Richmond Food News: Week of Dec. 4-8, 2017

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Holiday season got you busy? The RVADine merry-go-round is spinning at full throttle, so climb aboard, hop on a horse, grab a hot cuppa and get comfy. We’ve got a lot to cover.

Comings & Goings

  • Soulveur quietly opened in a sleepy strip mall on the South Side last Saturday. The creation of Curtiss Stancil and Chef Kim Garrett, formally of Homemades by Suzanne, Soulveur will be dishing up some tasty soul food, including some amazing fried green tomatoes and outstanding mustard-marinated fried catfish. Plans for the future include live jazz in the courtyard in front of their little eatery.
  • News broke last week that the venerable Carytown Italian eatery, Amici Ristorante, would be closing its doors after 26 years. Don’t worry, for those with a hankering for their Torre al Granchio (a visually stunning tower of crab, red peppers and avocado all drizzled with basil-infused olive oil), they haven’t shut their doors yet. Service will continue through Dec. 16.
  • The collective wail that went up when The Black Sheep abruptly closed was heard both in the city and across the region. Fortunately, those cries have been soothed with the news that Black Sheep Chef/owner Kevin Roberts just splashed a new coat of paint on the old Betty on Davis and is giving the inside a new look as well. Plans are to open very soon with a menu of old Black Sheep favorites as well as some new items. Tentative name? Swan Dive.
  • Tazza Kitchen joined the fray in Scott’s Addition, opening this past Tuesday in the hopping ’hood. Right now they’re only dishing up their wood-fired dishes in the evening, but lunch and brunch are due to roll out soon.
  • For those in search of a square biscuit, Early Bird Biscuit Company opened its second location on Wednesday, much to the joy of North Siders who used to frequent the original Lakeside location. The new location is among the shops on Bellevue and will be offering the same menu but with way better parking.
  • As we mentioned last week, longtime Shockoe Bottom watering hole Havana ’59 has launched an expeditionary force out into the West End. Its second location, at Gold’s Gym Plaza at West Tower, is set to open today, and they’ll be dishing out food specials and $5 mojitos all month.
  • Today is also the grand opening of Blaze Pizza out in the West End. The Subway-like concept of pizza building promises to bake your pizza in their blazing-hot oven in 180 seconds. Kind of impressive to watch. Pop in today from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. for a free pizza in exchange for following them on social media.

Sudsy News

  • Paste Magazine has named RVA’s own Triple Crossing as one of its 10 Best Breweries of 2017. They also mention The Answer and The Veil Brewing Co. as reasons why RVA is the place to watch as a craft beer hotspot. You can congratulate the Triple Crossing guys this Sunday at their Fulton location, where they will serve up some brunch from noon to 8 with “beermosas” and chicken-and-waffle pizzas.
  • Strangeways Brewing is taking the next step toward the big time, having inked a deal with Virginia Eagle to distribute their cult-favorite beers across the state. At least we’ll always be able to say we drank them here first.
  • Hardywood’s Kentucky Christmas Morning is slated to be released this Saturday at 1 p.m. This bourbon barrel-aged imperial milk stout with coffee and spices is among many variations on their very popular gingerbread stout. The limited release will be accompanied by food trucks and live music until 10 p.m. Mean Bird, in particular, will be there at 10 in the morning to feed those people lined up to snag some of the Christmas brew. Hardywood also announced its participation in the "Broadway Brews" project, where they've brewed a beer in collaboration with the cast of "The Phantom of the Opera"; the to-be-named beer will be poured in the musical's NYC theater (and Richmond), and the proceeds will benefit an also to-be-named charity.

Things to Do This Weekend That Don’t Involve Shopping

  • Say goodbye to an RVA tradition. “Hamaganza — The Final Insult” hams it up for the final time at the Canal Club, tonight at 8 p.m., to benefit FeedMore and the Massey Cancer Center. Pay the cover charge or bring a ham; either way it’ll be the sendoff Donnie “Dirt Woman” Corker would have wanted.
  • Saturday might bring RVA some snow showers. What better time to head over to Blue Bee Cider for a little cider and some tasty BBQ from Capt. Rob’s Pigalicious BBQ, happening from 1 to 7 p.m.
  • Also Saturday in Scott’s Addition, Buskey Cider is rolling out its Salted Caramel Cider. Pull up a chair starting at noon and enjoy the sweet and salty holiday cider.
  • Local vodka distiller Cirrus is hosting a Bloody Mary Bar starting Sunday at 1 p.m., where you can experiment wildly with an array of different ingredients in creating your own perfect Bloody Mary. They’ll also have bacon. Lots and lots of yummy bacon.
  • For those who simply must see Santa, make a reservation at Quirk Hotel’s Maple & Pine restaurant for their annual Boozy Brunch With Santa, Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. There’s a reason why St. Nick’s cheeks are so rosy.

For Your Listening Pleasure

Intrigued by Richmond magazine’s Best at This Moment list of local dining spots and top honoree Lehja? Join me today at noon on WRIR 97.3, where I’ll be chaat-ing it up with Chef/owner Sunny Baweja during “Open Face” on Open Source RVA. We’ll be covering everything from Indian wines to why they kept samosas off the menu for so long and how on earth do you use fenugreek. The show will be repeated over the weekend and available on SoundCloud next week in case you miss the original broadcast.

News From Beyond

The Only Piece of World News That Matters

For years we’ve been told that cheese is not exactly the best food for you. Well, a couple of recent studies have suggested that cheese, while high in fat, actually helps metabolize fat better and can reduce your chances of heart disease significantly. My life choices have suddenly been validated.