Two Casual Northside Spots

A few weeks ago we ate at two places in Northside that were casual and family friendly (at least I think so). Both offered sandwiches, subs, entrees, and pizza. Both delivered to the area.

For dinner we went to Arianna's Grill on Lakeside. A pleasant atmosphere with roomy booths.

We enjoyed Chicken Parm and Meatball Subs.

Both tasty with lost of melted cheese and served with potato chips. Casual, inexpensive, decent. Tiny wine list, but we did order a Dolcetta d"Alba to enjoy with dinner.

We also recently ate lunch at The Mill on MacArthur. We did not look at the wine list. They do have a fair number of beers to choose from. The Mill serves breakfast items all day, which is cool.

On this day we ordered Sweet Sliders - Angus beef with caramelized onions and melted Swiss and Oyster Po Boy - fried oysters, Virginia ham, lettuce, tomato, and Cajun sauce. Both were served with house made potato chips.

Hubby enjoyed the Po Boy; the oysters were decent. The sliders were simple, but had a good flavor due to the onions. My kind of comfort food. The house made chips were a great addition.

Both places were relaxed and laid back, serving casual fare for the neighborhood.

King of Szechuan

A couple of weeks ago we popped into King of Szechuan Chinese Restaurant and enjoyed a couple of spicy dishes.

The decor is unassuming and basic. We liked the art prints adorning the wall.

We began quite mildly with steamed dumplings and hot tea. The ground meat was tasty and the dumpling wasn't overly thick.

We had heard that the Hot Pot was great, but we decided to try that another time. Hubby went with his old standby: Kung Pao Chicken and I tried Shredded Pork with Garlic Sauce.

Both were spicy, but were flavored with different types of hot peppers. Mine was so hot, my eyes started watering (fair warning - I don't eat a lot of hot foods - this dish may not taste that hot to some of you). We both liked the addition of zucchini to both dishes. Both were served with white rice. A satisfying Chinese lunch with enough to take home and enjoy for lunch the next day.

I'd like to go back and try the Hot Pot. For you who are a tad more adventurous, King of Szechuan offers tripe, pork lung, and grilled eel.

Julep's

A few weeks ago we had dinner at Julep's and then strolled over to 17th street to be amazed by the purple martins roosting.

We ate at the bar and Bobby whipped up a cocktail consisting of rye, lemon juice, tawny port, and egg white. The guy is amazing. Tell him what you like and he invents something on the spot.

We enjoyed a cheese plate. All of the cheeses were made in Virginia and featured a wide variety of tastes. Julep's also features their own pimento cheese and sour cream crackers. Very enjoyable.

Hubby also tried the chilled cantaloupe soup. I'm not a melon fan, but I can see why he liked it. Very fresh and chilled. Perfect for a hot day.

We chose a Desert Wind Ruah Red Blend from Washington State to have with dinner. Very decent.

For entrees hubby ordered Grilled Beef Tenderloin with Applewood Smoked Bacon and Pimento Cheese Crust served over Mashed Yukon Gold Potatoes and Grilled Asparagus. An extravagant and tasty dish.

I had Pan Roasted Duck Breast with Bacon Mashed Potatoes and Mixed Summer Squash with a Lemondae Jus. I love duck breast. I love bacon. I love mashed potatoes. I was so much in love that I enjoyed eating my yellow squash (which I'm usually not a fan of). This was a great dish.

We splurged and also had dessert: Chocolate Pecan Bourbon Tarte and Apple Crumble with Vanilla Ice Cream.

A large dinner with an extra-large dose of deliciousness. The staff were delightful as well.


And the purple martins were awesome!

Homemade Pizza

Homemade Pizza a photo by pjpink on Flickr.

Orange tomato sauce with garlic and basil, sweet red peppers, onions, and mozzarella cheese.

SOJ 8/20/2011 and 8/27/2011

Howdy all. We did make it to the South of the James Market before Irene hit. Most of our favorite vendors were there. Hats off to all of the brave souls who made out last week. I did not bring my camera last week, but here are some delightful photos from the week before.

If you are in the RVA area this weekend, head on over to the market for the freshest block party around.

 If any of you have market photos from the area, post them here.

Meaty Pizza

Meaty Pizza a photo by pjpink on Flickr.

Fire-roasted pizza at Sette. Lots of meat and freshly grated cheese.

Selba Soft Opening

I did something a couple of weeks ago that I had never done before - go to a soft opening for a restaurant. Selba had advertised this on Facebook and we decided to try it.

On this night they only offered small plates and a limited wine selection which was explained to us as we were seated in the Garden Room. Fair enough. The waitstaff was lovely and gave us time enough to peruse our choices and pointed out some of the restaurant features (the windows of the Garden Room can be opened during decent weather).

As we entered we were asked if we wanted to dine in the regular part of the restaurant or the Garden Room. We chose the latter. We had heard that the room was awesome. It was. Large windows, water fountain, plants, and multiple stained glass lights all added to the atmosphere.

To start we ordered a 1/2 bottle of Adelsheim Pinot Gris. Nice fat white wine. Lots of body and flavor.

And enjoyed the wine with a Mixed Green Salad: Manakintowne lettuces, herbes fine, lemon-thyme vinaigrette and Summer Corn Soup: yellow corn and coconut milk with Virginia jumbo crab and epazote oil. The salad was nice. The corn soup, interesting. The crab tasted a wee bit fishy.

For the next course we ordered a 1/2 bottle of Frog's Leap Cabernet Sauvignon. Yummy!

And selected Seared Pork Tenderloin: Morrocan spce rubbed with shell bean and corn succotash and tomato-prune chutney and Grilled Tri-Tip Steak: smoked fingerling potato salad, braised ruby chard, and herb compound butter. Both of these were excellent! The pork was tender and the beans were done. We both liked the fact that pinto beans (or equivalent) were used for the succotash. And the tri-tip was also over the top. Medium rare deliciousness. And I loved the smoked fingerlings. I hope they feature this on the menu frequently. The smokiness of the potatoes and the herb compound butter helped flavor the chard so I even enjoyed my greens!

A lovely meal. The small plates were a big hit with us, serving up tasty offerings at decent prices and not getting overly stuffed. We both look forward to seeing the regular menu and enjoying the Garden Room again.

Enoteca Sogno Dinner Photos

After a hard day at work we strolled over to Enoteca Sogno for some good food therapy. The Northside Italian restaurant now features cocktails as well as a well-stocked wine list. We started with Aperol Spritzes - Slightly bitter orange with fizz. Fresh mozzarella and roasted peppers were shared.

Gary and Farouk enticed us with a Sardinain wine - Korem. A hint of spice, unusual grapes, Bordeaux-style.

We both had specials for the evening: Pork chops with sweet peppers and salmon, accompanied by pasta and marinara. Simple fare, excellently executed.

The therapy worked.

Chicken in Tomato-Red Wine Sauce

A crowd-pleasing recipe.

Chicken in Tomato-Red Wine Sauce

3 lbs of chicken parts, skinned (bone-in preferable)

2 onions chopped

2 ripe tomatoes, pulsed in food processor

3 garlic cloves minced (or more)

5 sprigs of thyme (remove leaves and discard stems)

3 cups of red wine (use wine that you would not mind drinking – I prefer a syrah or petite sirah for this recipe)

1 cup chicken stock

1 bay leaf

Olive oil

Unsalted Butter

Flour

Salt

Pepper

Place 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter in pot large enough to accommodate all ingredients and turn stove to medium-high. As butter and oil are heating, salt and pepper chicken pieces. When butter foam has subsided, add chicken and sear about 5 minutes per side (adjust heat, if needed). Take chicken out and set aside. Add onions to pot and sauté until translucent. Add wine and scrape up any browned bits with a wooden utensil. Add chicken stock, tomatoes, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. Stir to mix. Add chicken back into the pot, making sure the liquid covers the meat. Add more wine or stock, if needed. Bring the liquid to a boil. Cover the pot and turn the heat to low. Simmer for 45 minutes – 1 hour (chicken should be tender and almost falling off the bone). Turn the chicken over about halfway through. While chicken is simmering, place 2 tablespoon butter and 2 tablespoons flour in a bowl and let butter soften. Once butter is softened, mix into a paste. When chicken is done remove it from the liquid and set aside. Remove bay leaf and discard. Raise the heat to medium high and boil liquid for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Using an emulsion blender (boat motor), blend the liquid, onions and herbs until smooth. Reduce heat to low and add butter-flour paste. Let paste melt to thicken sauce and then add chicken back to the pot. Add salt and pepper as desired.

Serve over egg noodles or rice or serve with a salad and a loaf of crusty bread.

SOJ 8/13/2011

Some quick photos of the South of the James Market last Saturday.

If you have photos of any of the local markets, post them here.

A Whiney Rant

I have always enjoyed eating at Can Can. It's truly a touch of France nestled in the heart of Carytown. The food is exquisite. That zinc bar is amazing. Heck, I even like the ladies room and the hallway leading to it. Currently, there are oil paintings on display perfectly capturing the atmosphere.

Sadly, my husband and I have decided that if we dine at Can Can, it will only be for lunch and will imbibe at most a carafe of wine. The reason for this? The wine prices are just too damn high. The French cuisine begs for wine, and, as all of you know, we enjoy wine with our meal (and then some). I don't mind splurging for a nice bottle, but when I pay the high price, I generally believe I am getting decent value. Maybe the wine is hard to find or the restaurant overhead is low for the upper end selection. This is not the case at Can Can.

A carafe is $32 and more than likely the liquid is coming from a box. None of the roses in the current listing are under $40. In comparison, only one rose at Secco is over $38. To be fair, Can Can offers wines that may not be readily available locally. However, of the ones I recognize, the prices are exorbitant. Case in point: Can Can lists Charles Schleret Reisling from Alsace. This is a lovely dry Reisling, lots of body and flavor. I first discovered this beauty at River City Cellars. The average retail price is $24. Can Can charges $72. This is a $48 difference! If Can Can participated in the newly legislated Bring Your Own Wine program and charged a $40 corkage fee (which would be outrageously high), I would still be better off bringing my own bottle. If this is happening with wines that I know, what is happening with the unknown wines?

Obviously, high wine prices are not a concern for the majority of Richmond diners. Can Can remains as busy and as popular as ever. Good for them. Personally, it's difficult to justify the markup, thus, we have regulated ourselves to the occasional lunch.

SOJ 8/6/2011

Abundance abounds at the South of the James Market despite the heat. Lovely tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, fresh chicken, and mouth-watering doughnuts.

Pics from this week:

If you have any photos of any of the fabulous local markets, post them here.