Farm to glass

Trails where you can get your tipple on are trending. There’s the Charlottesville Ale Trail, the Brew Ridge Trail, and the Nelson 151 Trail. The newest trail is the Fermentation Farm Trail—and it has an intriguing twist.  Featuring six breweries, cideries, and wineries in Louisa County, this trail sets itself apart with its emphasis on […]

Table setter

Merrie Mill Farm & Vineyard owners Elizabeth and Guy Pelly bought the 21-year-old deli and specialty grocery lovingly known as Feast! in January. Now under new direction, the Main Street mainstay is surrounded by pressing questions. (For one, what about the exclamation point?) Elizabeth Pelly recently talked to Knife & Fork about her budding stewardship […]

Peck this

We’ve all seen the pictures on Pinterest—wooden palettes with thoughtful arrangements of salami, a trail of bright dried apricots snaking its way through meat and cheese. For many of us, the art of cheeseboarding seems a little beyond our ability. How do I know which cheese to choose? Which flowers are edible? Where do I […]

Pick a picnic

Event planner Justus Kelley is a designer of dreams. With her business Picnics in VA, she sets the stage for small soirées, ensuring meaningful memories and share-worthy moments.  The process begins with idea-sharing. Clients come to Kelley with their own thoughts for an event, and she brainstorms how to make it happen. “My favorite part […]

Smyrna’s reach

Orhun Dikmen moved to Charlottesville to work in the kind of restaurant most people think of when they think Turkish food. But after six years with his brother at Sultan Kebab, he teamed up with chef Tarik Sengul to take his home country’s cooking to another level at Smyrna. With its blend of Turkish and […]

Surf to turf

On the seminal hip-hop album Enter the Wu-Tang, an interviewer asks the renowned rappers about their ultimate goal. Before Raekwon offers a dubious, circuitous response, Method Man sums it up: “Domination, baby.” Presumably that’s also the endgame for Daniel Kaufman, the Public Fish & Oyster proprietor who’s moving his empire from sea to land with […]

Dinner out (really out)

Whether it’s s’mores in the backyard, burgers and ears of corn on the grill, or fresh-caught fish when you’re camping, there’s something about fresh air and a fire that makes food taste better. Two Fire Table wants to bring that feeling to your next gathering—and you won’t even have to build a bonfire. Two Fire […]

Artful implements

Former restaurateur Vu Nguyen has a new culinary endeavor: creating handmade tools for home cooks, inspired by the pros. Tell me briefly about your background and how it led you to start The Dustworks. I’ve either worked in the food industry or a design-focused company. My foray into food started at Bizou in my last […]

In the round

Is it just us, or are cookies the ultimate treat? They can be sweet, they can be savory, or they can be simple enough to dunk (or daintily dip, pinky up!) in a cup of English breakfast. You can serve them at parties, you can pack them in a kid’s lunch, you can pile them […]

Redefining authentic

Anna Gardner and Kelsey Naylor had been working in Charlottesville kitchens for years—Naylor at L’étoile, TEN, The Alley Light, Gardner at The Ivy Inn, Junction, Oakhurst Inn, and together at Public Fish & Oyster—when they started feeling a burn-out coming on. They decided to take a year off to explore Japan and, when they came […]