Eating out in Richmond
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Eating out in RVA's LiveJournal:
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| Monday, July 6th, 2009 | 10:34 am
[robat_kun]
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Little Mexico Burrito Shop Now Open.
In what many food analysts are considering a bold move for the local Richmond eatery, Little Mexico recently cut the ribbon on a second location in the heart of VCU's Monroe Park campus. Little Mexico Burrito Shop's brazen concept - a Mexican restaurant owned and operated by actual Mexican-Americans - stands in stark contrast to next-door competitors Qdoba and Chipotle, whose angles of mixing cultural homogeneity and bland flavors have made them highly successful national chains. Customers who walked across the parking lot from Chipotle to sample the neighborhood newcomer offered various assessments, noting that Little Mexico's burritos "have actual flavors" and don't "taste like ass" when compared to the Tex-Mex 'fast-casual' establishment next door. But are promising reviews enough to keep the doors open when compared to the big names? Only time - and a constant parade of hungry drunks streaming out of Empire - will tell. | | Monday, June 8th, 2009 | 2:20 pm
[larrymac]
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Riverbound Cafe
Since it's way out Route 360 in Mechanicsville, I know that Riverbound Cafe is probably off the map for most RVA diners. Still, you might have friends or family out that way and might think about stopping in while in the neighborhood. Don't. We walked in at about 8PM on a Friday evening and were able to be seated immediately. Probably not a good sign, in retrospect. I ordered jambalaya, which is described on the menu as being made with tiger shrimp, andouille sausage and chicken. When the bowl arrived, I searched for the shrimp and finally found a couple teeny tiny salad shrimp - i.e. the kind that are no bigger than your pinkie fingernail. The sausage tasted like mild turkey "Italian" sausage from the Kroger across the parking lot. There was an abundance of tomato sauce, such that the dish was bright red, not the brown color that one wants a jambalaya sauce to be, assuming it was based on a roux, which this most certainly was not. My companion had fajitas. The sizzling skillet contained chicken, onions and green peppers. The accompanying plate had lettuce, shredded cheese from a bag and salsa from a jar. Meh. I guess it serves us right for ordering up exotic food out in Hooterville. If you find yourself out that way and want a bite to eat, there's a TGI Fridays across the street. Or keep driving, you'll be in Tappahannock before you know it. | | Sunday, May 24th, 2009 | 9:23 pm
[ludwigvonkoopa]
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Weekly Specials
What are the best weekly food (and drink) specials in town? I know Monday is dollar burger night at Capital Ale House and dollar taco night at Little Mexico... what else is there? | | Thursday, May 14th, 2009 | 12:52 pm
[luguvalium]
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| | Thursday, April 30th, 2009 | 7:29 pm
[orangevibe]
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pies...
I know rva_eats is usually a place for discussing local restaurants, but I'm going to switch it up for a second. I want YOU, the RVA foodies, to share your favorite pie recipes with me. I'm looking specifically for fruit pies that aren't apple or raspberry. I have a few recipes tucked away, but I'm just looking for a few new ones. If you have one you're willing to share, let me know...it's a surprise for a friend. :) Thanks! | | Wednesday, April 29th, 2009 | 12:38 pm
[shinebynight]
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Birthday dinner
Help, foodies. My birthday is tomorrow and I just cannot make up my mind where I want to go to dinner! I try to go someplace new when I eat out. I've already looked at Style Weekly's 50 most recommended and perused rva_eats, but I've been to most of them, and am looking for a rec on something new. I'm looking for something with a fairly sizable menu (I like choices), somewhat romantic since I'm going with a date (ie, not so noisy we can't talk, and not a dive), entrees no more than $15-18. I'd also like to get a glass of wine, so wine by the glass would be helpful since my date can't drink that night. Please don't suggest Comfort, Mamma Zu, Edo's, Acacia, Que Pasa (they're always out of everything) or any seafood places. Here are some of my fav restaurants for reference: Kuba Kuba Tarrant's The Black Sheep Cafe Rustica Cous Cous Europa Sette Weezie's Si Zuppa I haven't been to Davis & Main since college, but the food and wine menu look pretty good. That place seems a little old fashioned and stuffy though since it was always a "fancy place in college" destination. I was also considering The Thai Room bc I've never been and been wanting to try the much-talked about patio, but the pollen is killing me lately. I could go to Si again bc last time I went we really only drank. I also love tapas and the atmosphere there but wondered if I should do something more substantial for bday dinner. Whew, that was a lot of critera! HELP ME MAKE UP MY MIND, FOODIES. | | Sunday, March 8th, 2009 | 4:43 pm
[reverendlurkdmp]
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Outdoor Dining
I could've sworn there was a post about this awhile ago, but there's not a tag for it and I'm too lazy to find it. Anyway, nice weather = Good time to eat outdoors! So far the retaurants I've thought of with outdoor-ish dining are Baja Bean Co, Kitchen 64, and Carytown Burgers & Fries? What are other ones I'm forgetting? Also, is the food at Baja Bean any good? | | Monday, March 2nd, 2009 | 3:03 pm
[reverendlurkdmp]
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SoupSaladSandwichCoffee
So, I want pretty standard lunch-fare (soup, salad, sandwich, coffee) along with wifi, but I don't want to go to Panera or Jason's Deli again. Anybody have any good suggestions? I'm also open to other styles of cuisine, just as long as i can sit down without a waiter bothering me, and use the internet for awhile. Thanks! | | Sunday, March 1st, 2009 | 10:53 pm
[tupelo]
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| | Tuesday, February 24th, 2009 | 7:12 pm
[1224]
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| | Friday, February 20th, 2009 | 12:56 pm
[kathie07]
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The Common Cup
Okay, so I heard the Common Cup closed earlier this year. But I walked by there a few weeks ago and it looked open and I'm sure I read on here someone mentioned something about it being under new management. What exactly happened to it ? Is it still the Common Cup ? Their website is down. I just really enjoyed going there once and a while because of the friendly employees and patrons and quietness. | | Thursday, February 19th, 2009 | 10:29 pm
[seankennedy]
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best weekday breakfast?
Anybody have some solid recommendations for breakfast spots open on weekday mornings? I usually hit Kuba Kuba, but that's gonna get old if I go every other week. Thinking of hitting Karen's City Diner or possibly 821 Cafe. Travel range is Far West End to VCU, nothing on 3rd or 4th streets, kthx. | | Wednesday, February 18th, 2009 | 10:31 pm
[y2empleh]
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Best Italian in town
Ok so a friend's bday is this weekend and she's looking to go to an italian restaurant. she's thinking maggiano's but i'm sure you people can suggest a place better then chainy maggianos. suggestions? | 7:29 pm
[lifein2x3]
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Help!
Anybody know of a place that delivers cheeseburger-type goodness to the Church Hill area? | 12:54 pm
[shinebynight]
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Europa for Valentines-just perfect
My Valentine and I went to Europa for the heart holiday. I had initially wanted to go somewhere I hadn't been, but most places were doing a special (read: overpriced) menu or were booked. My date hadn't been to Europa, and I was in the mood for tapas and good wine.
I was surprised to see that the dining room had been divided by a new floor to ceiling wall which spanned nearly the whole restaurant. It was covered in a mural of the Richmond skyline by Ed Trask that ran the entire width of the wall. It was a nice painting, and I like his work, but the fact that every restaurant in Richmond has Trask artwork nowadays seems awfully unoriginal. The wall completely blocked off the visual flow of the room, which really bothered me. I asked the hostess when it happened and why, and she said a few months ago and she wasn't sure why, except maybe to create a room on the other side of the wall with more privacy. I don't think the wall helped keep the sound down either.
We waited about 10 minutes despite having an 8 pm reservation (a part of the "second wave") we were told. I didn't mind though bc it was Vday and I was lookin' good and in a great mood.
Our waitress was really nice and I was pleased that she actually knew something about the huge wine menu.
We ordered a French Cotes de Rhone Syrah (was actually a 70/30 Syrah/Grenache blend) in the mid-$30 range. It had a sharp first taste and then a mild finish and was very drinkable. We drank most of it while waiting for our meal. The restaurant was very calm, not at all the rushed madness I was expecting for the holiday. Someone brought us a bread basket and a plate of olive oil+balsamic vinegar which we polished off.
I ordered the grilled hangar steak with herbed smashed potatoes and arugula salad ($18). My date got chicken and linguine ($16). My meal was one of the best I've had in a long time. The steak was fanned out in small slices and was cooked well-done to my asking, with crisp edges-- the way I like it. The potato actually came in a layered square, and was the largest thing on my plate. It was flavorful and a little cheesy(?) and I'm not sure what made it so but it was Fantastic. The arugula salad was just a handful of greens with accidental balsamic, but the rest of the meal made up for it.
My date enjoyed his linguine, but I don't think it was nearly as good as my dish. The menu was different from the last time I ate there, and had no tapas to speak of, which I thought was strange since they refer to themselves as a Tapas bar. (I see now that the Tapas menu is on their website, so I suppose they just didn't have it available for Vday, but we didn't know that, since it was just MIA)
I've been thinking about that meal ever since. Definitely a pleasurable Valentine dinner. Current Mood:  hungry | | Sunday, February 15th, 2009 | 4:08 pm
[luguvalium]
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Jewish Food Festival
Today until 7:30pm, Tomorrow ( Mon Feb 16) Noon-7-30pm Keneseth Beth Israel 6300 Patterson Avenue corner of Patterson & Pepper full of yum, including: Schwarma Falafel Latkes Matzah Ball Soup Knish Kugel Schnitzel and more | | Saturday, February 14th, 2009 | 8:14 am
[qcc1] |
Momotaro Sushi
Momotaro Sushi (at 2803 West Cary - next to Mom Siam) opened in the last month. I have been there three times since, and have been very happy with my sushi every time. This is probably my new favorite sushi restaurant in Richmond. I especially like their maki platter (8 rolls for $15). As for the competition in Carytown - what Momotaro lacks in ambience, it definitely makes up in value & quality of the sushi. I highly recommend. | | Saturday, January 31st, 2009 | 12:13 am
[lockemaison]
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verry berry
Someone here asked about this place a long time ago but either it wasn't open or nobody had been there and nobody ever posted any info on it. It's the yogurt place on Broad St. near the Seigel center. I've been to a place just like this in San Francisco. Basically you grab a cup, take as much frozen yogurt as you want and put as many toppings as you want, too. Then they weigh it by the ounce and you pay that way. Basically, it's good. The yogurt is all non or low fat. It all tastes very good. It seems very rich and flavorful. It's been quite a while since I've been to pinkberry so I can't really remember enough to make a comparison, but it's good enough that we went back within 5 days of our first visit. Selection is a little low but it's fine. The toppings bar has a lot of fruit which I appreciate. They also have a selection of desserts, which I have not tried. The atmosphere is also much appreciated. The furniture looks cool. It's a great place to relax. There's a giant couch upstairs. It's fun. Go there. | | Thursday, January 29th, 2009 | 3:32 pm
[shinebynight]
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Que Pasa, which turned into Sette
I tried to go to Que Pasa (25th and M) last Friday night. I was all excited because I had never been, and had been thinking about it all day. When we arrived, all the tables in the place (like, all 10 of them) were arranged in a huge L shape with one huge party, balloons and all, and music equipment was setup in a corner. We were surprised to see this, but undaunted, we walked over to the mostly empty and large bar. I couldn't help but think the 3 huge armchairs and coffee table in the middle of the room were not the best use of space, especially when they obviously had customers who wanted to eat. I love cozy seating at a coffee shop, but I didn't think that was what this place was going for. Turns out, it was their 1 year anniversary, and the party of 20 or so hogging all the tables had eaten up all the Ropa Vieja and plantains and those were the major 2 reasons I came. This was at 7 pm. I was disappointed in the restaurant's inventory planning. We left and decided to try again another night. So we popped around the corner to Sette (23rd and Main) which is a great standby of mine, but I handn't been in awhile. I love the sleek, industrial interior, the fact that hardly anyone seems to know about it, and the huge, affordable brick-oven pizza. I hate that no one seems to be able to decide how to pronounce the place though. My date had the Little Italy pizza: red sauce, spinach, chicken, mozz, goat cheese. I had the Greek pizza, by request, without garlic. It was flavorful and the crust was crispy, I just felt like it seemed to be missing something, perhaps the lack of freshness of the roma tomato. That and the crust handle portion made up a larger portion of the pizza than it should have. I thought my pizza was Waay more flavorful than my date's, but he enjoyed it. Pizzas are from $8-11. We split a bottle of Ruffino Italian Chianti, about $27 which we both enjoyed. The waiter was very friendly and even though one of our pizzas apparently didn't make it from the oven to the plate on the first try, which made our wait longer, we didn't mind--we were enjoying our wine. My pet peeve with lots of Richmond restaurants is this: Servers need to know SOMETHING about the wine list. Especially if you are an establishment that has a decent list, and is NOT serving fast or low-end food. My server at Avenue 805 a few weeks ago, and at Sette knew NOTHING about the wine, and that was really frustrating. http://www.settepizza.com/http://chpn.net/news/tag/que-pasa/ (Que Pasa doesn't have a website) Current Mood:  good | | Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 | 7:07 pm
[tupelo]
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