Robious Landing Park Is Booming Around the Edges.

Is the Park Itself Keeping Up?

Short answer: mostly. The river trail at Robious Landing Park is still closed with no reopening date, and the floating dock damaged in the same storm is back in service. Neither has slowed down what's happening around the park.

I've had three separate clients ask me about this park in the last month alone, one wanting to know if the trail closure was a dealbreaker for a house nearby, two just curious what all the new restaurant buzz near Robious and Huguenot was about. Turns out those two questions are more connected than they look.

I've sold homes in Midlothian for a good chunk of my 25 years in this business, and this stretch along Huguenot and Robious is one I watch closely. So here's a straight rundown of what's actually open, what's not, and why the corridor around this park keeps outrunning the county's own repair list.

Is Robious Landing Park Fully Open Right Now?

Mostly, but not entirely. The park sits on 102 acres along the James River with 3.4 miles of trails, a boat slide for canoes and kayaks, fishing access, picnic shelters, and a sand volleyball court. It's open daily from 8 a.m. to dusk, it's free, and James River High School sits right next door, so it gets foot traffic well beyond the weekend crowd.

Heavy rain and high water washed out a section of the riverside trail, and Chesterfield County has it closed indefinitely so the bank can re-vegetate. That part hasn't changed. The floating dock took damage in the same storm and was slated for replacement, and current park listings show it back in use for fishing and paddle access. I couldn't pin an exact reopening date from the county, so if you're planning a trip around it, call the park office first. 804-748-1623 gets you there.

"The park you remember from two summers ago might have less river access than it did then, even while everything scheduled on top of it keeps drawing bigger crowds."

So Why Did the Dragon Boat Festival Still Draw a Crowd?

Because it didn't need the closed section. The 15th Annual Richmond International Dragon Boat Festival ran August 1 at Robious Landing, with teams racing 500 meters up the James while the bank hosted a wellness village, food trucks, and an Asian Cultural Expo. Free to watch, no tickets required.

The race course and the closed trail simply don't overlap, which is exactly why most spectators never noticed the fencing at all.

What's Next on the Park's Calendar?

The Robious Landing Triathlon returns September 20, with sprint triathlon, duathlon, aquabike, and kids' races. Entry runs $70 to $170 depending on the event, and pricing steps up after August 20 for anyone who waits. 🏊

Same story here. The swim leg uses the river, the bike and run use park roads and paths, and none of it touches the fenced-off trail. The park is big enough to route around its own repair list without anyone having to think twice.

What's New to Eat Near Robious Landing Park?

It's not new, but it's still hot and it's closest to the park itself: Wild Ginger, a Pan-Asian spot at 3734 Winterfield Road, about a mile away. If you're pulling off the trail or the dock and want something quick before you head home, this is the one that's actually close.

A few minutes north at the Robious and Huguenot intersection, Rock N Roll Sushi opened its first Virginia location on July 20 at the Shoppes at Belvedere, right where the farmers market sets up. It's the chain's 78th location, started in a 1,000-square-foot space in Alabama back in 2010. Owners Justin Jones and Chad Ellis are VCU grads who scouted the whole Richmond region before landing here.

Worth the short drive out Midlothian Turnpike: Midlothian Chef's Kitchen and its sister restaurant 1870, both run by Chef David Dunlap. Dunlap came up through The Inn at Little Washington as Executive Sous Chef and ran the kitchen as Corporate Executive Chef for Quirk Hotels before going out on his own. Midlothian Chef's Kitchen has been voted Best Restaurant in Chesterfield by Richmond Magazine, and 1870 is his French-inspired steakhouse in the old Jewett-Bass building. Neither is next door to the park, but both are close enough to make a night of it. The rebuilt Brick House Diner at Westchester Commons falls in the same category, a bit further out toward Route 288, worth knowing about but not a walk from the water.

"You don't move to this corner of Midlothian for what's next door to the park. You move here because everything worth driving to is ten minutes away in any direction."

Are the Farmers Markets Growing Too?

Yes, and the closest one has been running for years. The Huguenot-Robious Farmers' Market sets up every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the parking lot of the Great Big Greenhouse, right at the corner of Huguenot and Robious. It's year-round, moving indoors from mid-November through March, and it's the kind of market you build a Thursday errand around without thinking twice.

On the Bon Air side, the Bon Air Farmers Market fills the churchyard at St. Michael's Episcopal on McRae Road, Thursday evenings from 4 to 7 p.m. through the summer. It's smaller, more neighborhood than destination, but it's the closer option if you're coming from the Robious Road side of the park.

The Latino Farmers Market, which relocated this season to a larger field behind the Chesterfield Career and Technical Center on Hull Street Road, is worth the trip too. It runs Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. through October 31, with organizer America DeLoach of Salsas Don Sebastian expecting at least 50 small businesses this season. It's a longer drive from the park than the other two, closer to twenty minutes, but it's grown enough to be worth planning around.

Common Questions About Robious Landing Park

Is Robious Landing Park open right now?

The park itself is open daily from 8 a.m. to dusk. A section of the riverside trail is closed indefinitely for erosion repair, so check with the park office before you plan a full loop.

Can I still kayak or fish there?

Yes. The boat slide and fishing access are unaffected by the trail closure, and the floating dock is back in service. Confirm current conditions with the county before you go, since river access can shift after heavy rain.

What's new to eat near Robious Landing Park?

Wild Ginger on Winterfield Road is the closest sit-down option, about a mile from the park. Rock N Roll Sushi just opened at the Shoppes at Belvedere, at Robious and Huguenot, and Midlothian Chef's Kitchen and 1870 are a short drive out Midlothian Turnpike.

When's the next big event at the park?

The Robious Landing Triathlon runs September 20, 2026, with sprint triathlon, duathlon, aquabike, and kids' events. Registration pricing increases after August 20.

What This Means If You're Looking at This Corner of Midlothian

None of this means the park is falling behind in any way that matters day to day. It means the neighborhood around it is growing faster than the county's repair timeline, and that's worth knowing before you make a decision, not after. Check trail status before you head to the river, expect a full dining scene when you get there, and don't expect any of it, the restaurants, the markets, or the race calendar, to wait around for the county to finish its repair list.

📱 Call or text: 804-416-HOME
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Want to talk through what any of this means for your search or your home's value? I track what's opening and changing in Midlothian as closely as I track the comps. Reach out and let's set up a time.

Sources: Chesterfield County Parks and Recreation facility listings; Richmond International Dragon Boat Festival event listings; Robious Landing Triathlon registration (Live Red Foundation); Franchising.com and Axios Richmond on the Rock N Roll Sushi opening; Axios Richmond and WRIC 8News on the Brick House Diner move; Richmond Magazine, OpenTable, and 1870restaurant.com on Chef David Dunlap; Richmond Magazine on the Latino Farmers Market; Great Big Greenhouse on the Huguenot-Robious Farmers' Market; Bon Air Farmers Market listings for St. Michael's Episcopal; Tripadvisor and local neighborhood guides for restaurant distances from the park. As of publication, exact reopening timing for the Robious Landing dock had not been confirmed in a dated county announcement, and off-season hours for the Bon Air Farmers Market were not verified, confirm both before publishing.