The Old 97

We love the Old 97! We go almost once a week. The service is fast and friendly. We always ask for Anthony.
We usually get the pretzel for an appetizer mostly because the cheese sauce that comes with it is amazing!
I recommend the burgers. They’re always cooked perfectly and they don’t skimp on whatever it is that you want on it. They’re all great but the Black and Bleu is my favorite.
Sometimes they’ll have specials like Shrimp and Grits. Delicious!
Even the lunch buffet is fantastic and a great price!
Overall, the place seems clean. On weekends, bands perform on a stage at the far end.
A large flat screen and several small ones, makes the Old 97 a perfect place to grab a beer or four and watch your favorite football team in the fall.
Though it has a sports bar feel, it’s still kid friendly, with coloring pages, plenty of crayons, and a nice little kids menu.
The ONLY thing that I would like to see is the prices just a little lower. The burgers are priced well at around 10 per plate but the other dishes, appetizers, and drinks (though comparable to other’s) seem a bit high.
We love this place!

Would have given zero stars. Based on these reviews decided to try the breakfast buffet one Sunday. OMG the WORST we’ve ever had! It was fairly early for a weekend maybe 9 or so and the eggs were dried up and there was no bacon. Some kind of meat was in there, Im guessing it was ham but it was burned as it wasn’t recognizable. I am also guessing there was gravy but it was nearly empty and looked like mud so skipped over that. Grits were not awful and hash browns were decent. Biscuits were dry like they’d been sitting for a while. What really got us was a lady came from the kitchen and looked at everything and yelled back thru the door that everything looked ok out there! Really???
Waitress was pleasant when she finally came out of the back and acknowledged we were even there. She didn’t check back on us til we were finished with our slop. No refills on burned tasting coffee which was fine by us. We won’t EVER go to this place again for any meal. I wouldn’t give that garbage to my dog.

Ordered the homemade veggie burger and sweet potato fries — the burger was one of the best veggie burgers I’ve had, the black beans gave it a nice texture, topped with good crisp lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and a chipotle aioli, I’d absolutely order that again — sweet potato fries were a little over cooked but still fine.
Also got a cheese pizza to take home. The crust was definitely house made, but had just a little too much flour on the bottom like they put too much down to roll out the dough. The sauce could use some more flavor and spice but they definitely didn’t skimp on the cheese — overall a decent flavor. Next time I’d add some other toppings.
As far as the visual appeal of the inside, it leaves a little to be desired. But there is a patio, so that’s a plus.
There’s also a good selection of draft beers — 14 taps and tvs in the bar, so a good place to come and have some drinks and watch sports if that’s your thing.
I’d return here.

I really enjoyed this place. The server we had was great. I ordered the country fried steak. It was the best, I’ve ever had, in the Lynchburg area. I will definitely go back to have that meal again!

Came to hear the band The Will Overman Band tonight and enjoyed the band a lot, the service however left a lot to be desired. We sat in the bar area and our waiter was Anthony. The place was packed and it took us 15 minutes for him to come over and get out drink order. 15 more minutes passed before we got our drinks. Not good! He didn’t come check on us so when we ran out of drinks we asked the hostess to bring us more. This happened 2 more times and the bar had cleared out a lot. I was in food service for over 20 years and NEVER did my customers get below a quarter of a drink before I was back asking if they wanted another. The customer does not care how busy you are, they want waited on or at least acknowledged. As I type this we are looking for Anthony to get our check.

Very tasty food. The NY Strip was so tender and seasoned to perfection! My mom had the tender pot roast… but the soft pretzel appetizer is what surprised us with it being the size of the plate! Very good place, and our server Kim was wonderful!

Based on Unilocal reviews, decided to try this place for lunch. Waiter was attentive and cheerful. I had the Italian Sub, GF had the Pot Roast sandwich. Both were delicious! The Italian was not the run-​of-​the-​mill sub you get everywhere else. Great bread and properly dressed with a touch of pesto. The Pot Roast sandwich was even better. Came with horseradish cheese and au jus. We both had the sweet potato fries which were crispy the way I like them. I would recommend this place based on our lunch and would stop in again if in the area. They also had a nice stage setup and live music on weekends.

Great place in Madison heights/​Monroe VA. I ordered the grilled chicken and it was well cooked, juicy on the inside and blackened and crisp on the outside. The sweet potato fries and green beans were great too. They have great lunch buffets if that’s your thing too. The price was great with most dishes under $ 10. Would definitely recommend! On the downside… Service took 15 minutes for check out, I think they forgot about me. Overall great experience.

My wife and I had lunch here and the food was good and the service was friendly. I got the Philly Cheesesteak, and my wife got the club sandwich. The Philly had good flavor and the fries were crispy, my wife enjoyed her sandwich and sweet fries as well. I would’ve given them 4 stars but service was soooo slow and the place was nearly empty at lunch time. Our check was under $ 20, and we did not order any specials. Hopefully the service will get faster, I will be back.

Description about interior is bar/​lounge on one side with family dining on the other side — bldg divided at entry. Our food was terrific! Husband ordered the pot roast with mashed potatoes and limas. I got the spaghetti and it was just the right portions for both of us! The hummus platter for starters was very tasty and size worthy of sharing. Waitress was very nice, food was delivered fast and friendly environment all around!

steak had a lot of fat on it. Service was slow. Waited 10 minutes to get drink order. It was chaotic and loud.
Beer selection was good. Lima beans were good.

The atmosphere was family style but inviting! I ordered the Brakeman; The pork roast was literally melt-​in-​your-​mouth, with a warm, smoky flavor! Broccoli was very fresh and green. The rolls are delicious and soft! Our server was a bit rough but well meaning and super friendly. The hostess was so welcoming and inviting. At the end of our meal the restaurant manager came and thanked us for coming and ensured that we had a pleasant time!

Tried this place on a Sunday night and we were favorably impressed. The place is new, by four or five months, and seems to be still getting into its theme, but it is off to a good start. It is named after a train involved in a famous train wreck nearby.
The exterior is that of an old white clapboard house, and the interior seems reminiscent of an old barn with little in the way of décor, save a few railroad pictures. Many of the walls are black, giving the impression of greater interior area than otherwise might be expected.
At one end of the place, comprising no less than half the total floor space, is a bar area, with uncomfortable looking bar furniture and a bar, as well as several large screen TV’s. Sports were on all of them. The sound was off, thankfully.
The other half of the floor space was the dining area, furnished with rustic but utilitarian tables and chairs along with a few booths. There was a goodly amount of elbow room for the diners. At the far end was a rather ornate and elevated stage area, which i understand is used for karaōke and live music. No karaōke that evening, I’m happy to report.
Service was efficient and attentive. The servers were eager young ladies who seemed to have varying degrees of experience. Ours was friendly, but a bit uninformed. Maybe they were the owners’ daughters. (The staffer clearing tables seemed to be about 13 years old.)
The special of the night was a prime rib sandwich. My guest reported that while very tasty, the sandwich was a bit short on prime rib, and she drew this to the attention of the server, who said she had noticed that. My other guest had a steak filet and baked potato with which he was very content. I took a chance and ordered the fried oysters, and I was very impressed. The oysters were fresh tasting, and lightly battered as they should be, and cooked perfectly. They have a child’s menu if you have little ones in tow.
Prices were moderate. $ 10 for the oysters was pretty good, I thought. They came with fries and a Caesar salad.
All in all a pleasant experience and we will be returning. There is a patio deck for outside dining, with a lovely view of the parking lot, mainly a smoking area for the bar, I suppose.
The parking lot is private and adequate, altho it might get crowded if the place was full of live music fans.

what can i say the Everything is good here

This place is awesome. Set up like a sports bar, but the comfort of an upscale restaurant. I tried their «house specialty pizza»… amazing! If you are into deluxe pizza, like with tons of meat, and peppers, and black olives, this is the way to go. The peppers they used were sweet pickled peppers (tongue twister) and they were like nothing I’ve ever had before. I will absolutely recommend dinner at the old 97!

Ate here this evening and it was great! I had the Smothered Chicken w/​Lima beans and Mashed Potatoes. The Lima Beans were the best I ever had. Definitely will be back! Too much good stuff on the menu.