Little Stay in Lynchburg: A Work Trip with Fun Food
Alex here! I had an opportunity to travel to Lynchburg for a few days for work, and took another opportunity for myself to try some new food while there. Work set me up in the Fairfield Inn and Suites at Liberty, which was very clean, had a nice indoor pool, functional gym, and friendly staff. It was also very conveniently located to other restaurants and activities to do, so I would definitely stay here again.
My first restaurant of the trip was RA Bistro, which I tried out for dinner the first night. The vibes here were very cool, with dim lighting and a nice atmosphere. The inside of the restaurant was clean and had an exposed industrial and rustic look. The bar looked great and the staff were very friendly and attentive the entire visit.
I ordered the San Fran Surf and Turf and the RA House Burger for dinner. I knew I needed to get my protein intake for the day and these dishes definitely made it happen. The surf and turf overall was excellent, and came with skewers of shrimp and sirloin steak. The shrimp was cooked perfectly and the lemon sauce paired very nicely with it. (I even attempted to save some of the sauce for the sirloin). The sirloin was actually a little overcooked on the thin ends, but was cooked to the medium rare temperature I requested in the middle of it. Overall, the steak was delicious and flavorful I was glad to have saved some of the lemon sauce for it. Instead of the broccoli cheddar rice that usually comes with this dish, I substituted crispy green beans. These green beans were awesome and I loved the texture. They were packed with flavor and were, in my opinion, a better addition to the dish than rice.
Next up was the RA House Burger. I ordered this without the bun to adhere to my low carbohydrate intake required diet. This burger is a blend of angus beef, chopped sirloin, Andouille sausage, and bacon topped with cheddar cheese. I ordered an additional patty with it, which was only an extra $2.00. This burger was packed with many flavors, as the blend of meats implies. It was cooked perfectly and I could taste the sirloin mized in with the sausage and bacon flavor with every bite. The burger patty itself was a great portion, and I found myself forcing the second patty down (even though I enjoyed it. I knew I needed the extra protein and while I was nearly full, it was definitely not a bad thing to have to eat this delicious burger a second time.
Overall, RA Bistro was a great experience and a nice vibe. It’s a short hop from the James River and located in the downtown Lynchburg area. I will definitely revisit to taste some other items on the menu, and I recommend this restaurant to any travelers in the area.