Restaurant Adarra

The food was excellent and, as far as I am aware, totally unique for the RVA dining scene. Our server was one of the owners, very friendly, informative and fun to talk with. The space is small, and as it fills up, especially with large parties (of which there were two when we were there) the noise level can get a little high, but not overwhelming. And honestly a large(r) group is probably a good idea, to order a bunch of the smaller dishes tapas-style. So many delicious-looking dishes, I will definitely be returning!

We had an early reservation on a Thursday evening for our anniversary. Although we noted that on the reservation, no acknowledgement was made by Adarra. My partner enjoyed two unusual beers at reasonable prices. I had the ‘chef’s choice’ cocktail, based on the superlatives ‘citrus, boozy, spicy’ and was very pleased with the bourbon cocktail served. We ate the Skate - sort of strange consistency but an interesting dish, the lamb bellies, my personal favorite, the peppers on the special list and the amazing orzo. Really decadent and. Yummy.
Only disappointment was the polenta cake with fresh peaches and creme freche for dessert. It was a little disappointing, grainy and very little in the way of peaches. We will definitely be back. The service was great and the ambience pleasant. by the time we left for the theater at 7:00 the restaurant was bustling, but still pleasant.

We loved everything about Restaurant Adarra. They had a great wine list and the small plates were perfect in every way. The patio was just beautiful too where we enjoyed a cup of espresso.

Cannot say enough good things about this restaurant. I've already recommended it to people. This is exactly what Richmond needed. Great service, wonderful cocktails, excellent wine selection, exceptional service, but where this place really shines is the food. One of the best meals I've had in a long time. We enjoyed a wide range of menu items, from lamb tartare to roasted skate, and the gnocchi... OH the gnocchi! Go there, eat there, drink there, and do it all over again.

The best dining experience I have had in Richmond. The food, service,and atmosphere make Restaurant Adarra the closest thing Richmond has to a Michelin Star experience.

Wow! My most memorable dining experiences are those where the menu is unusual, and the food is delicious. That was exactly what we found at Adarra.

We ordered 4 dishes for 2 of us, and it seemed like each one was better than the last. My personal favorite was the skate -- they had to explain to us how to eat it (scrape down along the bones to pull the meat off), and the flavor was amazing. My wife loved the lamb tartare most. We also had the gnocchi with mushrooms (on the heavier side but sooo tasty), and the stuffed squid with white beans.

Service was great too. We can't wait to go back and try some of the other dishes.

We had a lovely dinner and cocktails and could not have been happier. We will definitely go back again.

Everything was amazing but the lamb tartar stood out the most!

Accomodating / educated staff and delicious food. Among the best service I’ve had. We always have a good time!

Loved everything about it!

Very delicious ! Memorable flavors but limited menu items

we had a very enjoyable evening. The food was well prepared, very tasty and a good portion. We had the cheese board, a ham plate, the gnocchi and the skate. Would def go back again.

This was our second time dining at Adarra and it never disappoints. The food is so fresh and unique - there's nothing like it in town - that we will keep returning!

Excellent but rich food with a different flare

We were duped by all of the high ratings. First, this place is two doors down from boarded up shacks in Jackson Ward, so we should have known this place wasn’t going to be a typical “top drawer” experience.

The menu isn’t available in the Open Table app, so once we got there we had to look up several items to figure out what they were, which included a canned tuna dish that we avoided.

Read that this is a “tapas” restaurant, but there were only three items listed as tapas, and none were appealing, so we selected four of the slightly larger and more expensive plates.

We got a plate of sliced chorizo sausage which came with hard, dry slices of bread. No butter or oil. Picture that.

Then we had skate which was swimming in a pool of reddish grease.

The shrimp was delivered whole and was also served with a bunch of spice to cover up the taste of shrimp.

Finally, we got the gnocchi, the 6 of which were buried in a can-worth of quartered mushrooms also swimming in oil.

The highlight was a decent old fashioned with some smoky flavor. My wife’s cocktail was weird, but ok.

Ended the evening paying the 12% city meal tax and a tip which took us to $110 for four shared plates and two drinks.

So completely disappointed with this experience.

So happy to have a lovely tapas place in Richmond. Wonderful experience with so many delicious options. Cocktail menu is extensive and fun. I cannot wait to go back!

Adarra has become one of our favorite spots. The heirloom tomato salad, a special, was out f this world, as was the skate.

Everything about this place is great. The food is delicious and the drinks are well crafted. The staff is awesome too.

Very happy that Adarra has what we were looking for years. Spanish dishes! Excellent meals and service. My wife and I are looking to make another visit soon.

Intimate new restaurant in Jackson Ward. Creative menu and flawless execution. Staff is friendly and very knowledgeable.

This is the best restaurant in Richmond, hands down.

This is how all restaurants should be. Outstanding food, attentive service, great portion sizes and great cocktails. The best wine list in Richmond? Easily. Top 5 restaurant in a very foodie town. Just go and see for yourself

Loved this restaurant starting with the description. When we heard about the specials, they sounded so good we ordered all three of them! And the tuna bowl with white beans was amazing. Totally amazing. Loved our dinner and the atmosphere. A very special place and at the top of our list.

Great service. Food was excellent. We shared 4 small plates and split a salad. Wine list was good too

Each dish was prepared to perfection. The anchovies and rabbit were enjoyed by the member our party who does not usually eat those dishes. Wine recommendations were spot on. We highly recommend this restaurant.

The first time that we visited Restaurant Adarra, we resisted writing a review as we wanted to keep this wonderful find to ourselves. But after our second visit, we are compelled to share our experience. First of all the service is amazing - in no small part due to the fact that the owners themselves are serving. The food is also outstanding. The menu is Tappa-style so be prepared to taste a wide variety of flavors. While the food is locally grown, it is prepared in a true Spanish style. We ordered six items to include the chorizo (thinly sliced), the Iberico De Bellota (thinly sliced ham), the Orzo (wonderful buttery favored), the cheese plate, a daily special beet salad (that should be placed on the full-time menu), and the Shrimp. While we loved every thing we ordered, we are especially fond of the Shrimp. Probably next time we will have two orders of that. Suggestion: make sure you get an order of their bread so that you can soak up every bit of the sauce from the Shrimp dish. We would also suggest that you get advice from their bartender on a proper red wine to pair with your meal - they clearly know their Spanish wines. We will certainly be back, but will book well in advance as the secret is out on this little piece of Spain in downtown Richmond and prime time seats fill up quickly.

Wow! Each plate was flavorful and interesting. The wine list had many great options and the server helped us pick the perfect selection can’t wait to go back.

Attentive and helpful servers, lovely atmosphere, easy to converse. Food is creative, unusual and insanely good! We want to try everything on the menu.

Personable staff in an intimate setting with enchanting and unique beverages and cuisine. Just right sized portions kept arriving at the perfect pace. Truly an experience.

Not for the meat and potatoes crowd, but if you are adventurous and looking for something unique this is the place. And, as always, cocktails are amazing.

I almost hate to write this in fear that the Restaurant will rest on their laurels. However, the food was incredible. We had the tuna that had about the best sauce I have ever had the Gnocchi was tasty beyond belief and not at all doughty. The stuffed Octopus was very good but not as good as the others.

The Polenta Cake and the olive appetizer were also delicious. The co owner was are wait staff and she is very charming.

Service was professional. Food was delicious. Everything was timed perfectly.

We sat for 30 minutes before our order was taken. However, we have been there twice before and that was not the case the other two times. Possibly a new waitress? We will definitely continue to frequent this wonderful restaurant!

We loved it. First off we followed the chef here from his previous spot. We had the olives, muscles, stuffed squid, shrimp, orzo and gnocchi. For us the shrimp and squid were the stars. Bottle of wine and a few draft craft beers were tasty. Definitely a foodies place. Wish they had outdoor seating for summer. We will be back.

We both started with the Vespar cocktail which was incredible and then had the beets with goat butter. The beets were the best I’ve ever tasted! For the main course I had the stuffed squid which was beyond words in deliciousness. The squid was served on top of wonderfully flavorful white beans. I would no doubt order this dish again on a return visit. I absolutely loved dining at Restaurant Adarra and thoroughly enjoyed tasting the creations of this very talented chef.

The food was absolutely delicious, and we thoroughly enjoyed our drinks. It was a weeknight, so it was very quiet and the service was very good. I got the Octopus stew and thought it was one of the most delicious things ever. My date had the roasted skate which she really enjoyed but thought it was on the salty side (which she says about a lot of things, I did not think it was too salty and really enjoyed it.

We also got the cheese and chorizo as apps, both of which were very good. We shared the potent potion which was a fun little drink to split.

Excellent!

The pros of Adarra include the food, which was good, and the ambiance (though it was somewhat loud in there). The big con was the terrible service. We were abandoned for 30 minutes, and were even trying to flag down a waiter at one point, which was unsuccessful. When we were approached, it was by different wait staff at different times, so we never knew who was our waiter. After I complained (once we finally got someone over to us) we got one cocktail comped.

Such an amazing place! We have a lot of great restaurants in Richmond, but as far as “explosive flavor” (food and drink) - Adarra is winning right now.

We will definitely be back; non alcoholic moktails were excellent!