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Last week, my family decided to visit Williamsburg, Virginia so we could attend the Food and Wine Festival at Busch Gardens. The first night we got in, we wanted to enjoy a nice, relaxing dinner after our drive. We’ve been to Williamsburg many times but we decided to try a new restaurant. And now we have a restaurant we’re definitely going to want to visit again!
We were looking for a restaurant that was close to our hotel, and we were staying at the Best Western Williamsburg Historic District. So when we were looking for restaurants near the hotel, Sportsman Grill really stood out.
First of all, it was only a five-minute drive from our hotel, and it was a pretty straight shoot.
But we also got a coupon for the restaurant from a Williamsburg coupon book we got in the lobby. So I would definitely pick one up if you’re staying there to help you save money if the coupon is still available!
But we also really liked Sportsman’s Grille’s menu. It had a really nice mix of food, from burgers to seafood to sandwiches to salads and so on. And the prices were incredibly reasonable. At a time when restaurant prices are going through the roof, these were prices you could have seen pre-pandemic.
So we headed to the restaurant. We were there on a Wednesday night in an off-season time for Williamsburg, so as we expected we didn’t have a wait and walked right in.
Restaurant Atmosphere & Decor
But right away, we really liked the decor of the restaurant. This was a sports bar/restaurant, and you often see a few jerseys or signs up. But I feel like this restaurant’s decor really took it to the next level.
The restaurant itself had a very laid-back atmosphere. If I hadn’t known any better, I would have thought I was at a restaurant at the beach. Because it had that kind of laid-back atmosphere.
And while again I wasn’t there on a super busy night, it was still a bit quieter than some sports bars are. I really liked that. I feel like it made the restaurant more family-friendly than some sports bars. It also made it much easier to have conversations with my family, which I liked.
But they still had sports on, and a nice mix of sports (like golf, hockey, women’s college softball, etc.).
They also had a fish tank, too, which I thought added to the peaceful atmosphere.
Food Review
But all of that really wouldn’t matter if we didn’t like the food, right? Well, luckily, this was not a problem here!
Let’s start with the burger one of my family members ordered, ambitiously titled Williamsburg’s BEST Burger.
And while that is a pretty big claim, we felt it actually did live up to the title.
It’s a half-pound beef burger with tomato, lettuce, and pickle (I don’t think pickle was on the menu, so if you don’t want a pickle, ask to hold it).
They then give you ways to customize the burger, which I always really like. You could add sauteed papers, sauteed onions, or jalapenos (although we did not). You can also choose the cheese (another feature I like) and you can chose between Swiss, American, provolone, cheddar, or pepperjack.
And once again, the meat was really good. The French Fries, by the way, were also really good. If you do not want Fries, though, you could substitute it with Potato Salad, Cole slaw, and Chips.
You could also get onion rings, which we did with one of the sandwiches we ordered, the “Steel City” Patty Melt.
First of all, love the name. Fits in well since there is a lot of Pittsburgh Steelers decor at the restaurant.
But even better was the sandwich. It was really good! We were also able to customize this a bit and switch the cheese to Swiss cheese. The sandwich was good, especially the bread.
But one of the best parts was the pickles that came with the sandwich. It was some of the best pickles we’ve ever had at a restaurant!
Another meal that was good was the Popcorn Shrimp Basket.
Now, the only negative here is that when I think of popcorn shrimp, I think of more smaller shrimp. So I thought I should mention this in case that was what you were expecting so you wouldn’t be disappointed.
But otherwise, the shrimp was really good. It comes with French Fries and cole slaw, and the French Fries were once again good. The cole slaw was good, too.
Another entree my family ordered was the Fish and Chips platter.
The fish was very good, though I would say it’s not the best fish I’ve had. It was probably the dish we recommend the least out of everything we had.
And finally, let me mention drinks.
The Pinot Noir was great.
Conclusion
Sportsman’s Grille is a wonderful choice for a restaurant for a delicious, relaxing meal in Williamsburg, Virginia. It is a laid-back, family-friendly restaurant where you can also enjoy watching sports while you eat.
It also has a great location not too far from the Historic District and Colonial Williamsburg. So it would make a great meal after a day visiting Colonial Williamsburg.
And speaking of Colonial Williamsburg, if you’d like to visit, find out how to get discounted Colonial Williamsburg tickets here.