Carytown — Rich Life in Richmond, Virginia

Carytown townhouse storefronts.

Carytown is a unique shopping neighborhood inside Richmond city, at the west side of Fan district, also marking the traditional boundary of Richmond’s urban area. The neighbourhood began with the completion of Cary Court Shopping Center in 1938 — a historical, single-floor Art Deco style building. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001, the building features a prominent parking area and a streamlined, uninterrupted string of large modern aluminum and glass doors and commercial storefronts. As more shops developed on the surrounding property, the shopping area eventually connected another historical landmark in that area — Byrd Theatre, creating today’s carytown neighborhood.

Carytown now has an eclectic flavor and includes more than 230 shops, restaurants, and boutiques. Famous restaurants include New York Deli, which has been around since 1929 and is the birthplace of the Sailor sandwich; and Can Can Brasserie, as Richmond’s best-known French restaurant. For casual dining, brunch, coffee, dessert, pizza and drinks, Carytown also offers a wide selection, such as Carytown Cupcakes, Greek on Cary, Galaxy Diner, Bev’s Homemade Ice Creams, Mellow Mushroom, and Citizen Burger Bar. Carytown’s many boutiques provide exciting opportunities for people to look for unique home decors, clothing, records, gifts, and toys. The various type of boutique shops includes the designer’s thrift store Clementine, music store Plan9 Records, culinary shop Ladles & Linens, gift shop Mongrel, alternative toy store World of Mirth, and many others. The friendly shops, townhouse style storefronts, restaurants, street performers, and many other experiences make Carytown suitable for every Richmonder and tourists.

Colorful and lively paints and murals.

Carytown also has several annual festivals, with the most famous ones being the Watermelon festival in August and French Film Festival in March. Every Sunday, the Carytown Farmers Market opens from 11am to 3pm, providing local foods and drinks.

Byrd theatre was completed in 1928 — even earlier that Cary Court. The theatre was the first cinema in Virginia to be outfitted with a sound system when built, featuring an Italian Renaissance Revival architectural style. It was listed as a Virginia Historic Landmark and was included in the National Register of Historic Places in the late 1970s. The cinema has been operated continuously since 1928, showing movies 365 days a year. It plays second-run movies for $4 per adult, with the exceptions of certain festivals, such as the Richmond French Film Festival, held annually at March. The theatre has a Wurlitzer Organ installed on the fourth floor, with an instrumental show being held every Saturday. Except the necessary repairs and digital projection updates, many structures, seats and light systems in the theatre are still original, including many unique features from the Art Deco era. Such unusual features included a central vacuum system for house cleaning, and a natural spring which used to supply water to the vintage air conditioning system.The theatre still displays the the lavish interior designed by the Arthur Brunet Studios of New York, including an 18-foot, two-and-a-half ton chandelier suspended over the auditorium with over 5,000 crystals illuminated by 500 red, blue, green and amber lights. According to local rumors, the theatre is also haunted by the ghost of Robert Coulter — the first manager of the theatre, adding more flavors to the building’s rich history.