Mekong Restaurant

Looks like a standard Vietnamese restaurant in a strip mall from the outside but when we walked in on a Sunday night there was a live band and the place was packed. The beer list was extensive and the service was extremely quick considering the amount of people there. Beer was served in proper glassware. We ordered am appetizer platter and enjoyed it but didn’t find it to be anything special. Got a habanero sculpin and a local IPA and really enjoyed both. Overall it was a great place and I would definitely recommend stopping if you are in Richmond. Beer was very reasonably priced.

Nice Vietnamese restaurant with a great beer selection that you wouldn’t have thought by just looking at the exterior. Small bar and a bunch of dining tables. Very nice beer list with local, state, and foreign selections. Food is pretty good with lots of Vietnamese staples. Reasonable prices. Service is hit or miss, takes a bit to get attention at times. Free parking in the back lot. Definitely a go to spot when I’m in the area.

This is an interesting place to say the least. A large building with lots of seating, and a decent sized bar. Their selection is pretty incredible and the prices aren’t bad considering the beers they offer. There is quite a bit of beer decor hanging on the walls, including many tin signs and framed poster art. The service is pretty solid. They don’t let empty glasses exist unless you really want it that way.

I’ve been to good Vietnamese restaurants before. And I’ve been to good beer bars. Here, you’ll find both in one establishment. With 50 craft beers on tap, they have something to appeal to just about everyone, drink-wise. And the Vietnamese food ranged from simple and Americanized to authentic (i.e. a bit much for the average American palate); my only complaint about the food was that they used more sugar than I like, but it was nothing that a little Sriracha sauce and lime couldn’t correct to my tastes. Both food and beer were priced a little above average (al least for what you get), but were still well within the reasonable range. The next time I pass through Richmond, I’ll definitely try to make it back to Mekong.

I’d been meaning to go back here for the longest time, but just never had a chance on a visit to Richmond. This was remedied last weekend. We came in here for dinner on a Friday, the place was reasonably crowded, but they have a good amount of parking and quite a few tables, so we had no issue getting seated. Our service was just fine, though I’ve heard that isn’t always the case. The beer list was quite impressive, as you’d expect, and the food was very good too. I was certainly impressed. It had been many years, next visit will be much sooner.

Went back to Mekong for one last time before moving away from VA, because friends love it. Service is still bad, too many taps still dedicated to crappy local breweries just in the name of supporting the local, food still cheap. New renovated bar area seating is some of the most uncomfortable stuff I’ve ever sat on. Not a place I’ll miss. ------------------------------------------ I went to Mekong to eat awhile back before I was 21 while still living in Richmond. Since I moved all of my friends now spend a ton of time there always raving about the beer. And of course it was just rated #1 on CraftBeer.com. And well, I went back and it’s still good, but the mythos of the Mekong beer experience has been a bit overblown I think. They have some interesting stuff, but as others have mentioned it’s very unorganized. Service was slow (and we had a big party, and the rest of the place was empty). The food is above average, and it’s good portions for a pretty good price. the owners enthusiasm for beer outweighs the bar’s actual selection.

(Visited 03/2014): Mekong Restaurant is located on West Broad Street not too far off I-64 north of Richmond. There is a private lot both in front and in back of the building.

The interior looks like a typical Asian restaurant, except there are bottles, signs and other breweriana throughout. Restaurant seating is in the front, and the bar area is in the rear. Behind the bar is a row of tap handles, as well as a giant sign with "BFM Loves Megong" in reverse lettering.

Mekong has around 50 taps with many nearby breweries represented like Strangeways, Hardywood, and Lickinghole. Other domestic and import craft breweries as well. There are a couple hundred bottled beers on the menu as well.

Service on an early weekday afternoon at the bar was good. The clientele was pretty much all locals and the bartender had a good rapport with them as well as a tourist like myself. He knew the beer list well and was attentive throughout my visit.

Food at Mekong is good. I am a novice with Pho but I definitely enjoyed my order.

Overall this is a good beer spot to visit in the Richmond area (they claim to be the #1 bar, not sure of the source) whether you want to participate in the Vietnamese restaurant part or not.

This is a popular Vietamese Restaurant and bar on Broad Street, The beers are more focused on Belgain style. This style of beer does not appeal to me. They do keep at the bar the Firestone Walker beers. They are planing on a brewery called The Answer. The food is excellent. We were there on a Friday night and they honored our reservattion. The place was packed. The bar is a great place to taste some of the best beers made on their 50 rotating taps.This is a must stop if visiting Richmond.

More of a restaurant with a small bar in house, awesome local taps, hardywood gingerbread, BCBS, la folie, great selection. An gave me a bunch of fresh tapped beer! Andall beers on tap were fun, he house infuses beer.