One City, Three Ways: Richmond, Virginia

First-time visitors are often surprised by Virginia’s capital city, with its engaging combination of Southern tradition and urban style. Founded in 1737, Richmond developed as a tobacco port and helped spark the American Revolution. Once the most populous American colony, it later served as the capital of the Confederacy and went on to prosper after the Civil War with the development of Jackson Ward, an African American district once known as the Harlem of the South. These days, the city wins over guests with historic neighborhoods like Church Hill, where restored Victorian homes line brick streets. And that’s just the start. In recent decades, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) has transformed Richmond, as graduates stay to make their mark. Artists and other creatives have opened galleries and boutiques, while restaurateurs have developed a culinary scene worth exploring.

CREATIVE SOUL

SHOP
Carytown has long thrived as Richmond’s “Mile of Style.” Cary Street lures shoppers with boutiques, upscale consignment stores, and cafes. Visit GlassBoat for an eclectic selection of local art, custom furniture, and designer clothes, such as pieces from Richmond-based Gracist, which combines repurposed cloth with fabrics from Niger.

CONSTRUCT
Design your own terrarium at PlantHouse, choosing from succulents, cacti, and epiphytes along with colored sand, rocks, and driftwood. Or try your hand at crafting kokedama, Japanese-inspired moss-and-twine hanging plants. Sip on beer or wine while you work.

 

DISCOVER
VCU, one of the nation’s top-ranked public art schools, struts its stuff at its Institute for Contemporary Art. The visually arresting zinc and glass building hosts surprising exhibits in three galleries, such as a recent video, music, and sculpture installation from French- Caribbean artist Julien Creuzet.

Courtesy Visit Virginia

MUSE
Regarded as one of the nation’s top art museums, the free-admission Virginia Museum of Fine Arts has the country’s largest collection of Fabergé eggs, along with a stunning collection of photography and temporary block-buster exhibits.

Courtesy Visit Richmond Virginia

STAY
The distinctive Quirk Hotel started as an art gallery in 2005 and evolved into a lodging that is a work of art itself. The former six-story department store now welcomes guests with a stylish lobby bar, museum-style gift shop, reclaimed furniture, and regional art, all set off by a quirky, pink-hued color scheme.

BON VIVANT

Courtesy For the Love of Chocolate

SWEETEN
For the Love of Chocolate turns candy shopping into an international adventure. Come for Belgium’s Leonidas, Richmond-made Dubai-style chocolate, and Venchi bars from Italy, among thousands of other sweet offerings.

PROCURE
At Ladles & Linens Kitchen Shoppe, shoppers find a dizzying assortment of cookware, including Le Creuset, German Wusthof knives, and brilliant tools designed by mechanical engineers from Australia-based Dreamfarm.

REVIVE
Upscale convenience store Union Market stocks hot sauces, gourmet spreads, and a global wine selection, from Lebanon to the Loire Valley. Pay a small corkage fee and enjoy a bottle in the outdoor cafe, alongside dishes like tarragon chicken salad with crispy chicken skins.

Courtesy Visit Richmond Virginia

DINE
The Roosevelt helped establish Richmond as a foodie hot spot more than a decade ago. New chef Leah Branch has updated the menu with clever takes on Southern food, like brisket-stuffed peppers and salt-roasted sweet potatoes with black bean curry, red rice tahini, and fried greens. Don’t miss the Cheerwine cake with cherry frosting.

SIP
In 2013 Richmond rediscovered moonshine with the opening of Belle Isle Craft Spirits. An $8 flight at its industrial tasting room shows its range of flavors, such as blood orange, lemon lavender, and honey habanero. Or opt for its tequila, bourbon, or craft cocktails.

TIME TRAVELER

CHALLENGE
The Valentine museum offers unexpected takes on Richmond history. Displays include receipts for the purchase of enslaved people and dresses worn by drag queens, while the studio where the museum’s first president once sculpted Confederate memorials now examines the fabrications behind the Lost Cause narrative of the Civil War.

REMEMBER
The city’s most striking greenspace—a 135-acre arboretum overlooking the James River—happens to be the final resting place for more than 80,000 Richmonders and two former U.S. presidents. Hollywood Cemetery offers self-guided tours, or you can sightsee by tuk-tuk, Segway, or trolley.

Courtesy Linden Row Inn

DREAM
Sleep like a Victorian at Linden Row Inn, a 70-room boutique hotel fashioned from seven 19th-century row houses. The National Register buildings occupy land where a young Edgar Allan Poe once played.

Courtesy Visit Virginia

HONOR
The Virginia Museum of History & Culture shares centuries of highlights, from colonial firearms to an AOL compact disc, one of a billion distributed by the pioneering Virginia internet company that was once the most recognized American brand on the web. Book a vault tour to see gems from the 8-million-item archives, like an engraving produced for Pocahontas’s 1616 visit to London.

Courtesy Patrick Henry’s Pub & Grill

TOAST
In 1775, Patrick Henry helped ignite the American Revolution, proclaiming “Give me liberty or give me death” at St. John’s Church, just down the block from an inn turned pub that now bears his name. Known for its hand-breaded fish and chips and chicken tenders, Patrick Henry’s Pub & Grille has its share of ghost stories—ask about the latest sighting.

This article appears in the Winter 2026 issue of Southbound.

Advertisement