Notes From C-ville

All Aboard

2009-10-04T06:17:00.000-07:00

My first post visited traveling by rail to and from DC. It seems that this has just gotten a lot easier, and my complaint about the lateness of the trains will no longer be true. There is now daily direct service to DC, as reported by the Daily Progress. By train is still the most romantic way to travel - countless New York City subway rides haven't stolen that away - and in Charlottesville it just became a lot more feasible.

C-ville Food Blog

2009-09-26T17:32:00.000-07:00

I just discovered Mas to Millers, a most excellent Charlottesville food blog worth checking out.

Old Power Plant

2009-07-14T05:23:00.000-07:00

I've written about the old Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway Company power plant before and how to get to it. Here are some photos of the factory and nearby train bridge coutesy of Adam.

Garden Upgrade

2009-06-20T17:38:00.000-07:00

Last week we moved to Brooklyn. I've started the new Brooklyn version of this blog, Notes from Carroll Gardens. Here's what our patio garden looked like in Charlottesville.
Here's what we upgraded to.
Here's the back garden planted with some veggies and herbs.
Although the posts will be much less regular, please let me know if anything on here is egregiously wrong and I'll update it. The email address is at the bottom of the right column.

Thank you Charlottesville for 7 great years!

Take It Away Sandwich Shop

2009-06-20T17:20:00.000-07:00

Take It Away is one of the Corner gourmet sandwich peddlers. The others are Revolutionary Soup and, eh, Cafe Europa. They specialize in build your own sandwiches. I favor the cut baguettes for bread, veggies, the cukes and sprouts, provolone cheese, and the special sauce which would make just about any sandwich taste good.

This place gets busy at lunch time, but the kitchen runs with the efficiency of Bodo's. They have as many drinks, bottles of wine included, as one could want. Boxes of chips abound. There's a Take it Away in Williamsbug but no indication these two are associated.

Get the special sauce!

115 Elliewood Ave
Charlottesville, VA 22903-2605
(434) 295-1899

C-ville Coffeeshops

2009-06-13T11:34:00.000-07:00

A notable exception in this round-up is Starbuck's. No matter what this coffeehouse does - give away free songs, help the third world, improve their coffee - it will always be a franchise and never home-grown. I won't refuse a starbuck's gift card, but if it's my money, I'll put it on one of the local coffee shops.

As an aside, the picture to the right drew my attention to the avenue in Elliewood Avenue. It's hardly a main street or thoroughfare.

My order of preference
1. Shenandoah Joe's
2. Mudhouse
3. Para Coffee

Honorable Mention: Higher Grounds. Although I've consumed probably more of this coffee over the last 8 years than any other, it's hospital only location excludes it from a list of top coffee shops. It does win points for its punning name.

Others: C-ville Coffee, Fox Park

I haven't been to Java Java under the new management so I can't comment on that one.

R.I.P. Espresso Royale Caffe

Al Dente

2009-06-13T10:46:00.001-07:00

First located above Escafe, Ristorante Al Dente moved to the Ix building in the Spring of 2008 and then was joined by its companion restaurant Al Hamraa in the Fall of 2008. As the picture above attests, Al Dente doesn't have a grand entrance. The character of the place and space makes up for it.

Having eaten at Al Hamraa more recently and knowing that Karim Sellam is behind both places may explain why the food did not have the Italian flavor I expect. The Sangiovese I chose was great. Salads were "in season" arugala. The fruta del mar mussels, albeit a questionable choice at our inland location, didn't seem right. The gnocchi was dense, layered in a thick sauce. It didn't leave much room for dessert and I would have enjoyed trying the tiramisu.

The prices were a little more than comparable places in town. The restaurant has charming antique silverware and a sturdy outdoor area. (too hot to enjoy one recent night) There are so many restaurants in town to choose from, and I can't figure out the niche this one fits in. Al Hamraa, on the other hand, is a treasure I hope sticks arounds.

IX Buiding
925 Second Street SE
Charlottesville, Virginia 22902
(434) 295-9922

Horse and Hound Gastropub

2009-06-13T10:17:00.000-07:00

Maya's neigbor, Horse and Hound, opened for business almost two years ago. (reviewed previously). It's touted as a gastropub. Even the sign sports the fancy moniker. And the sign is downright fancy. It's hard to miss when driving down west main.

Gourmet pub food is the best description. The Belmont, a waiter's favorite sandwich at an early visit, is a fancy pulled pork sandwich, topped with dry cole slaw. The french fries were excellent. The fish and chips are also remarkable. Fried to perfection with tartar and those excellent fries, if I didn't like the Belmont so much, I'd go for this.

There's a large indoor dining room. The bar is separate and features a row of large stools and a few high tops. The outside patio is fitted with huge umbrellas which become useful when it rains. In the winter they bring in the heaters.
For drinks they have a number of specialty beers on tap. Guinness is a must some of the time. Currently they have the Blue Mountain Mandolin Artisanal Ale. It's not listed on the Blue Mountain site, but it doesn't need to be. It's a great beer in my opinion.

Dinner for four: $100 (a couple beers each)

625 West Main Street
Charlottesviile, VA 22903
(434) 293-3365

Chiles Strawberries

2009-06-12T04:35:00.000-07:00

At least last weekend, Chiles, just west of Crozet, had plenty of strawberries. They were more picked over than last year when we went in May, but we still harvested 12 pounds ($1.50/lb). Crozet is also a great place for peaches. (See prior post.) The season for that hasn't really started up yet.

With the flat of strawberries we picked along with a few quarts from chesterfield berry farm closer to richmond, we had a family jam session. Mashing berries, mixing in sugar, and boiling pectin took up the bulk of an afternoon, but the fruits of that labor last all year. Not all the strawberries turned into jam. There was a strawberry shortcake and plenty eaten as is. In a head to head trial, these berries wallop the bloated, fibrous versions that come out of california. The strawberry milk shake mixed up by Chile's at their roadside mega-stand is incredible.

Milano Cafe

2009-06-08T17:09:00.001-07:00

Milano moved from the Main Street Market a few months ago. The space there has since been replaced by Calvino Cafe.

Now on South Street in one of the old warehouses, Milano has a little more space, a great outdoor seating area, and access to hoards of Saturday morning farmer's market shoppers. It's serving the same illy coffee and has kept much of the same indoor setup. Its unusual marriage to a furniture store is still alive. The wood farm tables are spectacular.

A small selection of baked goods and a freezer of gelato flavors are offered along with the joe.

100 West South Street
Charlottesville, VA 22903
(434) 220-4302

Downtown One Lane Train Bridge

2009-06-06T12:23:00.000-07:00

I've always found this bridge overpass interesting. Couldn't it just be widened? As it is now, I wouldn't be surprised to see a horse-drawn buggy waiting on the other side.

Marco and Luca

2009-06-03T17:53:00.000-07:00

A downtown cheap food standby for at least a few years, this noodle and dumpling restaurant serves up one of the tastiest $3 snacks in town. It's located on the downtown mall in Yorktown place, one store front away from Christian's Pizza, which has the cheapest, best tummy filler in town, a $2 slice of cheese with oregano and hot pepper flakes.

The only thing I've ever ordered are the pork dumpling which are provided in a sweet and spicy soy-based sauce. The sauce is incredible and overpowers the dumplings: the combination is heavenly. The health benefits of these seven fried wonders are less clear than their perfect taste.

The place is small but has plenty of seating for its size. Sitting on one of the stools facing the window offers great people watching.

112 E Main St
Charlottesville, VA 22902
(434) 244-2605

Continental Divide

2009-06-01T04:26:00.000-07:00

I just revisited this place last night and updated the previous post. Many restaurants are closed on Sunday nights, but the "get in here" sign was shining. At 8:30 we still had to wait for a table, which wasn't any trouble because there were plenty of seats at the bar. This restaurant never struggles for business.

Cafe Europa

2009-05-28T16:31:00.002-07:00

An easy-to-miss mainstay on the UVA corner, Cafe Europa has been serving sandwiches longer than Rev Soup on 14th Street and nearly as well. The decor is reminiscent of the Seinfeld diner in the mid-90's. The main offerings are pitas, baguette sandwiches, and paninis. There are lettuce and other salad sides. My parisian sandwich, turkey, brie and honey mustard, was served with a hearty serving of potato salad. I really have no complaints about the food. There are fountain drinks and a couple coolers full of pops and juices for refreshment.

Without a good scrubbing or a renovating update, it's hard to consider this place as an attractive Corner lunch option, especially when compared to Take It Away or Rev Soup.

1331 W Main St
Charlottesville, VA 22903
(434) 295-4040

Boylan Heights Happy Hour

2009-05-27T17:30:00.000-07:00

For weeks I've been going to 12th Street Taphouse for happy hour. There's something to say for the 20 ounce beers. Boylan Heights has regular old pint glasses, but on week nights from 6-9 they are only $2. With the students gone for the summer and the recession in full swing, this is a deal. Drinking to forget the world's troubles is rarely this cheap.

12th Street Patio

2009-05-25T07:34:00.000-07:00

Since I'm obsessed with this place, I added a picture of the patio to my prior post.

Lathyrus

2009-05-25T07:18:00.001-07:00

This Lathyrus specimen grows on the corner of Wertland Street and 12th Street. I think it is most likely Lathyrus latifolius but I'm not sure. The Audubon field guide states there are 20 Lathyrus spp. in our range. This plant will produce peas which are either edible or may cause neurological disease depending on the source. It seems that in small amounts the peas are safe, but if they are eaten in large quantities, a toxic amino acid contained in the peas causes neuronal damage. This has been the source of epidemic lathyrism in places worldwide when populations resort to eating the wild pea during food shortages. The word lathyrus is derived from Greek, 'la' meaning very and thyrus meaning passionate, since the plant was considered an aphrodisiac.

Monument to the Real Estate Bubble

2009-05-21T19:22:00.000-07:00

The stalled Landmark eyesore made Gawker via a photo from C-villain. How long will we have to look at this concrete shell?

Bodo's Bagels

2009-05-20T04:04:00.000-07:00

Three locations in Charlottesville, a local institution, Bodo's serves up bagels as early as 6:30AM on the weekdays if you're up. It's a good time to go because during regular hours or say 10AM on a weekend you'll have to wait a while before biting into the doughy goodness. Below is the Preston Ave location early one morning.Sticking with an order once I find it, I find the egg on a sesame bagel always satisfying. Bodo's must pack some calories because I'm not hungry for hours afterward. There are multiple cream cheeses to choose from if you're so inclined. They would probably add to the stick-to-the-ribs-ness.
The coffee is never very good. The website isn't clear about what beans are used. Locally roasted beans from Shenandoah Joe's would certainly be an improvement. Fortunately Shenandoah Joe's is right down Preston from this location.

The Corner location is famous for not being open for years. On my visits there I've seen a lot of happy undergrads. The other location, nominally on Emmet could also be considered the bypass location, as in the 250 bypass. The building used to house a Roy Rogers.

When I first moved to town after college before starting school again in the fall, I tried to get a job at the bypass Bodo's. The owner said I was over-qualified. For what looks like an intense, fast-moving work environment, I was certainly not overqualified; perhaps it was his nice way of saying that I wouldn't last.

505 Preston Ave
Charlottesville, VA 22903
(434) 293-5224

Charlottesville Beer

2009-05-20T03:50:00.000-07:00

To take home from Harris Teeter?OR

For the Charlottesville area local beer scene, Starr Hill is one of two bottling breweries in the area. The other is Blue Mountain. South Street and Devil's Backbone brew their own for on-site consumption. Supposedly Kegler's has a limited batch a year, but I still haven't had a chance to try it. If anyone has details about this beer, please let me know.

Over the mountain, there is Queen City Brewery in Staunton and Cally's in Harrisonburg. I went to Queen City once.

The original intent of this post was to announce that The Barracks Road Harris Teeter was selling Starr Hill Beer 6-packs for $6. That was quite a deal.

Bel Rio

2009-05-17T18:47:00.000-07:00

This restaurant is not at all what I thought it would be like. Saxx always looked to me like a comedy club straight out of a 90's Seinfeld intro routine. Bel Rio makes good use of the space, what looks like the top floor of an old industrial building. The name sounds Italian but there's plenty of everything else. The complimentary bread was perhaps a bit salty, but I couldn't stop eating it. The panini had a few more pickled veggies than I would have hoped but it was good. The fries were excellent. I ate my date's second crab cake the next day for lunch and it was very good even after being heated in a microwave.

Before going I had a glass of wine and a cheese and bread plate at Mas, not realizing that Bel Rio would have been a good place to do the same thing.

Their is a full music schedule and an open U-shaped bar. Bel Rio is another great place to hang out in Belmont. With the outdoor patio, I think Mas still has it beat. Some home owners are trying to add their home to the neighborhood's restaurants. The Local still needs to pick up their service. I recently had a three hour meal there that should have been a comfortable two.

Bel Rio
407 D Monticello Rd
Charlottesville, VA 22902
(434) 979-5299

Flowering Dogwood

2009-04-19T13:18:00.000-07:00

Cornus florida
Tis the season. This is a pink cultivar in a front yard on Wertland Street.

Lemongrass

2009-04-17T16:34:00.000-07:00

Catering to the undergraduate eater and budget, Lemongrass is located on 14th Street underneath the corner parking garage. It makes the most of a triangle shaped cave.

The food is quite good, although don't get carried away with the spiciness scale. Dinner is comfortable and delicious at 3/10 peppers. 5/10 peppers took the fun out of it. I appreciate a wall of flame or a wall of unpleasant meals, but I don't have any desire to appear on one. If you have any aversion to MSG, this isn't the place.

The Mango Tofu is what I get regularly. It's consistently delicious and takes the guesswork out of a take-out dinner. There's always the old standby Pad Thai.

104 14th St NW
Charlottesville, VA 22903
(434) 244-8424

Fellini's

2009-04-14T16:56:00.000-07:00

A block from the mall and a block from vinegar hill, this place is perfect for grabbing a beer before or after a movie. The wood-lined bar and frequent live piano player add to the draw. They also have larger acts many nights of the week.

The restaurant offers southern Italian food. The entrees are mostly pasta and meat dishes. No one of a party of 7 was disappointed. The meatballs were flavorful. They bent over backward to accommodate a severe food allergy which is not always the case. A big table in the bar sits large parties along two pews. The restaurant proper is attached to the bar. Its brick walls mark it as the older structure. According to the menu history it dates back to the 1850's.

A bubblemaker lives on the roof over the main entrance.

200 W Market St
Charlottesville, VA 22902
(434) 979-4279

www.fellinis9.com

Black Maple

2009-04-13T17:08:00.001-07:00

Acer nigrum

After feeding yellow-bellied sapsuckers on warm winter days and squirrels with its buds, this black maple's green flowers bloomed ahead of its leaves this month.

Wertland Street near its intersection with 12th Street.