Southern Charm

Fusing past and present, Richmond becomes one of the next great underdog cities.

- Lydia Woolever

A city rich in (complicated) American history with a burgeoning food scene, a booming craft beer community, and some of the best museums on the East Coast? No, we’re not talking about Baltimore. But about three hours south across state lines into Richmond, the parallels between our two small but mighty towns are hard to miss.

Once seen as shrouded in Southern gentility, the Virginia capital has stepped out of the shadows of bigger neighbors like Washington, D.C., and into the national spotlight as an underdog city to watch. Much like Baltimore, there’s a fusion of past and present on every corner: vintage signs and historic homes next to chic, contemporary hotels; beloved down-home restaurants up the street from James Beard Award-winning eateries; massive old monuments next to compelling new ones that tackle the city’s Confederate history. They even pay homage to one-time son Edgar Allan Poe, too.

Along the majestic James River—RVA, as it’s locally known—is a lived-in college town that’s rewriting its narrative and owning its future right before our eyes. And best of all, just a short drive down I-95, it’s an easy overnight or weekend getaway.

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You know you’ve made it as a culinary mecca when both the lauded James Beard Awards and taste-making magazine Bon Appétit give their seals of approval. The latter recently named Richmond “America’s next great restaurant-obsessed town,” while the former handed five nominations to local spots in 2019, as well as two in 2020.