We are glad we were able to donate to their cause, hopefully others are smarter than us and avoid this establishment!!

I love the outdoor seating on the balconies. Makes you feel like you are on vacation. Very easy reservations and great help from the staff. Only thing that bothered me was I ordered the Chicken Milanese dish, expecting a few cutlets and salad. It came with one huge round chicken piece same size as the plate and some salad on the top. It was so big and very fried. Hard to cut. The menu and waitress did not warn that it is bigger than large hands together and looks like a huge fried chicken plate. I could barely eat 1/4 of it. They need to warn people that it is not cut up and very large. I basically paid $22 for some side salad and a small piece of chicken.

I talked to the owner Mike and got some good information on how some of the food is cooked. The wings are brined for 48 to 56 hours. They make their own sauces and bleu cheese. The crab cake is made to order and fresh but not too mention, huge! It wad flaky and not dry, with lots of flavor. I have over 2 million views from my food photos and these pics should put me close to 3mil. I live in VA and when I come back, this still be my go to spot. This is not your typical bar food and if uppity want something fresh and good, I would pass up the other food spots in the area and come straight here.

The atmosphere is really nice here. I just so happened to come on a night where it wasn't really busy. There was live music playing in that was cool. I sat down, and the lady who was initially at the bar, a blonde lady, maybe in her mid-30s to early 40s, I feel was ignoring me for a good portion of the time. And then while I was just observing the space around me she just threw some menus in front of me and didn't greet herself, or ask me if I needed anything, and walked away and stood in front of people who were already served and were minding their own business. I was sitting there debating with myself whether or not I should just leave. I'm new to the area and this was a place I was told was new here. While I was sitting there rather indignant another woman came and actually greeted me and asked me if I needed anything. She actually conversed with me. She was the saving grace for my night. The food was okay. I would suggest getting bone-in wings instead of boneless wings. The coating was a little weird, but the sauce was good. I was suggested to come back on a Saturday, when things are more lively. I definitely will, but I sure hope that first woman is nowhere to be seen. Hopefully I'll have a better time. I want to get the NY strip steak and risotto next time 🤤 Sorry the pic is blurry