Sefton Tea at Sefton Coffee Company (Photo by Jay Paul)
Mediterranean Bowl
$13.95 at Otto, 414 Hull St.
I became a fan of this Turkish streetfood-inspired spot at its original Charlottesville location, and luckily, the new local outpost is spot on. I take the make-your-own route, loading bulgur and greens with a blanket of ingredients: fried eggplant, earthy beet salad, zippy pickled cucumbers, sumac onions, and swizzles of Beetini (that’s beet and tahini) sauce and tzatziki, plus crispy housemade falafel. —Eileen Mellon
Roasted Oysters
$16 at Bar Buoy, 3200 Rockbridge St., Suite 100
Bivalves can be an acquired taste, but Bar Buoy’s roasted oysters are a pleasant surprise. Four sizeable oysters arrive topped with crispy breadcrumbs and savory bacon, alongside a charred half-lemon. While I won’t deny the wisdom of “douse it in batter and throw it in a fryer,” the aforementioned citrus helped the flavors meld so well I nearly ordered another plate as my meal. —Kelsey Robinson
Sefton Tea
$3.50 at Sefton Coffee Company, 24 N. Eighth St.
Jennie-Mae Skinner and David Shultz take advantage of the scraps. The owners of Sefton, which recently hit 14 years, turn cascara — the dried skins and pulp of coffee fruit left behind after harvesting — into a tea with about a quarter the caffeine of coffee and a flavor reminiscent of cherry-hibiscus tea. Once overlooked, the renamed Sefton Tea is now the shop’s sole iced tea offering. —Jay Paul
