"No shortcuts taken with the food," Andres Bickford told WSET on Oct. 16. That was the day his three restaurants held their official openings in the food hall at River Ridge.
If you've grabbed lunch near the Chick-fil-A counter lately, you've probably seen the new signs: Andy's Smash Burgers, Cristiano's Pizza and Colca's Express. What's easy to miss is that this is the food hall's second set of tenants in five years. The mall also changed how it chose them. River Ridge went looking for local owners who would be on site every day, and the food hall is one part of a bigger bet that Lynchburg will come to the mall for reasons beyond a shopping list.
The food hall's first lineup
The food hall is newer than most people remember. River Ridge announced plans in January 2021 to replace its old food court. The plan included indoor and outdoor seating, new lighting and a redesigned entrance, according to WSLS. The hall opened on Oct. 19, 2021, with three new concepts, Grounded, ZaZa and Mein Bowl, next to Farmers Garden and Chick-fil-A, WFXR reported.
Five years later, the mall's directory still lists Chick-fil-A and Farmers Garden. The three spots in the remaining space are all new.
| Food hall spot | October 2021 | October 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Anchors | Chick-fil-A, Farmers Garden | Chick-fil-A, Farmers Garden |
| New concepts | Grounded, ZaZa, Mein Bowl | Andy's Smash Burgers, Cristiano's Pizza, Colca's Express |
| Who runs the new concepts | Three separate concepts | One local operator, Colca's Chicken, with co-owner Andres Bickford |
The bottom row is the real change. The new half of the food hall comes from a single local operator, which the News & Advance identified as Colca's Chicken. River Ridge General Manager Melissa Faria told WSET the mall looked for local entrepreneurs who would be involved in day-to-day operations and help deliver a strong customer experience.
What's on the counter now
The three restaurants were already serving customers in a soft opening before the Oct. 16 ribbon cutting. Here's what each one serves, based on WSET's opening-day coverage:
- Andy's Smash Burgers makes thin burgers pressed on a hot griddle. The menu includes the Classic Smash, the Andy Smash with onions and a jalapeño burger. Bickford said he spent months studying smash burgers and visited restaurants around the country before he built the menu.
- Cristiano's Pizza makes New York-style pizza with dough and sauce made from scratch. It sells slices baked to order, whole pizzas, personal pizzas and pasta.
- Colca's Express serves bowls, tacos and burritos built around a burrito bar where you pick your ingredients. It's the second Colca's in Lynchburg and the first Express location. Bickford's shorthand for it is "like Chipotle, but Peruvian."
The restaurants keep the food hall's regular hours: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. That means an early Sunday dinner works but a late one doesn't, which is good to know before you promise a hungry teenager pizza after an evening practice.
The lineup took longer to arrive than first announced. In July, WSET reported the restaurants were expected in September. The official grand opening, with a 10 a.m. ribbon cutting and free samples, ended up on Friday, Oct. 16.
The same idea, outdoors
That July report covered two announcements together: the restaurants and a new outdoor venue. Faria has described them as one strategy, giving people reasons to visit beyond shopping and making River Ridge a year-round community destination.
The outdoor half is The Park at River Ridge. It's an open-air space near the west entrance, by Men's Wearhouse and The Golden Honey, built for live music, community events and family activities. It's open during regular mall hours, so you don't need an event to stop by. WSET described it as part of the mall's broader redevelopment plan to pair traditional retail with more outdoor gathering space.
The grand opening on Aug. 15 leaned on local businesses too. DMFB Yacht Rock Experience and DJ Deeonte played. The vendor list included Bloom by Doyle's, Hichimitsu Chocolates, Tater Tactics, The Lemonade Shark, Playa Bowls, Mission House, AquaZoo and BounceLYH, and Papa Gallo and NitroCow provided refreshments. According to WSET, kids had face painting and could meet a live sloth from AquaZoo. "The turnout is incredible," Faria told the station. "We knew that Lynchburg would turn out and turn up for us."
The mall followed with three evenings of Night Markets & Music on Aug. 28, Sept. 25 and Oct. 23. No November or December dates are on that schedule. Faria said The Park is meant for year-round use, which could mean more night markets, live music and food trucks. For now, the calendar shows a break after October.
The store moves follow the same pattern
The tenant changes inside the mall over the past 18 months fit the same direction.
In April 2025, Rhodora Specialty moved from downtown Lynchburg to River Ridge, WSET reported. That August it added Rhodorable, a toy store spun off from the original shop. In March 2026, Palmetto Moon held the grand opening of its first Virginia store at River Ridge. In July, Men's Wearhouse, Journeys and BNC Sports moved to new storefronts in the West End to expand and reach more customers. Faria told WSET more projects and events were in the works.
Two of those moves sit right next to The Park, since Men's Wearhouse marks its location. The West End now has the stores that moved there for more space and the outdoor venue the mall built for gatherings. It's also the part of the property River Ridge first pointed to for restaurants and entertainment back in its 2021 plans.
What's on the mall calendar through the holidays
With no night markets scheduled for November or December, the holiday events run indoors. Here's what River Ridge has posted:
- Christmas at Seven & James, Monday, Nov. 2, 5 to 8 p.m. The boutique is hosting an evening of holiday shopping with treats, a gift with purchase and a giveaway.
- Santa's Arrival & Tree Lighting, Friday, Nov. 13, 5 to 7 p.m., at the Christmas tree near the Shoe Department Encore entrance. Santa, cocoa and cookies are on the list.
- Photos with Santa, Nov. 14 through Dec. 24, with reservations taken through the mall's Santa page.
The Santa page also lists photo-set hours and sensory-friendly sessions, but parts of it still match last year's calendar. Confirm times with the mall before you build a weekend around a visit. If you're planning one, the food hall's Sunday noon-to-6 hours fit well around a Santa photo slot.
The tree lighting is a short walk from a slice at Cristiano's. Dinner afterward is the kind of trip River Ridge is now trying to get Lynchburg families to make.
I love keeping up with the places that shape a Lynchburg week, whether that's a new burrito bar in the food hall or the Friday night the tree lights up. If you're new to town or just figuring out your family's routine, Jordan Smith is happy to share where we eat, shop and spend weekends around Central Virginia. Let's Connect.
