Vegetarian Beer Dinner at Cafe Gutenberg

Here is some info on a vegetarian beer dinner at Cafe Gutenberg. Alas, I am not a beer fan and I definitely eat meat, but wanted to spread the word to others.

We thought we should give you a good reason to go out on a Tuesday (Nov. 9), and what better than a six course vegan beer dinner?



That's right, you are hereby called upon to celebrate Richmond Beer Week, vegetarian style! We'll offer six of our favorite craft beers from the Duvel family of breweries, each paired with a vegan or vegetarian course that'll hopefully knock your socks off.


Tasting starts at 6:30 PM and is $38 pp BEER INCLUDED!... Seats are by reservation only, so RSVP with an email to info@cafegutenberg.com. Deadline is November 3rd so make your reservations soon!

Epic Vegan Beer Dinner

Truffle Honey Frites

Fresh Herbs and Parmigianna Reggiano or Nooch Crumbles

Duvel Strong Golden Ale

Pumpernickel Toasts with Brown Sugar Onions and Cabot (or Vegan) Cheddar Nutmeg Sauce

Warm Spinach and Sultana Salad

Chouffe Trippel IPA

Red Chili Rooster Wings, Pickled Daikon Radish

Ommegang Abbey Ale

Local Oyster Mushroom Pasta with Porcini- Truffle Cream or

Vegan Sweet Pea Mac and Cheese

McChouffe Brown Ale

Sauerkraut Spring Rolls!

Wholegrain Mustard and Sour Cherry Sauce

Maredsus Brun

Leifmans Kreikbeer Milkshake

Eats at 18

My husband’s 18 year old niece came to visit us for a month. She resides in Tennessee and had only been to Richmond once for a few days. We wanted her to sample some of the great eats that the city offered. Here is where we took her:

· Northside Grille – down-to-earth neighborhood spot
· Tarrant’s Cafe – we love the expansion!
· Mekong – first taste of Vietnamese cuisine
· Osaka (Huguenot) – introduction to sushi and tempura
· Weezie’s Kitchen – drooled over the real mashed potatoes and roast beef sandwiches
· Can Can – great burgers, onion soup, and people watching
· Krispy Kreme – hot doughnuts now!
· Gutenberg Café – the Bottom at its best, and don’t forget the Affogato
· Kuba Kuba – an utterly delicious dive – a limeade and a café con leche were required beverages

Of course, there were tons of other restaurant candidates, but we also traveled to DC for a week and visited Mount Vernon, Williamsburg/Jamestown, and Monticello. And speaking of unique experiences, no trip would be complete without seeing a movie at The Byrd on a Saturday night!

Zuppa

I went to dinner at Zuppa with SMO and SS last week. I had not been to this establishment since they had moved. We arrived right before the end of Happy Hour with $2 rail drinks. Unfortunately my Whiskey Sour contained about a thimbleful of whiskey and so much water that I knew it was watered down. This glass wasn’t even worth the 2 bucks!

At least dinner was yummy. We all selected the Zuppa Grilled Cheese – fresh basil pesto, tomatoes, mozzarella, dill havarti, and proscuitto served on grilled homemade bread. Pasta salad, fries, or soup accompanied the sandwich. We all choose a different soup. The bread, pesto, and fresh mozzarella were the winners for this sandwich. Very tasty. As for the soups – I ordered She-Crab which was chocked full of crab meat. SMO had the Vegetarian Black Bean. She liked this one because of the spiciness. SS experimented with one of the soups of the day – a chilled Avocado-Cucumber about which she raved. The soup and sandwich was $8 and very filling…

…but not so filling that we skipped dessert. We did skip dessert at Zuppa and headed down to Gutenberg Café for some Tiramisu and Affogato.

Good Eats at Gutenberg

My friend SMO just moved into a cute little loft apartment in Shockoe Bottom. We went to see her new digs and wound up at Café Gutenberg for dinner. The last time I had eaten here was the day before the flood. It was about time we tried it again.

We sat at a marble-topped round table looking out onto Main Street. The dinner menu featured a wine list, menu items (no real distinction between appetizers and entrees), and a beer list. We ordered a 2005 Domaine Paul Autard Cotes du Rhone for $26. Light and fruity with an ever-so-slight spice thrown into the mix.

For dinner I ordered Crab Cakes ($10). Two petite cakes with a curry, mustard, and caper sauce accompanied by crostini. The cakes contained a fair amount of crabmeat, but it was the sauce that put these little babies over the top. SMO decided upon the Mixed Grill ($11) – Lamb and Curry Chicken over Greens and Cucumber Salad, served with pita wedges and a buttermilk parsley dressing. “Yum, scrum, delilumscious!” was her enthusiastic reaction. Her lamb was medium rare – a perfect complement to the char grilled edge. My husband had a hankering for the Bratwurst plate ($10) – 2 grilled brats with sauerkraut and German potato salad. The sauerkraut was the surprise of the night – mild with a slightly smoky flavor. “Finally, someone who realizes that sauerkraut does not come out of a jar,” exclaimed my spouse. He enjoyed the rest of his meal as well.

I really liked the fact that the appetizers, salads, and entrees were listed without headings. In this way I truly selected what I wanted to eat instead of struggling with categories. The portions were smaller, but in the end were just right.

The reason why the portions were just right was because we had room for dessert! These Café Gutenberg folks thought this through and did a wonderful job of manipulating us! We all ordered the Affogato ($6.50) – chocolate gelati with whipped cream served with a shot of espresso to pour. Very rich, very decadent, very delicious.