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A fire in the summer of 2017 forced The Tobacco Company at 1201 E. Cary St. to close for 17 months of renovations.
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The third floor of the Tobacco Company now features leather banquettes and four-top tables, along with the addition of gold swans, mirrors and accents for an Art Deco-inspired vibe.
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Tables set and ready in the third-floor dining area (Photo courtesy David Campbell)
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First floor of the Tobacco Company
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The main bar on the first floor is now more open and spacious.
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View from the second level of the first-floor dining area
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LED-lit bar in the back deco lounge on the first floor
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Deco lounge on the first floor of The Tobacco Company
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Deco lounge on the first floor
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Chandeliers from the set of the movie "Lincoln" are new additions.
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The Tobacco Company has alcoves of private dining areas on the second and third floors.
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Another private dining area
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The third-level dining area features new spacious banquettes and four-top tables.
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Dining area on the third floor
Editor's Note: The Tobacco Company has delayed its grand opening until Tuesday, Dec. 11, at 5 p.m.
The Tobacco Company has risen from the ashes and is set to reopen today after a kitchen fire 17 months ago almost shuttered the more than 40-year-old institution for good.
The restaurant first opened in July of 1977 at 1201 E. Cary St. in Shockoe Slip, a historic landmark and former tobacco warehouse turned multilevel restaurant, bar and club that attracted patrons of all ages. The Tobacco Company offered more than a bite — it offered an experience. Guests could dance, let loose and listen to live music; be wined and dined in private rooms; look out onto the cobblestone streets of the Slip from the first-floor bar; or head to the basement for a cocktail and a more lively crowd. It quickly established its identity as a standout social spot.
“In every city you travel, there’s a special historic landmark building or hotel,” says David Campbell, a 40-year employee and former water-boy turned marketing director, who began his journey with The Tobacco Company when he was 19 and attending VCU.
“That’s us — I put us in the same line of The Jefferson," explains David. "We’re part of the community and part of this city."
However, the fate of the established restaurant was uncertain after significant water damage post-fire. Campbell describes the incident as "a great loss."
“It’s like your mother’s house burnt down. ... It was an end-of-an-era thing at first,” says Campbell.
Two weeks following the fire, employees received news that the restaurant would reopen. The Tobacco Company would be reincarnated, hoping to restore its status as a quintessentially Richmond gathering place.
During the closure, The Tobacco Company received a hefty dose of renovations and now boasts a more modern aesthetic.
The first floor features a newly completed expansive bar. The back area on the first floor has ditched Victorian vibes and transformed into a Deco-style lounge with an LED-lit bar and plush couches and chairs. Chandeliers from the set of the movie "Lincoln," filmed in Richmond in 2012, have been installed on the third floor near the bar. Golden swans and mirrors accent the brick walls of the third-floor dining area, now home to leather banquettes, and grand light fixtures accent private and VIP dining rooms throughout the space.
“I think people will be happily surprised when they come in; it’s really changed,” Campbell says of the renovated space. “It’s been a labor of love.”
For many Richmonders, The Tobacco Company is synonymous with celebration and will continue to be a destination for special occasions — anniversaries, proms, birthdays, graduations and promotions.
“People come for dining, but we're a Richmond staple, so people [also] come here for special events,” says Campbell.
A Trip Down Tobacco Company Memory Lane
Richmonders share their favorite moments at The Tobacco Company.
David Campbell, 63, communications and marketing director for The Tobacco Company
"Every month we’ll pick a 'couple of the month,' people that are coming in for their anniversary. We’ll look at the reservation system on a Sunday night, and then the manager will randomly pick a table. We’ll say, 'We understand it’s your anniversary; we want to buy your dinner tonight.' It’s amazing because it’s all age groups [and] a total surprise. It could be someone's second or third anniversary, and then others it’s their 30th or 40th. We get people that met here and then got married, or employees’ parents that used to work here.
"Also, back in the day there was a band called The Dads. They got their big break here, and MTV came to Richmond and they set up [a performance] — it was wild. For MTV to come to Richmond, it was the biggest thing ever, and they filmed it live."
Lisa Davis, 61
“My first memory of The Tobacco Company is going as a teenager with my mother to take her parents to lunch. My grandfather was in his eighties and was amazed at what had become of an old tobacco warehouse that he had known as a young adult and a working professional. I listened intently as he told stories about Shockoe Slip and tying his horse to the fountain. I so value having those stories of the past. My next memory of the TC comes from my years of being a nursing student at MCV. Yes, back then it was still MCV. As students we got free entry into the lounge downstairs and would go on weekends to have fun and de-stress after a long week. At one point my prettiest girlfriend worked as a cocktail waitress upstairs. We would sometimes go to hang out with Pam and support her, as some of the patrons had not yet learned what was and wasn't OK to do with a waitress."
Dave Schwartz, 64
“When I worked at Bank of Virginia (later Signet Bank) during the late '70s-early '90s, a group of us used to go for drinks fairly often. They had fantastic groups who used to play later on in the evenings. ... One day I had a bit too much to drink and was throwing the popcorn that Tobacco Company used to provide at my coworker. But that night was the first time I ate at Tobacco Company with my coworkers. It was the first time I ever got seconds on prime rib on a restaurant ... and the first time I ever tasted spinach ... and their sauteed creamed spinach got me hooked. I think to this day I've never had spinach that good. They also used to make the best (meanest) French 75 around and serve it with a small bottle of Champagne that we could use to keep refreshing the drink. Two of those drinks, and you definitely shouldn't be driving. Three and you needed help walking out. I never made it to three drinks, and I always had a ride home after the two."
Erika Ruth, 41
"When my (now) husband and I were dating he took me to lunch at The Tobacco Company. It was a beautiful space, where I felt like I had to make sure to use my best etiquette. A year or two later, we went back for a friend's going-away party. However, this was in the downstairs bar. I’ve only been downstairs the one time, so I don’t know if it was always the same, but it was like a dance party at a club, DJ, bumping and grinding, and a lot of alcohol. I want to say smoking was allowed inside (and this was within the last seven years because that’s how long I have lived in Richmond). Anyway, it’s funny the difference between the classy/upscale presence that was upstairs and the smoky, unrefined downstairs."
Michele Jones, co-owner of Bingo, Pasture and Comfort
“I came to Richmond to check out VCU [in 1988], and my friend's mom said we had to go to The Tobacco Company, so we rolled in wearing our jean shorts, and I think I had on a Siouxsie and the Banshees T-shirt. It felt like everyone in the place gasped, although I’m pretty sure it was in my head. We left and went out and bought some cute dresses and came back and felt really fancy and big-city.”
The Tobacco Company is set to host a soft opening Monday, Dec. 10, and will cap entry each night for the first week.
