Amuse at The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

We were here for a member's opening exhibition -- which happened to coincide with restaurant week. The oysters were perfect. The crab cakes were some backfin but mostly claw meat -- understandable for the price. The waiter was OVERWHELMED by the number of tables that he was serving. We tipped 20% but we will not be back anytime soon.

The food was just unusual and delightful. The hostess was lovely and gracious. Our waiter, however, left much to. E desired for gracious dining. When pouring our water he spilled it over onto the table and my companion's napkin and said sorry, but made no move to wipe it up or provide a clean napkin until we called him over later. Just did not measure up to the standards of such a fine restaurant.

We brought an out of town guest for lunch. We got the crab cakes with bacon, fried green tomatoes, and pimento cheese spread. The combinations of the flavors was outstanding. Our friend said it was the best lunch she has ever eaten. And we heartily agree.

We took my mom and 10 and 8 year olds! WOW! The food was AMAZING! The service INCREDIBLE!!! The art work was AMAZING! Although the girls are young, they were adventurous and tried lots of the food!!! YUMMY!!!

A perfect top off to a wonderful Restaurant week! Service was great, the weather was perfect, and the food was awesome . Will definitely come back.

Ambiance is beautiful, walk around the museum before or after your dinner. The food is exceptional - great service!

We celebrated a friend's retirement here during Richmond Restaurant Week and were pleasantly surprised to find such a wide variety of foods on the menu. Everything was well prepared and presented, and the service was excellent. It was noisier than usual due to the very full dining room, which made it a bit difficult to converse. Nonetheless, we enjoyed the experience and will look forward to coming again.

We have gone to Amuse several times and always enjoy it. They have a great cocktail list and wonderful food.

We live 200 miles from Richmond, but love to return when we can. The Virginia Museum of Fine Art is one of our resons. Since the opening of Amuse, it's one more excuse to visit; twice in our recent, three day visit. Would I recommend it to friends? Heck yes; already have.

We went for the restaurant week menu, my mussel starter was great, big and juicy mussels full of flavor. And the broth was perfect for the toast. The grouper was cooked to perfection, and the chocolate pate was dense and silky, heavenly indeed.

Food was excellent. Our server was attentive and did an excellent job of getting our food to us quickly as we told him we had theater tickets that evening. I found the chairs very uncomfortable (used my purse as a back pillow which helped some), but my husband didn't agree. Would like to go back an evening when we have more time to enjoy the food.

We had a delicious, delightful dinner at Amuse. Their crab cakes are the BEST in Richmond. We also loved the mussels appetizer and the curries oysters one.

Only regret is that I wish they would change up the menu

The food is always delightful and the service is fantastic! Love dining here!

We have dined at Amuse many times and have always been quite pleased. This was disappointing. Menu was strange--service spotty. Had special guests which we had told of the pleasant experience they would have. Did not happen.

We went for lunch. Beautiful setting, excellent service, and great food. My lamb was perfect. Quiet dinning area so perfect for a business conversation.

We get to Richmond often & I've decided Amuse is the best restaurant in town. The setting is elegantly simple, overlooking the Museum of Fine Arts' sculpture garden with a design that makes the garden view an extension of the space; a rooftop terrace is open in good weather. But it's the creative menu featuring locally sourced ingredients and execution that lift Amuse. Today we had a riff on Caesar salad: grilled rockfish served atop grilled bread and grilled romaine topped with bagna cauda as the dressing served with a sous vide egg. The cocktail and dessert selections are also highly creative but the cooking wins the day. Each plate when presented is a feast for the eyes (as befitting an art museum) as well as the palate.

Great atmosphere, I may be getting tired of the food but it is presented beautifully and service is good. Food choices do not seem as good to me as in the first year of the restaurant.

The menu is always interesting with a good balance between cutting edge and semi-traditional. The setting is lovely and noise level is quiet which is appealing. Waitstaff is friendly and knowledgeable regarding the menu. People watching is always fun. Check it out!!!

Our server, Bryan, was pleasant without being intrusive, as well as helpful and good natured about our questions. And if he didn't know the answer, was quick to find out. I have food allergies, and appreciated his checking with the chef so he could say with confidence which dishes would suit.

You should know before you go here that the location and scenic view are what makes this place......not the food or the service.....We were seated at 1pm, and waited one hour and five minutes before our food came to the table....even though the place had empty tables and was not crowded. this was a relaxed birthday celebration, and a time to catch up with each other, so it didn't bother anyone too much....

New inventive menu--delicious fresh ingredients with local appeal creatively prepared. We enjoyed every single mouthful!

We have eaten at Amuse several times and while this experience was exceptional in many ways it had a few let-downs. The server was ultra condescending. It seemed like he assumed that since we were young we wouldn't be big spenders and would have trouble understanding the menu. The other disappointment was a plate of half-wilty salad. Otherwise, the food was awesome across the board.

I hosted lunch for a friend for her birthday. The entire experience from making reservations on Open Table to the devine Pots de Creme (spelling?) dessert was wonderful. I highly recommend it.

Our meals were very good, not outstanding
For the price I expected a little more complexity of flavor. But the dishes were creative. Our drinks and appetizer came promptly, but our main courses took a while
We were not in a rush, so no worries, but I wouldn't have been happy if we were in a hurry. Wine list was pleasantly priced with plenty of good options. The setting was great for a spring Friday night with the sunset out the window.

We had two new lunch entrees, both underwhelming. Fish tacos were overcooked and dry, in heavy tasteless shells. The tasteless sauce and beans didn't help. The cheeseburger and fries, just average.
Has the chef changed? The new direction didn't work for us. But service was great.

Sunday brunch was lovely. They had a nice mix of breakfast and lunch items, with a few surprising items as well. The French Toast was delicious and not overly sweet. We had a wonderful conversation with the bartenders, who were knowledgeable and helpful, and who made great suggestions. Service was attentive, but not smothering. All in all, a relaxing, delightful meal.

I am usually a cafe dweller but finally found an excuse to venture upstairs to Amuse. Everything about my experience made me feel creative, inspired, happy...I could keep going. The food was FANTASTIC and so was the service.

Delicious oyster appetizer and perfect chicken tagine. Dream girl cocktail was also delicious. Thanks again, Amuse.

We were a party of six in Richmond for the week-end and visiting the Va. Fine Arts Museum on Sunday morning before heading home. I called ahead for a reservation, and we were given a lovely table next to a glass wall overlooking the museum grounds. All of our party enjoyed different selections from the brunch menu and concluded that the food was quite good. The restaurant is new and very handsome. We particularly loved the light fixtures which changed colors, going from a gorgeous apricot to a deep rose. If I lived in Richmond, this restaurant would be a place to take a friend or to celebrate an occasion. It's light, modern, and elegant.

Amuse at The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is my favorite restaurant for any occasion. It's perfect for every occasion.

This will always be in my plans for every museum visit or even if nearby……...

For me, there is too much emphasis on strange combinations. I would like a couple of more ordinary choices on the menu. It's a bit pricey for the amount of food served. However, it is a most beautiful place to sit and have a nice coffee. The service is very good.

We went here on a Sunday afternoon for brunch and it was quite wonderful. The scene is calm and comfortable and the food is delightful!

The venue is the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. And while museum style art is not featured in the restaurant the all glass front allows the diner to view the courtyard, architectually interesting buildings and art on the lawn. The food is consistently good and artfully presented. The service has also been consistenly good with a balance of formaility and friendliness. Food combinations sometimes go beyond the expected but always come out interesting and delicious. The wine list is adequate to meet most tastes. Desserts offer a wonderful finish. Truly a quality find in the middle of the Fan district. While there, join the Museum for a small fee and enjoy a discount on each meal. Recommend you try it.

I love the feel of Amuse. I feel as if I am in a "big city" lunch room. The mussels are always perfect! What fun!

I have eaten at Amuse several times in the past with a much better experience. Perhaps th regular chef was absent on this day.

I have driven from Charlottesville twice in one month for Amuse's rendition of the crab cake sandwich, which uses crisply fried green tomatoes instead of a bun. Yummy! Server tried to remove my plate while I was still eating on the second trip. Service was much better on my first trip.

It is a shame to admit but this was our first time dining at Amuse. And we have missed out for a long time, because it was absolutely wonderful. The ambiance is elegant and trendy. The staff helpful and friendly. We had a great bottle of wine that was priced extremely well. The presentation of the food was very nice, and last but not least, it was delicious. We cannot wait to dine here again. What a gem!

My friends and I eat at Amuse once a year when we are in Richmond for a meeting. Amuse is one of the highlights of our trip. The food, service, ambiance are all top notch. Even making (and changing) the reservation was pleasant.