Monastery Restaurant

My girlfriend and I visited here the day before valentines day. They had plenty of seating at 6:30 so my reservations made no difference. The décor was beautiful once you get past the ugly two sets of skinny doors at the entrance. The place is small and if busy you will almost be touching the table behind you. The menu range was very wide, so many things I considered trying. I went for the Roasted Duck with sauerkraut, my girlfriend the filet mingon. Our first choice of wine was unavailable. I feel sorry for the people that wanted it on V-​Day.
Having never tried duck myself before I was suprised at the resemblance in taste to the fried chicken I had at farm fresh hours earlier… She ordered her filet medium and it looked perfectly cooked with the ever so slight amount of pink. Unfortunately it was dry and rather tough for a $ 30 filet. I did not mention the meal status to our waitress and instead attempted to do out best to enjoy the evening.
The waitress was quite pleasant however the uniform seemed a bit off. It is apparent that the require their servers to wear black pants and white shirts, however the style/​cut of our servers shirt looked like she was swimming in it. I noticed not a single person seemed to be matching in the shirts which was a bit off putting to me, but hardly that important.
Overall, it’s something I’m glad I tried but wont be there again. The prices demanded for a mediocre meal and mediocre service just aren’t for me.

Monastery is one of the more romantic restaurants in Norfolk. Bring a date and leave the kiddos at home. My husband and I both ordered the whole duck with sauerkraut. The sauerkraut was very different but in a good way. I absolutely loved the duck, it’s one of those dishes that I find myself craving every once in a while. The dining room is small and cozy. Reservations are a must.

The first time I walked into The Monastery, oh so many years ago, I immediately said, «This looks just like a restaurant in Midtown Manhattan.» It was several visits later that I told the same thing to my server. She said that I was completely right.
The proprietors ran a restaurant in Manhattan but vacationed each year in Virginia Beach. They came to the conclusion that the city wasn’t the place they wanted to raise their children. Voila! A move to the beach and The Monastery was born.
Walk into an elegant atmosphere with one row of tables on each side of a center aisle. Another similar dining area parallels, with an entry point from the back.
It was my friend’s first visit to the restaurant. A smile came to my face when her immediate comment was «Wow»!
The restaurant offers Eastern European fare in an intimate setting. The music playing in the background is a soothing mix of classic show tunes that compliments the setting perfectly.
I am always impressed that the servers are young people from Eastern Europe. Anna, who took very good care of us on Wednesday night, was from the Ukraine.
To begin each meal one is treated to bread, Hungarian cheeses, and apple. I have always loved the taste of their cheese on an apple slice.
Anna recommended a Hungarian wine, which was an excellent choice. It was a red blend that was a great compliment to the meal.
The Restaurant Week menu was the most extensive I have seen. I suspect every entrée on their menu to have been a second course choice. Narrowing to one was difficult.
I began with the Hungarian Goulash, which was amazing. They also have several goulash choices that are available as entrees.
My main course was tenderized and lightly breaded pork cutlets, pan sautéed; served with lyonnaise potatoes, steamed broccoli, & a lemon wedge. The pork cutlets were a generous size and perfectly prepared. The sides were a nice complement.
A visit to The Monastery is never complete without feasting on their apple strudel. The light flaky crust and thin vanilla sauce allows the tasty apple concoction to be savored.
This hidden treasure can easily be overlooked. It’s at the far northern end (on the west side) of Granby’s Street’s restaurant row.
The Monastery is the perfect spot to dine before or after attending the theater at Chrysler Hall. Walk right across the streets to the theater. Tell your server that you have theater tickets and your meal will be timed accordingly.
You must try this wonderful restaurant. Let me know if you love it as much as I do.

The server was very nice and did a great job. The food was very average though. I ordered the veal with a caper sauce and a fried egg and it literally tasted Iike nothing. I had to send it back and got the stuffed cabbage, which was much better. The menu definitely seemed over priced; a soup shouldn’t be $ 9! Glad we went, but probably won’t go back.

As you enter thru the double wooden swinging doors, you are greeted with a very quaint restaurant. The dark wood throughout makes you feel that you have entered a NYC restaurant. We were taken to the room next to the one we entered, which was very cute as well and gave you a homey feel.
Our server greeted us with a smile and promptly filled our water. Being that it was restaurant week, we were given those menus to peruse, as we ordered the recommended Hungarian Wine — Bull’s Blood. I was pleasantly surprised that the menu was so vast for restaurant week and everything looked so amazing. I ultimately ordered the Goulash soup, Chicken Cordon Bleu, and the crepes for dessert.
We were served bread and cheese right away and this was a perfect start to the meal to come. Once the Goulash arrived, the aroma of the amazing spices hits your nose and makes your mouth water. The first bite was HEAVEN! I have nothing bad to say about this dish. The paprika was smoky and gave such great flavor. The meat and potatoes were perfectly tender and just melted away in your mouth. I used my bread to soak up all juices and seriously contemplated licking the bowl!
2^nd course was Chicken Cordon Bleu with Lyonnaise pommes and steamed broccoli. When it arrived, I was a little shocked that it was fried, I was not expecting that. The chicken was very moist and the ham inside was crispy and salty, so great. The Lyonnais pommes were slightly pan fried and so delicious.
Dessert! The crepes arrived and they were a bit on the burnt side, so I was a bit disappointed, as there were only parts that could be eaten. Unfortunately, when you cut into it, they gave the impression that they had been premade and had sat under a heat lamp for too long. My mama got the apple strudel and she ate that faster than I’ve ever seen her eat dessert! I will order that one next time!
I can’t wait to come back and try more of this amazing menu! Next — Serbian Goulash!

So we tried this place because we got a Groupon deal, and we were both impressed. It was our first time having Czechoslovakian style food, so we weren’t quite sure what to expect. We started the meal with escargot. It was the first time I ever had escargot and it was surprisingly good. That mixed with the bread and house made cheese spread mixed wonderfully together. I got the Sauerbraten which was made out of Venison. It was really tender and tasty and the gravy type sauce was delicious, too. It reminded me of a Thanksgiving dinner in the woods of Europe with the deer meat combined with the cranberry sauce, lemon slice and dumpling. My girlfriend was torn between the salmon and the stuffed cabbage… She ended up going with the stuffed cabbage. It was stuffed with grounded filet mignon and covered in a sweet tomato sauce served with dumpling on the side too. It was very tasty! For dessert we got the raspberry dumpling which was surprisingly lite tasting despite how it was made. Overall, the experience was a good one; however, we had one complaint… The restaurant is owned by a husband and wife couple and the wife was at the table right behind us the whole time we were there dining, and did not once come over to our table to say hello or ask us how we were enjoying our experience. The husband also came out a few times and also never came over to our table. So I took a star off for that; however, our waitress was really good and had a great knowledge of the menu and had great suggestions, she was also very hospitable.

Great service nice menu. The stuffed cabbage and salmon were excellent. The escargot was better that what I had in Paris. Can’t wait to go back and try something else on the menu. I love the fruit filled dumpling too very buttery.

Really a wonderful surprise. We found the Monastery by happenstance and were pleasantly surprised. I have not had steak tartare in decades. They had it and it was perfect. So was everything else our party ordered.
The service, by Ian, was impeccable. Quite an enjoyable evening.
The décor is a bit on the theatrical side but the food and service let’s you forget that.
Go there!

We visited the Monastery the other night before going to an event at the Chrysler Hall in downtown Norfolk. It was convenient to park near the venue, then just walk a couple of blocks to the restaurant. The European ambiance is quaint and comfortable. The prices were very reasonable for dinner and the service was friendly and attentive. It was nice that two of the servers in the room were from Europe. One from Germany and the other fairly recently from France. The bread, whole apple, slices of cheese and special butter spread were all a nice surprise as a complimentary starter. We ordered the special of the day — Venison Ragout and the Entrecôte Sautee ala Poele (NY Strip Steak in a red wine reduction). Both entrees were very tender and flavorful with delicious sauces. The NY steak had some extra fat in a few spots that I didn’t care for, but some folks enjoy that. The desserts that were described sounded unique and delicious, but we didn’t have enough room or time to indulge. We also didn’t realize that they carried European Beers. We’ll check those out the next time we go!

Reading through the reviews for this place, I feel like I am in the Twilight Zone, where in some alternate universe, this is a great place to go for a dinner. My hubby bought a groupon for the place ($ 17 for $ 30– so basically $ 13 off) and we thought we would try it out for our anniversary.
So we walked through the front door and immediately I felt like I was transported to 1985. The décor is very dark but in a late 1970’s/early to mid 80’s kind of way. Smokey mirrors in trapezoidal shapes and little lampshades on the little lamps. I really had a flashback of being a kid and going to what passed as a nice restaurant with my parents. Again circa 1985 – 86. It really reminded me of The Regal Beagle from Three’s Company or somewhere Blanche Devereaux would rendez-​vous with a gentleman caller.
The waiter was very prompt and friendly. Reading some of the other reviews, I see that there is a basic script that the waitstaff read from, telling the same thing to diners over and over and over again, year after year. The bread. The apple. The cheese. The bread for the escargot. I feel like that girl who finds out that neighborhood lothario has been using the same lines on her that he’s used on all the other girls. This is a place that is on autopilot and has been for quite some time.
SO on to the food. Honestly, the food is ok. The escargot was nice. The bowl of goulash soup was better than Dinty Moore beef stew but not that much better. We got two entrees that basically looked like the same thing except one had too much cheese and the other did not. All served with two broccoli florets and the same potatoes that are in all these photos. And the black forrest cake was more Sarah Lee than Schwarzwald. The portion sizes were fine because we left full. But the food itself was really not extraordinary and will definitely set you back a pretty penny.
Now for the weird (er) parts of the night. The place was pretty dead. There were a couple of other tables so the female owner decided to come out, plop down and start calling what seemed like every person she knew and talking very loud in «Czechlish» like she was in a scene from a low budget David Lynch film or something. The whole time this was going on, there was this random smell of cigarette smoke wafting in and out of the dining area. It was strong enough to feel like, again, the old days when you would sit too near to the smoking section. And from previous reviews, I now see that the kitchen staff smoke and cook. Such a classy combo. After she was done having her gab session, she meandered into the dining area to fawn all over an overly tanned couple in their early 60’s. After schmoozing them up for a few minutes, she ambled back to her perch and snatched the phone up for more socializing. Sadly, we missed out on being part of the spectacle.

The Monastery delivers a great meal every time. The staff is extremely service-​centric. We have been a handful of times and plan to be back often. The goose and duck dishes are our favorites.

I live literally 5 doors down from this place but it took me 2 months to finally get around to going. And boy, was I missing out! First of all the place is cozy, warm and in an old monastery. It’s really cool inside (though it would look better with wood floors not carpet) but the waiters are in bow ties and black vests and extremely polite. The food is INCREDIBLE. I had the steak tartare, my husband had the duck and we both split escargot. All of them were sensational. Very nice quiet atmosphere and the chef came out to greet everyone and check on their meals. Really wonderful place.

Quick Review!
The Good:
Lot’s of great stuff to be had on this menu. There are not a lot of places in the area to get this kind of European fare. A good variety of French, German, and other continental style dishes. Also, the interior is really cool, with a unique ambiance. The staff is normally nice and attentive as well.
The Bad:
Woo boy! This place is expensive! The portions are small too. Do you get your money’s worth? I’m not quite sure honestly.
The Bottom Line:
The Monastery is cool with some great food, but too expensive to go to on a regular basis for me personally. Definitely check for a Groupon. You can find a lot of the things on this menu at the Bier Garden for cheaper (and more generously portioned). Still, they have some stuff here that you can’t really get anywhere else, so it’s worth the expense from time to time.

Total secret in downtown Norfolk, must go! Ambiance makes you feel like you are in Czechoslovakia, definitely don’t feel like you’re in Norfolk. The food is savory and authentic. I had the Serbian goulash with dumplings and lentil soup… amazing! My husband had the Wiener schnitzel with mushroom gravy… not heavy like other Wiener schnitzel we’ve had. Initially served fresh house cheese and cheese spread along with an apple and house bread. If you are in downtown Norfolk, you must try this special gem!

A wonderful choice for a romantic evening! Took my wife here for our anniversary and enjoyed the ambiance, service, and cuisine.
The salmon is exquisite with a butter, garlic, lemon sauce and my wife thoroughly enjoyed her soup and veal cordon bleu. The appetizer was several delicious cheese samples and fresh bread with a fresh apple.
Our waiter was exemplary and courteous. We topped of the evening with crêpe flambé!

This is one of best dining experience I’ve had in Virginia. Dinner started out with fresh bread, house made cheeses and an apple which they refilled. (so much food) Next we had Steak Tartare for an appetizer which was so good. I had the chef’s special broiled beef in tomato sauce with Czech dumplings. Which the chef bought me extra sauce and dumplings. (so much food) My fiancé’s had the duck with Czech sauerkraut and dumplings. OMG! ! The best duck we have ever had, hands down. And the chef topped off his kraut and dumplings too. (so much food) I really wanted to try dessert but wasn’t able to eat anything else. :)
The service was spectacular, our waiter Ian was awesome and so nice. The chef and owner came out and talk to us and other tables which really sweet.
This might have to become a monthly tradition.

Visited monastery last night w my husband for the first time. It was a little confusing walking in thru the double doors, I thought I went thru the back door. So don’t be confuse, you are at the right entrance :)
The place was very small, but very nice.
They bring you bread, cheese and butter and an Apple I thought it was a weird combination but Omg it was so good! For appetizer we got the escargot, a little salty but not bad. The Hungarian goulash is delicious!!! Everything we got was amazing! The service also great, Vindy was our waitress and she was amazing, very attentive. We will def be coming back to the Monastery! Ps. I am not a sweet lover, but after reading about their dumplings dessert we had to try it; a dumpling fill with strawberries or blueberries, topped with cottage cheese and powder sugar! Hmmmm I wish there was space in my stomach for more :)) just amazing!

First let’s start with the freebie. I’m a big fan of bread anyway but when you give it away with cheese you’ve really got me hooked in. The warm fresh bread comes with a few slices of Havarti and they do a butter type of deal made with havarti, blue, provolone, garlic, onion, and salt. Gah! It was so good!
I ordered Escargot as my appetizer. They were perfectly cooked. Soft chew. Amazing garlic butter. The server even brought (per her suggestion) more bread to sop up that amazing garlic butter salty goodness.
You’re a fool if you don’t say yes to the bread!
My husband ordered the Potato leek soup. He had barely put the spoon to his mouth before he exclaimed how good it was. Roll your eyes back into your head amazing. My only thing (very small and only because I’m weird) is the chunky vegetables in the soup. I’m partial to a creamy potato leek so that was my only issue. And I don’t like chunky vegetable soup.
I ordered a German beer. Brown, malty, slightly sweet. Not hoppy. It was called Aventinus.
For dinner I ordered the Stuffed cabbage. It was moist and so easy to cut through. The tomato sauce was sweet which I thought was strange but realized it really balanced the stuffed cabbage. The rolls were a little on the small side. But my eyes are bigger than stomach. So it was actually perfect.
My husband ordered the Apple strudel with vanilla sauce. Lightly flavored. Not overly sweet. He loved it.
I ordered the Blueberry dumpling. It’s a fresh blueberry filled dumpling that is boiled in water and then topped with cottage cheese and powdered sugar. Excellent balance of sweet, salty, tangy …
Umami, if you will.
It sounds like a weird combination but I recommend just diving in and giving it a try. My husband tried my dumpling and liked it more than his strudel and he really enjoyed the strudel.
I can’t believe I’ve only just found Monestary. I am always on a hunt for stuffed cabbage and now that I’ve finally found it, I’ll have to go back.
Our server was very pleasant and super helpful. All of them seemed to be pretty great.
This wasn’t a cheap meal but it wasn’t that expensive either. We’ve eaten less food for about the same price.
I recommend checking them out if you’re in the mood for some Central/​Eastern European food. I’ll definitely be back.

Dinner Jul 17
This is a solid 4.5 STARS!
High expectations and they were met!
Very, quaint and, very small restaurant, perfect for a romantic dinner.
Food was outstanding and service was spot on!
You are greeted at your table with fresh baked bread and 2 types of cheeses. Sliced Havarti and a specially made «brie» type cheese that was more like a spread. They make it their as they can’t find it anywhere to order. It’s a Czech cheese called BRINZG. Googled it and couldn’t find it anywhere, but they have it and boy is it GOOD!
Hungarian Goulash was authentic and very tasty.
Got a side order of Stuffed Cabbage (some call them Cabbage Rolls). Regular order is 2, ask for appetizer portion and you get 1. The cabbage was cooked perfectly, the meat and stuffing inside was tremendous. The tomato sauce was flavored with cinnamon, which I am not a big fan of, but it was very good here! Call out — if you get the Stuffed Cabbage as for a side of Sauerkraut, it really helps add to the entrée!
The Breaded Pork Cutlet was huge. Pan fried with a light breading. I got it with a side of sauerkraut and it paired nicely.
Only negative was the side salad, it was small and not worth the price. But other than that, I have nothing bad to say about this outstanding restaurant. I would certainly go back when in Norfolk, if you live there and haven’t gone, make a reservation and enjoy!

First things first. I so badly want to like this restaurant. In fact, I want to like this restaurant so much that I put off writing this review for quite some time. But, honestly, my experience here is one that should be shared.
So, I came here for the previous Norfolk Restaurant Week with my cousin. This was one of our grandmother’s favorite restaurants to eat of all time, so when we found out they were participating in Restaurant Week we jumped on it and booked a table at 9pm.
This restaurant is unbelievably beautiful inside. So romantic, well lit –all-​in-​all, the ambiance is divine. Just sitting there made me wish that someday I’d be proposed to in that exact dining room (a shiksa can dream, eh?).
They had a set menu for restaurant week and the menus were already waiting for us on a beautifully dressed table. They greeted us with chalices of water and a basket full of cheese, bread, and apples. It was too die for. I could already tell that this was going to be my favorite spot for a future date with an unfortunate soul.
For dinner, I ordered the beef tartar and my cousin ordered the Chicken Cordon Bleu. It was way too good –all of it. The chicken put my homemade version to shame.
AND THEN, the «thing» happened. The «thing» that totally ruined my night. The «thing» that has caused this review. And the «thing» that makes me never want to return here ever again.
Halfway through chowing down on my plate of pure ecstasy, the chef walked out of the kitchen smoking a cigarette. In the middle of the restaurant. While I’m eating. At a table. Right next to the kitchen.
He ashed his cigarette on the floor and then another woman (whom I later found out to be an owner), lit a cigarette and started ashing it on the carpeted floor. Smoke filled the dining room, while they acted as if we weren’t even there. I was mortified. That earned them «three stars» –simply because the food was just that good.
However, after that, the man walked back into the kitchen and swung the door. While the swinging door was still in motion (back and forth and back and forth), I caught a glimpse of him prepping/​cutting meat with a cigarette in his mouth. Once again, ashing on the floor. That was it. I was done. One star all day long.
Even though I only stomached half of my food, I immediately felt ill and could not finish or «box up» my food. I knew I could never come back here. I pondered calling the health department, honestly. What stopped me was that I could not bear the idea of calling the HD on an establishment that is a staple in the Ghent community. And my granny’s favorite spot.
I know a lot of folks swear by the restaurant –hell, I would too if the «thing» had never happened. I would daydream about this place, talk it up, and attempt to take the Dukedom with massive check-​ins/​visits. But, honestly, I am so mortified by the cleanliness that I cannot even stomach the idea of coming back. Clean it up, Monastery; I’ll come back if you do.