Godfrey's — Restaurant in Richmond

PLEASE READ BEFORE ATTENDING BRUNCH. WARNING: LONG POST AHEAD.

Pros: The atmosphere, the service, the people, the performances, drinks were bomb

Godfreys was amazing! My party of 4 had a great time. The venue is pretty and the energy inside the place is hands down the best ever! From booking the reservation to the actual attending of the event, the people were VERY nice and accommodating. I made the reservation to expose my little cousin of 11 y/o (who recently came out as trans) to the beauty of the Queer community. Godfrey's did a fabulous job making thxm feel special and I'm so glad we were able to be there. Absolutely beautiful job! 💕

Cons: Lack of transparency, food wasn't the best but it was definitely getting the job done.

There was NO transparency on pretty much anything. I booked a reservation with the venue a week before attending and I was not informed nor aware of the cover charge/attendance fee of $15/person regardless of food/drink. Apparently, the person who books the reservation is supposed to let you know this but they did NOT. I was only informed that if someone in your party did not show, you will be charged for the seat. I understand THAT but there was no reservation fee or cover charge mentioned. EVER. It was NOT on the website nor any of their social medias. No food or drink prices were on the menu OR the website but with the quality of food and the caliber of the food, I did not expect the price to be too high. (It wasn't high. Just describing the food.) There is a 18% gratuity applied to your check. THEN THE BILL CAME. I ended up paying about $140 for 3 people and 3 meals and 3 (alcoholic) drinks because I was not aware of cover/attendance fee + pricing. I guess that was my fault and I'm willing to take accountability for that. After speaking with two waiters, they directed me to the owner who was was nice but he gave me the vibe that he expected me to know the prices and also directed me to the website, which by the way was not updated or transparent either. The resolution was an apology and I was also told that they would update the website and let people know the pricing going forward.

I wish this establishment nothing but success as it has been a pivotal part of Richmond, VA for YEARSS! Everyone is truly sweet and amazing but this experience left somewhat of a bad taste in my mouth only because of the temperment behind the pricing. Ive been to other drag brunches before but, for some reason, never in Richmond and there was never an attendance fee, you only paid for food and of course tipped the performers. I've been to Godfrey's Friday night drag performances and that was only $5 with no cover fee so I was a little thrown off. Overall, a wonderful experience but...

Attended 11am drag brunch this past Sunday with my party of 7. We were seated and the waiter came to take our drink and brunch orders.

I appreciated the MC mentioning how the food takes a minute because it took well over a minute. Food got 2 stars because of how long it took (many other tables got theirs first and were finished eating by the time we got ours; we got ours well about 70% of the way through the show) and because it was average tasting- it was not worth $33 (wouldn’t have paid that had I known the prices earlier too; they were not on the menu to my knowledge, but I could’ve not looked in the right spot). Would rather them have done a buffet style service in the other room that attendees can go to with one flat rate (I attended a drag brunch that did that and enjoyed it much more since I wasn’t hangry).

Service got 2 stars because our waiter was negligent and did not come to check on us after he initially took our orders, not even once. He came back at the end of the show (a solid hour later) to clear our plates and distribute checks. The other tables’ waiter was on top of it and regularly checked in with them. We couldn’t even check in on our food because our waiter was nowhere to be found. Then I got the tab which includes automatic gratuity for large parties: that waiter got $13! Without that rule, I would have tipped him hardly anything because of the poor service. I had a few bucks leftover from the show that I gave to the busboy because he was more on top of it to ensure all tables were cleared, and gave us more attention than our server.

Atmosphere got a 5 because the queens were great. They catered to an old school crowd with song choices that pleased all ages there. I did wish for a couple more current songs and the show ran a bit long, but it was still enjoyable because of how talented they were.

I knew not to expect a whole lot from a club offering a brunch experience but the service lacking made it so I wouldn’t likely...

The drag brunch at Godfrey’s costs $33 per person, which includes a choice of entrée, unlimited non-alcoholic beverages, and the entertainment fee. Alcohol and gratuity are not included in this price. Honestly, the food and non-alcoholic drinks are nowhere near worth $33. And since you’re expected to tip the performers in cash during the show, why is there even an entertainment fee included in the $33?! 🙃

For food, I ordered the banana-stuffed French toast, which was delicious. My friend had the steak and potato salad but wasn’t thrilled—the steak was overly fatty, although the rest of the salad was good. Keep in mind the food is cooked by a three-person kitchen, so the wait time is significant. We ordered at 2:15, got our food at 2:56, and there were still diners waiting for food well past 3:55.

The cocktails were ridiculously strong—so strong I couldn’t enjoy mine, even after diluting it with plain orange juice. This might be great for those who love strong drinks, but it wasn’t for me.

When it came to the performances, Jermaine was the standout star. He put on a true show and was incredibly entertaining. Avalanche and Monica made an effort with some dancing and crowd engagement, but Alvion was a letdown. Her "performance" mostly consisted of walking around lip-syncing and collecting tips with little effort to entertain. For $33 a person, I expected every performer to bring more to the table. It felt like the focus was on getting tips rather than providing a memorable show. Honestly, I think they push the strong drinks so you don’t realize how lackluster some of the performances are.

For two people (we also ordered one round of cocktails), after tax and tip, our final bill came to $109.70—not counting the cash tips for the performers. It’s an overpriced experience overall, and I won’t be going back. The drag shows at Star Hill Beer Hall are far superior. Their performers actually PERFORM, and you leave feeling like you’ve gotten your...