My husband found this spot through an online search so we decided to give it a try this past Friday night. I have to say that we were pleasantly surprised. The staff was amazing and the food was absolutely delicious. We started off with their pimento cheese appetizer which we highly recommend. The portion sizes were great and the food was very fresh. We will definitely return read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

I had been wondering how this incarnation and new ownership was, and found out this evening.. [[HIGHLIGHT]]A big crowd and live music in too small a venue, but hey, it's Friday night.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The Truffle Fries are absolutely wonderful and very tasty. Anything with truffle flavor does it for me. They were a generous helping, and I brought some home. read more

Schweety and I have eaten here on multiple occasions with friends. Every time food and service has been outstanding. Local beef and produce are featured as well as local wine. On our most recent visit we tried the award winning Rose from Sweet Briar! read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Pimento Cheese and Fried Chicken. What could be better? - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

This place is THE gem of Amherst! The absolute best restaurant!! [[HIGHLIGHT]]Setting, aromas, staff, and most of all - the food!![[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I haven't tried anything I didn't like. If fact, they officially hold the now best Ruben sandwich that I have ever had. Eve read more

Wonderful service and people! [[HIGHLIGHT]]Great food selection, and such a cute place with the hanging lights and classic rock.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I came in a group of 6, and the service was so kind and attentive. I will say it took about an hour to receive the food, so most of the place had come and gone while we were there. But it was tasty when it arrived. We had the pesto bruschetta, cauli wings, fig and goat cheese burger, fried hot honey chicken, and po boys. People loved the chicken, po boys (grilled shrimp not breaded), and the fig burger was okay, but could have used more fig or maybe a honey sauce of sorts. Pricing is reasonable too. I do wish their specials were more apparent or they told us them, they're on a very small whiteboard that's hard to notice- I didn't see it even until finishing the meal and I wish i saw it sooner! Definitely recommend! read more

See all

A hidden gem. Highly recommend. Incredible food. The farm to table makes dining an unforgettable experience.

The Reason to Visit Amherst There was no real reason to go to Amherst. Sorry, everyone. It's a county you drive through to get to Lynchburg. Their downtown is in dire need of a tune up, and half of their stores are antique malls. That all changed when a chef decided to open up Bonfire. For the first time in my life, I now have a legitimate reason to recommend that EVERYONE stop in downtown Amherst. This restaurant is one of the biggest surprises I have experienced. A chef-owned restaurant, the first thing you'll notice is the quality of the service. Down-to-Earth, humble professionals welcome you into Bonfire with great humor and complete knowledge of the menu. They are PROUD to serve this food. We had Happy Hour the first time we went, so we got a few wings for a $1 a piece. The house rub was abundant with flavor. Start your meal off this way, even if you just get 2 wings. I've been here twice, so I'll speak to what I've tried, but in bullets: - Burgers rival Charlottesville for flavors, quality, and ingenuity. - Fries are fantastic and clearly housemade - The Cast Iron grilled cheese is the best I've ever had, the best my MIL has ever had, the best my FIL has ever had, and the best my wife has ever had. - The Reuben is ALSO the best Reuben we've ever had You have an obligation to stop in Amherst and get the one if the best burgers in Central VA. Bonfire, you are one helluva restaurant! read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

See all

Went for dinner, was told they were behind when we got there. We said not a problem, ended up taking them 2 hours and 15 minutes to get our food out. The lack of communication was very disheartening. read more

I am absolutely in love with bonfire not only do they have one of the best burgers I've ever had, but I CAN NOT stop raving about brussels sprouts. I even told my professor about this place. It's all the way out in Amherst, but it's definitely worth the drive every single time. [[HIGHLIGHT]]I had one of my most memorable dates there.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Definitely get the Crispy Brussels. Definitely try the goat cheese and fig. [[HIGHLIGHT]]It's that small town vibe that you really will never get tired of.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

I just wanted to share a great experience we had tonight at the Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon. It was absolutely delicious. For drinks we had the following: Gin lemonade. Old fashioned. Extra dirty Martini. Spicy tequila fizz, and 2 Cosmopolitans, one sweet and one sour, both excellent! Can't say enough about the mixologist (Bartender). He's wonderfully talented. For appetizers we had: Nashville chicken wings in a warm homemade cream cheese with crispy thin sliced toasted French bread slices. Cremimi mushrooms, and smoked bone in chicken wings with pickled red onions and arugula. For our entree's we had: Cowboy burger with seasoned fries. Ribeye steak with crispy mac n' cheese, sauteed onions and peppers dressed with a chimichurri sauce. Grass fed beef burger on fried goat cheese patty with fig, and truffle parmasan fries. Candied smoked salmon, tossed in unagi, grilled sesame sticky rice, with wakame salad and sirracha aioli. For our dessert we had: Chocolate mole cake with a raspberry pepper coulis with vanilla ice cream and carmel drizzle. We highly recommend checking them out. Great people, great service, good times! Five for the Chef, kitchen staff and front of house staff. Everything was fabulous! read more

See all

All of it! Our server was so friendly and attentive, happy to explain the menu, and happy! We are moving to the area so we know we will be back to try more and the new items coming soon. Having Beer from Maine brewing on tap was a huge bonus! read more

See all

Best restaurant in the area, a hidden gem. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Expect good drinks with dinner and a welcoming, homey atmosphere[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We started off with the smoked wings which came with an incredible homemade ranch. The wings were nice and crispy on the outside and the meat inside was juicy. For our main we got a double bacon Gouda cheeseburger and a Caesar salad with a side of smoked Mac and cheese. The Caesar dressing was to die for and if I could have would have bought bulk to bring home, the bowl was lined with delicious crispy Parmesan. The Mac and cheese lacked flavor nothing extremely note worthy and not very cheesy. The bacon Gouda cheeseburger was fantastic with flavorful Gouda and a fresh fluffy bun. Our waiter was a super kind young man and took very good care of us. read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Cesar salad, side of Mac and cheese, double bacon Gouda cheese burger - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

This is not just a burger place. Locally sourced (sweet briar lettuce, local beef) The service is top notch, maybe the best french fries ever (nothing frozen). I had swiss mushroom, my wife had the goat cheese and fig jam, both excellent on a brioche bun that wasnt more rhan 24 hours old. This was a great meal. Loved the IPA on tap. Must visit. read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Goat cheese and Fig - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

See all

[[HIGHLIGHT]]Sweet quiet little place in Amherst.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Good location with parking in the rear. Our food was superb with great service to complete it. Katie and Holly are both attentive and friendly. The pulled pork nachos were on special and I missed a picture but my table thought they were great! Drinks are on point, have to try the spicy mango margaritas. read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Mushroom Risotto - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

See all

The food is quite excellent but the service has a way to go. Friendly enough but disorganized and slow. Very slow. Still, I'd go back at a less busy time and try again because the food was quite good indeed. read more

Have eaten here a few times, and the food is pretty decent. Service has always been good, I love that they use local ingredients.

This place has the best Reuben sandwich ever. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Nice quiet, slightly upscale (for Amherst) restaurant that would make for a good first date or 100th date.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Service is great and there is nothing bad on the menu. Recommend it repeatedly. read more

Great local place with lots of warmth inside. One of the charming factors is that this place is a small "mom and pop" business sourcing food from local farms. They take great pride in use fresh ingredients all of which I throughly appreciated. My only complaint was burger doneness. All of the folks at our table ordered burgers at different temps, well, medium and my self medium rare. All of the burgers were well done none of them had different temps. I don't mind this if it's disclosed early on that all brothers are served well. But I visited twice and this was the experience both times. Drinks were on point! Smoked bourbon old fashioned was amazing as well as everyone else in my group enjoyed their drinks. Sam and our bartender were friendly and tentative, we never had to ask for anything. read more

See all

No. Four visits were enough. Top pet peeves of restaurants: 1. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Inconsistency on food, service, experience.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] 2. Lack of humility. The attitude that the customer is wrong even when they know they have failed to meet even the most basic food service expectations. Such a shame too. We wanted to love this place, after all the good reviews, and make it a regular stop. Never going to happen. Money is too hard earned. read more

Amazing food, outstanding service, clean and cozy decor. We saw this place when we went to the antique store across the street and decided to give it a try for lunch. Great decision. I had a burger with goat cheese and fig, and I am now going to put goat cheese and fig on everything I eat. Super delicious. The other one had a smoked reuben, which he proclaimed the BEST sandwich AND the BEST brisket he's ever had! This guy gushes about nothing, so that is the highest praise I have ever heard. The sweet potato and regular fries were both cooked to perfect crispness and were well seasoned. The 1 server working at the time was friendly, efficient and delightful. Definitely try this place out if you are in the area. Be aware that it's somewhat smallish. I hope they do well and expand. read more

See all

The food was amazing and the wings were next level. Sam took exceptional care of our team and I can't wait to revisit this joint. Do yourself a favor and get one of their burgers. Sooooo good! And the cider was fantastic! read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Potters Cider - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

This is kind of a long story... My wife and I were doing a drive from NC to Upstate New York (they call it "Western New York" but it's really upstate). We were stopping overnight in Hagerstown, Md., and wanted to find somewhere for dinner along the way. My wife didn't want to stop, so that we could get to the hotel not too late, but because I'm a Yelp-Dork I wanted to find the perfect place along the way, and I discovered this place - 4.9* average on Yelp, similar on Google. Long story short, the fast food options were pretty crap, so we ended up coming here. We got two seats at the bar, ordered a drink each, and a plate of buffalo cauliflower and a lamb burger to share. Clearly they were busy, which is fine - it was Friday night. There were games, so we played a couple games of gin rummy. Our drinks came, and after kind of a long wait, our cauliflower shows up. We eat it quickly. We play a few more games of gin rummy. At this point, my wife is very annoyed - she didn't want to stop, and now it's been about an hour (plus the time off the highway). So I ask the bartender, has the lamb burger fired? If it's fired we'll wait for it, but if it hasn't, cancel it and we'll settle up. She says it fired... then she checks and says it hasn't. So I say cancel it, we'll settle up and go. I tipped the normal 20% because I'm not a dick and I understand when restaurants get in the weeds, and we head out to the car. At this point I'm like, 3 *'s, cool place, we caught them on an off night. Then as we are in the car, we get a knock at the window - it's the chef. He says, "did you guys order a lamb burger?" We did. He says, I'm so sorry, the whole town came to dinner tonight, plus the owners are out of town. Let me bring you the order on the house. He also offered to comp our next meal, which we said was totally unnecessary. A few minutes later we got our burger and fries in a to-go box. Anyway... it was a bit of a cock-up, but the place was cool, the food wasn't bad, and clearly they care. If I ever find myself in Amherst, Va., we'll give them another shot. read more

We experienced such a fantastic dining experience here. Located on Main Street in Amherst, make sure you sit near one of the windows or outside on the patio so you can really enjoy the small town setting. Their mixed drinks are in the running for some of the best we've ever tasted - hands down. The cuisine is unbelievable, and it really stands out in contrast to other restaurants in this town. What really ties it together, in my opinion, is the service you'll experience. The staff is so welcoming and friendly. Not once did we have to wait to have a drink refilled nor did we have to hunt down our server for the bill. Go ahead and call in a reservation, this place is no secret and the tables fill up quickly. read more

See all

I cannot say enough good things about Bonfire. We arrived with no reservation but they accommodated us with a table for 2 by the window. Cocktails were excellent. My husbands Old Fashioned was delicious and presentation with a smoked dome was perfect. I opted for the whiskey sour with homemade sour mix and mint. Super refreshing and generous size. We both had burgers and I must say they were exceptional. I can't think of another time I have had a better gourmet burger. Mine was topped with fried goat cheese and fig while my husband had mushroom Swiss. Both were served on brioche buns with fries as a side (also excellent). If you find your self near Amherst, Lynchburg and dare I say Charlottesville, make a reservation and make your way over to Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon. [[HIGHLIGHT]]You will feel very welcomed in this local establishment and won't be disappointed.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

See all

Was surprised to find this great restaurant in a small city. Food is just incredible and ingredients are local and the high quality. 100% recommend! read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Cauliflower - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

See all

Bonfire had been a great addition to Amherst! Their burgers are top notch, and from a local farm in Amherst. I typically order take-out and service has been great! Truffle fries are also my favorite with a side of ranch. read more

All the wonderful stories about this place are true!! Lunch here today was amazing. Katie gave us fantastic service even though the restaurant was busy. Today we enjoyed the Reuben (house smoked brisket!! The best brisket I have EVER had) and Beet and Goat Cheese salad with grilled chicken. We can't wait to go back. FIVE STARS all the way! read more

See all

Simply Fantastic! A cozy setting but still able to accommodate larger parties. A very personable dining experience with ta meal selections. Try their roasted brussel sprouts as a side.... you will never think of them in the same way. read more

Great food and service! The food is fresh and locally sourced and you can tell it. Sydney was very patient with our large group of 10 and accommodated our food restrictions. read more

See all

Locally sourced with great service. We have never had a bad meal there and try to go several times a month! They rotate specials and also have a fixed menu. It's truly my favorite restaurant in the area! read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - We always start with the grazing plate!! - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

See all

We were passing through town and stopped here based on the reviews and wowwza! The food was absolutely top notch - the best wings we've ever had! The salad was so fresh and the chimichurri was on point! The owner was awesome to chat with and Sam was so kind - we will most definitely be back! read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - House salad with a few add ins, cauliflower wings, regular wings, Swiss mushroom burger, brussel sprouts with candied pecans, French fries - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

Wonderful food, great service. You would expect to find a restaurant this good in a big city. We are incredibly lucky to have Bonfire here in Amherst. read more

Having grown up in Amherst, Bonfire is a welcome addition to the small restaurant scene! I've been three times over the past 6 months while visiting my mom, and the food has been outstanding every time. The burgers are exceptional - the right size, cooked perfectly and served on a tasty bun. Salads are also way above ordinary with touches like watermelon radishes and house chimichurri vinaigrette. Great beer list - on a recent night, there was a local IPA on tap for $3 (which was a special). Prices are very reasonable for the high quality of food. I hope Bonfire sticks around for years to come!! read more

The smoked wings were amazing! My bf got the steak which was also pretty good. Along with a pumpkin ale. Our server was Sam Sogor also amazing. It would have been 5 stars but the place was packed and we waited outside for our to go order. Side note: I believe this is the only restaurant open past 9 pm in the area so be prepared to wait. read more

I took the food to go! Amazing to find a place with locally sourced food. It is what I am looking for. Healthier option and supporting the community. We had the classic burgers which were great. We also had the fried chicken which was crispy and juicy with the Mac n cheese that was yummy! They had a special for soup that was also amazing. I was visiting mom in the area and will definitely be eating here when we come back! read more

My burger was one of the best I have had in the area! Fig jam and goat cheese my favorite! My husband had the special smoked turkey and also thought it was very tasty. Sides were fries and Brussel sprouts, both were delicious. Wait staff offered suggestions from the menu and were attentive to our needs. The space is not what we expected for a bourbon bar, but it was bright and had a welcoming feeling. We had a table at the front window so had a nice view of the flowers in the little park across the street. We will go back! read more

This restaurant is the perfect lunch spot. The burgers are delicious, portions are perfect. The staff is very personable and the restaurant is quaint and cozy! Has the feel of a pub, with dark woods in the bar and around the room. If you're in Amherst, you owe it to yourself to try them out! read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

Nice place for a quiet dinner,staff is friendly, food was amazing. Enjoyed it and will be back.

We had burgers, grass fed local beef. Tasty, but not hot. One waitress and 3 tables sat at the same time. Service was friendly and efficient. Irish music for St. Patty's Day, nice. read more

Bonfire Burgers & Bourbon - Kids meal cheeseburger with fruit - Salad Near Me - Amherst, Virginia

See all

I ordered the grilled cheese with fries. It was delicious. The service was excellent. Nice find while traveling!