The mother: Melissa Close-Hart (Food & Drink Annual 2013)

There are no women on the real Mount Rushmore. Since there still hasn’t been a female U.S. president, there are not even any candidates. Although the realm of restaurant chefs is not quite as male-dominated, it’s not far off. For whatever reason, in Charlottesville as elsewhere, the top restaurant kitchens are still usually run by […]

The family man: Angelo Vangelopoulos (Food & Drink Annual 2013)

Every Easter, chefs, purveyors, foodies, and friends gather for a massive celebration of food and wine centered around the distinctly Greek ritual of roasting a goat outdoors on a spit. Started in 2010, it is now the largest annual gathering of Charlottesville’s food family, and its host is the family’s patriarch, Angelo Vangelopoulos, chef-owner of […]

The teacher: Craig Hartman (Food & Drink Annual 2013)

There is no elite culinary school in Charlottesville. Instead, there is the Clifton Inn. No kitchen has helped to create more local chefs than the Clifton’s, the fine dining restaurant that Craig Hartman built. Hartman first came to town in 1991, when he visited from the Outer Banks of North Carolina to watch a UVA […]

Inspired design: 20 questions with interior designer Rachel Bishop

Resides in: Charlottesville Best known for: Trawling local antique malls, refinishing furniture, and obsessing over design 24/7. 1. Antique or modern? 25 percent antique, 75 percent modern. 2. City or country? Country. 3. Which colors do you use most? Gray, white, and blue. 4. Which materials or textures do you frequently use? Bold patterned fabrics, […]