Park it in Belmont It’s no secret that the lack of convenient restaurant parking can make dining in Belmont a little less than desirable, especially on the weekends. Now, on Friday and Saturday nights starting at 6pm, drivers from Southern Star Valet are on hand outside tavola and The Local to deal with the hassle […]
On Fridays we feature five food finds selected by local chefs or personalities. This week’s picks come from Doug McLeod, chef of Duner’s. McLeod’s picks: 1) Chicken and Waffles at Ace Biscuit & Barbecue. “One of my guilty pleasures, best Southern food in town.” 2) Dried Fried Eggplant Szechuan Style at Taste of China. “I find myself craving them. And the service is […]
Pick your pasta, pick your sauce. It’s a simple concept, and one that Morocco native Karim Sellam hopes will bring more life to his Venetian-inspired restaurant in the Ix building. Introducing Al Dente Pasta Café, a classic Italian restaurant that’s open for lunch, dinner, coffee breaks, and everything in between. Ristorante Al Dente, which Sellam […]
Two coffee shops become one Last week, the owners of Para Coffee, the homey coffee shop tucked away on Elliewood Avenue where UVA students and professors camp out for hours with lattes and textbooks, announced that they’ve purchased Café Cubano on the Downtown Mall. Para owners Eric Kelley, Brad Uhl, and Brandon Wooten, who founded […]
I’ve done this several times, all with the same result. I hand a patron a translucent, orange-tinged beverage. They look at it curiously and shrug, and I wait for them to take their first sip. First their face wrinkles in confusion. Then there is cautious enjoyment. Then, even more intense confusion. What follows for some […]
It’s 9:30pm on a Thursday. Mono Loco is finishing up dinner service. But the kitchen crew is just getting ready to start things up. They change into their street clothes and head over to Mas. It’s 10am the next day. The Hamilton’s staff is walking toward the Downtown Mall spot for lunch service. A few […]
On Fridays, we feature five food finds selected by local chefs and personalities. This week’s picks come from Stephanie Williams of La Vache Microcreamery, maker of extraordinary handmade caramels. A modern day renaissance woman, the mother of two is a trained architect who also co-founded the outstanding wine buying club The Wine Guild, and occasionally combines her loves […]
While some of us were glued to the TV last Sunday as Costa Rica defeated Greece in a nail-biting penalty shootout, one of Charlottesville’s own was showcasing his skills in a slightly different arena. On Sunday, June 29, Flora Artisanal Cheese owner Nadjeeb Chouaf competed in the fifth annual Cheesemonger Invitational in New York and […]
Restaurant Week is just around the corner For the second time this year, Restaurant Week is almost upon us! More restaurants than ever are participating this time around, so go ahead and start making your reservations and loosening your belt. Beginning Saturday, July 19, and continuing throughout the week until Saturday, July 26, 35 Charlottesville restaurants, including old […]
Making only 12 delicious sandwiches a month for an entire city is just plain cruel. And Hamiltons’ Sandwich Lab isn’t likely to stop the torture any time soon. The first elusive Sandwich Lab sandwich was announced on Facebook on April 3. The guys in the kitchen of Hamiltons’ at First & Main, the posh Downtown […]