Urban Nest

Stephanie: Canal Walk
After moving from Chicago to Richmond, my husband and I realized we missed one major thing about big city life: Walking. Everywhere! After settling into our Tobacco Row apartment we strolled where we could and found a few treasured spots nearby our new home. One was the Canal Walk.

Following a mile and a quarter stretch along the James River, you can take in the classic architecture and get a history lesson all while checking out some keen city offerings. Stop and shop at La Difference for mod, yet classic furniture. Eat loaded, hearty pizza at Bottom’s Up. Enjoy live music and maybe a cold beer on Brown’s Island. And soak up Civil War facts at The American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar. It’s all right in front of your feet.

Rachel: Millie’s Diner
Eating great food with a glass (or two) of wine is one of our favorite things to do. So when my husband and I moved from Washington, DC to Richmond almost three years ago, we couldn’t have been happier to work our way through the Richmond restaurant scene. We’ve dined at the tried and true Richmond favorites and tested out newcomers, but there is one place that always brings us back.

Millie’s Diner has all the makings of a really fun and funky place to eat: jukebox, bustling open kitchen, chalkboard menus and plenty of stories (check out the story about dog logo on their website www.milliesdiner.com). But it’s the fresh, flavorful, and always delicious food that makes it our favorite restaurant in Richmond.

Juliet: Williams & Sherrill
Call it retail therapy. Call it a dreamy escape. Or call it what it is: my favorite therapeutic retail escape on the east coast! Williams & Sherrill is 25,000 square feet of gorgeous fabrics, trims, wallpapers, floor coverings and accessories. As if that’s not enough – it’s the front half of the store that I love most. Like turning the thick, glossy pages of a high-end decorating magazine, every corner of Williams & Sherrill’s showroom is furnished, painted, papered, lighted and tszujed to perfection.

I can easily spend an afternoon floating through this open floor plan gathering ideas, imagining rooms of my own to fill, and dreamily running my hands over the tops of couches, chairs and tables. Best of all, it’s the kind of place where the designers who work there warmly welcome you and then leave you be to get lost in your imagination, which is exactly what I like to do!

Tags: river city

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 at 12:05 pm and is filed under Leave the Nest. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.