Urban Farmhouse Market & Café

Architect: Todd Dykshorn Architecture, Suellen Gregory Interior Design
Dates: 1866, 2010
Address: 1217 East Cary Street

On the corner of 13th and Cary Streets in Shockoe Slip is one of Richmond’s most captivating restaurant spaces. Urban Farmhouse Market & Café is a 1,500 square foot coffeehouse and cafe specializing in local and organic foods. Fueled largely by the work day saturation of Richmond’s neighboring financial district, the restaurant attracts a large clientele.

The space fronts Cary Street with a double height black lacquered wood facade. Towering french doors span in between the engaged column piers; they are open at every possible occasion. This operable facade is the principal feature of the restaurant. Sitting close to the doors and looking out onto the Belgian Block paving, densely planted trees, and historic streetscape of Shockoe Slip makes a cup of coffee all the more enjoyable. The view up 13th towards Governor’s street is one of the most unique in the city. 13th Street predates Richmond’s grid system, winding up Capitol Hill following what was a livestock trail a few hundred years ago. The subtly postmodern John Tyler building’s tower rises above the aged brick facades of the Slip, anchoring the view.

The interior is also well done. Thick, wooden tables and chairs fill a large open, airy room that seats around 50. The exposed kitchen has copper drop ceiling and a large wooden counter that continues up to the register and pastry case. Large built-in casework houses local foods and crafts as well as a handsome indirect lighting system.

A plaque on the building’s exterior states that the 1211-1217 block of East Cary was constructed after the Civil War in 1866 as liquor, food and tobacco storage, serving the close by James River and Kanawha Canal. The facade contained the same contiguous doric column and window ground level built partially of cast iron by the company of Asa Snyder. The block was used later in the mid-20th century as a barrel factory. Today, the building has been elegantly repurposed as office and retail space. The Urban Farmhouse Market & Café serves as an example of a successful adaptive reuse project and a valuable addition to the street life of Shockoe Slip.

D.OK.