Waterside District

[BFG]

I got a Facebook notification about the Cinco de Mayo event happening there...apparently it's already at capacity. I'm planning to go to Wine Fest this weekend. I might have to consider taking The Tide or an Uber.

[vdogg]

I'm taking a Lyft to the tide (cheaper), then taking a Lyft home. Only thing I worry about is the weather is supposed to be bad tomorrow. May put a damper on things. 

Actually, it's supposed to clear out and warm up by 4 pm. May not be that bad.

[vdogg]

Blue Moon taphouse is huge! I had no idea it took up as much of Waterside as it does. It has 3 indoor bars, one outside bar, virtual golf, and 2 areas for performances, one inside and one outside. I'm impressed. It's what Starr Hill should have been. Unfortunately, Starr Hill is exactly as puny as we feared it would be. They barely have a presence.

[ORF flyer]

Just returned from Waterside.... my thoughts: Very Nice and very busy! I enjoy the openness of the Market. Had dinner at Blue Moon. Ate the fish & chips and it was ok at best. While we ate outside, we could only order drinks outside and had to go to the bar to order food and they packaged it up in to-go packages. The wait staff were very nice but you could tell they were overwhelmed. One odd thing I found was no entrance into PBR from the market. I may have missed it, but it appears you only enter from the front outside??? 

Will return tomorrow night when I can stay out a bit later. I'm expecting a madhouse.

[SuffolkWahoo]

Just got back from Waterside as well.  I really liked the place! Great open floor concept with fantastic design and decor.  Had a beer at PBR (which is inside Guy's) and a beer at Blue Moon.  They are still working out kinks as expected but for a soft opening it seemed to going quite well!

[urbanlife]

It looks like a very updated version of the Waterside I knew growing up in VB. Good to see some new life going on in it because I remember the last time I was in there and it just had a very sad and depressing feel to it. This renovation was long overdue.

[vdogg]

One thing Waterside does right is food. It's spectacular. Guy Fieris has a market menu for those who can't get inside. While smaller, it's still impressive, and tastes great.

 

[likeminded]

I, personally, am not disappointed at the Star Hill just being a bar rather than a micro-brewery.  I also don't feel there was any "bait-and-switch."  It's business, folks, and things often change as projects come to fruition.  I think, at the core, the new Waterside is everything that was promised (in spirit, if not literally).  I ran over last evening right after work (I literally work across the street, so that was nice and easy) and the place is *jumping*!  It just kept getting busier and busier!  Was able to grab a Cheeseburger Hoagie from The Local and it was pretty good.  Really look forward to trying some of the other places, but they were definitely overwhelmed last night and the expected "hiccups" were there too.  Still, it looks great and has quite a vibe.  I really think Cordish has done this right, and they have several other properties across the country that are really vibrant places, so I trust (hope) that they can keep this one strong.

One thing I did notice, though...that large "WATERSIDE" sign that was supposed to light up red was only just white last night....

Edited May 5, 2017 by likeminded
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[drayrichmond]

piping in from Richmond, been keeping an eye on the waterside development, looks pretty cool and I plan on visiting next time I'm down in Norfolk

[BFG]

Checked it out tonight. I'm VERY impressed! This and The Main is precisely what the area needed. 

The good: outside of Harborfest, I have never seen downtown Norfolk this busy and vibrant, not even when I hung out down here regularly in the mid/late-2000s. I felt like I was in another city tonight. If they keep this up, the nightlife will hold its own against other mid-size cities. Even Granby was wall-to-wall traffic. 

The kinda bad: we went to Blue Moon Taphouse, and even standing at the bar, it took more than 20 minutes just to get a drink order in. But it's opening weekend, so I give them a pass.

The fire alarm also went off, so they had to evacuate lol. Not sure what happened there. 

All in all, I thought it was amazing. I think Norfolk has a winner this time, esp. since the city isn't running the place. I take back all my cynicism. 

 

Edited May 6, 2017 by BFG
Added photos

[Virginia City]

I was there last night and there was probably more people that has visited in the last 2 days than in the previous 10 years.

Edited May 6, 2017 by Virginia City

[BFG]

http://pilotonline.com/news/local/a-day-after-opening-waterside-party-interrupted-by-fight-fire/article_719c7762-2d06-53ff-ad38-ea5e9d68517c.html

I know that they're only doing this because it's opening weekend, but I really wish The Pilot had kept this to themselves. All it's going to do is perpetuate the stereotype that you can't go to Norfolk because of the crime. It's good to know the reason the fire alarm was pulled, but this was not a story IMO. It was crowded and people were drinking because of the opening and Cinco de Mayo. Thankfully no one was seriously hurt.

[vdogg]

Pilot doing what the pilot does best, blowing things out of proportion and perpetuating negative stereotypes to get clicks. They're a large part of why light rail failed in VB. A constant drum beat of negative articles changed public perception and sank it. Luckily, it seems the vast majority of people enjoyed themselves last night. I don't think this one issue is going to change that.

[vdogg]

Standing on the former Annex location looking towards downtown. I fail the see how a tower here will block anybody's view. It actually shoots the gap perfectly.

[vdogg]

7 hours ago, BFG said:

http://pilotonline.com/news/local/a-day-after-opening-waterside-party-interrupted-by-fight-fire/article_719c7762-2d06-53ff-ad38-ea5e9d68517c.html

I know that they're only doing this because it's opening weekend, but I really wish The Pilot had kept this to themselves. All it's going to do is perpetuate the stereotype that you can't go to Norfolk because of the crime. It's good to know the reason the fire alarm was pulled, but this was not a story IMO. It was crowded and people were drinking because of the opening and Cinco de Mayo. Thankfully no one was seriously hurt.

So it appears that in the Pilot's zeal to print something negative about Norfolk, they actually printed out an article that is close to a complete fabrication. The story has been significantly updated check the link.

The fight was barely a fight, someone head butted somebody and walked off. This minor altercation was apparently worthy of front page news. There was not some epic brawl that required somebody to pull a fire alarm to break it up. That is completely false. The fire alarm was actually malfunctioning, something which the fire department says is common in new construction. This is why I don't buy that paper anymore.

[BFG]

I also read that the two guys involved knew each other beforehand. It won't do any damage to Waterside's reputation, but still, early story or not, that's bad journalism.

[HRVT]

I was quite a skeptic of Waterside Live (or Waterside District) when it was first announced and even more so as the process dragged on. However, it does look really neat. It's definitely on my radar to try when I find myself back to visit Hampton Roads.

I still wonder how busy it will be as the novelty wears off. But it sounds that outside of the Pilot trying to fan flames, the weekend has gone about as well as it could possibly go.

[lil-bear]

So the Virginian Pilot is engaging in FAKE NEWS? LOL 

[skylinefan]

The Waterside District is one nice looking building from the inside and outside.  I am a drinker and love that there were so many bars and restaurants to choose from, but there is nothing for the kids or families.  I thought this version was supposed to be family friendly.  This is definitely a place for adults only even during the daytime.  The jury is still out on whether or not Waterside can sustain itself being so bar centric.

Edited May 8, 2017 by skylinefan

[vdogg]

The pilot is absolutely determined to make it sound like Waterside is failing. Their headline has the typical ominous connotation, but digging further down you find out that it's to prepare for their grand opening. Hasn't stopped the typical naysayers from chiming in though. These people are absolutely insufferable. Just straight miserable folks who find nothing good in anything. It's a miracle we've been able to achieve all the progress we have.

http://pilotonline.com/business/consumer/waterside-to-unexpectedly-close-for-days-before-grand-opening-thursday/article_e72fd23e-6fa8-5e1d-839f-687dd5ace409.html

[Virginia City]

http://wavy.com/2017/05/08/waterside-to-be-closed-for-three-days-ahead-of-grand-opening/

Well the Pilot cited the same statement Wavy did, the Pilot quote, "The announcement came in a news release shortly before midnight Sunday. It included a statement from Glenn Sutch, president of Waterside, who said the venue was “thrilled with the crowds who have visited Waterside District since we opened our doors,” but included no other explanation for the temporary closure."

And the Wavy quote, "Glenn Sutch, President of Waterside District, said the three-day closing was planned.

“It’s commonplace that when we do that, in all of our districts across the country, we soft open, we close, we regroup, we make tweaks, take good notes, and then we prep for our grand opening celebration.”

Take that as you will.

[brikkman]

Not sure if this is a repost, but this is a video that ultimately highlights the new waterside district, but 80% is about DT Norfolk's history:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eT48Ql772jE

 

 

[brikkman]

On 5/6/2017 at 0:17 AM, BFG said:

Checked it out tonight. I'm VERY impressed! This and The Main is precisely what the area needed. 

The good: outside of Harborfest, I have never seen downtown Norfolk this busy and vibrant, not even when I hung out down here regularly in the mid/late-2000s. I felt like I was in another city tonight. If they keep this up, the nightlife will hold its own against other mid-size cities. Even Granby was wall-to-wall traffic. 

The kinda bad: we went to Blue Moon Taphouse, and even standing at the bar, it took more than 20 minutes just to get a drink order in. But it's opening weekend, so I give them a pass.

The fire alarm also went off, so they had to evacuate lol. Not sure what happened there. 

All in all, I thought it was amazing. I think Norfolk has a winner this time, esp. since the city isn't running the place. I take back all my cynicism. 

 

The signage looks great, makes it look like an entire different place. 

One question, so as i read and heard, it still has the food court appeal. In one of the pictures, there is like an open bar stand it appears?  Is there enough space to make a stage in the future for acts on a smaller scale. That would help drown out the food court feel. In waterside's heyday, they had a flat stage in there that entertainment was provide, at least when I was a kid. That gave people a reason to come outside of food and just hang around. Is there a similar setup in there now?

 

Edited May 9, 2017 by brikkman

[Virginia City]

3 hours ago, brikkman said:

The signage looks great, makes it look like an entire different place. 

One question, so as i read and heard, it still has the food court appeal. In one of the pictures, there is like an open bar stand it appears?  Is there enough space to make a stage in the future for acts on a smaller scale. That would help drown out the food court feel. In waterside's heyday, they had a flat stage in there that entertainment was provide, at least when I was a kid. That gave people a reason to come outside of food and just hang around. Is there a similar setup in there now?

 

The middle stand is the Starr Hill Brewery bar. Yes there is a stage, in the second picture on the back wall where it says Waterside District is the stage. Its not that big but there was a band playing on there Fri when I was there. I tried to get close to see it but there were too many people.

[BFG]

5 hours ago, brikkman said:

The signage looks great, makes it look like an entire different place. 

One question, so as i read and heard, it still has the food court appeal. In one of the pictures, there is like an open bar stand it appears?  Is there enough space to make a stage in the future for acts on a smaller scale. That would help drown out the food court feel. In waterside's heyday, they had a flat stage in there that entertainment was provide, at least when I was a kid. That gave people a reason to come outside of food and just hang around. Is there a similar setup in there now?

I really only went to Blue Moon, so I didn't get to check out too much other than the commons area. I got the impression that it's just bars, with a smaller food court. I would like to check it out again, maybe during the daytime. A friend of mine said it felt like a giant pub (he went to Guy Fieri's), which sounds about right.

Honestly, I do think there should be some sort of entertainment style venue to break everything up. Not quite as large as Jillian's or Dave and Buster's, but something along the lines of a pool hall or "barcade". Something that could also be family-friendly during the day.

If/when they decide to do something with the old annex space, I hope they don't get rid of the "Greetings from Norfolk" postcard mural. Even though I think it should face the 264 offramp, it's a nice little conversation piece or photo backdrop.