A letter from Oregon Hill
L'Opossum
David Shannon's debonair marsupial — whimsical French disciplined by decade in Oregon Hill
A debonair marsupial on China Street
David Shannon — a Culinary Institute of America graduate who spent formative years at The Inn at Little Washington — introduced his debonair marsupial to Oregon Hill in 2014, tucking a tiny, densely decorated dining room into a corner storefront on China Street.
Within two years he was a James Beard Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic semifinalist; by 2018 Southern Living had named L'Opossum the South's Best Restaurant.
Menus written like a playbill
Shannon writes his menu like a vaudeville playbill — dishes with baroque, punny names layered over disciplined French technique.
The result is a room where escargots arrive with ham biscuits, filet mignon Swellington shares a page with vegan compositions, and every plate is meant to disarm before it delights.
The smallest historic district in Richmond
Oregon Hill is Richmond's smallest historic district — a handful of blocks of clapboard rowhouses squeezed between VCU and the James River.
Once a working-class enclave of ironworkers, it now hums with students and long-time residents; L'Opossum sits on a quiet residential corner, its cheerful pink signage the loudest thing on the street.
With gratitude,
David Shannon
Chef & Sole Proprietor, L'Opossum
Order this
The dishes that made L'Opossum
Filet Mignon Swellington
Shannon's signature riff on Beef Wellington — pastry-wrapped filet with a truffled mushroom duxelle and red-wine jus.
Butter-poached Lobster Mac & Cheese
House-cut pasta gratin under a béchamel finished with truffle mornay — the dish most visitors leave describing to friends.
Escargots with ham biscuits
Burgundy snails in garlic butter alongside flaky Virginia ham biscuits — a one-plate summary of the restaurant's French-Southern hyphen.
Good to know
L'Opossum, answered
How do I get a table?
L'Opossum takes reservations 30 days out and books solid within hours — set a calendar reminder for the release time on the website.
The menu names are jokes — is it a joke restaurant?
Read the menu slowly the first time. The dish names are jokes, but the descriptions are entirely earnest — every ingredient listed is on the plate.
Should I save room for dessert?
Yes. Shannon's pastry work is a highlight and often changes weekly.