Adorable with a little edge, Carytown sums up the RVA vibe. This brightly colored commercial district has it all—restaurants, boutiques, dive bars and tattoo parlors. Only in Carytown will you find the city’s best ice cream, best cocktails, best toy store and best LGBTQ dance party within just a few blocks. Grab a moderately inappropriate greeting card at Mongrel, treat yourself to a Cheese Colombo from Coppola’s Deli and snap a selfie in front of the neighborhood’s most Instagrammed mural on the corner of Sheppard Street.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Nine glorious blocks of shopping, eating and people-watching. From used bookstores and fancy spas to brasseries and burger joints, Carytown is where it’s at, all the time.

WHAT’S UNEXPECTED

The Byrd Theatre—a swank, 90-year-old theatre that screens second-run films and cult classics. If you go on Saturday night you can catch a live organist being extra on his “Mighty Wurlitzer.”

CHECK IT OUT

See Carytown through the eyes of different Richmonders as they show off their favorite spots.