My first non-hotel stop during my weekend in Richmond, and it was a vibrant and colorful live music bar that featured an impressive brews, a better than decent food menu, and an eclectic mix of local and traveling musicians on a daily basis. And while I can only give 4 stars for now as I was an outsider looking in and grabbing a sample, I can easily acknowledge it as being everything I look for in a solid local music bar.
After walking through an endless portion of open chain stores and local businesses that closed during wonky hours (the one and only thing I couldn't figure out during my first experience of Richmond), My partner in adventure and I were instantly drawn to the sound of live bluegrass, stained glass windows that resembled elaborate tattoo art, and the steel camel sign that instantly made the place stand out. And upon entry we were instantly welcomed by the warm servers and 15-20 taps of brew that were ready for indulgence. the only flaw I could give to such a number of taps was that there were no mention of what they were on a menu or wall. But they did yield plenty of something for everybody; including plenty of local drafts, imports and well known craft brews; and NattyBo and a coupled special taps for those who were looking to drink on the cheap.
Walking in around 7:30pm led to a free bluegrass/folk music session to enjoy, but you could also see a couple of young indie/alt bands getting ready to setup for the evening and live it up for on stage. To give an idea to the Philly Phaithful I'd consider it a cross between an old school Tritone meets Khyber of yesteryear. AKA a strong eclectic stage that gave everyone a chance to play on it, while offering good acoustics. Combine all of the above and the Camel is an instant destination when and if I'm ever in Richmond again.
Such a great, intimate spot for taking in a show. I've been here a few times, most recently for a band showcase early in the evening. There wasn't much of a crowd at all, so it was a very different experience from my previous late-night packed visits. This time, I actually engaged in conversations with friends, whereas usually it's a lot of dancing and a little yelling. No matter when you go, the bartenders are super friendly, and the beer list is pretty darn extensive. If you're looking to catch some local tunes in a relaxed, but upbeat atmosphere, The Camel is a great choice!
True, parking can sometimes be tricky... but that's just par for the course in an urban area. Just be patient, drive around, and you'll usually find street parking.
If you eat here, get the burger.
It has an egg, some havarti cheese, and there's a bunch of garlic and spices mixed into the beef. Â Also it's really big.
I picked it up and found I couldn't converse with anyone until it was done.
The potatoes were good, a little undercooked, but who cares.
It's probably one of my top 10 burgers. Â I'm looking forward to another Stay Sweet Fest, but really I'm looking forward to that burger again.
Beer selection is good too, staff are nice as well.
One of my friends called me up to ask if me and the hubby wanted to meet her and her bf for beers and banjos... I figured why not. Â I had no idea what to expect. Â The beer list is pretty good and the music was great. Â We all split the fried oysters, spinach pizza and fried artichokes. Â The fried food was amazing but the spinach pizza left something to be desired. Â After 8 pm, they start charging cover to see the next band. Â Normally if you get to a place before a certain time they wont charge you, however, at the Camel they will actually close off the bar area for non paying patrons so you feel almost like a second class citizen. Â It was the weirdest thing. Â I'll definetly go back to enjoy some brews and some live music.
Review Source:The Camel is a decent bar with a small music venue attached. Â It's make for a nice, intimate experience with the musicians that is hard to find in RVA. Â In my experience, you're either up-close and packed in right next to the stage, or the venue is too large to really attract the more indy-type artists who usually end-up playing in Charlottesville instead.
The food is decent and the beer selection is pretty good. Â This would be a nice place for a date if you're looking for dinner/drinks and a good show.
Three stars for the parking, which is fairly non-exsistant. Â With it's proximity to VCU and the Fan, parking can be an issue.
Amazing Live Music Venue for the Wombats
I came here to see the Wombats. A week before, I couldn't get into their set at Bumbershoot because more than 500 people had already filled the venue and hundreds more were still in line. At the Camel, I didn't have to deal with any such crowd. 30 people filled the venue twice the size of a living room. The show was the most intimate I've seen out of 50+ shows that I've been to. Their weren't even able to leave before their encore, so instead just hit behind their equipment and reappeared. Unforgettable.
My cheap skate spidey sense tingles on the expensive side here. Â The Camel has a high and mighty beer list, but their clientele are usually the PBR and got-my-flask-down-my-pants type. Â
No, seriously when I go here I'm compelled to carry my flask in my pants to help offset the booze bill at the end of the night. Â Yes, even when I'm the stone sober DD.
But somehow despite the stage that is merely 3 inches taller than the rest of the dining room floor and tables that are always in the way of the standing crowd, this place gets some decent acts. Â The music area has a terrible reverberation problem and probably needs some actual sound absorbing material in there. Â It makes a lot of bands sound like that terrible band that played at your prom, if you were so [un]lucky.
The cover charge is usually pretty cheap, which is probably subsidized by the slight price bump in refreshments. Â
And just be aware that it isn't unusual for someone to come running into the place yelling about parking across the street.
DO NOT PARK IN THE LOT ACROSS THE STREET. Â (Unless you have a crush on the guy/gal at the impound lot.)
I'm sure the poor staff here are tired of hearing about how your ride was towed the last time you were here.
All in all it's a very Richmond place to go, have a few beers, some warm booze that your crotch has been keeping nice and toasty, and lose some hearing to the latest and greatest sounds that RVA has to offer.
Went here for a "Science Pub" gathering where a local scientist talks about research to a crowd, loved the small neighborhood bar vibe. Attentive staff, but they were a bit overwhelmed by the crowd that night and food came pretty late. Â The couple next to me had it arrive at the end of the event, but the waiter comped them, so that was good. Â
Easy to find, parking not too bad for W. Broad Street.
The Camel rocks! Â My past review was positive, but I went there again last night with some people who hadn't been there before and it reminded me what a special thing we've got going here.
I love the layout of the place.
I love the secret bathroom around the corner from the others.
I love that they keep the Red Stripe flowing, with lots of other choices for cheap, delicious beer.
I love the stage.
I love the band side door that everyone uses when it's unlocked.
AND I LOVE NO COVERS! ;)
If you can, play a show here and receive half off drinks and food all night. Â I got a different sandwich this time (chicken roasted garlic?) and the garlic aioli was damn tasty. Â The crust on my sourdough was a bit hard but I ended up eating it like french fries after I tore it off my sandwich. Â The bartenders are good at being responsive, and will come and tap you on the shoulder when your food is ready. One of them even came by the wooden booth I was sitting in when I was eating and asked how my food was. Â Such service!
Street parking only, though across the street in front of Lowe's always seems to be empty so its almost like they have a makeshift parking lot. :)
The Camel is defiantly been one of my favorite spots in Richmond to see local music. Â I have been going to the Camel for years. Â The appreciation for supporting local music and underground bands really has no equal in Richmond, Va. Â Seven nights a week with bands or live music! Â There is always something going on nightly, and your bound to have a good time at the bar. Â
I love how much they have grown in the past few years, Rand has done a great job of making The Camel better every year. Â The menu and food has grown creatively and has some awesome food and local pub grub. Â They have taken time to have local favorites like sweet potatoes fries with blue cheese (I LOVE), and they have many veggie options for the local vegans & veggies. Â The offering of over 28 beers tap is exceptional for any place, much less a place with live music. Â Dedication to the local brews and craft brews always goes a long way to making me happy. Â So its often a good place to just stop in for a amazing selection of beer. Â
LIVE MUSIC & GREAT BEER SELECTION - what else do you need?
Oh, also check out the artist on the wall. Â They also do a great job of supporting the local artists and showing some really underground great work.
I have been going to The Camel for a few years now as my favorite small music venue in Richmond. I have seen some of the best shows there. The sound is great, the crowd is fun, the acts they get are awesome. Recently i started eating there prior to the show and i was pleasantly surprised. I thought they would just have run of the mill bar food. I was floored when i ordered the vegan risotto with mushrooms. It was so creamy and delicious i wanted to lick my plate when i was done (don't worry i restrained myself).
I have also really started enjoying beer in the last year or two and they ALWAYS have something my picky pallet enjoys. I prefer darker heavier beer (and local when I can get it) so finding a bar that always has something to my liking on tap is great. They always have Hardywood. Add in the knowledgable and friendly bartenders (Colin is a doll) and the charming door guys and this is a great place to spend an evening!
I have only been here for a few bands playing and I had a pretty good place to listen to music. Tons of space, tons of seating and there is a good amount of seats at the bar. Parking is not that great, so you may walk a bit. I have never had anything to eat here, but the drinks are pretty good. Overall, clean place - with the exception of the bathrooms!. Service is good at the bar.
Review Source:Went here for a show. Â Prices are good. Show was good. Â The stage is kinda small but it's nice because you can stand right by it. Â The menu has nice selection of drinks from all around. I didnt order food but I saw a lot of people eating. It smelled pretty good. Â The restrooms were super disgusting!! I went in two different ones and they smelled like they haven't been cleaned in months! Â I scrubbed my hands so hard before I left. Â The bartenders were nice and attentive. Â Overall good time and I guess dirty restrooms is something I should expect going to a punk bar but it's still gross!
Review Source:I've been here a few times. Â The first few times were a five, the last time was a two so I compromise and give it a four. Â They have some really great bands and they play the music at an entirely reasonable level. I've actually never heard a band I didn't like here. Â
The food is also pretty damn decent. Â The fried artichoke is freaking amazing. Â You'll LOVE the beer flights if you're a beer person. Â Lots of vegetarian food options, pretty creative flavors. Â It's kinda a pub but the food is nicer than your standard pub and the atmosphere is a little classier than a typical pub. Â Speaking of which, it's really nicely decorated. Â The decor really goes with the bluegrass and brass band kind of bands they have here.
The last time I was in here it was absolutely SLAMMED. Â We had made reservations for the rehearsal dinner for our wedding. Â It was so busy that we feared our reservation was lost. Â We had a bit of a time tracking down a host who knew about our reservation but we finally did and we were seated at a long table in the side hallway.
Since it was so busy it was understandable that the service would be a little slow. Â It took 10 or 15 minutes before someone took our orders, then probably the same amount of time before we got drinks. Â People who got beer flights waited up to 20 for theirs. Â By the time the server arrived with our food (about another 40 minutes) we'd finished all our beers. Â I ordered the hummus wrap but the server misheard and got me the hummus platter. Â She zipped away before I could mention it and because I knew it'd take forever for her to come back or get me the right food I just ate it. Â It was another 20 minutes before we got the second round of beers and, despite asking for it multiple times, it took me over an hour after that to get my check.
The next morning I had some pretty gnarly gastrointestinal distress (on my wedding day! Aieee!) and it's been mentioned that I possibly had food poisoning. Â I think perhaps it was a combination of nerves and the hummus not sitting so great in my stomach. Â I've never had bad food there and the ingredients have always seemed reasonably fresh, but it's worth noting.
I'm totally going to go back and I'd recommend it to others, but if you show up and it's busy, you might want to turn around and come back another time.
I drove down here from DC to see William Elliott Whitmore play, and grabbed some fries at the bar while I was there.
The great: Nice selection of beer, great space for a show, good sound. William Elliott Whitmore himself was great.
The good: The food was standard bar fair, but pretty good for a bar/concert space. I had sweet potato fries that were  far better than I would have gotten in DC at a similar place.
The Bad: The second of the two opening bands went on well over an hour longer than they were supposed to (I could see the times taped up behind them). Not only were they nervous and horrible, but they just kept playing, even acknowledging that they were over their time limit and pushing through to finish "their" set. Â The club should have just yanked them, but they seemed to be friends with the guy running the sound board. It meant that the main show started super late, went super late, and probably shortened the headliner's set as well. And for that they get docked a star.
this place is pretty awesome. Â i went there on 3/8/12 to meet some friends and wasn't quite sure what to expect. Â the band was really good, even though i don't normally like bluegrass. Â but, i certainly appreciate that kind of music now. Â
the only negative thing is that the one beer that i really wanted to try was unavailable. Â i can't wait to go back. Â
the crowd was nice, a mix of vcu types and middle aged frumps, like myself.
The Camel is a sweet little bar, restaurant and music venue. I love the overall vibe there. They have music almost every night of the week and get some really quality acts. I was there on 12.29.2011 to see Yarn. I thoroughly enjoyed the show.
  The few times that I have been to The Camel, I have arrived early enough to grab a table in the area closest to the bar and have enjoyed some food before the bands came on. Their food is pretty good for a place that in my opinion is mainly a bar and music venue. I have enjoyed the vegetable plate with hummus (they had 3 varieties the night we were there) and the sweet potato fries. They recently revamped their kitchen and also added a few more taps to their bar area. I believe they have about 28 beers on draft which is great for me. I love beer.
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  Which leads me to my first gripe. The Camel must do something about their restrooms. There are three single occupancy, unisex restrooms. This is all well and good on a moderately busy evening. The night Yarn played, the place was packed and bathroom time was at a premium.  Give the ladies their two single occupancy facilities but for the love of huMANity, please put up about five urinals or, hell, even a trough up in the other restroom so that we heavy drinking males can have a place to pee and not waste the night standing in a line, watching the show from the back of the joint.
And speaking of lines, hats off to you bartenders on 12/29. You guys were rocking and rolling slinging drinks behind bar. However, I would absolutely love it if you hooked us up with another bartender on these busy nights. Maybe even a super cute female bartender. No offense to you guys, you all were pretty handsome and all but...
Go check out The Camel if you haven't already. It is sure to be a RVA institution for years to come.
One of my favorite meeting places, bars, and venues in the city. Â I love the layout of The Camel with one side for the bar, food, and socializing and the other devoted to the stage and the music while doubling as an art gallery. Â
Too many delicious menu items to name but the Chicken Pesto panini w. sweet potato fries always does the trick. Â I love their veggie options and beer choices as well. Â If you haven't been yet, definitely go eat before one of their great shows almost nightly.
1ll, all mii'z needa sayyy is Th1s 1s HoTt.!
Errbody here iss Tew frinndly lyke furreall.
Th1sz isz da kewlesT pl4c3 on duh E4rtHh, ya dyggG it?
1 sure doo!
So, dis is Dat cool place, 100% REAL TALK, NO f4k3 hata's.. it str8 repZz da 804 h4rda den ever b4.
AAnnd dizz plaice D1dnt 3ven hhav3 a sep3rat3 w4ta fountAINn for uSz COLOR'D FolkkZz th4nkz to mii boii MArtInnN LuTha Kyng JuniorR.
Thiz zS place IS Firee 200 perCINT.
Str8 uPP, no TrikkiN, I 4inT lie-in to yhu, yhu's izz donE gettINNG duhh truth and NUTTIN' But duh truth. C-yah h0m13!
Restaurant/Food Review:
Stopped in for a quick dinner at happy hour to use an about-to-expire Groupon. Boyfriend forgot his ID and didn't get served; understandable, but a let down. We shared mozzeralla sticks as an app - straight from the freezer but tasty, unfortunately marinara sauce was icy cold. Lamb panini and Chicken panini for dinner, sides of chips/salsa and a house salad with balsamic 'dressing' which was really just a drenching of vinegar. Sandwiches were on the bland side of fine.
Interior was inexplicably smoky. My eyes stung. Took forever to get the check, but service was good otherwise.
I'm sure this is a great place to see local bands and have a drink, but go somewhere else for dinner.
pros: Whoever's idea it was to serve the lamb sandwich -- what an idea. I can't believe what a bargain it was, something like under 10 bucks. For a hearty sandwich. With lamb! Give that Camel a medal.
cons: I didn't exactly love the space. The side where the stage is had completely bare walls. I dunno if it's just that they're redecorating, but, either way, they need some paintings up there. Something. Maybe sandwich serving medals.
overall: Pretty good place for a smallish, intimate show. There's enough space on the other side for ppl at the bar or ppl sitting down to eat. Show or not, I wouldn't mind coming back here to hang out and stuff my face.
Nice selection of beers, nice artwork on the walls, friendly staff... I went to see a concert at The Camel and had a nice meal, too. I got the mediterannean panini and a side of tater tots (with garlic mayo and some red sauce that was like a homemade ketchup). It was well-prepared and tasty although not extraordinary. If I lived in the area, I'd probably hang out at this place regularly.
Review Source:great venue for live music, especially dance parties.
also, they've just redone the bar, and it's really cool, and they've completely redone their menu. i always found the food to be subpar for how pricey it was, but i think they've definitely made up for it with their new menu.
this place also has three or four bathrooms, which is never a bad thing!
After several nights of "rocking" in Penn and DC, my band made our way to Richmond to play The Camel. The bandmates I rode to Richmond with had been talking in depth about the different chain restaurants and subpar service we typically get. Hmm..sounds like we are sort of a snobby band...LOL
Nonetheless, when we arrived at The Camel we eagerly wanted to check out the venue. The stage and sound were awesome.The icing on the cake is that the menu and bar had a great selection. I ordered a Veggie Panini with salad. The other two bandmates ordered a sausage sandwich and a pesto chicken sandwich. The food was amazing. I often order veggie panini's from Tonic in DC and Cosi. However they tend to be a bit greasy. That wasn't the case at this restaurant. The wait staff was awesome, and they poured a large tequila shot for me. Yum
I will definitely go back again.
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