The Charlottesville 29

For Charlottesville food trucks, an invitation to Potter’s Craft Cider is like a restaurant’s invite to the James Beard House. The popular cidery draws such large crowds that food trucks have come to covet a gig there, allowing Potter’s owners to be selective. Add in the great taste of owners Dan Potter and Tim Edmond, and it has become known in the food community that an appearance at Potter’s is a stamp of excellence.

Now, Potter’s is upping its food game even more. Food super-couple Ian and Allie Redshaw are helping launch an onsite cafe. Formerly of Prime 109, Lampo, and L’Etoile, Ian once earned a James Beard semifinalist nod for Rising Star Chef of the Year. Allie meanwhile won acclaim for her cooking at places like Timbercreek Market and Pippin Hill, as well as her tenacity in bouncing back from a life-changing accident. Lately, the couple has been out of the restaurant limelight, with time occupied by a catering business and Allie’s pursuit of rockclimbing and amputee advocacy.

What appealed to them about this opportunity? Potter and Edmond. “They hold a really special place in our heart,” said Ian, who first discussed the cafe idea with Potter as they watched their daughters play together on a playground.

The menu is everything you’d expect from chefs as talented and creative as the Redshaws. For the mapo tofu chili dog, they make a Sichuan-meets-Cincinnati style chili from tofu and spoon it atop an Autumn Olive Farm hot dog nestled in an Albemarle Baking Company bun.

For the fried chicken sandwich, they  leave the chicken to the experts at Umma’s, and then assemble it on-site.  “It’s a good thing to eat with cider,” said Ian.

Gluten-free eaters will be particularly happy. Edmond and Potter eat gluten-free, as do many cider drinkers. And so, the entire menu is either naturally gluten-free, or provides a gluten-free alternative.

Potter’s stunning setting and delicious cider already offered a great venue to while away a day. The addition of the Redshaws makes it even more destination-worthy.