Weekend in Richmond

After living in Virginia for nearly 20 years, it seemed absurd that I'd never visited Richmond, the state's capital.  So when a couple of friends presented us with the opportunity to join them for a weekend of exploring Richmond, what can I say...it was an offer we couldn't refuse!

We arrived on a Friday evening and enjoyed some local BBQ from Buz and Ned's Real Barbecue.  I was so, so happy that they had fried okra, which is difficult to find in Northern Virginia.  We ended our night at Capital Alehouse where we enjoyed a couple rounds of beer.

On Saturday morning we found ourselves on Cary Street, which is an area in Richmond with lots of cute restaurants and independent shops.  There we stopped in at the Can Can Brasserie for breakfast. I ordered the classic Quiche Lorraine and a refreshing side salad.  Their entire menu looked delicious, though, and it was a challenge to choose just one thing for breakfast. I must say, though, I thought their decor really invoked that casual French brasserie vibe.  Lots of fresh white table linens, servers in long white aprons, and a clean color palette.

Up next and conveniently located a few shops away was For the Love of Chocolate, where we visually feasted on all of the decadent chocolates.  Heck, they even carried Chocolate Frogs and Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans!

Then we spent the rest of the morning taking in all of the interesting calligraphy showcased on Richmond buildings.  How adorable is that whale and lobster?!

For lunch we hopped over to Shockoe Bottom and enjoyed some pizza pies at the infamous Bottoms Up.  The Greek pizza we ordered was absolutely divine.  In fact, the entire food scene in Richmond is amazing.

However, the beer scene is not one to get left behind.  I found myself enjoying the beer scene in Richmond a lot more than that of Northern Virginia, which has become very IPA-centric (which I don't enjoy).  All of the places we went had a least one sour beer on tap, a type of beer that has quickly become a favorite of mine.  So far I have yet to see a sour beer on a bar's draft beer list where I live. 

Anyway, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery is Richmond's very own local brewery.  I was very happy that there were plenty of non-IPA beers from which to create a flight.  I ended up with a flight comprised of their Berliner Weisse, Singel, Bourbon Cru, and Bourbon Barrel Raspberry Stout.  All of them were great, but my favorite by far was the Berliner Weisse.  Yep, you guessed it...it's a tart beer!  So far it's only available on draft at their brewery, but when I asked about bottles I was told that bottling would start sometime this month.  Hopefully I'll see it soon at my local Trader Joe's!

We also ventured to a few outdoor destinations.  Above are some kayakers navigating some rapids on the James River at Belle Isle Park.  Belle Isle Park is a great area for all sorts of recreation.  We saw everything from college students sunning out on the rocks near the river's edge to runners to cyclists.  There's even a small dirt bike course.

And last, but certainly not least, we ended our Richmond weekend at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden.  Sadly the rose bushes, my favorite section in any sort of garden, weren't in bloom yet.  But we did get to spend a lot of time in the butterfly garden and try our hardest at getting pictures of some tropical butterflies.  I wish I had a zoom lens!

Overall, we had a lovely time in Richmond.  I'd love to go back and have brunch at the fancy Jefferson and explore more of the local bars.