Cafe Rustika — Restaurant in Richmond

Café Rustika lives up to the hype, with delicious food and spectacular service! I came by myself for dinner and lucked out by just barely beating the dinner rush (I came a little after 6pm) and sat at the bar. They started a waitlist not long after I came in, so I would come early on the weekends. But it's certainly worth the wait!

I got the Nordsee Frikadellen (Shortstack), which are the crab, shrimp, and scallop cakes, which - while not schnitzel - were phenomenal! I opted to go for more carbs and swapped the greens for potatoes, which were perfectly crisp on the exterior and fluffy on the inside. Really really delicious dinner. Very balanced flavors. The sauce was just the right touch without being overbearing.

The service was lovely and like a well-oiled machine. Everyone was warm and friendly, and, combined with the cozy setting, just made the space welcome and homey. The decor leans into the German roots, with flags from 4 of the 16 German states. There is a mix of limited seating : there's the bar, several 4-person booths, and a couple of high-tops. Generally I saw a mix of couples, families, and friends in groupings of 2-4. If you have a really large party, you will probably be broken up, and you definitely should call ahead.

The only shortcoming - if I would call it that - is that the meals are so generous and filling that no one has room for dessert. Several folks asked for cake to-go, so I'm sure they're good, but you probably won't have any more stomach room after the main course. Highly recommend, and I definitely plan to come back and...

The guy behind the bar was abrasive, if not rude. He forgot my drink after I ordered it. He doesn’t listen. He didn’t tell us about the special, or what they were out of, and I had to remind him I’d already ordered my drink when he forgetfully asked if I wanted anything to drink.

He was a real ass about me spying a table being cleared behind us.

He told us “you will eat where you are sitting” and when I didn’t care for his impertinent delivery I pointed out that the table next to the one being cleared had two people sitting in it. He was just a jerk.

I could only mock him with “Sir, yes Sir.”

The man shouldn’t be serving the public.

When he came to take our order I told him “I’d like the chicken schnitzel platter please.”

He sighed.

“Chicken, pork, or veal?”

“I’d like the chicken schnitzel platter please.”

The schnitzel was unseasoned. It just didn’t have any flavor, and the capers were just sitting atop it, adding nothing to the schnitzel.

There’s a possibility that all of the other over the top reviews were making me expect awesome.

He asked if we wanted any dessert.

“No thank you.”

“One check or two?”

“I’d like the check please.”

His face dropped.

He put the check in front of my friend.

I put my card in and placed it to my side.

He returned the check and charge to in front of my friend.

This was a very frustrating experience that made a mediocre meal even more lackluster.

To little effort making us...

I was really excited to try this place. Born and raised in Germany. It was busy upon getting there. Luckily, there was a spot at the bar for me. There are about 6 booths, 1 table, and 2 hiop-tops. The bar can seat maybe 12 people next to each other. I ordered the Paulaner Hefe-Weizen, because, duh, best beer. I wanted to order jägerschnitzel mit pommes, but they don't offer fries, unfortunately. So I wanted to order the gurkensalat, but they were out of the cucumber salad. Instead, I ordered with a side of regular salad and the carrot soup. I would have written my review last night, but I didn't want to write a hangry review. I waited a little over an hour to receive my food. While waiting, I had my beer, and they did provide a piece of bread for appetizer. It was a little past 9pm, so I decided to ask for it to go. I didn't even think to check it before getting back to the hotel because I was ready to go and wanted to eat. Upon opening my food, I was missing my jäger sauce... I was already upset waiting so long, but I was hungry and I was not going back to get that because it was 15 minutes and 3 toll booths away. The pork schnitzel was just the right large you'd expect, and delicious. It was worth the wait, but would have been even better had they not forgotten my sauce, served fries, and had the cucumber salad. I will be going back, because I will give them the benefit of the doubt, and I love...