Richmond Food News: Week of Dec. 23-27

Best restaurants and our top RVADine stories of the year, plus savory celebrations to ring in the new decade

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Best in Class

Our most challenging task this year? Narrowing Richmond’s bustling culinary scene with hundreds of restaurants down to a select group of the city’s top 25. Our squad of voracious writers noshed their way through the region's menus, paying close attention to service, atmosphere and, of course, the food. Blending fresh front-runners and pioneers who seem to get better with time, we present the Best Restaurants of 2019. Find out which restaurant was dubbed “Most Well-Rounded” and the one making the “Best Use of a Lazy Susan,” among other superlatives. (Richmond magazine)

Party Like It’s 2020

If a) belting Elvis Costello, b) rocking '20s attire, c) diving into a five-course Polynesian-tinged dinner or d) all of the above appeal to you, find more details in our roundup of local options for ringing in the New Year. We’ve curated a list of spots offering festive settings for dining and dancing your way into the next decade. (Richmond magazine)

Rhizomes Rule

When ginger is included in a dish, it tends to make its presence known. Writer Stephanie Ganz shares the lowdown on the knob-shaped zingy plant and its sharp spiciness, which can be found in everything from smoothies to soup in eateries across the city. (Richmond magazine)

A Chocolate Calling

Following a long family line of chocolatiers, Chocolates by Kelly owner Kelly Walker Wombold has found a spacious and sweet home at Short Pump Town Center as she approaches almost a decade in business. (Richmond magazine)

Our Top 5 in Food

We tracked down the top five food stories on our website this year, ranging from a smoky comeback to the inspiring tale of one of Richmond’s longest-tenured chefs. 

  1. Ronnie’s BBQ Reincarnated: If you know about ribs, you know about Ronnie’s BBQ. And if you know Ronnie’s, you know that Sundays mean brisket mac and cheese, the owner’s personality is infectious, and when the smoke rises in Varina, you run.
  2. Opening Soon: Coco + Hazel in Tuckahoe: The new ice cream shop and cafe that opened in April serves over-the-top, towering milkshakes with an entire slice of cake, churro or cookie on top.
  3.  Announcing the 2019 Elby Nominees: The reveal of the finalists for the eighth annual Elbys awards drew a lot of attention, and rightfully so. The collection of nominees — culled from hundreds of surveys sent to previous winners, food writers, restaurant professionals and a panel of local industry experts — represent some of the most talented culinary stars in the city.
  4. Eighth Annual Elby Award Winners Announced: On April 28, the dining community’s biggest party of the year went west: Hardywood West Creek, that is. Over 600 guests attended the event, themed “Reading the Future of Food," to see who would take home awards for rising chef, best new restaurant, our first-ever community change agent award and more.
  5.  Stella: Getting to spend time this year with Stella Dikos — matriarch and namesake of Stella’s restaurant and grocery — and hear intimate personal accounts of her journey from a small town in Greece to a longstanding culinary career in Richmond marked by kindness, perseverance and meraki was one of the most rewarding assignments of my career. Dikos is a true Richmond icon.

Fresh on the Scene in 2019

  • Pop-up to Brick-and-mortar: Truckle Cheesemongers, Manchu
  • Breweries/libations: Dogtown Brewing Co., Starr Hill Richmond Beer Hall & Rooftop, Richbrau Brewing, Main Line Brewing, Tabol Brewing, Mix, Switch, Bateau Coffee & Wine Bar, Ninja Kombucha, Strangeways Scott’s Addition
  • Breakfast: First Watch (Regency Square Mall), Maple Bourbon, Brewer’s Waffles, Dave & Phriends Grill
  • Coffee/cafes: Riverbend Coffee Co., Blanchard’s on Broad, Cafe Clang, Bright Spot Coffee, Butterbean Market & Cafe, Fuel Pump, Grit Coffee, Little Bean Coffee Co., Wake Cafe, Nutty Buttery
  • Bakeries/sweets/ice cream: Tipsy Cupcakes, Donuts Company, Stoplight Gelato (new ownership), Coco + Hazel, Moon Rocks Gelato, Bopper’s Malt Shop, Burnette’s Baked Goods, Frost Gelato
  • BBQ: Fatty Smokes, Stump’s Pig & Pint, Oak & Apple, Salty Pig Smokehouse
  • Juice Bars: Juice Laundry, Pulp Fiction
  • Fast-casual/grab-and-go: Soul N’ Vinegar ICA, Capital Market Cafe, Organic Krush, Chicken Salad Chick, Empanadas Market, Pulp Fiction, Cow Hill, Plant Baz Burrito Bar, Manchu, The Pit and the Peel (Short Pump), Rusty Taco, Burgerim, Habitat Burger
  • Pho: Pho Que Houng, Pho Luca
  • Globally Inspired Bites: Gersi, Restaurant Adarra,  Kirin, Chefahn, Rosita Mexican and Salvadoran Restaurant, True’s Cultural Kitchen, Pakwaan Indian Cuisine, GreeX, Pho Que Huong, Jamaica Taste, The Mantu, Crazy Thai, Nama, La Hacienda
  • Seafood: Mariscos Del Barco, Queen Tea New Orleans Seafood, Anton’s Seafood, Skrimp Shack
  • New Chapters/locations for Restaurateurs: Frontier, Izzy’s Kitchen, O’Toole’s Charter Colony, Soul Taco (Shockoe Bottom), Crafted, Brunch, The Bombay Co., Island Shrimp Co. and Casa Del Barco (Chesterfield Town Center), Pink Flamingo, Hot Chick, Wong’s Tacos, The Annex, The Pitts, La Bodega
  • Pizza: Carmela’s, Benny Ventano’s, Chicago’s Pizza With a Twist, Fire & Hops
  • Eat-ertainment: Hotel Greene, Slingshot Social Game Club, Top Golf, Drive Shack
  • Others: Grisette, Parterre (at Linden Row Inn), Bartizan, Fuzzy Cactus, C & D’s Kuntry Kitchen, Poor Boys of RVA, Charlotte’s Southern Deli & Tapas

RVADine Farewells 2019

  • Restaurant Closings: Xtra’s Cafe, Smoke Pit Grill, Strawberry Street Cafe, Scuffletown Garden, Havana ’59 (West End), Little Saint, Uptown Deli, Pasture, Urban Farmhouse (Linden Row, Rocketts Landing), Elephant Thai, Cha Cha’s Southwestern Kitchen, Pearl Raw Bar, Kona Grill, Wine Loft, Peddler on Pine, Ledo’s Pizza (Short Pump), Autentico’s Kitchen, Greek Feast, Captain Buzzy’s Beanery, Matchbox, Emilio’s, Swan Dive, Travinia Italian Kitchen, The Cake Bar Cafe, A Secret Forest, Duck Donuts (Willow Lawn), Kobe Sushi and Steakhouse, Jackson’s Beer Garden & Smokehouse, Happy Empanada, KuRu Ethiopian, Hai Ya’ll, Mean Bird, Baja Bean, The Melt, Champion Brewing, Mind Your Belly Deli, Wall Street Deli, Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, Extreme Pizza

Upcoming Events

  • Pop-up Dinner With Chef Daniel, The Wooden Spoon Cafe (Dec. 28): Paella-based food truck The Land of Saffron brings its creations to the dining room.
  • Raspberry Stout Release, Hardywood Ownby Lane (Dec. 28): Release of the brewery's most award-winning beer, brewed with berries from Agriberry Farm
  • Capital City Kwanzaa Festival, Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School (Dec. 28): Immerse  yourself in one of the largest Kwanzaa celebrations on the East Coast, featuring festive eats.
  • Curry in a Hurry, Starr Hill Richmond Beer Hall & Rooftop (Dec. 29): Stay warm with British-style curry at Scott’s Addition’s newest brewery.
  • Juice and Joy Yoga, Ginger Juice GreenGate (Dec. 29): Weekly dose of wellness with Sunday yoga and juice
  • Noon Year’s Eve, Lamplighter Coffee Roasters (Dec. 31): Watch the ball drop during this yearly tradition, along with tunes from No BS! Brass Band.
  • New Year's Eve Party: Champagne & Oysters, Dogtown Brewing Co. (Dec. 31): A celebration and the release of a Champagne Brut IPA
  • NYE 2020, Buskey Cider (Dec. 31): Get Buskey at the Scott’s Addition tap room with a dinner, comedy and special cider releases.
  • New Year’s Brunch: Seoul 2 Soul, Ardent Craft Ales (Jan. 1): Korean and soul food join forces.
  • New Year’s Bed and Brunch, Parterre (Jan. 1): Kick off the new year with a three-course brunch and complimentary mimosas.
  • Late Night - Your Choice, Plantbar (Jan. 2): Sip libations while making your own terrarium in the newly opened plant shop.

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