The Charlottesville 29

Where to eat in Charlottesville

Tag: Mas Tapas

08/30/2012

Mas

501 Monticello Road . Charlottesville, VA . (434) 979-0990
http://www.mastapas.com

 

Why MAS?

What can you do if you want to attend a dinner party but none is planned? Go to MAS, where it feels like like a party every night of the week. At Charlottesville’s original tapas bar, you’ll find a rollicking gala of beautiful food, free-flowing cocktails and wines, and fun-seeking people, all set in a cavernous space inspired by Gaudi and Frank Lloyd Wright. The food is serious. In the two decades since MAS opened, the restaurant has cultivated relationships with the area’s best purveyors. With such high-quality ingredients, they like to keep the cooking simple. The results are often spectacular, warranting a spot in The Charlottesville 29.

What to Order

Our favorite way to eat at MAS is to ask the kitchen to send whatever it wants. A degustacion, of sorts. This not only affirms the dinner party feel of eating at MAS. After all, we wouldn’t order food at a dinner party. It also puts our choices in the hands of the people with the most expertise: the kitchen staff. That being said, there are some regular dishes, below, that we do find ourselves craving again and again. Also below are the chef’s recommendations and appearances in Five Finds on Friday, where chefs and personalities have named a MAS dish one of the best in town.

Our Picks

  • Datil con tocino
  • Habas fritas
  • Gambas al’ parilla
  • Bocadillo
  • Chuletas
  • Porktopus
  • Carne Asada

Chef’s Picks

  • Bikini
  • Plato de Iberico
  • Tomato plate
  • Duck confit with figs
  • Cachetes de ternero
  • Porktopus
  • Clams in coconut green curry

Five Finds on Friday’s Picks

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08/24/2012

Five Finds on Friday: Mark Thompson

Photo by Jen Fariello.

On Fridays, we feature five food finds selected by local chefs or personalities.  As August is Virginia Craft Beer Month, we are following last week’s picks from Blue Mountain’s Taylor Smack with picks from Mark Thompson, Founder and Master Brewer of Starr Hill Brewery.  Tomorrow is not only the Virginia Craft Brewers Fest, but also the start of Starr Hill’s Back to School week, featuring six  consecutive nights of Starr Hill events at bars on UVa’s corner.  Thompson’s picks:

1)  BBQ Sandwich and a cold Northern Lights at Three Notch’d Grill.  Made with love by my lifelong friend Hayden Berry.

2)  Hippie Wings (with Ghost Rider sauce if you dare) and Festie Amber Lager at Fardowners with Grover the chef/owner.  (Hippie Wings are breaded Portabella mushrooms tossed in your choice of sauce.)

3)  Picnic lunch from Greenwood Gourmet Grocery.  The food is as excellent as the company of Dave and Nina.

4)   Gambas al’ Parilla at Mas, to catch up with Tomas, and because you can still taste the garlic the next day.

5)  Any place that serves Starr Hill beer, because the best beer in the world is always the one in front of you.

08/17/2012

Five Finds on Friday: Taylor Smack

On Fridays, we feature five food finds selected by local chefs and personalities.  This week’s picks come from Taylor Smack, co-owner and brewer at the beautiful Blue Mountain Brewery.  Smack’s five picks:

1)  Crispy Pork “Cheerwine” BBQ at Maya.

2)  The Goat Herder at Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar.

3)  Datil con tocino at Mas.    Medjool dates roasted inside of applewood-smoked bacon.

4)  Pad Thai with Tofu at Downtown Thai.

5)  Fried Chicken with Collards at The Whiskey Jar.