The summer hasn’t been very kind to some local establishments, a number of which have recently closed their doors for one reason or another.
First up, The Triple, a pool hall on West Broad Street has closed. A sign hanging in the window states as of Sunday, they will no longer be open for business. Known as The Triple Triangle before renovation took place, the long time restaurant and bar regularly featured local artists and musicians.
Another long-time bar and venue also recently closed its doors. Shockoe Bottom nightclub Alley Katz closed its doors last month. The concert venue on Walnut Alley has been around since 1995, but as of June 17 shut down operations according to its Facebook page.
The Lounge Bar and Grille closed its door at the end of last month as well. The East Franklin Street restaurant and bar stated on its Facebook page that the business had been sold as of June 22. It sat right between Julep’s and Boom Boom Burgers, which closed in May.
Bars aren’t the only Richmond businesses struggling to stay afloat lately. A few restaurants have come to the end of the road as well.
Louisiana Flair, a Cajun restaurant on East Grace Street is closing at the end of this month. The restaurant is owned by New Orleans native Nate Sams and was a busy breakfast and lunch spot. Read more on that story here.
Fan restaurant Davis and Main also closed its doors for good last month. Read the blurb BizSense posted on the closing here.
Meanwhile, there seems to be no shortage of new ventures either. The Blue Goat recently opened at Libbie and Grove, Selba is slated to open soon in the former Cliff’s Honda building on Cary Street and lunch and breakfast spot The Citizen opened at 9th and Main, just to name a few.
The summer hasn’t been very kind to some local establishments, a number of which have recently closed their doors for one reason or another.
First up, The Triple, a pool hall on West Broad Street has closed. A sign hanging in the window states as of Sunday, they will no longer be open for business. Known as The Triple Triangle before renovation took place, the long time restaurant and bar regularly featured local artists and musicians.
Another long-time bar and venue also recently closed its doors. Shockoe Bottom nightclub Alley Katz closed its doors last month. The concert venue on Walnut Alley has been around since 1995, but as of June 17 shut down operations according to its Facebook page.
The Lounge Bar and Grille closed its door at the end of last month as well. The East Franklin Street restaurant and bar stated on its Facebook page that the business had been sold as of June 22. It sat right between Julep’s and Boom Boom Burgers, which closed in May.
Bars aren’t the only Richmond businesses struggling to stay afloat lately. A few restaurants have come to the end of the road as well.
Louisiana Flair, a Cajun restaurant on East Grace Street is closing at the end of this month. The restaurant is owned by New Orleans native Nate Sams and was a busy breakfast and lunch spot. Read more on that story here.
Fan restaurant Davis and Main also closed its doors for good last month. Read the blurb BizSense posted on the closing here.
Meanwhile, there seems to be no shortage of new ventures either. The Blue Goat recently opened at Libbie and Grove, Selba is slated to open soon in the former Cliff’s Honda building on Cary Street and lunch and breakfast spot The Citizen opened at 9th and Main, just to name a few.
The Lounge sold huh? I’d like to meet the new owners.
Signed,
Nathan Hughes
The Property Manager and Leasing Agent for 1717 E Franklin Street
(In other words, it is available for lease. Fully equipped restaurant. Talk to me.)
The bar is being raised (no pun intended) in Richmond. With all the new places opening up it is an exciting time to be a foodie in Richmond. You forgot to mention Roosevelt, Station 2, Stella’s, and the M Wine Bar. All of these places will be opening in the coming weeks and will each bring an great vibe to the city. I will miss Louisiana Flair. They should start a lunch cart or truck. Without alcohol you really have to moved some people thru the doors fast. They may have needed a quicker system or just a location a… Read more »
There’s only so many bars and restaurants that can be supported in a small city like Richmond. New ones opening will only mean someone else will have to close if they have a good concept. Simple economics.
And apparently, according to the president, if we take more money from the evil rich business owners and give it to the poor downtrodden people, these restaurants owned by those evil rich business owners will reopen, hire more jobs than they had before and flourish.
You can’t make it up, folks.
I can’t image why DaveM call Richmond Va. a small city, maybe it is small if compared to NY, but Richmond Is no small city, Broad st along is miles long.
Repeal the Meal Tax!!!
As a retailer and restaurant owner (definitely not rich, evil is an editorial comment), it pains me to see good places close. There are so many reasons things don’t work out, many of which are unforeseeable. But I am very excited at the quality of the new restaurants that are opening, especially by talented people who have worked busted their butts in the industry for years. The Roosevelt (Lee Gregory & Kendra Feather) makes me want to move back to Church Hill, and Ejay Rin (noodle house extraordinaire in the old Savor space in Manchester, owned by Bill Foster &… Read more »
Julia is spot-on – market forces will tell you if you’ve got a workable concept. If you use the Mickey-Rooney-Judy-Garland-Kevin-Costner approach to restaurant business planning (hey kids, let’s put on a show – if we build it, they will come!), a middle-schooler could predict the likely results. The places on the closed list demonstrate how even a loyal fan base will move on in search of new flavor. The only one I feel a twinge of sadness about is Louisiana Flair, but I think he’s been under-capitalized from the start. Which makes it hard to keep the wheels on the… Read more »
AFAIK not too many ‘good’ places close. I see restaurants fail here and there but almost without exception they have lost track of their mission or never really had a good grasp on one to begin with. Usually it’s poor-quality cooking or poor-quality service or both. Even some restaurants with decent menus have closed but time and again I see a slippery slope when value suffers. Too much competition not to be on your toes, and every single financial-advice column recommends on cutting out restaurant meals. Above all other things is the necessity of having respectful employees. They don’t need… Read more »
The Triple closed? What happened? Did the Paper Moon nightshift girls find a new pre-work bar to drown their “daddy’s lil’ dissapointment” nightmares in?
The one area that could use an infusion of new venues is Shockoe Bottom but right now even the classic bars/pubs are barely floating. There are a few places that would be great locations but most are not prepaired or know how to adapt to Shockoe Bottom.
Each location is different and you may have ideas on how you run a place but if they have not been tested in that area you might want a plan B most do not.
In honor of “the Triple” closing on Broad Street, I posted a story WTVR did in 1985 about the man who created the Triple’s neon sign (and other iconic signs in Richmond). It’s on my Facebook page, here’s the link >> https://www.facebook.com/ScottWiseCBS6
Enjoy!
-scott