The Charlottesville 29

Where to eat in Charlottesville

Tag: Public Fish & Oyster

05/22/2026

Five Finds on Friday: Gerry Sweeney

Today’s Five Finds on Friday come from Gerry Sweeney, involved in two businesses that have been busy lately. For one, he is Brand Ambassador for Eastwood Farm and Winery, which has just revamped the Virginia Wine Collective, the incubator for nine small local winemakers, which is now open Wed-Fri, serving thin-crust pizzas, appetizers, wine flights, and draught beer. Meanwhile, with his wife Susan, he co-owns Cake Bloom which recently expanded and relocated to 120 10th St. NW. Sweeney’s picks:

1) Chicken Wings with Alabama Sauce or Dry Rub at Vision BBQ. “I’ve been following Mike Blevins — and his smoked chicken wings — for years, and they’re hands down the best in town. My go-to after-work pitstop these days is Vision for a plate of wings and Bitburger, and when my wife asks what’s for dinner, I order more smoked chicken and take it home for an easy taco dinner.”

2) El Capitan at Beer Run. “Morning, noon, or night, this place checks all the boxes. Unpretentious, quality food, good people, and, of course, the beer. On weekends, the breakfast tacos plus a National Bohemian win every time. Thank you, John Woodriff.”

3) Carnitas Tacos at La Michoacana. “Edgar Gaona’s carnitas tacos at La Michoacana are the real deal — raw white onion, the perfect bit of cilantro, and no slaw nonsense. A cold Pacifico in the free hand, and I could swear I was back at my favorite taqueria in Sonoma. Same story, too. Started in a truck, earned the brick and mortar. Every bite tastes like someone who’s been chasing this exact pork shoulder his whole life.”

4) Oysters at Public Fish & Oyster. “When my wife and I are missing our old haunts on Tomales Bay, we meet for a Tuesday happy hour date. A dozen or two oysters, a couple of Narragansett tallboys, frites, and some properly charred Brussels sprouts, and we’re the happiest East Coasters in the world.”

5) Double Cheeseburger at Riverside Lunch. “The lollipop place, as my daughter Lucy calls, is exactly what a hometown burger joint should be. Double cheeseburger, fries, onion rings, a sweating Miller High Life, and a staff that treats you — and your kid — like a regular from day one. Nothing here is reinventing the wheel, and that is precisely the point.”

02/09/2024

Five Finds on Friday, A Love Story: Susan Jackiewicz

Susan Carla Jackiewicz (August 29, 1966 – December 14, 2023)

In a special edition for Valentine’s Day, this week’s Five Finds on Friday celebrates one of Charlottesville’s great love stories.

There is one thing all love stories share. They end.

Some say that the inevitability of their ending is what gives love stories meaning. “Knowing that this can’t go on forever,” sings Jason Isbell, is why lovers hold hands and make plans, in their finite time on Earth. If “death was a joke,” he says, we wouldn’t feel the need.

Here in Charlottesville, the love story of Justin Ide and Susan Jackiewicz inspired the community for more than a decade. They held hands and made plans. But, their time together was unexpectedly cut short in December.

Justin is a photographer whose photos have appeared on this site, as well as much more distinguished publications. Susan was a health care professional, “bonus mom” and caretaker of family, friends, and Labradors. She was the love of Justin’s life, and their shared food experiences were a big part of their union. Susan fell for Justin on their first date, she said, because he made “Brie en Croûte with Pistachios” for her.

Susan especially loved the Charlottesville food community, and in this week’s Five Finds on Friday, Ide shares some of her favorites. Also near to her heart was Local Food Hub. If you are inclined, remember Susan with a donation in her name.

1) Baguettes from Albemarle Baking Company. “The importance of bread in our life together is right up there with oxygen and dogs, and the baguettes from Gerry Newman at ABC were essential elements of our Friday night ‘dinners.’ Often, not just on Fridays, we would stop at Feast!, pick up cheese, salami, pate and some Crose from King Family Vineyards, and have a simple ‘country picnic’ in the living room, or make the trip to King Family here in Crozet.”

2) Cheeseburger at Jack Brown’s. “In March 2023, Susan, a lover of cooking shows and competitions, decided we needed to have our own Charlottesville competition, and she chose the cheeseburger. In the past we’ve done ‘tour de baguette’ while we were in France, ‘tour de Gelato’ in Italy, and even a ‘tour de cannoli’ when we lived in Boston, but here it was with the cheeseburger. Before Susan passed, we ate fourteen different burgers and judged them on ten different categories. We each ate the same exact burger combo each time, to be fair. Although we didn’t manage to get to every place on our list, Jack Brown’s was by far the best burger we had in town, and sitting there at the bar will be a great memory for me.”

3) Lobster Roll at the bar at Public Fish & Oyster. “We are New Englanders through and through, and when we found out that Public had lobster rolls at the bar during happy hour, we were sold. With John, another New Englander, behind the bar, and always ready with a Kir Royale for Susan, we were happy campers. Just don’t try and convince us there is any other way to eat a lobster roll other than the way they do in Maine.”

4) Polpettine Al Forno at Lampo. “It goes without saying that Lampo is one of the best places in town for just about anything they have on the menu. But the combination of beef and pork meatballs is out of this world. You get six meatballs per order, but one order was never enough for the two of us, and we would often order an extra one to-go, because they were that good.”

5) Farm to Batteau with James River Batteau and Two Fire Table. “This is the outlier on the list because not many people have experienced this yet, but 2024 is going to be the year that this experience blows up, I assure you. Last October, just two months before Susan passed, we had the good fortune to spend an evening on the James River and eat the delicious food prepared by Sarah Rennie of Two Fire Table. Cooked over an open fire, as you float on a Batteau, the locally sourced sausages and fish were amazing, and the atmosphere as the sun set put the experience over the top.”

 

 

12/29/2023

Five Finds on Friday: Rachel Gendreau

Today’s Five Finds on Friday come from Rachel Gendreau, of Crush Pad, Luce, and Bizou. A Certified Sommelier, Gendreau these days is most often at Crush Pad, where if you walk in and ask her to choose a glass, a bottle, or even a case, you will walk out happy. “I am blessed to eat and drink exceptionally well in my line of work with Vincent & Co., and so this was a major challenge,” said Gendreau. “I went with the dishes I returned to most often this past year, the things that make my heart happy and were always enjoyed in beloved company.” Gendreau’s picks:

1) Skip Burger at Blue Moon Diner. “Somehow both tragically hip yet endlessly welcoming, everything about the Blue Moon vibe is immaculate, and Laura is truly the coolest. I’ve been coming religiously for the Skip Burger since I was in college, a slightly runny egg, perfectly medium rare patty, crisp LTO, bacon, melty cheddar, side of fries (dipped in mayo, because I’m a monster), and invariably accompanied by a bottle of the house bubbles to share. THE breakfast burger to cure anything that ails ya.”

2) Boat Noodles at Thai Cuisine & Noodle House. “Thai Cuisine is my go-to Thai spot for sure, and while Jay and his crew always deliver exceptional pho and curries, I’m a Boat Noodle girl for life. Something about that dark, rich broth and the chew of the noodles, tons of cilantro and scallions, bulked up with an extra portion of Gai Lai. Oh baby.”

3) Celery Salad at Birdhouse. “I am lucky to live in a killer food neighborhood, and having this gem within walking distance is a beautiful and dangerous thing. Liz’s expertly curated low-intervention wine list is a major draw, as is the achingly perfect chicken and sides the kitchen turns out, but nothing has my heart quite like the celery salad – a light, refreshing, texturally perfect foil to all of the schmaltzy goodness on the table.”

4) French Onion Croissant at Cou Cou Rachou. “Another neighborhood delight, and one with which I share a name. My daughters and I allow ourselves carte blanche and always leave much poorer, but with a box full of sweet and savory masterpieces. We are fond of the quiche-lets, the caneles, the sourdough, the giant cookies, and whatever mousse is in the fridge upon arrival, but the French Onion Croissant rocks our world every single time. Get two, trust us.”

5) Lobster Roll and Oysters at Public Fish & Oyster. “Nobody does happy hour quite like Public – snag a couple of early barstools, and let John make you a pristine Negroni. Order a dozen dealer’s choice bivalves, always expertly shucked, and work your way through them while waiting for a generously portioned lobster roll (Maine-style or bust, fight me). Add a glass of sharp, saline Muscadet, and you’ll probably hear me purring from West Main Street.”