Metzger Bar & Butchery, the German-leaning restaurant and butcher shop that has anchored a corner of Richmond's Union Hill neighborhood since 2014, is scheduled to close on Dec. 19, 2026. Chef and co-owner Brittanny Anderson announced the closure of the 40-seat spot, ending more than a decade of schnitzel, sausages and sauerkraut-stuffed specialties served out of a 19th-century brick building.
According to Richmond Times-Dispatch, Anderson is the chef and a co-owner of Metzger Bar and Butchery, which sits at 801 N. 23rd St. in Richmond's Union Hill neighborhood. Anderson opened the restaurant in 2014 alongside partners Nathan Conway and Brad Hemp, according to Eater, which also described Metzger as a 40-seat space on the ground floor of a two-story brick building.
The restaurant's name itself signals its culinary identity. The station's report on Metzger's early years noted that metzger is German for butcher, and that Germany and meat were the two themes driving the kitchen. Anderson's menu wound through hearty German touches including sausages, dumplings, bacon, spaetzle, choucroute garnie and pork schnitzel, the same report found.
A Kitchen Rooted in Old-World Technique
Anderson brought serious pedigree to the project. She previously cooked at Blue Hill at Stone Barns in New York and at the Roosevelt in Richmond before striking out on her own, according to Garden & Gun. That outlet also reported that Anderson described her cooking philosophy simply: “I fell in love with taking weird old German ideas and making them new again.”
One dish that captured that philosophy was the trotter au torchon, which included a braised pork trotter and shank stuffed with sauerkraut, rolled, sliced, breaded and deep-fried, per the seed facts behind this story. Anderson learned to make torchon from Nathan Foot at Northern Spy Food Co. in New York, though that restaurant is now closed. Over time, Eater reported, her cooking evolved beyond a single national cuisine into what the outlet called an impressionistic self-portrait, blending European and American flavors.
A Building With Its Own Layered History
The space Metzger occupied carries its own backstory. The building opened in 1892 as a grocery, then became a shoe store before morphing into a gambling hall and, later, a church commissary, Garden & Gun reported. That long, winding history mirrors the restaurant's own evolution from a strictly German-themed concept into something more personal to Anderson.
Photos capturing Metzger over the years show the restaurant's dishes and its longtime chef at work, including morning charcuterie plates built around meats, cheeses, a house-made pretzel roll, soft eggs and fruit, as well as pork schnitzel and gravy served with duck-fat potatoes, sunny-side-up eggs and sausage. A photograph of Anderson at the restaurant was taken on Jan. 13, 2016.
Recognition and a Nod to a Culinary Hero
Anderson's work at Metzger earned her industry recognition early on. She received the Rising Culinary Star Elby Award at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts on Jan. 25, 2015, according to the seed facts tied to this story. Anderson has also spoken about her culinary influences, describing the late chef Anthony Bourdain as a line cook who changed the world.
Those with questions about current hours or reservations in the meantime can reach the restaurant directly at (804) 325-3147.
