Cork and Bull Chophouse

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

Cork & Bull Chophouse has set a clear standard for fine American dining in Chesapeake, Virginia. The menu centers on the finest cuts of steak—including exclusive Brenner Cattle Co. American-bred, full-blood Wagyu—alongside an inspired raw bar, seasonal plates, homemade desserts, and house-crafted cocktails. It is, by its own description, Chesapeake's premier chophouse, and the recognition backs that up: Cork & Bull holds the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence, making it the only Wine Spectator–rated restaurant in the city.

The Wine and Spirits Program

The wine list draws from both Old World and New World producers, each bottle chosen to work with the kitchen rather than alongside it. Bar Manager Andrew Lewis oversees a program that extends well beyond the cellar: Cork & Bull has conducted multiple exclusive bourbon barrel picks—Knob Creek, Woodford Reserve, and Old Forester among them—selecting single barrels that exist nowhere else. When the barrel is gone, it's gone. That level of intentionality runs through every pour.

Executive Chef Dallas Walton

Executive Chef Dallas Walton is the creative force behind the kitchen, classically French trained with time spent in the South and Louisiana—a combination that surfaces in dishes that carry both technical precision and genuine soul. His approach to menu development is collaborative: he and Andrew Lewis build pairing dinners course by course, tasting together, challenging each other, and refining until the food and the drink speak the same language.

The recurring multi-course events—sold-out bourbon dinners, themed wine evenings, seasonal tastings—are where this philosophy is most visible. A "Passport to Bubbles" sparkling wine dinner paired oysters three ways with Jansz Cuvée, moved through bison bone marrow with Laurent-Perrier Champagne, and landed on a dry-aged ribeye with a cured egg yolk and breadcrumb tuile alongside a 2011 Argyle Brut. A Woodford bourbon dinner introduced "Big Debra," a grown-up riff on a childhood snack cake served with Bourbon Cream. A Vendetta & Vino Italian commission dinner dressed the private Colorado Room in low light and fog, running through five Barbaresco pours and handmade pasta courses. These are not routine events.

The Space and the Experience

Beyond the main dining room, Cork & Bull offers private and semi-private dining, an art gallery on the walls, outdoor seating, and a full bar program with house-crafted cocktails. The atmosphere is elevated but not stiff—described by the restaurant itself as "elevated, yet inviting." The Cowboy Club and Wine Society offer regulars a deeper connection to the program.

For anyone in the Hampton Roads area looking for serious American cuisine with a wine and spirits list that has earned national recognition, Cork & Bull Chophouse delivers something worth the reservation.