Southside 815

First of all, the restaurant smelled like mildew as soon as we walked on. Our server was absolutely rude. She was the woman with short hair and mind and had tattoos. Incredibly rude. She wouldn’t allow us to make substitutions on our menu because they were «too busy «but she let he table next to us do as many substitutions in their order that they wanted. On top of that I left her a 25% tip and as I walk out the door she says «thanks for the generosity a**hole. Very rude and disrespectful. I will never be visiting again and advise everyone else not to do so. I wish I could ride this place 0 stars

Needs improvement front of house. Just had Sunday brunch with Mom. Mom had Charleston chicken and ate the whole plate. I had the eggs Benedict special with spinach and bacon, Food was great but my entrée was cold. Wait service was horrible. Restaurant needs to be cleaned. We both had dirty knives. Tipped 10% which is the first time in years

Good food and a great place to hang out. A little classy, but just enough.

The large inviting outdoor patio at Southside 815 beckoned to my husband and I on an unseasonably warm Dec. day after a long walk on the Mt. Vernon trail so we popped in for some southern inspired cocktails and «snacks». My French quarter iced tea hit the spot and «snacks» are in quotes because they actually ended up being a meal as portions are rather large here. I don’t recommend this place if you are on a diet. The bread basket was overflowing with delicious home-​maid goodies including cornbread and jams. And the chicken fingers were juicy and so big that they were almost chicken breasts. There was so much food that doggie got to enjoy himself as well. While the patio was nice and relaxing the inside of the restaurant was packed. It seems like Southside 815 is a very popular sport bar.

Outside of a good cocktail, and the many TVs at the bar, Southside wasn’t my thing. I say A-​Ok, because they have a nice menu, and fun environment. I would go back if a group of people wanted to meet up there, but not on my own.
Food-​wise – The menu reads better than it tastes. Not to say anything was particularly bad – just A-​OK.
With that I bid you adieu…

Has great Staffa fm the food is a really good southern type of cooking that blends all the great parts Mississippi cooking with twist from DC, the bar is a great to watch all the games on a brisk fall afternoon or just hangout, the one problem is that the place can be a little dirty at times

I’ve been to Southsides several times before, but I guess it has been a while. We decided to go to Southsides on New Year’s Day as my mother-​in-​law insists that we have our black-​eyed-​peas and greens on New Year’s Day to bring us luck and money in the new year. On this aspect, Southsides did not let us down. They offered Hoppin’ Johns and greens as the sides for one of the specials — they were kind enough to bring us the to sides separately. So… what went wrong? We started our meal with way to many appetizers, as the family could not decide on just one. We had the Jalepeno-​Honey Pulled Chicken Nachos, the Buffalo Wings, the Pulled Chicken Quesidea, and the bread basket. The Nachos came out looking like they were heated for someone else and then left on the counter to sit for a while, but the rest of the appetizers were excellent. The appetizers were the best part of our evening — I would highly recommend coming to Southsides for a drink and appetizers — then leaving before dinner arrives. We enjoyed the appetizers with the exception of the Nachos which looked like it stayed under the broiler too long and then sat out on the counter.
So, our table is full of appetizers — we have just started eating them when the kitchen brings out our two entrée sides — Hoppin’ Johns and Greens. I thought this was odd, but maybe there was a mix up that we wanted them with the appetizers. So now our table is so full that there is hardly room for our drinks. The kitchen staff then starts bringing out our entrees — they are trying to find room on the table so we have to lift up our appetizers so that they can put the new plates down. This seemed quite odd to me — shouldn’t you clear the table of used dishes first — then bring out the entrée? Only one of the four entrees met our standards. I ordered the Caribbean Jerk Chicken with Rice & Beans — the chicken tasted like it was seasoned with salt and pepper. The black beans seemed like they just came out of a can and were dumped on my plate and the rice seemed like it was Uncle Ben’s. On the positive side — it seemed like a very healthy meal. My daughter ordered the Fried Chicken pasta dish which was suppose to be spicy — the fried chicken had no seasoning at all — not even salt and pepper — and she said the cream sauce was not spicy. My MIL ordered the shrimp Po-​boy — the shrimp was fried which was unexpected (the menu could have said it was fried, I did not read about this entrée), but the roll it was on was way too much bread and the bread felt like it had been heated and cooled prior to coming to the table. The only good entrée at our table was the Pot Roast which received raved reviews.
I remember many wonderful meals at Southsides — I don’t know if the establishment is under new management or what, but last night was not the evening we were anticipating. If we go back again, it will be for drinks and appetizers and perhaps lunch, but we will not be going back for dinner.

The bar at Southside feels like a Disney-​ish attempt at creating a blue-​collar bar. The menu feels like it was created by a couple of guys at 4 am after coming home from drinking at said bar. «Hey Cuz!, Microwave me another one of those frozen fried cheese seafood things.»

I was so unimpressed with this place and I really wanted to like it. We came for HH and sat in the bar area at one of the high tops. The service was slow as the lone bartender was taking care of us and the entire bar area for most of the time we were there. We had to yell or get up to get her attention. The waiters who actually brought out the food were really nice however.
The food!!! It was a total flop. The pimento cheese balls could’ve been fried longer but even so the taste just wasn’t mind blowing. Just think of a ball of shredded cheddar cheese coated and fried. That’s all there is to it. The dipping sauce helped a lot but seemed out of place. The sweet potato biscuits were flavorless as well. Don’t see what the hype about those are. The fries were good but then again how can you mess up fries. The pulled pork slider was good but overpowered by all the bread from the biscuit it was served on.
Wait for it… The oyster poboy comes serves on yet the same thick, tasteless biscuit! Why people. I just eat the fried oyster in the middle (could be seasoned more) and threw out the biscuit.
My friend has the seasoned shrimp (shrimp with Old Bay dashed on top), oyster on the half shell, and shrimp n grits (not good either with big hunks of sausage).
The two stars were for the price. It was HH so the food was reasonably priced!

3.5 stars. I was surprised at how good this place is! It’s off of King Street but still within walking distance of the heart of Old Town Alexandria. Unassuming from the exterior, you may be overwhelmed by screaming fans watching sports at the bar when you walk in. But when you turn right at the first available opening, there’s a dining room for those not interested in the sports bar aspect.
I ordered the drunken pot roast ($ 16). Black Angus sirloin simmered in ale, onions, brown sugar, and spices. It comes with mashed skin-​on red potatoes and greens. The pot roast is really delicious and very filling. Greens were okay, mashed potatoes good, but the highlight of the dish was definitely the pot roast.
If I’m craving American classic and comfort food, I’d come back for more.

Stopped by here because I was in the area and needed a quick bite. The place was crowded during the «happy hour» and hard to find a place to actually sit in the bar area. There were some very cheap happy hour items but… you get what you pay for. I ordered a BBQ Pulled Pork Slider. I was surprised by how bad the sliders look and how many there were. They were some dry-​hard-​looking biscuits instead of buns and they indeed tasted like it. Although it came with three sandwiches, I could not finish them all. My friend ordered the oyster po-​boy which also came with the biscuits and he did not finish them either.
Despite the quality of the HH food, I gotta say that the service was pretty good considering how busy they were.

This is our first time here … and ., we l. o. v. e. it !!
Great Food !
Pedro você é o Maximo!
Muito Obrigada!!!
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The staff was very accommodating when planning a work baby shower (our party was 12 people). They allowed us to bring a cake to serve after we were done eating and supplied the small plates, knife, and forks for us. They did not charge any extra fees for this, always a plus.
The food was great. Everyone in our group enjoyed their meals. I had the oyster and shrimp po boy which was delish and brought me back to my visits to NOLA! I used a good amount of the remoulade which was very tasty. My meal was definitely filling for lunchtime, especially with the side of fries and the size of the po boy roll.
We were alerted to the free parking in the garage behind the restaurant but some of us were able to easily find 2 hour street parking nearby. We look forward to coming back for future work lunches!

On a 10+ day (mid 80 degrees, some breeze, lower humidity) the patio table in the shade made this lunch special. If we had not selected the grits as a side to replace the potatoes on the Charleston Chicken breast entrée, my positive view of the food would still be intact. The grits were the worse grits to ever pass my southern lips. Perhaps they were leftovers from the day before. I ordered them because other UnilocalERs said they were good. Definitely not today, a –5. On the other hand, the $ 7 Mac & Cheese is a 5+ and enough for 2 also. They made my tummy purr. So good they offset the horrible grits. I wonder if these 2 dishes came out of the same kitchen. Different sous chef, perhaps.
The chicken breast was meh, nothing to write home about. The perfect temp Fat Tire beer offset that. Clean restrooms. There is an ATM machine next to the restrooms, go figure. The bar stools were full on this Friday at 12:30, not an empty seat. TGIF ½ work days in summer on full display.
I want to come back to try the Poboys and hope the Unilocal reviews are not off about them being good.
Note to Southside Chef: Take the grits off the menu. It’s embarrassingly bad. Don’t continue to ruin our proud southern tradition of serving good food. If not get it right and QC, QC, QC!

Half Southern food Resturant half neighborhood watering hole. Literally. The place is divided in half and separated by old roll up doors from when this location was a micro car dealership. Back in the 30’s? There are pictures on the wall of these bygone days.
Today you won’t find any cars for sale but parking is plentiful along the street and a garage in the back. What you will discover is real good southern dishes like waffles and chicken, po boys dishes, the best fried oysters in old town. Also a good draught selection and tons of sports on the tvs around the bar
There is outdoor seating on wide sidewalk adding to the neighborhood feel. During happy hour the bar area can get crowded but service is attentive and kitchen is fast and rarely apologetic for delays. But it has happened where food came out late. Manager took the charge off on that occasion.

Southside has some really good food. It’s an interesting mix of Cajun, southern and bar food. I’ve been here a lot and have never had anything I didn’t really like. Everything from the steak to the Cajun dishes and fried chicken is really good. Think it’s one of the better restaurants in Old Town.
The service is always good and friendly.
They do have sweet tea… thankfully!
They also have Happy Hour food on weekdays and game day specials as well.

Great concept, friendly service, mediocre location, okay food, three stars.
I’m a Southern expat and don’t like «Yuppified» southern food at $ 35 a plate that most of DC tries to pass off as legit at tiny portions so this place was calling my name. This place is a low key neighborhood bar with a friendly staff. Their tap selection is okay but they should carry more Southern brews.
The food is pretty good but not quite up to Southern par. The fried green tomatoes were tasty and not overly breaded so they tasted just right but one was a little thicker so the breading didn’t quite fry all the way through. The fried pork chop was also good but not amazing. It was well fried without too much breading but it was a bone in chop and it was fairly fatty so there wasn’t quite as much meat as you’d have hoped. It goes well with the onion gravy, which was excellent and would go well on anything. The accompanying mashed red potatoes were top notch and the green beans were fresh and tasty as well.
The location of this place isn’t as close to the Metro and Old Town as you’d first think so you’ll earn your food on the walk.
Enjoyed my meal and will be back but it isn’t quite at the level of Southern perfection one might hope for.

I’ve never been to The Big Easy, so Southside 815 and any cajun crawfish joint (my favorite being Seaside Crab House) are the closest I can get to being there for now. Southside 815’s menu is extensive with something to please everybody. I’ve been twice — once for lunch and again for dinner — and have tried a multitude of dishes. Sampled appetizers include fried tomatoes, fried pickles, crab and artichoke dip, BBQ shrimp, and pimento cheese fritters. All were very tasty with the fried tomatoes and fried pickles being the most notable. As for my entrée during the first visit, I had their southern fried pork chops topped with cream gravy and accompanied by red mashed potatoes and sauteed string beans. The pork chops were on the dry side due to over-​frying. With breaded proteins that are subsequently drenched in sauce, it is very crucial to consume it in 15 minutes to maintain the crispy-​creamy contrast. As enjoyable as that is, it causes me anxiety as there is only a 40% chance I can ever finish my entrée before it becomes a soggy mess. This is, of course, not Southside 815’s fault. The sides were executed very well.
During my second visit, my buddy and I went halfsies on our shrimp and combo (shrimp and oyster) po’ boys. I prefer the shrimp variety simply for the nice chunks. If you aren’t familiar with a po’ boy, it’s breaded seafood (Southside 815 serves shrimp, crawfish, oyster, combo of any 2, and catfish), lettuce, and tomato on a baguette. The seafood appeared fresh that evening. My only gripe is the baguette — it is not to my standards, which is crusty on outside and fluffy on inside. I am not sure if their baguettes are baked in-​house or not, but they have a texture consistent with bread that has been sitting out for too long. I am curious to know if po’ boys ordered during lunch are better. In my opinion, the quality of bread can make or break a sandwich no matter how great the fillings are. The accompanying fries are semi-​battered and with some cajun seasoning. Tasty and crispy, I would say the fries were a hit.
I haven’t had the chance to try any desserts, so I can’t comment. Service is pretty decent — I’ve no complaints. I will consider returning to try a completely different entrée or maybe order a multitude of appetizers as my meal.
Parking tip: there is a free-​all-​day garage (in Old Town? say whaaat?) behind the restaurant, but you must drive down a small alley to get to it.
3.5 stars

3.5 STARS
Southside is a lively neighborhood sports bar in the quiet part of Old Town. I wasn’t sure what to expect visiting the night before Thanksgiving, but this spot was bustling. The bar area was crowded with people enjoying each and passively watching the Cavs beat the Wizards and college football. The dining area was moderately filled so we decided to grab a table to catch up over Southern comfort food. Once seated, I noticed there wasn’t a lot of racial diversity among the staff and patrons. However, everyone who made eye contact gave us friendly closemouthed grins or nods.
We ordered fried green tomatoes which were served with a tangy remoulade sauce and yummy apple cider drinks. The brims of the glasses featured crushed graham crackers. The drinks were soooo good and didn’t taste like any alcohol was in them! I was drawn to the salmon entrée then remembered salmon was on my Thanksgiving menu, and ordered the blackened catfish instead. The catfish came with Mason Dixon potatoes (half white/​half sweet potato) and Southern greens. My friend ordered the pecan crusted chicken with Mason Dixon potatoes, cheddar grits, and greens. Both dishes were tasty, huge portion sizes, and reasonable prices which equals great value. Service was good too. There was no room for dessert, in fact we had to wrap most of our food to go. We had a good time and will likely return.

Creative interpretations of New Orleans comfort dishes and then some here at Southside 815. This place was packed when we came in on a Wednesday night last month and, after dining here, I see why. The dishes are fun and tasty; there’s live music and great specials throughout the week. Wednesday nights they feature raw bar specials with great deals on oysters and shrimp; Monday nights feature ½ price po’ boys.
The New Orleans-​inspired menu features Crab & Corndrop Fritters, Southern Fried Pickles, Southern Greens, Cheddar Grits, Jalepeno-​honey Pulled Chicken, Chicken Fried Steak, Homemade Biscuits (buttermilk, sweet potato and cirbbread), Gulf-​spiced Chicken Breast, New Orleans BBQ Shrimp, Fried green tomatoes, blackened catfish, jambalaya, gumbo and the list goes on.
I decided on the Oyster and Shrimp Po’ Boy and was very pleased with my selection.
A very nice helping of fried shrimp and oysters, lettuce and tomatoes wedged between a soft French loaf. The remoulade sauce sealed together and highlighted all of the enticing flavors. Go for the Big Noodle Mac ‘n Cheese with a blend of parmesan, cheddar, smoked gouda and Monterey Jack. Such a wonderful blend of cheeses with an abundance of heart-​warming flavors. Gave my friend a bite and she was instantly hooked. My friend got the Drunken Pot Roast, which she scarfed down and enjoyed immensely.
Indulge in comfort cuisine in Old Town Alexandria at Southside 815. So glad we found this spot while in Alexandria.