The Charlottesville 29

If there were just 29 restaurants in Charlottesville, what would be the ideal 29?

Tag: The Wine Guild

Five Finds on Friday: Hurt and Garcia

morgan

Today’s Five Finds on Friday come from Morgan Hurt and Gabe Garcia of Kitchen Catering & Events, which has just launched a sandwich shop at their catering kitchen, offering a menu of their favorite sandwiches. Like the Brooklyn-inspired Hot Wet Beef. Hours are Wednesday through Friday from 11 am – 3 pm, on Rivanna Ave off Harris St. Kitchen Catering & Events also hosts a regular pop-up restaurant at The Wine Guild’s Wednesday wine tastings, with themes changing each week. Next up, on Wednesday, May 3, is A Night in Portugal, with Portuguese wines and cuisine. Hurt’s and Garcia’s picks:

1) Fried Calamari at Vivace. “This is at the top of our list. Perfectly fried and crispy, with those fried hot peppers and marinara sauce, delicious! And you really can’t beat their patio — the best in town!”

2) Cheeseburger at Riverside Lunch. “Always good, fast and cheap, and the sweetest waitresses in the world. Recovery food, for sure!”

3) Nachos at Beer Run. “Simply the best nachos in town. However, The Bebedero’s are pretty amazing too!”

4) Turkey Dip at Ace Biscuit & BBQ. “Amazing! Sometimes you want BBQ, but you just don’t want pork, you know? The turkey dip is smoky, drippy, and delicious.”

5) The Big Schloss at Dr. Ho’s Humble Pie. “A perfect pizza!  All of their pizzas are perfect, but we’ve just been featuring this one at our house recently.”

Five Finds on Friday: Michael Davis

MDavis

On Fridays, we feature five food and drink finds from local chefs and personalities.  Today’s picks come from Michael Davis, owner of The Wine Guild of Charlottesville. The wine-buying club’s next wine tasting and pop-up restaurant night is Wednesday, November 18, starting at 5:30 pm, at Kitchen Catering & Events, at 606 Rivanna Ave.  Open to the public, “A Night in South Africa” will feature seven staff-selected wines from South Africa, with food available for purchase by Kitchen Catering & Events and cheese plates by Nadjeeb Chouaf of Flora Artisanal Cheese. Davis’ picks:

1) Fried Chicken And Collard Greens at The Whiskey Jar.  “As a wine geek, I always think about ‘pairings,’ which is why I love to eat at The Whiskey Jar on Wednesday nights when the Rick Olivarez Trio is playing. There is something magical about the combination of that room with Rick’s flawless Gypsy Jazz. It takes you back in time and makes this California transplant feel truly southern.”

2) Horse’s Neck at The Livery Stable. “I like to take local winemakers to this subterranean watering hole and hear stories of how they give mother nature the middle finger year after year. Jake Busching, winemaker at Michael Shaps Wineworks gets his mail at this place, so grab the stool next to him and enjoy the ride . . . and the Horse’s Neck.”

3) Erin Scala at Fleurie.  “Ok, so Erin is not a food, she’s an experience. I love to sit at the bar with one of my wine geek buddies, usually Kevin Sidders from VinConnect, and have sommelier Erin just pour us wines she’s excited about. Ask her to pair them with some of Chef Brian’s outstanding food and you’ll see why I get so excited about food and wine pairings.”

4) Liver and Onions at Mel’s Café.  “While I’d like to spend more nights at Tavola, Mas, and Lampo, as a father of four I spend a lot more time at places like this. Mel and his wife define southern hospitality and their food is so soul-soothingly delicious that my pregnant wife opted to go here on her birthday. My kids love the ribs and cheeseburgers while my wife tries something different every time we go . . . which is often.”

5) Canelés De Bordeaux from MarieBette Cafe & Bakery.  “The Alley Light chef José De Brito turned me on to these when he served them at a party at his home. They were the only thing on the table that he didn’t make. One bite showed me why. The dark caramelized crust hides a tender golden center that causes you to eat a lot more of them than you thought possible. My advice? Buy twice as many as you think you’ll need.”

Five Finds on Friday: Rachel Stinson Vrooman

Rachel

On Fridays, we feature five food and drink finds from local chefs and personalities.  In celebration of Virginia Wine Month, which begins next week, today’s picks come from Rachel Stinson Vrooman of Stinson Vineyards.  On October 1, Stinson is releasing its 2013 Meritage, which for the first time will include Stinson’s own estate grapes. Vrooman’s picks:

1) La Petite Frog Boxed Picpoul de Pinet from The Wine Guild.  “Boxed Picpoul has changed my entire summer! It doesn’t seem possible that this little gem from the Languedoc could actually cost only $20 for a 3 liter box (member price). Trust me, you need this in your life.”

2) Crozet Lemonade at Crozet Pizza Pourhouse.  “Crozet’s answer to the Long Island Iced Tea will have you feeling like a local in no time. Old Grand Dad 114 bourbon, orange liqueur, simple syrup and lime juice topped with Sprite and layered with maraschino cherry juice. This is also a great spot to watch football if you can coax your friends out of Cville.”

3) Chicken Liver Pate from Free Union Grass Farm.  “Chicken liver, bacon, onions, shallots, garlic, cream, whiskey, cloves, coriander and herbs sealed in pork fat. Put this on a piece of toast for breakfast and you won’t need anything else. Call or email to make sure it’s available before you swing by their farm stand (open Wednesday & Friday from 1pm to 6pm). We try to stock it in the tasting room if we can keep from buying it ourselves!”

4) Fried Chicken Skin Tacos at Yearbook Taco.  “The perfect combination of crunch and flavor. Recipes vary but the buffalo sauce version is my all time favorite. These are a daily special so its wise to obsessively stalk their Facebook page until they post and then head over immediately before they run out.”

5) CrabFest at Restoration.  “I’m originally a Maryland girl so I’m always on the hunt for steamed blue crabs. This happens once a year in late August – put it on your radar for next summer! $35 gets you all you can eat blue crabs and sides like mac n’ cheese and sweet potato/bacon hush puppies.”

%d bloggers like this: