Cherry's Food House — Restaurant in Richmond

I came here as I read an article this place was closing its door after 7 years and I wanted to try to give my support as I read good reviews. The food is actually really tasty and fair priced, and it's a busy place, so I was wondering on why they are closing their doors. However, I had called for reservations for dinner, and upon my arrival, the servers were busy, but I approached one of them about my reservations, but it seems to have gone to death ears because the servers kept serving and even chatting with the customers, and people who were leaving, the tables were not being clean up right away. And they don't seem to really reserve tables, as I did not see any reserve signs anywhere. So we waited for 20 minutes past my reservation time to finally get a table. Also I should mention the person taking care of sitting customers, even though I had already told her about my reservations when I came in and I had to walk up to her (she was at the registry which is opposite side of the entry door), and I was in front of the line-up (others were also couples like me), she came over, overlooking me and was looking at the line for the next person (as if she was trying to think who she was going to pick next), but as soon as I noticed how she was undecided, I spoke up right away since I was there first and waiting for the longest and with reservations. At that point she couldn't get away to give a table for someone else. It felt like 'cherry' picking. And the couple behind us also complained about seeing a party of 3 (one being a small child) that did not appear to have any reservations, because the sitting girl saw her right away and bypassed us and took her in to sit. It's possible she was there earlier, but I did not see her on my 20 minutes waiting there, or the staff knows that party. So, the reservation part is what might be the problem with this restaurant if they are...

I’ve been here twice with my girlfriend. The first time was fine, but the second time left such a bad impression that I won’t ever come back.

From the moment we walked in, the server (possibly the owner) gave off an unfriendly attitude. No greeting, no smile — just a look like we were inconveniencing her. We asked to sit on the right side of the restaurant, but she told us it was closed. Not long after, she seated another family of three in that exact section. So apparently it wasn’t closed — just not available to us.

During our meal, she never checked in. The only decent interaction came from a male staff member who seemed like a manager — he recognized us from our first visit and was polite. But the server kept glaring at us every time she passed, making the whole experience uncomfortable.

The worst part was when a large group of seven walked in. It was obvious they were eyeing our table, and instead of handling it professionally, the server walked straight over and started clearing our plates even though we were still eating. My girlfriend had to stop her and tell her we weren’t done. To make it worse, we overheard her telling the group next to us that they’d expand into our table as soon as we left. From that point on, we felt rushed, watched, and pressured to finish up.

And then came the final straw — when we didn’t leave a tip, the male manager actually came over and confronted us about it. We explained that the service was extremely poor, but instead of apologizing or even acknowledging the issue, he just walked away. No follow-up, no accountability.

This place clearly only cares about filling tables and turning over customers, not about the actual dining experience. With that kind of attitude — acting like they have enough business so it doesn’t matter if people come back — this restaurant will never go far. Absolutely terrible service, and we will not...

We came here twice — the first time the food was good, but the second visit was absolutely horrible.

From the moment we walked in, our server (possibly the owner) had a rude expression the entire time, as if we owed her money. When we requested to sit on the right side of the restaurant, she flatly told us it was closed. Moments later, she sat another family of three — two adults and a child — in that exact section. So suddenly it was open after all?

During our meal, there were no quality checks. The only positive part of the experience was a male server (maybe the manager) who remembered us from our first visit and treated us kindly. Meanwhile, every time our server passed us, she looked visibly annoyed, making us hesitant to even press the button to ask for service.

The worst part came when a party of seven walked in. The server immediately eyed our table, and before we were anywhere close to done, she tried to clear our food and plates right in front of us so they could combine tables. My boyfriend was shocked — I had to stop her and tell her firmly that we weren’t finished. Then we overheard her explaining to the other table that they’d expand into our spot once we were gone, which only made them stare at us the rest of the meal and made us feel rushed and unwelcome.

I’ve worked in hospitality, and yes, I understand the value of seating larger groups during peak times. But this is not the way to do it. No family dining here would have been treated this way — it felt biased, dismissive, and unprofessional. We came back as paying customers expecting another good experience, but instead we got rude service and were basically pressured to leave before finishing our food.

Absolutely unacceptable. We will...