Richmond Dining-Out scene

[KingDog]

Thanks for the heads up about KEAGAN'S opening on the street level of the Aloft Hotel in West Broad Village, KingDog. Their opening was timed well to tie in with all the St. Patrick's day activity in the region.

The review on page 2 of the website is quite good.

My girlfriend and I went there tonight. The restaurant is in 3 sections - a large smoking section with a large bar w/ maybe a dozen or two seats, a smaller non-smoking section with a bar - maybe 8 or 10 seats, and another room called "Augies Cafe" that looks like it can be a function room as well. Apparently Augies will open in a week or two and will offer breakfast. We sat at the smaller non-smoking bar and our bartender told us they would also open up the Augie's section when it got busy.

According to the schedule we saw, they have music almost every Wed, Thur, Fri, and Sat with Karaoke on Sundays. I'm not sure where the bands will set up but my money is on the larger smoking section. On St. Patty's day, they'll have 3 bands with the earliest one starting at 3.

Tonight was half price appetizers - except for wings. We ordered the soft pretzels, shrimp, and wings. Overall, the food was very mediocre. My girlfriend probably described it best - everything seemed like it was reheated, not cooked. THe wings were barely warm, though they tasted fine. They also messed up the order and brought us some perogies at first which were hot, but nothing special. The shrimp were hot, but I didn't care for them that much.

The staff were friendly, especially our bartender.

I'll give them another shot, but overall I felt kind of let down by the food and atmosphere.

[burt]

Karen Newton, writing for Style Weekly, discusses music while dining out. While there are plenty of bars offering music and entertainment, not many restaurants in Richmond include live music on a regular basis. It could be a double edged sword. If I walk into a restaurant in New York or elsewhere and am assaulted by a strong percussive beat, I'm out of there. On the other hand, soothing standards, smooth jazz or classical selections at moderate volume, whether recorded or live, entice patronage.

However, ethnic menus encourage sounds and rythms of native lands. Examples of that in Richmond would be the wandering mariachi band at PLAZA AZTECA at Reynolds Crossing as well as the accordianist who occasionally entertains at CHEZ BOBETTE in Shockoe Slip.

But the glamorous period when major hotels and restaurants had bands ("society" orchestras) for cheek-to-cheek dancing between dinner courses -- ah, THAT was romantic...and sexy. Among such places in Richmnd were The Empire Room at The Jefferson; The Marshall Room at the John Marshall; The Winter Garden atop the Richmond Hotel; Tantilla Ballroom and Westwood Supper Club to name a few.

From the current Style Weekly:

http://styleweekly.c...9D3430288834D1D

PS: If you're not familiar with OLIO pictured in Karen's story, it is at 2001 1/2 West Main Street near the corner of Meadow Street in The Fan. Before morphing into a restaurant, it was a small European market. It's directly across Main from the very good restaurant called BACCHUS.

Edited March 16, 2011 by burt

[burt]

The Church Hill Peoples News verifies today that the five-points intersection where Jefferson Avenue, M Street and 25th Street meet at a roundabout in Church Hill once again will have a restaurant. Formerly called Que Pasa, the odd-shaped building is expected to open in late May as ROOSEVELT. The significance of the name has not been explained. At one time the new owner, Kendra Feather, toyed with calling it "Buttermilk Palace."

Kendra is a much loved Richmond restaurateur. She has two operations in The Fan District -- IPANEMA on West Grace between Shaffer and Harrison Streets in the VCU area, and GARNETT'S CAFE at the corner of Meadow Street and Park Avenue.

ROOSEVELT's menu has not been announced, but it's a good bet the restaurant will be fun, funky and a big plus for Church Hill.

Stay tuned.

Edited March 16, 2011 by burt

[burt]

Deveron Timberlake remarks in Style Weekly on the proliferation of new restaurants in the South Fan (uh oh! I've invented a new acronym -- SOFA.) My definition of The South Fan is edged by West Main Street on the north, Meadow Street on the east, The Downtown Expressway on the south and The Boulevard on the west. West Cary Street is the principal east/west thoroughfare and already there are three relatively new eating establishments along or slightly off that street -- ACACIA at Robinson; THE LAMPLIGHTER ROASTING CO on Addison at The Expressway, and FRESCA on West Cary at Addison Street.

Soon, a fourth restaurant with, IMO, an unfortunate name, will open in a building that formerly housed a Honda dealership at 2416 West Cary (between Stafford and Davis) and is to be called SELBA. It will have a large back dining room with skylight and operable windows. There will be a few more tables up front and off-street parking.

The owner is Keith Buchanan and the kitchen boss will be Chef Abram Jackson.

I wish Buchanan would change the name from SELBA to something catchy like SADIE'S which has a certain alluring panache.

Edited March 16, 2011 by burt

[burt]

Just a bit of trivia:

Did you know that Savannah is second only to New York among American cities that celebrate St. Patrick's Day? It's a massive holiday in that charming city.

I'm going out to Joe Allen's tomorow night for drinks and dinner with about 50 friends to celebrate the "significant" birthday of my gal Patricia O'C. I'll pass on yours and L.'s regards, G. She often asks about the two of you.

Edited March 16, 2011 by burt

[wrldcoupe4]

Thanks Burt! We really had a fantastic time at dinner at Joe Allen's. Hope you all have a great time!

[burt]

I just learned that TJ's in The Jefferson Hotel is open only for breakfast and lunch daily. It no longer serves dinner. LEMAIRE is the only dinner option in the hotel according to someone who answered the phone a few minutes ago.

Apparently, TJ's was not delivering a satisfactory occupancy at dinner time.

Clarification on the above:

While it is true the dinner meal is no longer available in TJ's restaurant, it is served in the adjacent bar/lounge Tuesdays thru Saturdays.

Breakfast and lunch are still available in the restaurant. And the Sunday brunch continues every week in The Rotunda.

[burt]

There's a space at 5107 Lakeside Avenue that has been a restaurant and/or spa of one name or another for the past few years. It is now ARIANNA'S ITALIAN GRILL & PIZZA. The location, about half way between Bryant Park and Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, is a good distance from the original Arrianna's at 700 North Sheppard Street in the Museum District.

Apparently, the Lakeside location is more family friendly than its urban mothership.

Dana Craig had a delightful meal there recently and reports on it in today's RTD:

http://www2.timesdis...nnas-ar-910487/

Dana's Slideshow will make your mouth water and your ears tingle. .

ARIANNA'S ITALIAN GRILL & PIZZA

Dana's rating: 3 Stars

5107 Lakeside Avenue (former site of Zed Cafe)

804/637-0314

http://www.ariannasgrill.com (the building pictured is the Sheppard Street site.)

Noise level: Average

Tab for two: $38

Edited March 17, 2011 by burt

[burt]

JB, what's the status of LA PARISIENNE in the Williams Mullen building?

[burt]

Gosh, this restaurant was there before I moved from Richmond in 1979. It was one of (if not THE) first Vietnamese restaurants in the City, but now SAIGON at 903 West Grace Street is closed and up for sale. It's on the first floor of a townhouse near the corner of Grace and Shaffer Streets in the VCU area.

There were a couple of other townhouse restaurants in that block. One of them was called Mad King Ludwig's, and while I never ate at SAIGON, I enjoyed many a German meal at the Mad King. It was closed when the building and the one next door were vacated in order to be neatly renovated into townhouse apartments.

These days, the very popular IPANEMA is in the basement of another townhouse a few doors west. Beyond that is a music club called STRANGE MATTER, and across the street is The Grace Street Theatre which was converted from a movie house and is now used for programs by VCU's School of Dance.

And, across Harrison Street on Grace is the famous and funky VILLAGE CAFE.

Edited March 18, 2011 by burt

[burt]

The current Style Weekly gathered its food critics together and asked them to come up with their list of 52 best restaurants in Richmond.

http://www.styleweekly.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=9B6FFC446FF7486981EA3C0C3CCE4943&nm=Articles%2FArchives&type=Publishing&mod=Publications%3A%3AArticle&mid=8F3A7027421841978F18BE895F87F791&tier=4&id=6DAA080B199A4555B8568D69CF0DC443

[jbjust]

JB, what's the status of LA PARISIENNE in the Williams Mullen building?

Still lots of work going on inside, but hard to tell how far along they are.

[burt]

March Madness is packing local sports bars.

From today's Richmond biz sense:

http://www.richmondbizsense.com/2011/03/22/a-week-before-tipoff-sports-bars-notch-a-win/

[burt]

Unless Norfolk gets a surge of visitors to its "Light Rail and Transit" thread, Richmond's "Dining-Out" topic will be the most viewed on any of the Urban Planet city forums in Virginia. That includes all the Hampton Roads communities, Roanoke and Northern Virginia.

As of this hour, there have been 212,400 visits to the "Light rail" thread in Norfolk. "Richmond Dining-Out" has had 212,364 hits.

Once the rail line opens in Norfolk the thread is likely to engender more traffic.

Edited March 24, 2011 by burt

[jbjust]

Karri Peifer's obsession with the "soon-to-open" PARKSIDE CAFE does not extend to sharing the restaurant's address on Forest Hill Avenue.

But her stalking of the neighborhood eatery in South Richmond provides her readers with other significant and tempting information.

From today's Richmond dot com:

http://www2.richmond.com/entertainment/2011/feb/21/one-step-closer-parkside-cafe-ar-857762/

PS: My guess is that PARKSIDE CAFE is near the junction of Semmes Avenue and Forest Hill Avenue. Or, could it be near Westover Hill Blvd? Or, maybe Stratford Hills?

This place has got to be open -- noticed this morning while stopped at the Semmes/Forest Hill traffic light that the neon light in front is on (it says "EAT") and each table had a flower in its vase. I'm no restaurateur, but I would suspect that putting flowers in the vases is the last step before opening the doors.

[burt]

Unless Norfolk gets a surge of visitors to its "Light Rail and Transit" thread, Richmond's "Dining-Out" topic will be the most viewed on any of the Urban Planet city forums in Virginia. That includes all the Hampton Roads communities, Roanoke and Northern Virginia.

As of this hour, there have been 212,400 visits to the "Light rail" thread in Norfolk. "Richmond Dining-Out" has had 212,364 hits.

Once the rail line opens in Norfolk the thread is likely to engender more traffic.

Overnight, The Richmond Dining-Out thread (212,430 hits) slipped past Norfolk's Light Rail and Transit thread (212,407 views.)

[burt]

While Richmond dot com's best of the "bestie" new restaurant winners may not surprise you, I bet a quarter you'll be jolted by the voters' Number 2 selection -- and I'll bet another quarter that says you've never been there.

http://www2.richmond...nner-ar-925918/

Edited March 28, 2011 by burt

[wrldcoupe4]

I have to say, our visit to Pescado's China Street was one of my best meals in recent memory...

[burt]

It's probably not the place to take Mom on her day in May. But the RTD's dauntless critic, Dana Craig, had a good time and enjoyed the Middle-Eastern ambiance and tasty small plates at OFF THE HOOKAH.

Dana awarded the hot new "in" club three stars.

Technically, it's a chain operation with three locations -- Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and, of all places, Richmond!

The Egyptian-themed 2 or 3 level space shares the renovated Lady Byrd building near Shockoe Slip withThe Hat Factory and a restaurant called Current. There is no affiliation among the three and each has its separate entrance -- from the water level on the canal for Hat Factory and Current, but from the main entrance on Virginia Street for OFF THE HOOKAH.

From today's RTD:

http://www2.timesdis...y-da-ar-939049/

OFF THE HOOKAH

Dana's rating: 3 Stars

140 Virginia Street (above The Hat Factory on The Canal Walk)

804/225-1918

http://www.offthehookahva.ning.com

Noise level: Average in the lower level dining room, but can get VERY loud upstairs in the club

Tab for two (for food only:) $54

Enjoy Dana's Slideshow.

Edited March 31, 2011 by burt

[burt]

Richmond dot com has updated its bar guide for game-watching this Saturday:

http://www2.richmond.com/entertainment/2011/mar/24/17/bar-guide-richmond-basketball-ar-923263/

[burt]

Although PHILIP'S CONTINENTAL LOUNGE has been at 5710 Grove Avenue for about 70 years, its present 20-year lease is about to expire and is not likely to be renewed.

Located a few doors east of The Westhampton Theatre in the area known as "On the Avenues" it has been a favorite watering hole and fast food favorite of students and faculty at nearby University of Richmond.

The owners say they are seeking a new site.

[540_804]

The folks over at Richmond.com published a particularly glowing review of their dining experience at a Church Hill establishment. They go as far as describing it as a "quintessentially American culinary delight." It received the highest marking (on the publication's 4 star scale) that I've ever seen given.

The full review can be read here: [Click Here]

[burt]

Whether you're watching the game in a bar, restaurant, sports venue, in a theatre, club or in the comfort of your home, food companies are preparing for the avalanche :

From today's RTD:

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/business/2011/apr/02/tdbiz01-food-companies-get-ready-for-vcu-rush-ar-944764/

[burt]

Andy Howell is a restless guy. His kitchens have included ZEUS GALLERY, AVENUE 805 and, currently, CAFE RUSTICA.

Karri Peifer at Richmond dot com reports that he's moving again, although the name and addresss of his next venture has not been identified except to announce that it will be a Noodle Bar in Manchester across the James from downtown Richmond.

Perhaps Andy has his eyes set on the former South of the James place that was once called SAVOR. It closed recently (under another name) and probably left behind restaurant equipment. But that's just a guess.

He hopes to fashion his Noodle Bar after Momofuku on 1st Avenue in Manhattan's East Village (see last sentence with website at bottom of Karri's story.)

CAFE RUSTICA at 414 Wast Main Street (on the north side of Main between 4th and 5th Streets) will remain open under the guidance of Andy's partners Michele Turner and Sam George. The menu includes several German dishes which, hopefully, will be retained.

From Richmond dot com:

http://www2.richmond...tica-ar-936246/

Edited April 7, 2011 by burt

[burt]

RVANews has an update on the upcoming Spring Restaurant Week in Richmond from Aptril 25th hrough May 1st:

http://rvanews.com/features/richmond-restaurant-week-in-the-spring/38653