A few notes on a few Richmond sites...

So, the other night, my friend and I decide to have a girls night out. It was quite eventful, and speaks volumes to some of the reasons why Shockoe Bottom is nosediving. At the end of the night, i was chatting with one of the bartenders, and telling him my comments, and at his suggestion, I'm putting it out there in blog form!

We started our night right here by our houses. Except for the good ol Riverbound Cafe, there really isn't anywhere to go. And as great as RBC is, they aren't known for their happy hours. It's really a more family kind of place. So, we decided to venture downtown.

We started at The Hard Shell. Great place to start because they validate parking and parking is a major issue down there. We had a glass of wine and a few appetizers. Everything was amazing, except for the service was a little.....hmmmm..... unpersonable? The guy was there to take our order, write it down, turn it in, and deliver it. That was it. No small talk. No witty comments.

We left and headed up to Tobacco Company. YUCK. Cheesy music playing (live) and smoke so thick you can't breathe. And it's still early. I can only imagine what it would have been like later. Seriously, I know it's the "tobacco" company, but that doesn't mean the place has to smell like an ashtray. We were in, and out, and never sat down.

Walk back down the cobblestones to Cha Cha's Cantina. I've been here many times and always had fun, but I haven't been there in a year or so. We go in and instantly feel like we are in Mexico, but not in a good way. Either the AC was broken, or they were seriously going for the Mexican feel. It was soooo hot. We decided to sit at the bar and have a drink, just to cool down from the walk from Tobacco. Granted, I know we were at a Mexican place, so we probably should have had tequila/margaritas, or a Corona, but we wanted wine. They had it on the menu, so figured we should be safe. We both order a Pinot Grigio, and as I take my 2nd sip, I see that there is some nasty dried brown stuff all over the stem and base of the glass. I'm guessing it was refried beans??? vomit. I point it out to the bartender chick, and she says "Oh it's just from hitting the sdfih asdf (don't know what that word was)... and it's fine". Fine for you maybe. I'm not drinking out of that. So, I tell her I don't want it, and she says ok, and hands us the check. The check?! Are you kidding me? Despite feeling like I definitely shouldn't pay for that, we do, and we leave.

We go next to Stool Pigeons. Another place I really used to like. We walk in, lots of AC going, and have a seat at the bar under their really cool fans. We even tell the bartender what just happened. We order Pinot again, and ask him if we can just get a bottle. He pours one glass, and goes off to ask if he can sell us a bottle. Apparently this is not a place where people order bottles as opposed to glasses. While he's gone, I go to take a sip of wine, and smell cheeseburgers. I pause and look around to see if the people around me ordered cheeseburgers, but there is no one around! I put the glass back up to my lips and again smell cheeseburgers. I quickly realized it is the wine, but for some reason, took a sip anyway. If my manners were not what they are, I would have spit it back in the glass. It was sooo disgusting. I swallowed it, just as my friend was taking her glass to her lips. I didn't stop her in time, and she just about got sick. Who knows how long this wine had been open, but lets just say it had taken in just about every food smell possible. About this time, the bartender comes back to tell us he can sell us the bottle, to which he ends up saying to our backs as we walk out. It was so disgusting, and I am not sure I can ever step foot in there. What kind of bar manager doesn't keep an eye on things like that?

We decide that we are going back to Hard Shell, but before we do, decide to try one last place, The Lucky Buddha. I'm so glad we did. Not only was the food great, but the wine was freshly opened for us to sample. The bartender (Jimmy) was full of personality and took care of us all night, even as the restaurant turned into a club, complete with an awesome dj. We spent the evening chatting and having a great time. I highly recommend this place if you are into that type of food. (Sushi, asian, etc)

It will be awhile before another girls night, but we'll likely end up there again!