Granted, it has big shoes to fill. Its parent restaurant in Norfolk, Crackers, is by far the best tapas place I’ve ever been. So my hopes and expectations were high when I heard that Little Bar Bistro (the parent of Crackers and Empire) was opening up another shop in Hampton, rather conveniently close to the American Theatre. Perhaps my expectations were too high. This baby has some growing up to do.

Not that everything was terrible, of course. More like, just OK. There were few dishes that really caught my eye, and fewer that I really loved. I admit that the Potstickers were really great, but after those, the Fried Mushrooms, the Crab-Stuffed Avocado, and the Goat Cheese Fondue were complete letdowns. They all tasted good, but no better than I could either make myself or find somewhere else cheaper. Probably the best dish of the evening was the Grilled Lamb with Polenta.

The worst dish of the evening was definitely the bread pudding. You’d think that chocolate in bread pudding would be a bonus, right? Unfortunately, no. The chocolate they added was very dark and basically just turned the whole dish kind of bitter. I actually love dark chocolate, so this one was a real surprise for me.

Six does have a fairly extensive drink list with fun descriptive names like “The All Beef” (Beefeater, Vermouth, and a Slim Jim) and “Red Neck Punch” (Corn Whiskey and Juices). If I had to rank my favorites among the drinks I sampled, I’d have to put the “Austin” first (Captain Morgans, Chambord, Triple Sec, Sours), the Bloody Mary next, and “Another Damn Sweet Drink” last. Stoli Vanil, Stoli Razberi, Chambord, and Godiva White Chocolate sounds yummy, but is much to rich for my tastes. There’s also a pretty good beer list, and the descriptions for each are posted decoratively over the bar.

As for atmosphere… bring a coat.

Service was amazing. Our waitress was very friendly and attentive, even after I sent the bread pudding back. Drinks were always refilled before we had to ask, food was brought out very promptly. It’s a fairly small restaurant, and I think she was the only one working the floor. You go, girl.