Last Friday we ate dinner at the bar at Amuse. The VMFA was adorned with lots of fancy dinner parties, black ties, and glitzy outfits. We arrived in chic blue jeans and sweaters. No matter. Tommy, our bartender took very good care of us starting with an Amuse sidecar (cognac, cointreau, pear puree, and a dash of lemon) - a heady slice of liquid autumn. We followed up with a Frog's Leap Sauvignon Blanc, celery root bisque (exquisite), seafood stew (yummy), and steamed clams. Everything except the clams pleased us. And the clams and broth were good, but the broth contained potatoes that were crunchy. I really detest crunchy potatoes.
We had such a good time eating and drinking at the bar that we did not have time to wander around the exhibits. Thank you Tommy, for making our evening such a delight.
Monday, November 08, 2010
Sunday, November 07, 2010
Get Your Seafood On
A few weeks ago Fatback and Foie Gras posted an article about sugar toads at Arnest Seafood Restaurant in Manquin, VA off of Route 360 as you head toward Tappahannock. Based on the write up we decided to try the place for lunch.
Arnest is located in a non-descript strip mall. Nothing to draw your attention per se except word of mouth.
Booths and tables were generic. In the back was the seafood case with shrimp, flounder, other fish, and frog legs. I liked the lighting over the booths. The bulb was ensconced in old oyster cans.
Fried shrimp, hushpuppies, fries, and green beans. The shrimp were nice and meaty. The hushpuppies, perfect balance of corn meal, sweetness, and a hint of onion. The fries, so-so. The green beans were cooked Southern-style with a hint of ham.
Flounder sandwich and crab chips and a bowl of shrimp bisque (new to the menu). The bisque was more chowder-like. Creamy and filling (only available by the bowl). The flounder was a nice size and satisfying. The crab chips were AWESOME!
When I am craving fried shrimp, this will be on my list to visit. Casual and laid-back. Everyone else who came in for lunch were local and knew all of the other diners and restaurant staff. If you go, make sure to get the crab chips as a side dish. They are house made thick potato chips with just the right amount of seasoning.
Arnest is located in a non-descript strip mall. Nothing to draw your attention per se except word of mouth.
Booths and tables were generic. In the back was the seafood case with shrimp, flounder, other fish, and frog legs. I liked the lighting over the booths. The bulb was ensconced in old oyster cans.
Fried shrimp, hushpuppies, fries, and green beans. The shrimp were nice and meaty. The hushpuppies, perfect balance of corn meal, sweetness, and a hint of onion. The fries, so-so. The green beans were cooked Southern-style with a hint of ham.
Flounder sandwich and crab chips and a bowl of shrimp bisque (new to the menu). The bisque was more chowder-like. Creamy and filling (only available by the bowl). The flounder was a nice size and satisfying. The crab chips were AWESOME!
When I am craving fried shrimp, this will be on my list to visit. Casual and laid-back. Everyone else who came in for lunch were local and knew all of the other diners and restaurant staff. If you go, make sure to get the crab chips as a side dish. They are house made thick potato chips with just the right amount of seasoning.
SOJ Photos - Beginning of November
The South of the James Market continues through the first Saturday in December. Enjoy a few Fall photos from yesterday.
If you have pictures of any of the local markets, post them here.
If you have pictures of any of the local markets, post them here.
Restaurant Week Experience
We ended up going to two "official" restaurant week places. The first was Charles City Tavern with friends.
An old farmhouse tucked away along Route 5. Complete with porch and friendly kitty (had to pay a belly rub toll to enter).
The butternut squash soup was fantastic and suited the region's return to Autumn.
The crabcakes (sitting atop corn and ham saute) were almost pure lumpmeat crab. Very nice. The corn was yellow and out of a can.
The wine list was short and short on bottles under $50. In fact, one of the under $50 bottles was sold out. While we had nice-tasting bottles, it was tough to pay the equivalent of two meals for a bottle of wine. Because of the wine expense, we will probably not make a point of returning to Charles City Tavern on a frequent basis.
On the final night of restaurant week we popped into Water Grill for a drink at the bar and ended up staying for dinner.
Wine choices were more varied and more reasonable. We had a very nice Hendry Cabernet.
For apps, we had fried oysters and the lobster and shrimp pot stickers. Hubby loved the oysters. The pot stickers were extremely disappointing. Gummy and not a lot of flavor. The soy sauce that accompanied them killed whatever flavor was present. Another sauce that complimented the dish needed to be presented. I would not order these again.
For entrees we had a tenderloin with whipped potatoes (for me) and crabcakes with whipped potatoes (for hubby). He really liked the crabcakes (I liked Charles City Tavern's better). My beef was most excellent. Tender and tasty. The potatoes were dry and tasteless, unfortunately.
Good for the restaurants for supporting the Central Virginia Food Bank. I was disappointed in all of the controversy over who was "allowed" to participate (as if no other restaurant could donate to a worthy cause). Once again, I prefer to make my own donation and eat where I want.
One last question - why was restaurant week held at this particular time? Wouldn't it be better to hold it in the dead of winter when restaurants are traditionally slow? We didn't even bother to eat at Acacia's because we knew it would be zoo-like.
And a final shout-out to RVA News for keeping everyone up to date on the restaurant line-ups and their menus. You guys rock!
An old farmhouse tucked away along Route 5. Complete with porch and friendly kitty (had to pay a belly rub toll to enter).
The butternut squash soup was fantastic and suited the region's return to Autumn.
The crabcakes (sitting atop corn and ham saute) were almost pure lumpmeat crab. Very nice. The corn was yellow and out of a can.
The wine list was short and short on bottles under $50. In fact, one of the under $50 bottles was sold out. While we had nice-tasting bottles, it was tough to pay the equivalent of two meals for a bottle of wine. Because of the wine expense, we will probably not make a point of returning to Charles City Tavern on a frequent basis.
On the final night of restaurant week we popped into Water Grill for a drink at the bar and ended up staying for dinner.
Wine choices were more varied and more reasonable. We had a very nice Hendry Cabernet.
For apps, we had fried oysters and the lobster and shrimp pot stickers. Hubby loved the oysters. The pot stickers were extremely disappointing. Gummy and not a lot of flavor. The soy sauce that accompanied them killed whatever flavor was present. Another sauce that complimented the dish needed to be presented. I would not order these again.
For entrees we had a tenderloin with whipped potatoes (for me) and crabcakes with whipped potatoes (for hubby). He really liked the crabcakes (I liked Charles City Tavern's better). My beef was most excellent. Tender and tasty. The potatoes were dry and tasteless, unfortunately.
Good for the restaurants for supporting the Central Virginia Food Bank. I was disappointed in all of the controversy over who was "allowed" to participate (as if no other restaurant could donate to a worthy cause). Once again, I prefer to make my own donation and eat where I want.
One last question - why was restaurant week held at this particular time? Wouldn't it be better to hold it in the dead of winter when restaurants are traditionally slow? We didn't even bother to eat at Acacia's because we knew it would be zoo-like.
And a final shout-out to RVA News for keeping everyone up to date on the restaurant line-ups and their menus. You guys rock!
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
A Thump on the Head to Libbie Market
Specifically, the wine aisle and the wine manager (or assistant manager) and the wine rep. I was trying to view the wines. These assholes were standing in the middle of the aisle totally engrossed in their inventory. I actually turned to face them and they ignored me and did not bother to move.
I did an about face and did not even contemplate buying wine from them. Instead I dropped some bucks at J. Emerson.
Too bad, Libbie Market.
I did an about face and did not even contemplate buying wine from them. Instead I dropped some bucks at J. Emerson.
Too bad, Libbie Market.
Tuesday, November 02, 2010
Sunday, October 31, 2010
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!
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
Saturday, October 30, 2010
SOJ Still Has Amazing Produce Despite the Cooler Weather
Check out the colorful array at the South of the James Market this morning:
If you have any local market photos, post them here.
Balliceaux Brunch
Last Sunday we took a stroll down Monument Avenue. As we finished our walk we were trying to figure out where to eat lunch/brunch. Kuba Kuba is always a favortie, but the line was out the door. So, we ambled along Lombardy and checked out Balliceaux. I had heard all of the hoopla about this place. I had heard it was fantastic. I still had not gotten around to eating here (so many restaurants, so little time).
We popped in and were surprised that a table was available. We immediately order a Bloody Mary (very peppery) and a Pomegranate Mimosa (very refreshing and garnished with a blackberry).
Because Surry sausage was on the menu, we made sure it was part of our order. Hubby had the sausage, grits, and greens dish. Real good grits in the best comfort food tradition. The greens were cooked, but not mushy graced with vinegar and sun-dried tomato.
I did not want a big meal and ordered a la carte: Egg in a Frame with a side of Surry sausage. The egg was overeasy and framed in a piece of grilled Texas toast. Perfect.
We were satisfied and happy with our brunch choice. We must go back and try out dinner.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Candles
From InLight Richmond
If you have photos from any of the InLight installations, consider posting them to the InLight Flickr group.
If you have photos from any of the InLight installations, consider posting them to the InLight Flickr group.
Maintenant, j'aime Bouchon
We traveled to Shockoe Slip for the InLight Richmond exhibition. We arrived early so we could eat dinner. There were lots of choices, but we decided upon Bouchon because they had big windows. If we dallied at dinner we could still catch glimpses of the opening parade. We entered and were informed that all of the tables were reserved (we should have guessed), but space was available at the bar. So, we sat at the bar, and this turned out to be much more favorable. The small bar at Bouchon offered the regular menu plus a bar menu consisting of simple, less expensive fare. Wow! The best of all worlds. As we sat at the bar, John, who had been our waiter the last time recognized us and welcomed us back. Now, I love Bouchon.
We started with cocktails: Leap Year which was gin and Grand Marnier based and Amandahattan - bourbon, lillet, and cherry.
Both were not sweet and a nice aperitif. Olivier, our bartender, knew his stuff. Near the end of the sipping we ordered an onion and black olive tart to share.
Perfect. The onions were sweet and the black olives were pungnet and warm. An excellent match. And the crust - fluffy with a bit of chewiness.
We ordered a Bordeaux from Saint-Estephe -
And then the steak frites.
We really enjoyed the steak - tender and cooked just right. And the frites were terrific, especially with the wine sauce.
Our evening had started off with a bang.
We also thoroughly enjoyed the InLight installations. A few pics from a few of our favorites:
We started with cocktails: Leap Year which was gin and Grand Marnier based and Amandahattan - bourbon, lillet, and cherry.
We ordered a Bordeaux from Saint-Estephe -
Our evening had started off with a bang.
We also thoroughly enjoyed the InLight installations. A few pics from a few of our favorites:
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Interesting Week
Random food and drink related blips from this week:
Blip 1:
For my birthday, hubby gave me roses (this is a BIG deal since he never gives me flowers) and took me out to Lehja, the new Indian restaurant in Shortpump. Where he takes me on my birthday is always a surprise and since we headed out to the far west, I could not have imagined what he was thinking. It turned to be a great choice. The interior is modern chic with clean lines, bright colors, and nice textures.
We ordered Snake Charmers at the bar (Patron Silver, ginger, and lime). I loved the ginger bits (or the snake bites), but the lime was more of a margarita mix and killed the taste of the tequila.
For food and wine, we moved into the dining room and ordered a Torbreck Woodcutter's Shiraz to drink. Lehja offers a wide variety of wine, both red and white. The hard part is figuring out what pairs well. The Torbreck was a winner with our food. Appetizers were shrimp for him and paneer for me and an order of garlic naan. Big jumbo shrimp with pineapple-basil chutney. The paneer was chunks of soft cheese in a hot sauce with peppers and onions (this appetizer could have satisfied for a main dish). For the main course I ordered Chicken Tikka Masala and hubby had a lamb dish with a mango pomegranate sauce. All good and there ae other menus items that must be tried upon our return.
Blip 2:
I had to run an errand south of the river and stopped by three of my favorite places. Vino Market was conducting a wine tasting and I had this wonderful chenin blanc from South Africa called Essay - very citrusy and clean tasting. And then I let Dave show me all of the great stuff on sale, including a Blue Eyed Boy Shiraz from Molly Dooker. Then, on to The Wine Cellar. John had gone home by the time I made it to the store, but I picked up a Snowqualmie Merlot from Washington State to try. Finally, I picked up ribs, hushpuppies, and onion rings from Q Barbeque to eat at home. The onion rings did not travel well, but the other stuff did. Love the puppies! And the ribs were smoked and meaty and the meat was easily separated from the bone.
Blip 3:
I pan-seared a white/black pepper NY strip and served it with dragon's tongue beans with sauteed onions and garlic/turnip/potato mash. Yummy. We opened a 2003 Domaine du Caillou Chateauneuf-du-Pape to go along with the meal.
Blip 1:
For my birthday, hubby gave me roses (this is a BIG deal since he never gives me flowers) and took me out to Lehja, the new Indian restaurant in Shortpump. Where he takes me on my birthday is always a surprise and since we headed out to the far west, I could not have imagined what he was thinking. It turned to be a great choice. The interior is modern chic with clean lines, bright colors, and nice textures.
We ordered Snake Charmers at the bar (Patron Silver, ginger, and lime). I loved the ginger bits (or the snake bites), but the lime was more of a margarita mix and killed the taste of the tequila.
For food and wine, we moved into the dining room and ordered a Torbreck Woodcutter's Shiraz to drink. Lehja offers a wide variety of wine, both red and white. The hard part is figuring out what pairs well. The Torbreck was a winner with our food. Appetizers were shrimp for him and paneer for me and an order of garlic naan. Big jumbo shrimp with pineapple-basil chutney. The paneer was chunks of soft cheese in a hot sauce with peppers and onions (this appetizer could have satisfied for a main dish). For the main course I ordered Chicken Tikka Masala and hubby had a lamb dish with a mango pomegranate sauce. All good and there ae other menus items that must be tried upon our return.
Blip 2:
I had to run an errand south of the river and stopped by three of my favorite places. Vino Market was conducting a wine tasting and I had this wonderful chenin blanc from South Africa called Essay - very citrusy and clean tasting. And then I let Dave show me all of the great stuff on sale, including a Blue Eyed Boy Shiraz from Molly Dooker. Then, on to The Wine Cellar. John had gone home by the time I made it to the store, but I picked up a Snowqualmie Merlot from Washington State to try. Finally, I picked up ribs, hushpuppies, and onion rings from Q Barbeque to eat at home. The onion rings did not travel well, but the other stuff did. Love the puppies! And the ribs were smoked and meaty and the meat was easily separated from the bone.
Blip 3:
I pan-seared a white/black pepper NY strip and served it with dragon's tongue beans with sauteed onions and garlic/turnip/potato mash. Yummy. We opened a 2003 Domaine du Caillou Chateauneuf-du-Pape to go along with the meal.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Lunch at Secco
I had a very satisfying lunch at Secco.
A panini filled with pork confit, spicy plum chutney, and St. Agur blue
and a glass of 2006 Benotto Monferatto Rosso Nebieul from Piedmont, Italy
The blue cheese imparted a hint of earthiness which balanced out the chutney and complemented the wine. Very pleasant.
A panini filled with pork confit, spicy plum chutney, and St. Agur blue
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