Positioned simply exterior the Downtown Mall, Bang! is an Asian-inspired tapas restaurant with a vegetarian, gluten-free and vegan-friendly menu that, sadly, doesn’t take reservations. Nicely-known amongst college students for its scrumptious meals and distinctive drinks, I made a decision to go to Bang! to see if it was definitely worth the wait.
Regardless of Bang!’s recognition amongst Charlottesville locals and College college students alike, it is among the native eating places that doesn’t settle for reservations beforehand. On the evening that I made a decision to go to Bang!, I used to be apprehensive about my possibilities of getting a desk, however once I confirmed up on a Friday evening with a bunch of 4 associates round 6:45 p.m., we had been seated inside 10 minutes, beginning the meal off on a fantastic notice.
Upon being seated, I rapidly observed the number of individuals having fun with their meals — from households with youngsters to {couples} on first dates and College college students — the ambiance of Bang!’s environment was heat and alluring, creating a cushty and acquainted setting for all of its patrons. As an alternative of a reusable menu, paper menus are positioned on the desk with pens subsequent to it, as diners verify off which objects they need to order.
Whereas the servers advised ordering two to a few tapas per individual, my associates and I couldn’t resolve on solely two dishes we each needed, so we ended up ordering a plethora of things from the menu, starting from firecracker shrimp to goat cheese dumplings. The dishes got here out one after the other, giving us the chance to completely get pleasure from every of the flavors by itself.
The aroma wafting from the dishes as they had been positioned on our desk was scrumptious, and every was simply as flavorful and attractive because the final. My favourite two dishes had been the firecracker shrimp and the flash fried brussels sprouts. The firecracker shrimp was crispy and heat, served with a slaw that balanced out the richness of the garlic sauce, whereas the flash fried brussels sprouts had been the proper mixture of candy and savory, with a mixture of miso mayo and candy soy sauces.
McKenzie Mallory, fourth-year Faculty scholar and supervisor of Bang!, has been working at Bang! for the previous eight months, transferring rapidly from working as a server to the overall supervisor place. Mallory thinks that Bang!’s distinctive menu and welcoming setting are what make it so interesting to college students and locals alike.
“I really like the tapas type,” Mallory stated. “[Bang!] is the primary tapas-style restaurant I’ve been to in Charlottesville and I simply fell in love with it. I additionally love the employees, [working at Bang!] is a really inclusive expertise.”
Bang!’s patrons clearly additionally really feel the identical, as there are regulars who frequent the restaurant. Bang! is not only a restaurant for a single event, it’s good for all events and all teams of individuals, with an outside patio and upstairs and downstairs seating areas.
“We’ve a pair regulars that are available in they usually’ve been loyal for the final 20 years,” Mallory stated. “I believe it is the those who create the vibe and I believe they’re doing a extremely nice job of it.”
Presently, Bang! has a unique array of choices than their traditional menu due to Charlottesville Restaurant Week, which happened from Jan. 28 to Feb. 5. Charlottesville Restaurant Week is per week the place diners get to dine at taking part eating places and luxuriate in three programs for simply $19, $29 or $39. Throughout restaurant week, Bang! charged $29 per individual for 3 dishes, with $1 of the proceeds from each meal going to Restaurant Week’s chosen charity. This 12 months, the charity was the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank of Charlottesville.
Nevertheless, the restaurant tries to maintain a few of its most traditional and common dishes on the menu always, such because the wealthy and creamy goat cheese dumplings. Along with their superb meals, Bang! can also be recognized for having enjoyable and distinctive cocktails. Two tempting drinks provided are “Sin Metropolis” — a blackberry and pomegranate martini — and a brand new drink they’ve launched referred to as “Not Your Mom’s Mule,” which is a habanero tequila mule.
General, Bang! is a restaurant that’s undoubtedly definitely worth the wait. The scrumptious meals, ambient environment and enjoyable cocktails make it a singular Charlottesville restaurant that’s prone to stay a favourite for years to return. Cease by Bang! for an off-the-cuff dinner with your loved ones, a celebration with associates or perhaps a first date because it’s the proper place for any event.
Presently, Bang! can also be hiring servers and bartenders. Should you’re , attain out to bangrestaurant@gmail.com
