Richmond/The Fan

The Fan is a district in Richmond, Virginia. It is named The Fan because of the way the roads fan out to the west from N. Belvidere St.

It is easy to find a variety of boundaries that "define" the Fan, just ask a variety of Richmonders. Everyone will have a slightly different mental map. But roughly speaking, the Fan District is bounded to the east by Belvidere St (U.S. Route 1), to the west by The Boulevard (also called Arthur Ashe Blvd), to the north by Broad Street, and to the south by Cary Street.

West of the neighborhood is the Museum District/Carytown. To the south are the neighborhoods of Byrd Park, Randolph, and Oregon Hill. To the north is the Carver neighborhood. To its east is Downtown Richmond.

Get in

By car

From the south, take I-95 north. Take exit 74C to Broad Street. At the split, stay left toward Broad Street West, and then merge onto Broad Street.

From the north, take I-95 south. Take exit 79 for Arthur Ashe Boulevard (Route 161). Turn right at the stoplight. Continue to Broad Street (Route 33) and take a left on Broad St.

See

The fan is home to many historic homes, parks, and monuments, as well as the Monroe Park campus of Virginia Commonwealth University.

• 1 Altria Theater (formerly Landmark Theater), 6 North Laurel St (at Main St), ☏ +1 804 592-3368. Regularly features off-Broadway plays in addition to hosting comedians from around the nation. (updated Jan 2020)

Parks

• 2 Monroe Park. Bound by Belvidere, Main, Laurel, and Franklin streets, Monroe Park sits on the eastern edge of the Fan. The park dates back to 1851 and is the oldest park in the city. In the park, there are monuments to William Carter Wickham as well as to servicemen in World War I and II. The park is semi-managed by VCU and serves as a "quad" for the campus during the school year. (updated May 2017)
• Triangle Parks – In four places in the Fan, the branching of the streets creates tringle shaped plots of land that are used by the city as small parks.
  • 3 Harrison and Park, in the midst of the VCU campus, was home to the Richmond Howetzers Monument, a monument to an artillery unit of the Confederate States of America. The statue was removed in 2020.
  • 4 Sydney Park at Morris and Brunswick streets.
  • 5 Lombardy and Park Avenue Triangle Park contains a children's playground.
  • 6 Meadow Park at Park and Staurt streets. This small park contains a monument to the Pioneers who explored and settled the westward regions of the commonwealth.

Monument Avenue

• 7 Monument Avenue. Richmond's most prestigious street cuts through the fan, starting at the western terminus of Franklin St at Lombardy. 4 of the 6 monument along the street are located in the fan. (updated May 2017)
  • J.E.B. Staurt - at Monument and Lombardy (Staurt Circle)
  • Robert E. Lee - at Monument and Allen. It was removed on September 8, 2021, in response to the George Floyd protests.
  • Jefferson Davis - at Monument and Davis
  • Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson - at Monument and Boulevard
  • Matthew Fountaine Muarry, who served in the Confederate Navy, but who is memorialized for his contributions to oceanic navigation and his invention of the torpedo - at Belmont St
  • Tennis star and humanitarian Arther Ashe - at Roseneath St.

Museums - The Fan and the adjacent Museum District contains some of Virginia's best museums

• 8 Virginia Historical Society Museum. (updated May 2017)
• 9 Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, 823 Cathedral Place, ☏ +1 804-359-5651, info@richmondcathedral.org. Includes the Museum of Catholic History in Virginia (updated Jul 2020)

Do

• 1 The Grace Street Festival. Every fall, VCU hosts the Grace Street Festival on the 900 block of Grace St 

Live music

• 2 The Camel, 1621 West Broad Street. The Fan Hosts Jazz, jam, indie acts. 

Buy

Although there are some great shops actually in The Fan (such as along Strawberry Street, near Park Avenue), the great shopping is in Carytown. Carytown is south of the bordering neighborhood, The Museum District, on Cary Street, west of Boulevard.

Eat

• 1 Bamboo Cafe, 1 S Mulberry St. 
• 2 Buddy's Place, 325 N Robinson St. 
• 3 Curbside, 2525 Hanover Ave. 
• 4 Edo's Squid, 411 N Harrison St, ☏ +1 804-864-5488. Edo's is a local favorite, offering Italian inspired seafood dishes. Located on the second floor, above Stuffy's Subs, in the VCU area. Edo's can quite crowded on weekends, and especially with VCU student in-town during the school year. Moderate to expensive. 
• 5 Harrison Street Cafe, 402 N. Harrison St. Located in "The Fan". A good place to get fair trade coffee, and vegan sandwiches. 
• 6 Joe's Inn, 205 N Shields Ave. 
• 7 Kuba Kuba, 1601 Park Avenue (corner of Stuart and Lombardy). Kuba Kuba is a smoke-free Cuban restaurant known to have the best menu for Cuban food in Richmond. It has a variety of salads and appetizers including Tostones or deep fried plaintains and Scallop Ceviche, which is a dish with lime-marinated scallops over mixed greens. Kuba Kuba also serves Paella Valenciana, a traditional Spanish rice dish with Chorizo, clams, mussels and shrimp. User reviews from CitySearch rated Kuba Kuba 4.5 stars with five being the highest rating. 
• 8 The Sidewalk Cafe, 2101 W Main St (just east of the Boulevard), ☏ +1 804-358-0645. Serves the best food in Richmond at a very reasonable price. The menu has a great deal of variety and daily specials are inventive. Because of its reputation, Sidewalk stays packed and a short wait may be necessary. Don't feel railroaded into taking an uncomfortable table as the waitstaff will understand those who prefer a booth (trust me, you want a booth). For the ideal Richmond experience or simply for those who want to get their money's worth, Sidewalk is a must. 
• 9 Sticky Rice, 2232 W Main St, ☏ +1 804-358-7870. This Fan restaurant serves unusual sushi (including many vegan and vegetarian options) and a range of Asian-inspired dishes. 
• 10 Three Monkeys, 2525 W. Main Street (on Main between N Davis and Robinson), ☏ +1 804-204-2525. Three Monkeys Bar and Grill is an upscale corner café in the Fan, where the menu includes Greek specialties such as Saganaki and Spanakopita and a variety of other foods ranging from common burgers and fries to homemade pizzas. 

Drink

The Fan is replete with bars and restaurants, concentrated primarily on Robinson Street (two blocks east of The Boulevard), and along Main Street for the entire length of the Fan. Make sure you catch some great live music.

Sleep

There are no hotels directly in the Fan, but there are several just a couple blocks away in Downtown, such as 1 Graduate Richmond at Franklin and Madison streets.