Flying Squirrel

This is the bar I frequent most often in Chattanooga! It’s a great place to meet up with friends or go for a date night. The drinks are delicious and they almost always have a special. I’ve loved all of the food items that I have tried.

This is a hit place as a line formed outside of the place a good 30 mins before Sunday brunch. If you can’t get a table then the bar is free grabs. I love the open bar architecture. One side opens up to the outside while the other is the regular bar set up. Their notification feature for waiting guests is via text so that was convenient.
The cheese looked good as some gals across from us ordered the pimento cheese appetizer. That thing looked pretty good with a decent size jar of cheese. They didn’t seem to have finished it either. We didn’t order either as we were attempting to restaurant hop later in the day.
The spicy chicken biscuit was pretty tasty. It was sprinkled with paprika with a light drizzle of honey. It was not spicy at all actually. There was a kick to it, but that was it, nothing like fire in your mouth.
The bf choose the pork belly and grits. Yes, it sounds odd, but it was seriously amazing. The bartender taking care of us didn’t hesitate as we gave him the choices we were debating over. The pork was crispy and yummy with the grits. The greens added a nice texture and flavor to the whole scheme of this entrée.
The service, atmosphere, and meal was wonderful! I loved the space this restaurant sits at and the hooks on the patio side for bags was a nice touch.

Food
$ 7 Spicy chicken biscuit $ 7. It looked fiery red but it wasn’t that spicy. It just had a lot of paprika on it. I mean a lot. Think tablespoon. The honey drizzle was a nice touch. I say the flavor is better than Chik-Fil-A’s spicy chicken sandwich but not as spicy or greasy. The biscuit was also superior at Flying Squirrel.
$ 13 Pork belly with grits.
Two slices seemed kind of small at first but the girts and collard greens was enough to satiate me. The collard greens and grits were great but the pork belly was excellent. The grits are not drenched in butter but it’s still flavorful thanks to the fat in the pork belly. I recommend this over the spicy chicken biscuit.
Décor
Nice open area that is perfect for brunch unless it rains. Snazzy bathrooms.
Service
The bartender was quick and suggested the pork belly with pride. It got busy but he was attentive enough. I like the whole text system they use for lines but I just sat at the bar instead.
Would I come here again?
Sure. They are delicious enough and the prices were reasonable.

Excellent food and service! My one minor complaint was addressed so quickly that I can’t help but be impressed. Will recommend to friends.

From the atmosphere of only 21 and olders to the great vibes of music playing: Alabama shakes to Shakey Graves to Chris Stapleton to John Mayer. You can’t go wrong with this place, if you wanna grab a cocktail from the speciality selection to eating shareable plates. Great vibe for date night or meeting with friends! Love every minute of this experience

My mom and I loved our experience at the Flying Squirrel. We were driving through Chattanooga on our way to Atlanta and had been recommended TFS by many friends so we were excited to give it a shot.
When we pulled up the place seemed crazy busy, but we must have been magic that night because suddenly a car pulled out of a prime parking spot and the crowd hovering by the door quickly dissipated. It was a perfect evening to sit out on the patio and we were lucky enough to score seats along the bar. There seemed to be a bit of confusion about our server and whose section we were sitting in, but once we flagged someone down and our server came by to greet us, our experience was five star. Chance was attentive, funny, kind, honest (a very important quality in a server!) and gave great recommendations on both cocktails and food. Both the cocktails and the food were beautiful, delicious, and had unexpected elements that gave a little extra pizzazz and excitement. They were really fun and tasty bites!
The vibe was very trendy and the crowd was eclectic. Seemed like anyone could fit in here. We also fell in love with the overturned-​canoe-​turned-​light-​fixture above the bar inside! The cherry on top was when Chance unexpectedly brought us a banana crème brûlée (or something like that) on the house at the end of our meal — how nice?! This will surely become our go-​to spot when visiting Chattanooga.

We love the squirrel! Best bar/​drinks/​atmosphere/​friendly staff in town with a great outdoor patio and food menu that’s always evolving with the season.

I wish there was a place like this where I live!
We flew into Chattanooga pretty late, checked in at the Crashpad and walked over here for some dinner. Let me just say I absolutely love the feel of this place. It is really laid back and everything is really open. Its almost like they only have 3 walls to the building. The whole front is open and there are big windows on the second floor. It is open seating so we decided to go up stairs where they had couches.
My hubby got an IPA called two hearted ale, that he liked so much we now have to search for at home. I got the sweet teas are made of these cocktail. It was really good. I loved the chamomile flavor in it, but be wary it is a pretty tiny drink.
For food my hubby got the porkbelly bowl and I got the duck carnitas tacos. The carnitas tacos come with 3 tacos, but be wary these are also tiny. They worked for me because I don’t eat a lot, but if you are hungry I would suggest a different entrée. They were pretty tastey, just wish there was a bit more avocado spread on it.
Overall this place was awesome, but it is a little pricey. I feel like with the cost of the entrees you should get more food. In the end I love the atmosphere of this place and if I am back in Chattanooga I would not be surprised to find myself back here again.

Passing through town and stopped here for an early dinner on a Tuesday night, which turns out to be ½ priced wine night. Ordered the Duck Carnita Tacos, excellent. Had the order of roasted cauliflower too… OMG, it was the whole head of cauliflower! Way too much, but good flavor.
Followed this with a spring cocktail and Lemon Pie.
Lime in the Coconut, gin, with coconut mile, lime and Thai spices, excellent. MIght not have paired as well with the pie as I wanted, but individually on their own, each was great.
Would definitely come back, next time I’m in town.

Was looking over my review for FS. Sasha’s excellent review was today’s Review of the Day. Anyhow, I noticed Dan replied to my original review. I didn’t know he’d replied to my review.
I’m bumping them up to five stars just because of that response. That counts as customer service. As I said the food was good.
I think I was really peeved about the silver and the change incidents and allowed that to affect my review, which I shouldn’t have done. I talk to lots of foodies and ask them if they’ve ever been given just paper money change and not the coins. Maybe they are kidding, but all of them say they have never been slighted that way. And the silver thing was just bizarre, but Dan explained it.
Dan makes me feel much better about the place. No, I can’t substantiate the hipster comments. I very much appreciate him for responding the way he did. I learned a lesson and we are going to make a point to visit for Sunday brunch.

Excellent. I went there on Friday night with some friends, they had already eaten (not sure if there or elsewhere) and were just drinking. I hadn’t though and so ordered food, two items, the cuban tacos, and the braised beef.
The cuban tacos were quite frankly perfect. The flavors were complex and complimentary, the were both soft and crunchy textures. I cannot think of a single thing that could improve this dish, other than increasing the volume on the plate.
The braised beef was also very good. you have some crunch from the crispy onions, the soft savory meat, sweetness from the polenta, bitterness from the beet greens, all working together. It was one of the best braised beef dishes I’ve had, the only one I can think of that was better was a place where I’m thinking they must have made the beef earlier, perhaps a full day, and let it cool, then to warm it up tossed it in a deep fryer, but I don’t know if it is really fair to compare deep fried anything to its regular counterpart.
Both food dishes came out surprisingly fast considering how crowded it was — but at that point I think the kitchen must have been winding down.
Is it a law in TN that you have to check everyone’s ID every time? Every place I went to always checked everyone’s ID, and I was with some people as old as in their 60s.
Price wise, $$ to $$$. I do think it was fairly priced for the quality, I’ve had pricier food that wasn’t executed so well, and I’ve had other tapas-​style food that had similar price to portion rations. Obviously, as busy as it is, they’re doing something right.
Been back a few times since and the food has always been great. Though I sometimes wish they had more formal seating (host or hostess, etc) not fend for yourself. At least before 8 oclock or something.

Fried rice with chicken was the shit!!! This place is fantastic and Christian was the best mf’n server on the planet!

what a great place — we came back the next day again with friends. We were only in town for a few days and saw this place was recommended, we gave it a try and were not disappointed.
First night we sat outside on the bar, the bartender was fantastic. he suggested a drink for me, which I didn’t love, I didn’t even complain, he just saw that I wasn’t thrilled, so he put a different one in front of me — he said «I think you’ll like this one better»! — and I did. That’s great customer service. Then we asked him what he recommends that we ordered — we followed his suggestions — Duck Nachos, Scallops and steak salad — all 5 starts choices.

Consistently excellent. Service is great, food is delicious and unique, and the atmosphere is beautiful. Tried brunch for the first time today and as expected, it was perfect.

Came with a small group here for brunch. It was *packed*, and there weren’t many places to seat those of us waiting. I was worried this was a bad sign, but the host was really great to us. They had coffee out for free as people waited. Once we were finally seated (sadly, it was about an hour, but I don’t think it was anyone’s fault per se), the food and drinks were very prompt and delicious.
I ordered the shrimp and grits. It was very different; overall I liked it, but it wasn’t quite what I wanted (while it wasn’t quite the style I’d have liked, it was still good). The star for me were the bites of Roasted Pork Belly I tried — the pork and greens were absolutely delicious. And for brunch, the mimosa carafe was a perfect addition for our group, though we all agreed there could have been a bit more orange juice in the mix.
Overall, it was an experience very close to 5 stars, and I will likely try this spot again next time I’m in Chatt!

Arrived here early for Sunday brunch. Architecture was airy, open and impressive. There was already a line before the restaurant opened. We had a huge group of about 15 people and I will say large groups are not easily accommodated but it doesn’t matter because the food is amazing. The parmasean grits were so creamy and full of flavor. I also tried the biscuit with sausage gravy… also amazing. For my main dish, I ordered the corned beef with sourdough and it was good as well. I ended up sharing because all. the portions were large and the price point was good.
This place has everything for a Sunday brunch including live music. There is an upstairs and downstairs and huge windows for great light. There is outdoor seating as well but it was too cold. There is also a huge bar and I noticed their menu had a huge beer selection. This place is definitely worth a visit or stop on your way to our through Chattanooga.
There is plenty of parking and of course a friendly staff. 5 Stars from me! Just curious about the dinner menu now…

Brunch burrito with rosemary fries was great. The Bear Hug cocktail (gin infused with chai) was incredibly unique and delicious as well.
The live music upstairs really added to the ambiance, too! Can’t wait to come back and try more of the menu.
A word to the wise: we showed up 8 minutes after they open on Sunday and it was already half full!

We stopped at the Flying Squirrel for beers and a couple of shared appetizers after doing some shopping. We got the pimento cheese & toast with bacon jam (yep, jam) and it rocked. We also ordered the brussel sprouts… It was good too. Flying Squirrel was recommended by a local Chattanoogan (is that a word?) and we were glad we went. Would love to try more of their offerings. Really liked the cool, rustic architecture too.

Excellent service. Extraordinary eats. Fun and romantic atmosphere. We arrived for an early dinner last night and immediately found a great seat. Our waiter (I feel terrible that I can’t remeber his name!) went above and beyond to make our double date with our parents special. We took both his food and beer recommendations are are very glad we did, we found a favorite! He even brought over a few samples as suggestions as the meal ended and we were ordering desserts.
We just moved here from San Diego and could not be happier to have found a gem like this in Chattanooga. We will definitely be back!
Thank you Flying Squirrel for a wonderful and memorable evening.

Folks, I don’t give many 5 star reviews but this one is worthy of this ranking.
Excellent food and service and an atmosphere that is trendy and unique. Reminds me of an open air Florida restaurant but without the water. The staff was courteous and professional.
My wife and I had a krafe of mimosas (plenty for two) to drink then pork belly and shrimp and grits to eat. Both dishes had generous servings and were delicious. Shrimp and grits had a Southwest flare and the pork belly had that umami comfort food flavor.
Coupled with great conversation with fellow bar mates, this place is a hit that we will most definitely be back.
Bravo Flying Squirrel!