Cville Restaurant Recommendations.

So I got a very complimentary email right out of the blue. A reader living in DC will be in town soon, and wanted some quick recommendations for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. So.....without further ado........here is what I sent. Granted, this is based on where I've been since we moved to Cville. Anything I missed is because I haven't been there yet :0) What would you have recommended? Anything different?

BREAKFAST
Zocalo - Excellent Latin-inspired brunch in a gorgeous space. Their Bloody Mary's are the best I've ever had.
Cafe Cubano - Eggs, etc. done Cuban style. Order their cafe con leche - DELICIOUS!
Bluegrass Grill and Bakery - Excellent omelets, huge biscuits, typical southern breakfast stuff - expect a long wait on weekends.
The Nook - Basic, basic, basic eggs n'at - outside is better than inside.

LUNCH:
Bizou - Downscale French bistro - I've NEVER had a bad meal here, and the service is terrific. The grilled banana bread dessert is not to be missed.
Feast! - Delicious sandwiches and take-away food in this gourmet market in the Main Street Market across from Orzo (one of my dinner selections) - profiled in Saveur magazine and the Washington Post.
Eppie's - I try to eat here twice a week - the Santa Monica salad is AWESOME, and their country ham "biscuits" (served on homemade pumpkin bread) is another favorite.
Revolutionary Soup - Excellent soups, sandwiches, and DIVINE shrimp and grits. Everything procured from local producers.
Blue Mountain Brewery - Had to include this one, just for the VIEW - it's at the base of Blue Mountain down in Nelson County, and their stout aged in bourbon barrels is like an elixir!

DINNER:
Mas Tapas - Really good Spanish tapas - highlights include Jamon Paleta Iberico (acorn-fed Spanish ham), marinated anchovies, bacon-wrapped dates, Catalan-style grilled shrimp, and goat cheese/ricotta cheesecake. Their sangria is AWESOME, rich and velvety, and the basil gimlet was a terrifically refreshing cocktail. Sit outside for the true Belmont neighborhood experience.
Orzo Kitchen and Wine Bar - Mediterranean-style wine bar, great food, nice atmosphere (inside the Main Street Market). Their chocolate pot de creme served with a glass of port was a revelation! Had never had that combination before and now I crave it!
Continental Divide - Our favorite casual dinner restaurant - Southwestern slash Tex-Mex with the best margaritas in town. No reservations, just look for the neon sign that says, "Get in here!" Order the red and blue nachos w/goat cheese.

Places I haven't been, but SERIOUSLY need to go to:
C&O Restaurant
Fossett's
Clifton Inn
Palladio (at the Barboursville Vineyard)
Blue Moon Diner
Duner's
Staunton Grocery
Pomme

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Sad Cvillain...

...like Charlie here and his little friend Jackie Coogan, I'm sad.* Working on reviews for Mas, Eppies, Bizou, and Baggby's to name a few (yeah I know, I know - this is why I ain't PAID to review, 'cause I can't keep a frikkin' deadline evidently). But taking a minute here to get on my soapbox and explain.

Why am I sad? I just read at cVillain that Kyle is leaving for various reasons to pursue other opportunities. After reading his post, I can't blame him one bit. But it still makes me sad. He's looking for someone to replace him, but if he doesn't find anyone the site will shut down July 30th.

This is a damn shame because cVillain offers a fresh, unique, sometimes scathing perspective on events and news here in Charlottesville. If we lose it, we'll have to go back to pretending to trust everything we see in our local weeklies, our poor excuse for a daily paper (sorry, just my humble opinion) and on our local news, which sometimes seems like it's all UVA, all the time. We need fresh. We NEED scathing.

There's a great group of people posting over there at cVillain - not only have I learned of events other publications seem to have missed, or chosen to ignore, but I've read some damn fine restaurant reviews. Reviews that made me go, "Oh crap, why haven't I eaten there yet!" and "Sigh. Someone ELSE who writes better than me, why do I bother? AAAGGGGH!" Not to mention how they rallied around me when I went through what I like to call "the troubles" last December. I'll be forever grateful to Ed Ible. He's one helluva guy :0)

Don't let cVillain go away - support free speech. REALLY free speech. Instead of revealing your undying love for Mandy on the free speech wall in pink chalk, post at cVillain. Better yet, email Kyle and tell him you'll help. There's room for EVERYONE in Cville - room for more than one weekly, more than one local food magazine, and room for all opinions whether you agree with them or not. That's what makes Cville interesting, and what keeps it culturally fresh.

Email Kyle if you're interested in managing this rowdy group of folks - they're minding Cville's p's and q's, burning the midnight oil, keeping us real. They're opinionated, sometimes a little intimidating, all the time hysterically funny, but so worth keeping around. Thank you......stepping lightly off soapbox, removing derby, twirling derby in hand, turning on one heel, waddling quietly into the sunset...*

*forgive me, but I'm pouring over Glen David Gould's novel, Sunnyside, and currently obsessed with all things Charlie...damn he was cool.

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Feeding a Crowd...

...this July 4th? Like maybe, two HUNDRED people? Well Davis Creek Farm can help. If you need enough steaks, burgers, or ribs for an army, Davis Creek Farm will have sides of beef (yes, I said SIDES of beef) ready for purchase by June 30. From the "Real Local Food" mailing list:

Greetings Friends,

Just a quick note as we wind down this wonderfully wet, cool Spring. We will have a new batch of beef available for bulk purchase in approximately 2 weeks (June 30th or so).

We will have three quarters, or a half and one quarter, depending on what people want. Each quarter is about 100 lbs (give or take 20 lbs, depending on the animal), while a half is about 200 lbs (give or take 40 lbs). Most Americans eat about 50-60 lbs of meat per year each, so that gives you an idea of the quantities. The cost is $5.25/lb for the final weight of all the individual cuts (which includes a selection of steaks, roasts, and ground beef). So for not much more than ground beef, you're getting a lot more variety at the best price we can offer! It's first come, first serve ... so please call us ASAP at 434-263-5974 if you're interested.

Tim and Elizabeth Davis Creek Farm
info@DavisCreekFarm .com
434-263-5974

P.S. Check out the cool new photos on our Web site (www.DavisCreekFarm.com)

Not sure I would ever have need for this much meat, but isn't it nice to know that here in Cville, we always have the option...Mmmmmm, suddenly feel like having a burger for dinner....

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No More Italian Ice!

It's a sad day in Cville, because Rita's is no more. The Charlottesville Rita's Italian Ice *WAS* located on The Corner, next to College Inn on University Avenue. No more Lemonade, Mango, Cherry, Cotton Candy, or Key Lime. No more Custard. Boo!

Hubby discovered this just today when he got a hankering for some Mango on what appears to be the first day here that actually FEELS like summer. Hazy + Hot + Humid = Italian Ice Time. Found the Rita's shuttered, not just shut for the summer, but EM-TEE. No sign, no ice, no nothing.

Frick! Frick! Frick! We loved Rita's in Pittsburgh, and I was so excited when one opened in Cville - it was like we'd brought a bit o' the Burgh with us. Oh well. Our first victim of the 2009 summer season. Not the first establishment to fail once the hungry minions leave for the summer, and certainly not the last. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you have a favorite place, frequent it as much as you can. Not because you'll help it stay afloat, but because you might find it gone the next week...

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Peaches.

With summer's arrival, some people look forward to baseball season, some people look forward to fireflies, some people look forward to trips to the beach or grilling outdoors or strawberry picking or summer vacation. I look forward to peaches.

This is a new phenomenon. As a kid, I could take them or leave them. Because I could never eat them. I could NEVER eat fresh peaches. Ice cream, canned (in heavy syrup ALWAYS) were fine, but fresh? Never. Even a small sliver would cause my throat to close up like a clogged artery and then the itching would start. Ever see Meg Ryan in French Kiss when she overdoses on cheese? Kinda like that---well, sorta---except with me it's not lactose intolerance...instead it's UNBELIEVABLE itching, like a mosquito was stinging my esophagus. Itchy itchy itchy. I'd sit there scratching my neck even though all the agony was inside - hoping somehow the scratching would magically sink under the skin and take away my suffering. My mother thought I was making it up, I mean, who's ever heard of someone being allergic to FRUIT? This was the early 70's mind you - not like today when every other kid is allergic to almost everything. She'd insist I was lying, and make me eat them anyway. For my health. And I would itch. And itch. And itch.

As an adult, I'd continue to endure. Sometimes. I do love peaches, their juicyness, the sweetness, nibbling around and around the fuschia-colored stone inside. But half the time I wouldn't bother, because frankly the peach itself wasn't worth the suffering. They'd be hard, tasteless things. So hard they'd almost be apple crunchy and so devoid of taste they resembled a turnip. Good ol' Safeway peaches. We didn't live near any orchards. Strawberry fields yes, but orchards no.

By last year I'd kind of given up - just not worth the effort or the itching. And then our first CSA peaches arrived. Told Hubby he could have them. Itchy esophagus? Not today please. But then he ate one and his eyes went all wide. Starting making yummy noises. Ate another and the noises started getting R-rated! Weeeeelll, okay, maybe just one bite...

...and with that one bite I was transformed. These peaches were from another frikkin PLANET. It was like Brett (of our lovely CSA) clambored and clawed his way up Mount Olympus and plucked a peach right out of Aphrodite's hand. There she was on her chaise lounge, arm raised over mouth ready to sink her teeth into a perfect peach - and Brett grabs it away, running down the hill like he's Jack in the Beanstalk and that peach is a golden egg. Ol' Venus lying there, thinking, "WTF?!?!?" because all she sees are the bottom of his shoes. Down the mountain he goes, placing that perfect peach into our own little CSA box.

And not only was this peach juicy and sweet beyond belief, but it SMELLED like a peach. None of the Safeway peaches of my childhood ever smelled like anything. Maybe a cold, wet "fridgey" smell from sitting in the produce aisle, but never like a peach. Had to buy hand lotion if I wanted to smell peaches. When I first smelled it, I thought, "Wow, this smells like hand lotion! Or peach cobbler! Or canned peaches!" then had to stop myself. Idiot, it's a PEACH. This is what it's SUPPOSED to smell like!

It draws you in, intoxicating you with its smell, then drives a glancing blow to your taste buds with the first bite. The flesh actually falls away from the pit. No more hacking and sawing to remove every bit of peachy goodness. This peach peels itself from the pit as easy as a navel orange.

And get this.

Absolutely. No. Itching.

No itching! Not even a trace. Did I grow out of the allergy when I wasn't looking? Tested the theory, gritted my teeth, and bought a Harris Teeter peach. One sliver and the itching began. Yuck, yuck, yuck. Two hours of hell. NOT a good memory to relive.

So it's CSA peaches for me from now on. Our first batch arrived last week and lasted maybe a day at the most. Ate two right away. Saved the rest to eat alone, or with yogurt. Would like to make a pie or a cobbler with some, but something tells me they just won't last that long...

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Peas in the Pod.

Second entry in the "Cooking Away My CSA Challenge!" Horse and Buggy CSA Day! Woot! Woot! Today's share included Bibb lettuce, more zucchini and squash (which means more pickles), beets with gorgeous purple tops (can you actually eat these?), cherries, peaches (FINALLY!) and a huge freaking head of cabbage. So big it barely fits in my fridge. It's like a big freaking Cabbage Patch Doll head. What should I do with it besides stink up my house making sauerkraut? Any suggestions?

Was hoping for more spring peas like we got the past two weeks (artsy fartsy picture attempted above). One of the terrific things about joining Horse and Buggy's CSA is that you get things like peas in the pod. I've lived 40-some-odd years on this earth without ever eating peas directly from the pod. And after the past two weeks I don't think I will ever eat them any other way. So fresh, so green. They taste like a spring day in a meadow with a soft breeze blowing on your face as you lay on a blanket and let the sun melt away your winter's outer crust. Or something like that.

I shelled them (doesn't take nearly as long as you'd expect, and SO worth it) then did a quick saute. They were sublime.

Saute of Spring Peas
Melt about 2 tbsp of butter in a saute pan
Add a quick swirl of olive oil (so the butter won't burn)
Saute chopped shallots
Add peas, saute about 2-3 minutes (to al dente)
Add a bit of chicken stock and simmer 2 minute or so
Take off the heat, and add a quick swirl of lemon juice (for acid)
Sprinkle chopped herb of your choice before serving (thyme or lemon basil are nice)

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Zucchini Pickles.

So we're right at the sort-of-beginning-just-moseying-to-the-middle part of the CSA season. Totally inundated the past few weeks with greens of all shapes and sizes (kale, swiss chard, lettuce) and by this point we're DROWNING in spring onions. Any ideas? Short of grilling them up and serving with romesco sauce (a la Tony Bourdain<---click on "Wine, Onions, and Gastronomy") I'm stumped as to what to do. Suggestions wanted!

Last year we were pretty good about using up all the veggies - even when an especially cold, rainy spring left us drowning in greens. If it had been money, we'd have been millionaires! We'd throw them in salads or saute them up with olive oil, sea salt, and crushed red pepper. Despite our best efforts, though, some of the CSA STILL ended up as compost.

So I am THRILLED to discover a new movement by a food blogger called "Flourgrrrl" to make sure no beautiful Horse and Buggy CSA produce is wasted. The Cooking Away My CSA Challenge is a Google group formed to do just that. Cook it all away. By sharing recipes and tips for preserving produce, we hope to expand our horizons and stretch our CSA dollar for all its worth.

I'll post simple recipes every so often and pass along any especially yummy creations*. In the meantime feel free to sign up for the emails yourself. They even have a nifty little badge you can grab for your own blog! (I grabbed. Am such a sucker for a cute badge :0)

Last week zucchini and squash season officially began. Six yellow and green veggies plunked unceremoniously into our basket. Was Brett (Horse & Buggy's jolly purveyor) actually snickering? Because he knows darn well these things multiply if you even BREATHE on them! Because he knows by August we'll be shouldering the fridge closed to keep them all in. No way brutha! Rather than letting them languish in the fridge, where they would somehow quadruple in a week, I took quick action. Pickling some, grilling the rest. Four zucchini and two yellow squash were thenceforth killed with one fell SWOOP (and delicious besides):

Spicy Pickeled Zucchini: (also works great with yellow squash)

• Slice crosswise, discarding the ends.
• Throw into a small tupperware with a lid.
• Cover with rice wine vinegar.
• Sprinkle a generous portion of crushed red pepper over the top.
• Fasten the lid and refrigerate for at least an hour.
• Crunch away! These keep about a week, and are delicious sprinkled on salad or all by themselves.

Grilled Zucchini and Squash:

• Toss with olive oil, sea salt, fresh ground pepper.
• Grill until blackened.
• EAT! Watch out for Hubby's stabbing fork as you and he vie for the ones with the yummy charred bits on them.

And there you have it - two easy peasey recipies for zucchini and squash. It is your solemn CSA duty to take care of business before they multiply. Don't say you haven't been warned...

*First one to share? A recipe for KALE CHIPS! YUMMMMMM!

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Top Chef's Fabio.

Okay, I fully realize this post has absolutely NOTHING to do with Cville. Nada. Nothing. But it's Saturday night and I'm home. It's raining. And I'm Tweeting. I happen to follow Fabio Viviani's Tweets. You know, Fabio? The cute Italian eliminated too early in my opinion from the last season of Top Chef? I heart him so much. This man exudes charisma. Some executive needs to give him a television show, like......YESTERDAY. He Tweeted this tonight and it made me HOWL - because turns out, he tweets like he talks. In a heavy Italian accent oozing charisma, charm, and ZEXYness!



Hubby and I walk around quoting him whenever Top Chef is mentioned. On the show one chef kept making scallops for her entree in every challenge. His response? "It's Top CHEF, not top SCALLOP!" He cuts his thumb badly during a challenge. Will he quit? "It's Top Chef, not top PUSSY!"

Both statements thrown out there in an accent dripping with sexy charisma. He's being mean, but in such a nice way you can't help but laugh. He seems like the kind of guy that knows all his customers' names, gives them all a big hug, and pours them all a big ol' glass of homemade limoncello whenever they walk in the door. Adores his wife like she's a goddess, and dresses up like Wonder Woman for Halloween. And shows everyone pictures. And brags about it. An all-around good dude who happens to cook like a Sicilian grandmother. Crushed on him so hard that whole season (as I'm sure a lot of people did) and if I ever met him, I'd buy him grappa after grappa for giving me something to look forward to every Wednesday night. The man is just damn entertaining.

So the Cville hook? Hmmmm......would someone here purdy please put 48-hour braised lamb shanks on their menu? Because those looked like HEAVEN on a plate...and how about some grappa people? That stuff is lethal, but SO yummy with Italian food. And if the CSA's offered Meyer lemons (yeah right) I sure as hell would attempt to make my own limoncello. Hell, I might anyway - ol' Harris Teeter citrus would probably work just fine...

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Rhubarb.

Feast your eyes on the deliciousness that is my Hubby's strawberry rhubarb pie. Made with his tender hands using only the best Horse and Buggy CSA rhubarb and strawberries. Schhhhhhhlup!

Was meandering home today through the heart-in-your-mouth country hills that are my neighborhood, listening to Glen David Gold's* new book, Sunnyside on the ol' iPod. His words are like elixir - I swear when I saw he had written a new book it was Christmas morning. I jumped up and down in the local B&N, clapping my hands like a leetle gurrrl. Carter Beats the Devil was one of my all time favorites. Imagine Charles Dickens meets Stephen King with a healthy dose of Stephen Millhauser. Add a dash of Fitzgerald with a sprinkling of Tom Robbins. This man can yarn better than an old timer holding court on the General Store's porch.

Anyway, Gold mentions strawberry-rhubarb pie at one point. Some poor sap who'd just been beat all-to-hell-black-and-blue sees this just-out-of-the-oven perfection and slams his entire paw into it like he's Little Jack Horner. Ate the wad of pie goo, licked his fingers, and thought, "What a GOOD boy am I!" (okay, not really, I added that part).

The passage was so descriptive it reminded me my own sweet thang had baked a rhubarb treat for us a few weeks back. I photographed it from every angle, cursing the whole time at my inability to capture its sweet-tart goodness - and then ate it. We finished the entire thing in a night. In my rhubarb-induced stupor I TOTALLY forgot to write about it. There the picture sat for weeks, languishing. It took ol' Glen David's mastery of the written word to remind me. I blame it on the pie. Twas so damn good I plumb forgot to describe it. It also causes me to descend into unneccessary colloquial "country tawk" (as you can see).

Forgive me for sounding too much like Joy Turner, but that pie was SO GOOD! Sweet red berries hit you first, and then BLAM! the tart of the rhubarb. It knocked my socks off so much I insisted rhubarb become a prominent fixture in our first garden. Luckily it's easy to grow and propagates with the ease of a horny rabbit. Hubby tells a story about his brother who as a child was tilling the garden and dug up all his father's prize rhubarb, thinking they were weeds. No matter, the stuff quadrupled overnight and came back ten-fold the next year. They were eating rhubarb on everything for eons.

Hope our little plant is just as hardy. We're in the midst of a thunderstorm you see and there our rhubarb sits. Still in its tiny plastic cup, freshly purchased from Edible Landscaping, on our back porch. Being pummeled by penny-sized hail - and me too chickenshit to dodge the things and save my little pie-making paradise. Sigh. Wish us luck. The above picture may be all we have of the 2009 rhubarb harvest...

* I positively LOVE that I'm linking to a blog he wrote about why he doesn't blog...

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