Yelp's Field Trip @ Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center

Being new to the Elites, this was my first Yelp Event. It was fun, met a few new cool people,ate some good food, and got to visit my friends the sharks. Unique venue, killer view.. can't say I'd ever rent out the Whale Room for my future wedding though...

What a wonderful night!!I hadn't been to the aquarium since I was on a middle school field trip in the late '90s so it was a real treat to revisit. My boyfriend had never been before so he had a great time exploring. The sea turtles were my fav. Just watching the fish & sharks swim was so relaxing. Great food & drinks. I could have taken the whole tray of tuna off of the server's hands. The pork & greens was oh so tasty. We had a great time at my first Elite event!! Can't wait for the next one =)

The shark tank is the best!I'd never been to the Aquarium here in VA and I'm really glad I got a chance to go for this particular event.Firstly, I'm not a fan of crowds and when you have the littles ones (I love kids .. sometimes .. well .. maybe some of them) and they're running around and into you, not so fun. So this was the perfect way to experience the center for all it had to offer.The food offerings were delectable and the bar was stocked with a decent selection, too. I really enjoyed the pork, greens and black eye peas but honestly everything that was pretty good.This is probably the only elite event I've been to that didn't have enough food. Which I understand going in that it's only supposed to be samplings of what they have but it was weird for them to run out of food. Of course I made friends with the servers! They make a beeline right to you if you're one of the "friendlies."If you are looking for a place for an event .. I would definitely recommend having it here. The food is good the bar was good and you can't beat the venue.All in all this was a nice event. I really enjoyed sitting in front of the shark tank with a fat tire in my hand and the sound of whale calls in the background. Such a beautiful experience.It was magical.

I had a great time at the event! This gave my wife and I an opportunity to visit a place that we hadn't been before and see some interesting animals. First and foremost, the new swag is great. In New England, we don't often use 'coozies' and when we moved to Virginia we marveled at the locals who would bring their own to the bar. We get it now. It's pretty darn hot. What I enjoy is that this gives me an opportunity to enjoy a cold beverage at a bar and subtly hint "I'M WATCHING YOU!" I kid. I kid.The tanks at the aquarium were fun to watch, but what I really enjoyed was after I spent about 15 minutes trying to molest the rays, we ventured to the crocodiles and mammals section. We bumped into a kind, older gentleman named Charles. I'll probably do my own review for the aquarium based on his hospitality. Knowing that there were only minutes left to enjoy the exhibits, he still stopped at every point of interest and rattled off facts about the creatures to give us the "real" experience of a tour. His excitement fed half of mine. Plus: Sea horses. I love 'em.Aside from the chocolate blueberries, I couldn't eat any of the other offerings, but my wife said the pork and beef hors d'oeuvres were surprisingly delicious. So thank you Sodexo!It was nice to meet and network with new people. All involved (staff and Yelpers) were a pleasure!Thank you again!

This was a great Elite Event! Thank you Xerxes for offering up something different. I haven't been to the aquarium in YEARS and it was so nice to be able to explore without kids underfoot and in the way. My boyfriend, the biggest kid I know, was so happy touching and playing with all the exhibits. We enjoyed our time so much and wish we could have experienced some of the outdoor exhibits too. But that just means we'll have to go back during the day and see everything else.The food by Sodexo was really yummy, we kept following the girls around waiting for them to bring out more food. The seared ahi tuna, the pork in beans with collard greens, and the crab cakes were delightful. So much so that we may consider the aquarium as a possible reception venue. I can't wait to try more of their offerings.

I enjoyed the field trip last night. I've been asked to set up a date/outing to the Aquarium for about 2 years now and failed to do so. But thanks to the community manager, I am now able to cross it off my list of activities to do in Hampton Roads. Being able to visit the Aquarium in an adult/ romantic candle lit setting was very cool. The last time I came here (several years ago), "little Tommy" and the rest of the rug rats gang made it difficult to take in the beauty of the local and imported aquatic life on display. Funny thing with making this statement is that while walking through the museum I felt like a little kid again. The nautical attire theme was a great call. I am now inspired to find a big boy's version of the community manager's outfit (classic, Stewie's Sexy Party Fashion Chic).The food was pretty good. My favorite item hands down, was the "Smack Yo Mama" crab cakes. Man, I'm talkin bout I am seriously considering figuring out what event in the near future needs catering in order to get down some those crab cakes again.I had a great time and the event definitely sparked a desire to visit the aquarium again.

I can count on one hand the number of times I've visited an aquarium post adolescence, and on 0 hands the number of times I've been allowed to consume beer in one, so thank you Yelp for allowing this to happen for me. The food samples were tasty (especially the tuna & the lump crab cakes!), the servers were super friendly, and it was so great to visit an aquarium sans screaming children & crying babies.The exhibits were pretty neat too, especially the ones w/ the turtles. Turtles are dope.Thanks to everyone who organized this!! My boyfriend & I enjoyed ourselves, and look forward to visiting the aquarium again.PS: sorry, fishies, for consuming some of your delicious fish brethren in such close proximity to your habitat. But it's not like you all will read this, since fish can't read, so hopefully we all can still be cool.

Now this is a way to enjoy the aquarium! This was my first elite event back in the 757 and Xerxes definitely knows how to throw one. My friends and I loved being able to walk around the aquarium freely and enjoy all the exhibits without worrying about blocking the view of kids like you would in normal operating hours. We pretty much were the kids ourselves pressing buttons on everything. It was great that we still got a drink ticket and there was some hard cider (my fave) to enjoy! The food was excellent, but my only complaint was that I wish there was more! We were hunting for those food trays!I'm starting to wish all museums/aquariums had events like this!

I must say, I enjoyed the aquarium a helluva lot more last night than I did when there were 500 snotty children running around the last time I was there. I actually got a stellar glimpse of all the exhibits, my favorite of which, were the stingrays and the fish dome. Actually getting the opportunity to talk to the staff member here about the animals was really cool too. The passed hor d'oeuvres were nice, I personally loved the seared ahi tuna the best. All the employees from Sodexo we super friendly too. Big thanks to all of them! I got to meet a bunch of new, most excellent people and that is always the best part about OYE's, Bravo Xerxes on another enjoyable event! Looking forward to Terrabinth next month!

Myself, staff and disabled students were mistreated. We were not allowed to dine in their cafe. I explained to the cafe workers that our students have special dietary restrictions, that did not matter to them, and they told us that we were welcome to eat outside. The outside that was being referred to was not handicap assessable and it was 85 degrees and sunny. I asked to speak with a manager, and the manager also told me that there was nothing she could do. She later directed us to a corner of the building by the vending machines and trash cans where we were allowed to feed the students with no tables. I have never been to an establishment who could not or would not accommodate students with disabilities and if they could not fully accommodate us, someone should have made me aware before York County paid for our visit. I felt so mistreated.