As The Assistant, Julia Garner delivers a stunning performance, as well coffee and lunch, while shielding her boss’ illicit behaviors. Bleeker Street.
The greatest horrors of the movie world are creatures pulled straight from our nightmares, abominations that mutate from our most irrational fears. It is cathartic and emotionally healthy to confront the monsters that scare us, in order to realize that they have no power over us.
The monsters of the real world are far more insidious. They look like us, they talk like us. We know their names. We inhabit the same spaces they do. We can look them in the eye and still not fully grasp the lengths they would go to control, degrade, and abuse, then try to get away with it by turning the world against their victims. What’s worse is that these monsters do have real power: economic, political, social. They have platforms, well-honed PR machines, and plenty of experience tamping down anyone who might stand up to them. They’ll do it until it’s easier to accept or crack jokes than to fight back. The tide is turning against the Harvey Weinsteins of the world, but sexual abuse in the film industry goes beyond its worst offenders.
The Assistant
R, 87 minutes
Violet Crown Cinema
Filmmaker Kitty Green depicts this struggle in The Assistant from a place of sober realism, imbued with empathy: for the victims, and for the people who want to do what’s right but don’t know how, and for viewers who have found themselves in a similar situation. The film follows Jane (Julia Garner), a recent college graduate and aspiring producer who works at an influential New York film production company. (While the film is presented as fiction, it parallels the Weinstein/Miramax story.) She’s the first one in and last one out. She’s vital yet invisible, arranging flights, cleaning messes, making copies, filling refrigerators, and intercepting angry calls from her boss’ wife.
Gradually, she finds clues of illicit activities. An earring in the morning, a very young new hire being put up in a fancy hotel where her boss (who is never seen, only heard) spends most of his day, wisecracks about “don’t sit on that couch” in his office, indications of roles promised in exchange for sex. She goes to the head of HR (Matthew Macfadyen), who all but admits her worst fears but does so in the form of a threat, promising a full career if she cooperates. It is one of the most harrowing scenes of mindfuck in recent memory, made all the more effective by its realism.
Most of the film follows the minutiae of Jane’s day, with almost no score outside of the sounds of an office and the dehumanizing light of neon bulbs. This underscores powerlessness, which extends beyond her attempt to fight back. She lives it every day, when an executive’s grunt means “Get out,” or a thrown piece of paper means “Do this for me.” When she does stand up, she has no leverage beyond a sense of moral duty, but that’s not enough to make a difference.
The Assistant is an unforgiving film, and though its protagonist has lost hope, Green has not. The credits thank those who shared their stories. The strength of #MeToo is in solidarity, power in numbers, and The Assistant shows how important that is by depicting a person who fights in isolation. There is no Hollywood ending here, but there is the satisfaction of knowing that people with a good heart, like Jane, exist in the real world, and men like Jane’s boss are on the run because of them.
New York Times bestselling author Ann Patchett has published 12 books across three genres, won a long list of awards and fellowships—including the Orange Prize, the PEN/Faulkner Award and a Guggenheim—appeared on “The Colbert Report” and Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday, opened a thriving bookstore in Nashville, and been named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World.
One thing she hasn’t done before? Visited Charlottesville.
That’s about to change: Patchett will be at New Dominion Bookshop on March 3 for a meet-and-greet. It’s not your typical book tour stop; after all, Patchett’s latest novel, The Dutch House, has been out for more than five months. In fact, Patchett’s first trip to Charlottesville initially had nothing to do with books—she’d planned to come to town to see her friend and famed soprano singer Renée Fleming perform at The Paramount Theater, when her publicist suggested she try to sign some books while here.
“You should put that in the article: I’m coming to see Renée Fleming and accidentally sitting in a bookstore for a little while,” Patchett jokes.
Accident or not, Patchett’s reunion with Fleming (who provided the singing voice for the character of Roxane in the movie adaptation of Patchett’s acclaimed novel Bel Canto) is Charlottesville’s gain. And while we may have Fleming to thank for getting her to town, Patchett says the Kardashians actually deserve some credit for the early inspiration for her latest novel.
“I felt like there was this huge celebration of wealth everywhere I turned,” she says. “So, I thought, ‘I really want to write a book about somebody who has everything, has access to everything, and just says, this is not who I am.’”
Though there is a character in The Dutch House who does exactly that, the novel morphed considerably from this initial idea. In fact, Patchett wrote and completed one entire version of the novel, hated it, threw it out, and started again.
“People would say to me, ‘it must be like the death of a child,’ and I said, ‘no, it’s like burning a cake.’ It’s nothing at all like the death of anything,” she says. “When I was young, I think I wouldn’t have known that I was capable of starting over again. I might have felt it as a death. But at this point, you just think ‘Oh well, more work for me.’ And then you go back to work.”
Patchett’s work paid off. The Dutch House, which The Guardian describes as, “a masterful depiction of ruptured family relationships,” has spent more than 20 weeks on The New York Times bestseller list. Spanning decades, the book tells the story of Danny Conroy and his sister Maeve. The siblings grow up in the graceful mansion that locals refer to as “the Dutch House,” originally built for a couple from the Netherlands. They rely heavily on each other, especially after their mother leaves when Danny is 4 and Maeve 11. When their father remarries, they find themselves at odds with their stepmother—and eventually exiled out of their luxurious childhood home without a penny to their names.
Told from the first-person perspective of Danny, Patchett explains why his viewpoint—which begins in boyhood—was the right one to tell the story: “It is very much a book about Maeve, but Maeve is not the kind of person who would talk about herself,” she says. “I liked the idea of Danny looking at Maeve as opposed to the reader looking through Maeve’s eyes.”
While the house is certainly central to the story, the sibling relationship between Danny and Maeve is the axis upon which everything turns. “I find writing siblings so interesting because you can’t get rid of them,” Patchett says. “I just think no matter how much you hate a sibling, you are yoked to that person for life and, as a novelist, that is just a really great place to work from.”
However, Danny and Maeve are far from typical siblings, especially in times when Maeve serves as more of a surrogate mother to Danny. With elements of both Cinderella and Hansel and Gretel, it would be fair to call The Dutch House a lost fairy tale of sorts, where the house takes on a life of its own, both in its continued looming presence and past symbolism. Moving through time in a satisfying non-linear way that expertly mimics memory, the book asks readers to consider questions of how we remember and move on from the past, how we deal with loss, what we deserve, and what we owe one another.
“A lot of people have said to me that this is a book about forgiveness,” Patchett says. “And I think, eh, it’s maybe more a book about making peace with the circumstances of your life.”
We see this theme come up again and again as Danny wrestles to make sense of his own circumstances. In one particularly poignant moment, he asks Maeve, “Do you think it’s possible to ever see the past as it actually was?” As readers bound to his perspective, we’re left to wonder the same thing.
Ann Patchett will sign copies of her latest bestseller and books from her backlist at New Dominion Bookshop on March 3. Go to ndbookshop.com to learn more.
A life in books
Since graduating from the Iowa Writers Workshop in 1987, Ann Patchett has published eight novels, three books of nonfiction, and (last year) one children’s book. Almost all have been bestsellers. Here are a few highlights:
The Patron Saint of Liars
Patchett’s first novel, published in 1992, centers on a young, pregnant, married woman in the 1960s seeking to escape her life. Her arresting first line is: “I was somewhere outside of Ludlow, California, headed due east toward Kentucky, when I realized that I would be a liar for the rest of my life.” The ensuing story encompasses a group of Catholic nuns, a home for unwed mothers, and a reputedly miraculous hot spring.
Bel Canto
Published in 2001, Bel Canto was Patchett’s breakout success. Set in South America, the novel charts the unexpected moments and relationships that evolve as a lavish birthday party (featuring a star opera singer) is taken hostage by a band of terrorists. Awarded the Orange Prize and the PEN/Faulkner Award, it was adapted into an opera and a film starring Julianne Moore (with Renée Fleming providing the opera singing).
Truth & Beauty
A deeply compelling work of nonfiction, Truth and Beauty tells the story of
Patchett’s tumultuous, decades-long friendship with the writer Lucy Grealy, who died in 2002, and whose own bestselling book, Autobiography of a Face, chronicled her struggles through multiple reconstructive surgeries after losing part
of her jaw to cancer.
Commonwealth
One of The New York Times’ Best Books of the Year in 2016, Commonwealth draws on Patchett’s own experience of being uprooted from her childhood home in California and “thrown together” with four step-siblings after her parents divorced and her mother remarried. The novel follows the six children of an uneasily blended family across five decades and the unraveling of family secrets.
Women’s case manager Heather Kellams hopes PACEM is able to extend its season, as well as build a permanent, year-round women’s shelter. PC: Eze Amos
Last August, Chinikqua Joseph’s Buckingham County home burned down. Thankfully, no one was injured or killed by the fire, but she, along with her mother and godmother, lost everything. They were homeless.
While looking for housing, Joseph stayed with friends, and later with a boyfriend. When that relationship became abusive, she had to find a new place to stay. Joseph has epilepsy, so it’s difficult for her to hold down a job, and she had trouble saving money for housing.
Just when she thought she would have no choice but to live on the street, Joseph learned about PACEM (People and Congregations Engaged in Ministry), which works with local congregations and community groups to provide overnight shelter, as well as food and resources, for the homeless during the colder months.
Joseph is part of a startling rise in the number of local women seeking shelter at PACEM, says executive director Jayson Whitehead. In 2015, an average of 8 women per night sought shelter through PACEM, while in 2018 and 2019 the nightly average was 15. Last season, PACEM sheltered 73 women total. So far this year, the average has been 16 women per night.
In response to the growing need, advocates like Heather Kellams, PACEM’s women’s case manager, are hoping to extend the organization’s season, which currently ends in April, as well as build a permanent, year-round women’s shelter in Charlottesville.
“Women are really the most vulnerable population,” Kellams says. She attributes the rise in those seeking shelter to a variety of causes, from domestic violence to mental illness to opioid addiction. Behind those, “it’s usually deep-rooted trauma,” she says. “When you start to peel back the skin of the onion of every woman, you find that these are women who are really just in fear and hurt, that are just striving for somewhere to…rebuild and enrich their lives.”
“The current [PACEM] model is transient and doesn’t really lend itself for a woman to be able to nest and grow,” Kellams says. And other local women’s shelters do not fully meet the need either. The Salvation Army’s shelter requires guests to pass a drug screen and breathalyzer, and the Shelter for Help in Emergency offers temporary housing only to victims of domestic violence.
Kellams envisions a small shelter that would provide counseling and health care, and connect guests to work opportunities and community resources. Like PACEM’s current program, it would be low-barrier, meaning it would not require ID or screen for alcohol or drug use.
“I see deep potential in how [guests] could really develop and be positive, productive citizens, and heal from deep trauma, and actually return to their previous lives…but they won’t be able to do that unless they have a healing base that they can call their home,” Kellams says, “It’s the responsibility of our community to keep these women safe and not turn them out to the streets.”
Tamie Edwards has experienced the dangers of living on the street. After her husband was murdered last January in Charlottesville, Edwards could no longer afford to remain in their home. With no place to stay, she soon discovered PACEM, which gave her a place to sleep.
She left, briefly, when she got involved in another relationship. But that relationship turned abusive, and living on the Downtown Mall left her vulnerable to harassment and assault.
After nearly a month, Edwards returned to PACEM for help.
“I haven’t been able to find housing because of my income…I [receive] $700 a month” from SSI, Edwards says. “There are a lot of ladies in my situation…so having a women’s shelter would be really awesome.”
Kellams hopes to find a benefactor or partner who can purchase or donate an existing building to use for the shelter, pointing to other local organizations, such as On Our Own, that have followed that model. But she says PACEM also plans to start a fundraising campaign soon, in case it’s necessary to rent or buy a building.
In the meantime, PACEM has been working to expand its services and programs for women. Every Monday, it hosts Sister Circle, which helps participants “learn about their strengths,” and “teaches them about wellness, and other types of life skills,” Kellams says. The women also do community service projects, as well as fun activities.
“Sister Circle is a positive group to be a part of. It’s great to be able to gather and release onto other women in need of support,” Joseph says. “The circle allows us to share our vision of what it means to be a competent woman, and that competence is within all of us.”
PACEM also seeks to raise awareness about its need for more host sites, as well as a permanent women’s shelter.
“We hope by making the public aware of what we’re doing…that folks will step up and support what we’re doing,” says Whitehead. “It is something we really need the community at large to embrace…we can’t do this by ourselves.”
Correction February 26: Eight women per night and 15 women per night sought shelter through PACEM in 2015 and 2018/2019, respectively, not eight and 15 women total. This year, an average of 16 women have sought shelter through PACEM per night, not 16 women total.
The Virginia democratic primary will likely narrow a still-crowded field.
Mike Bloomberg’s Charlottesville campaign office is cavernous—and, on a Wednesday afternoon with the Virginia primary less than two weeks away, totally empty. The ninth-richest man in the world set up shop across the street from Friendship Court, one of Charlottesville’s largest low-income housing neighborhoods, but it doesn’t seem to have led to any foot traffic. Bloomberg’s website says there’s a canvass scheduled, but the office is locked and dark.
Bloomberg is the only presidential candidate so far to establish a permanent physical location in Charlottesville ahead of March 3—Super Tuesday—when Virginians will head to the polls to cast their votes in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary. (The Virginia Republican Party voted to cancel its primary, one of a handful of states to do so.)
A late entrant, Bloomberg has poured resources into Super Tuesday states like Virginia. But the race here is pivotal for any candidate hoping to stay in a field that will soon narrow. Virginia’s 99 delegates make it the fourth most valuable state out of the 18 to vote on March 3 or before.
Bekah Saxon, the co-chair of the Charlottesville Democratic Party, says Virginia’s mix of demographics makes the state especially useful as a tool for determining who might have nationwide success. “Virginia is a cross section of the country,” Saxon says. “We have urban areas, we have large numbers of recent immigrants who are now citizens, we have lots of young voters from all of the colleges we have, we have rural areas. It can be a real litmus test as to how the rest of the country is thinking.”
Four years ago, Hillary Clinton rolled through the Democratic primary in Virginia, taking the state with 65 percent of the vote to Bernie Sanders’ 35 percent. This time, though, polling suggests a much closer race. A mid-February poll from highly rated pollster Monmouth University showed Sanders taking 22 percent, Bloomberg 22 percent, and Joe Biden 18 percent of Virginia’s votes, with the rest of the field trailing far behind. The polling also suggests that many people in Virginia remain undecided about their choice in the Democratic field.
In 2016, despite Clinton’s strength statewide, Charlottesville asserted itself as one of Virginia’s most progressive enclaves—in the city, Sanders earned 4,483 votes to Clinton’s 3,889. With Sanders now considered a frontrunner by many, there’s nothing to suggest the senator from Vermont won’t turn in another strong performance in town.
Saxon says Pete Buttigieg, Elizabeth Warren, and Sanders have held the most events in Virginia, and seem the most organized in Charlottesville, despite none of them splurging on an office like Bloomberg.
The dynamic is similar over on UVA’s campus. “Warren, Buttigieg, and Sanders seem to be the most institutionalized on Grounds,” says Kiera Goddu, president of the University Democrats. “All three have student groups just for that candidate.”
Some Charlottesville-area donors have been particularly active in the primary so far. The Virginia Public Access Project records individual donations made directly to campaigns. Progressive power-donor Sonjia Smith has cut $5,600 checks for both Buttigieg and Warren. Parke Capshaw, wife of real estate mogul Coran Capshaw, has given around $1,600 to Buttigieg and $3,400 to Sanders. Farther afield, it appears that Justin Vernon, frontman of the Wisconsin-based band Bon Iver, has an LLC registered in Charlottesville, and has given $2,800 to both Sanders and Warren from that address.
According to VPAP, Buttigieg has raised the most money in Virginia and raised the most from the Piedmont region, which includes Charlottesville and a few counties north of town.
November might feel like it can’t come soon enough, but March 3 will be the last stand for some campaigns that have come a long way. “I can’t imagine that there wouldn’t be some campaigns that get suspended after Super Tuesday,” says Saxon.
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Youth Movement
Most of the students at Charlottesville High School aren’t old enough to vote—but that doesn’t mean they aren’t engaged.
CHS doesn’t have an official Young Democrats or Young Republicans club these days, but there are other groups around the school with a political bent. Jamila Pitre, one of the co-leaders of CHS’ Young Feminists club, is backing Bernie Sanders because of his commitment to “wealth equality, the Green New Deal, [and] his approach to foreign policy.”
Julianna Brown, the other leader of the club, is supporting Elizabeth Warren, due to “her more liberal economic plans” and “policy experience.”
Brown thinks most people in her organization support Sanders or Warren, but says “a lot of people are struggling to balance their own personal beliefs with electability.”
For example Lily Wielar, a senior, says she supports Joe Biden, because “he has the greatest chance of beating Trump.”
At the same time, others aren’t feeling so inspired by the slate of available candidates. Noelle Morris, the head of CHS’ Black Student Union, says she has “not been following the Democratic primary” and doesn’t know who the most popular candidate is for the students in her group. No matter who the nominee is, he or she will have to figure out how to get young people united and on board.
HRC Chair Shantell Bingham says the commission and office need more staffing and resources from the city.
PC: Eze Amos
Charlottesville’s Office of Human Rights and Human Rights Commission have an intimidatingly broad mission: to reduce discrimination in the city.
So perhaps it’s not surprising that the office and its volunteer commission, which are tasked with both investigating individual complaints of discrimination and reviewing city polices for systemic discrimination, have received their fair share of criticism since their creation in 2013. During a 2017 Dialogue on Race meeting, former mayor Dave Norris accused them of not doing enough to uphold the city’s Human Rights Ordinance. At the same meeting, UVA professor Walt Heinecke said the organizations had been largely ineffective, a claim he reiterated in a 2018 Daily Progress op-ed.
Today, similar feelings persist not just among community members—but among commissioners themselves. At last week’s City Council meeting, HRC Chair Shantell Bingham said that although there was “an uptick” in the commission’s ability to fulfill its role in 2019, “we really want to do more.”
Earlier this month, Charlene Green, who has led the OHR for five years, stepped down to join the Piedmont Housing Alliance. Bingham, who became commission chair last year, says both the commission and the office have faced numerous obstacles over the years.
“The Office of Human Rights hasn’t been properly staffed for a very long time,” she says. Though the office hired Todd Niemeier as an outreach specialist in 2018, “before it was just [Green] in the office with interns. And now that she’s leaving, it’s going back to there being one staff person…which is just ridiculous.” The city is currently looking for Green’s replacement.
Since Tarron Richardson became city manager, the office and commission hasn’t had a direct line of contact in the city either, says commissioner Ann Smith.
Smith notes that former city manager Maurice Jones was “very involved” with the HRC, but says, “We haven’t had a chance to meet the new city manager.”
To improve the commission and office’s communication with the city, Bingham says there needs to be a city official who the HRC can directly report to. She also recommends that City Council receive and review reports from OHR on a monthly basis, rather than annually.
Commissioner Sue Lewis suggests council also reexamine the city’s human rights ordinance, particularly the limited authority it gives to the OHR and HRC. They are currently only able to investigate complaints of discrimination in companies with five to 14 employees. Complaints from larger companies are referred to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission office in Richmond.
If the city gives the OHR more money for staffing, it could turn it into a Fair Employment Practice Agency, which would give the office greater authority and better equip it to handle the thousands of discrimination complaints it receives each year, according to Smith.
City Councilor Sena Magill says the council takes the challenges OHR and HRC have faced seriously, and that equity will be a “huge part” of the city’s strategic plan, with the HRC being “a part of that equity work.”
And, according to Richardson, the city’s budget for the upcoming fiscal year “will include continued support for the Office of Human Rights, the new Office of Equity and Inclusion, and the new Police Civilian Review Board.”
The Court Square Historic Resources Subcommittee is considering inscribing enslaved woman Maria Perkins' letter on a new memorial.
Back to the drawing board
Three weeks after the Court Square slave auction plaque was stolen in the middle of the night, the hole left in the sidewalk has been bricked in, leaving little evidence that any memorial ever existed.
The city quickly removed unauthorized replacement plaques by local artist Richard Parks, but discussions are moving forward to install a temporary marker at the site, while a permanent memorial is being planned.
The above plaque was stolen from Court Square on February 6.
The Court Square Markers Historic Resources Subcommittee has been guiding the city’s efforts to install more legible and accurate historic signs on the city-owned buildings around the square. The committee was not initially charged with addressing the slave auction block plaque.
A better memorial there “was on our work plan,” said committee member Genevieve Keller, but the theft of the plaque “has moved it up on the agenda.”
On Monday afternoon, the subcommittee invited local African American leaders and historians to give input on the new marker’s design.
Everyone in the meeting agreed that the previous marker was woefully insufficient. “Everything else around there is big,” said Eddie Harris, parent educator at ReadyKids. “Just because [the history] is a little uncomfortable, it still has to be shown, in a big way.”
Installing a temporary marker is difficult—the marker has to be substantial enough to communicate serious emotional weight, but some at the meeting expressed concern that if the marker is too well-made, the city will be less likely to install a larger, more elaborate memorial down the road.
Security is a consideration, too. “I would urge this community to implore council that whatever structure is put up there be encased in some sort of glass,” said community activist Don Gathers. “Preferably bulletproof glass.”
The city’s initial suggestion, a waist-high obelisk with a plaque on the side, was rejected by subcommittee members and guests as not impressive enough. An idea that garnered more support was a six-foot-tall metal sign inscribed with the text from an 1852 letter written by Maria Perkins, an enslaved person whose family was splintered by sales in Charlottesville.
The subcommittee hopes to consult a professional exhibit designer and solicit further community input before presenting a finalized proposal for a temporary memorial to City Council at its regular meeting on March 16.
The subcommittee is considering using the following text from the above letter as an inscription on a temporary replacement memorial:
“Dear Husband, I write you a letter to let you know of my distress. My master has sold Albert to a trader on monday court day and myself and other child for sale also…I want you to tell Dr Hamilton or your master if either will buy me they can attend to it now…I don’t want a trader to get me…A man by the name of Brady bought Albert and is gone I dont know where. They say he lives in Scottsville…Tell I am quite heart sick….I am and ever will be your kind wife, Maria Perkins.”
_________________
Quote of the Week
“Crimes like the Tessa Majors killing test the limits of forgiveness and redemption. But charging adolescents as adults makes the state crueler, not safer.”
—The New York Times Editorial Board, on New York state’s decision to charge 14-year-old Rashaun Weaver as an adult for killing Tessa Majors
_________________
In Brief
Trail trial
On Monday, the Supreme Court heard arguments about whether the Atlantic Coast Pipeline will be allowed to cross the Appalachian Trail. A lower court’s ruling that the pipeline couldn’t pass under the trail was a setback for Dominion, but reports from the hearing in Washington suggest that the court’s five conservative justices, as well as Stephen Breyer, seem sympathetic to Dominion’s case. The court will deliver a final ruling in the summer.
Sisterly love
Ahead of its May trip to Winneba, Ghana, one of Charlottesville’s four sister cities, a local delegation is collecting backpacks, pens, pencils, markers, erasers, watercolor paints, notebooks, binders, sanitary pads, flip flops, and disposable diapers for the West African city’s schools. Donation can be left at Church of Our Savior on Rio Road.
F*ck cars
WillowTree is not waiting for Charlottesville Area Transit to expand its bus routes: The rapidly growing local tech company says it will provide its own 20-person buses for employees to get to work at its new headquarters in Woolen Mills, according to a report by the online news site Technical.ly. Employees will also have access to kayaks for those who want to commute via the Rivanna.
Gaga for Wawa
Watch out Sheetz: Convenience store chain Wawa, a cult favorite in Philly and south Jersey, will open its first Charlottesville-area location in September at Proffit Road and Route 29. The company is in the midst of an initiative to open 40 stores in northern Virginia over the next 15 years.
Updated 2/25 to reflect that the Wawa will not technically be located within Charlottesville city limits, 2/27 to correct Mr. Harris’ job title (he is a parent educator for the Real Dads program at ReadyKids, not the organization’s leader), and 2/27 to clarify that the Court Square Markers Historic Resources Subcommittee only has jurisdiction over city-owned property in Court Square.
An event space will take over the former Rooftop restaurant in Crozet. Photo: Jack Looney
Farewells and silver linings
The Rooftop in Crozet has shut its doors. The news came in a statement earlier this month from owners Kelley Tripp and Justin Van der Linde, who also own Smoked Kitchen & Tap. They announced that the restaurant—known for its Blue Ridge views, Parmesan fries, and an all-you-can-eat Sunday brunch—was closed effective immediately. A new event space will take over the location in Piedmont Place. If there’s a silver lining here, it’s that it’s business as usual downstairs at Smoked Kitchen & Tap, where some of the best barbecue around still awaits.
Speaking of transitions, we have sad news for crepe-lovers: The Flat announced its closing in a social media post on February 10. We reported back in May that after going through several owners, the space was reopened by Elise Stewart after being offered for sale via tweet. The upside? Vu Noodles is already planning to move in, anticipating a spring opening.
Cheers to three!
That’s the number of Charlottesville bartenders that are included in the Top 100 World Class of 2020, an annual competition where bartenders fight for the title of best bartender in the country. Congratulations to Kerrie Pierce of Brasserie Saison and Rebecca Edwards and Steve Yang from Tavola.
Camp is not in session
Following vocal opposition from a number of residents, Champion Brewing Company recently abandoned plans to build a small brewery, called Camp Champion, at an empty church on Earlysville Road, citing struggles working with Albemarle County. Champion is looking for other sites for the brewery, this time outside the county. In other brew news, Skipping Rock Beer Co. will open in April in the former Hardywood Pilot Brewery & Taproom on West Main Street.
New restaurants at 5th Street Station
The new year brought a number of new restaurants to 5th Street Station: local eatery Kanak Indian Kitchen, and outposts of national chains BurgerFi and Wing Zone are all now open, bringing new flavors and options for guests. And that’s not all—several more restaurants are anticipated to open at 5th Street in the coming weeks and months.
Jazz and grits
Common House is welcoming guests on Saturday, February 22, from 10am-2pm for its Big Fat Jazz Brunch, where the Big Easy feeling will come to life with live music (starting at 11am) and festive fare served prix fixe, including fried okra Benedict, flaming bananas foster, and barbecue shrimp and grits. Reservations are required; adult tickets cost $25, and kids can join the fun for $12, plus tax and gratuity. 206 W. Market St., 566-0192
Fat Tuesday fixins
Wondering where to celebrate Mardi Gras? On Tuesday, February 25, from 5-11pm, Beer Run will feature a menu filled with classic New Orleans-inspired dishes like gumbo, po’ boys, muffulettas, and king cake. 156 Carlton Rd. Suite 203, 984-2337
Less than a week after county resident Richard Allan was arrested and charged with two felonies for stealing Court Square’s modest slave auction block marker, The New York Times Magazine ran a new story from its 1619 Project on the issue of slave-sale sites nationwide, and how inadequately we commemorate the horrific tragedies that happened in these places.
As SUNY Binghamton professor Anne C. Bailey writes, “Family was one of the few bright spots in the long night of slavery, and the auction was the event that ripped enslaved families apart.”
The article notes that only a small percentage of these sites have been properly documented and preserved. “To look at some of these images,” Bailey writes of the accompanying photographs of slave-sale sites today, “is to grasp how invisible some of American history’s most grievous wounds have become.”
In Charlottesville, Allan’s theft galvanized ongoing discussions by the city’s Historic Resources Committee to create a more prominent slave auction memorial. And the county is hosting community conversations on the broader issue of how history is told in Court Square, which includes the county-owned monument to Confederate soldiers that dwarfed the city’s markers to Albemarle’s formerly enslaved majority.
These are positive steps, and Charlottesville has done better, more inclusive work than many other areas in Virginia in beginning to acknowledge its African American history. But whatever new memorials emerge, it will only be the beginning.
On Monday, Times reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones, the originator of the 1619 Project, came to Charlottesville for talks with UVA President Jim Ryan and journalist Jamelle Bouie, and said acknowledging the legacy of slavery is only the first step. “Courage is in the doing,” she said, in a call for universities to go beyond studying these issues and provide monetary reparations. “The courage is in trying to repair that damage.”
The ham biscuit at JM Stock is a favorite. Photo: Tom McGovern
From bagels to biscuits to burritos, we dig in to the best meal of the day (and where to find it around town).
BY: Brielle Entzminger, Ben Hitchcock, Laura Longhine, and Erin O’Hare
Ace Biscuit and Barbecue. Photo: Amanda Maglione
Best in biscuits
Biscuits are a breakfast staple around here-—but which one is the best? We rounded up our favorites (with top honors to the ham biscuit at J.M. Stock), but biscuits are personal, so feel free to disagree–we know you will!
Bluegrass Grill & Bakery: With a mix of white and whole wheat flour, Bluegrass’ biscuits are denser than most, and slightly sweet—almost muffin-like, but weirdly satisfying.
Blue Moon Diner: Your basic biscuit: pale, soft, and flaky, best with eggs or sausage gravy.
Fox’s Cafe: Delightfully light and fluffy, Fox’s homemade biscuits are the perfect foil for salty country ham or bacon.
The Pigeon Hole: In addition to egg biscuits (avocado is optional) you can get a biscuit basket with honey butter and strawberry preserves.
J.M. Stock: Though they’re only served one way (as a ham biscuit), Stock’s biscuits are head and shoulders above the rest. Made with both butter and lard (from the same local pigs that supply the ham), the Stock biscuit is perfectly golden, buttery and flaky, firm enough for a sandwich, and has a nice salty kick. Add the country ham and a dash of hot sauce and honey, and you’ve got an unbelievably delicious breakfast.
Tip Top: Tender and satisfying, Tip Top’s biscuits stand up to their flavorful sausage gravy—at only $4.10 an order, it’s a steal.
The Pie Chest: Rachel Pennington makes a damn good biscuit: salty, generously sized, and so buttery and rich it’s liable to crumble through your fingers. They’re sold one to an order, with a (stellar) housemade pear butter.
Ace Biscuit & Barbecue: Fans swear by the Ol’ Dirty Biscuit, which turns the classic biscuits and gravy up a notch (or 10) with a fried chicken thigh, pimento cheese, and pickles.—LL
When it comes to breakfast potatoes, The Villa Diner is firmly on team hash browns, while Blue Moon Diner comes down on the side of home fries. Photo: Tom McGovern
The great debate: hash browns vs. home fries
We’re not ones to fabricate a starch—er, staunch—rivalry between two delicious potato-based breakfast side dishes, but we’ve noticed that most restaurants tend to offer either hash browns or home fries, rather than both.
What’s the difference, anyway? And is one better than the other? Hash browns are potatoes, grated or shredded, and pan-fried. Home fries are potatoes, diced or wedged, and pan-fried. Hash browns tend to be crispy, while home fries tend to be soft. Both have plenty of potential to be extremely delicious.
Each cook has her own way of seasoning and preparing her hash browns and home fries, and there’s plentiful offerings of each dish around town. The Villa Diner, The Cavalier Diner, IHOP, and Waffle House are team hash browns; Blue Moon Diner, The Nook, Bluegrass Grill, Tip Top Restaurant, and Moose’s By the Creek are team home fries. (We couldn’t find a local spot that offers both.)
There’s a reason why Georgia-based chain Waffle House has a cult following, and we’re pretty sure the hash browns are a big part of it: You can order them 10 different ways. Get ’em plain (good ol’ potatoes alone), smothered (sautéed onions), covered (melted cheese), chunked (hickory smoked ham), diced (grilled tomatoes), peppered (jalapeño peppers), capped (grilled mushrooms), topped (with the chain’s proprietary Bert’s Chili), or country (sausage gravy). Or, order them “all the way”—with all the toppings—for $5.
For Bluegrass Grill owner Chrissy Benninger, that sort of flavorful hash browns option seems like a rarity. “I get the appeal [of hash browns], but they seem a bit bland to me. It doesn’t seem like people season hash browns. Maybe I’m wrong, but it just seems like French fries in a different form.” For her, it’s all about the home fries: “Chunky, perfectly spiced, onion-laden, crispy potatoes. What’s not to love?”
Interestingly enough, the debate over what to call Blue Moon Diner’s breakfast potatoes has continued for more than a decade. When Laura Galgano and her husband took over the diner in 2006, the menu called the dish—which is cubed potatoes roasted with peppers and onion—”hash browns.” The couple spent more than a year explaining to customers that while they were called hash browns, they were more like home fries. “We changed the name on the menu and thought that would be the end of that.” They were wrong; people still had questions.
But Galgano’s come to an extremely logical conclusion in this debate: “It sure doesn’t matter what you call them, as long as you enjoy them!”—EO
Shenandoah Joe
Who’s got the best cup of coffee in town?
The good news is, every local coffee purveyer seems to have its fans: Our call
on social media brought up everything from Guajiros Miami Eatery to the mobile popup JBird Supply. Here’s how the finalists stacked up in a Twitter poll:
Lone Light 18.3%
Mudhouse 23.7%
Shenandoah Joe 58.1%
Breakfast burrito breakdown
Tia Sophia’s, a diner in Santa Fe, claims it coined the term “breakfast burrito” in 1975. But it seems impossible that no one dreamed up such a simple combination before then. Eggs, cheese, maybe potatoes, maybe some sausage, wrapped up in a tortilla—it makes too much sense to have been invented as late as 1975.
The breakfast burrito is a twist on a twist, an Americanized, breakfast-ified version of a food that was already informal and customizable. As such, a modern breakfast burrito isn’t bound by any strict set of culinary rules. If it’s got eggs in a tortilla, it’s a breakfast burrito. The rest is up to the person with the pan.
Even so, breakfast burritos are deceptively difficult to execute well. If the eggs are too wet, the tortilla can get soggy. With nothing to provide some crunch, the whole thing can turn to mush. Too much filling can overwhelm a fragile wrap. In Charlottesville, plenty of places do it right—and they all do it differently. Here, the breakfast burrito’s delicious versatility is on full display.
Blue Moon Diner’s burrito is a vegetarian dish. Just eggs, cheddar, and beans,served in a spinach wrap, it’s on the healthier end of the eccentric eatery’s Southern-style diner menu. Don’t let that dissuade you—the eggs are fluffy, the cheddar is soft and melty, and the black beans provide some important textural contrast. Add a little of the tangy, flavorful salsa to kick the whole thing up a notch.
The En Fuego at Ivy Provisions. Photo: Cramer Photo.
Ivy Provisions takes the opposite approach. Its breakfast burrito, called the En Fuego, is a decadent, salty, fatty hangover cure. Take a bite, and the En Fuego will send a squirt of orange grease trickling down your hand from the back of the wax paper wrap. Jammed with chorizo and potatoes, everything inside melts together into a piping hot mess, propelled by the spice from the sausage. The En Fuego is transcendent, though not for the faint of heart.
Breakfast burritos can also be quick, on-the-go fast food. That’s what you’ll find at Nuestra Cocina in the Marathon Station at the Rio-Greenbrier intersection. Charlottesville’s gas station food has a well-known reputation at this point, and like the other humble, hidden kitchens in town, this place doesn’t disappoint. Its burrito is rich but not overwhelming; the eggs are scrambled withonions and green peppers, balancing well with potatoes and greasy chorizo.
Quality breakfast burritos can also be found at Bluegrass Grill, Grit Coffee, Firefly, Beer Run, and plenty of other local eateries both on and off the beaten path. Be sure to let us know if we missed any great ones—we’re always hungry.—BH
Something special
Looking for a special occasion splurge? The Clifton’s acclaimed 1799 restaurant serves an elegant breakfast daily, from steel-cut oats with Virginia apples to smoked salmon and roe with a roasted garlic pancake and charred onion crème fraiche. Sunday brunch adds more savory dishes, like escargot and North Carolina trout. Sit on the sunny veranda or enclosed patio, take in the gorgeous view, and start your day off in style.—LL
Juicin’ it: Where to grab a healthy breakfast
Want to wake up on the right side of the bed? A healthy breakfast is the perfect way to start your day. Whether you decide to take in your nutrients via liquid form at a nearby juice bar or partake in a bowl or platter is up to you, but thesefour spots will put a little extra pep in your morning step.—MI
Corner Juice
What you need to know: Corner Juice has two locations: the original on the Corner and another on the Downtown Mall. At both, cold-pressed juices made in small batches are the focus. Beyond juice, the selections include toasts, sandwiches, smoothies, and bowls. Power shots and nut milks round out the menu.
What you should order: With just four ingredients—organic orange, pineapple, lemon, and ginger—the Dr. J juice is a good place to start. The Blue Ridge Berry smoothie is a customer favorite, made with blueberries, mango, banana, avocado, flax powder, and almond milk.
Essentials:cornerjuice.com, two locations at 201 E. Main St. and 1509 University Ave.
Farm Bell Kitchen
What you need to know: Consider this a public service announcement: Farm Bell Kitchen offers brunch every single day of the week from 8am-2pm. The weekday menu and the weekend menu offer some differing selections, but no matter the day, guests will find omelets, salads, and bowls.
What you should order: On the weekday menu, the farm omelet (egg whites, spinach, tomato, sweet potato, cheese) and the grains of truth bowl (tofu or chicken, quinoa, kale, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, peppers, pecans, and avocado dressing) are your best bets for lighter fare. Come the weekend, order the power bowl, served with kale, tofu, and sweet potato with roasted red pepper vinaigrette and a poached egg.
What you need to know: First Watch opened its Charlottesville doors at Barracks Road Shopping Center last April. With more than 200 locations throughout the country, it’s fair to say the restaurant has breakfast, brunch, and lunch down to a science. Dishes range from health-conscious to decadent, and a kid’s menu ensures the whole family is taken care of.
What you should order: In the mood for something savory? The avocado toast is topped with extra-virgin olive oil, lemon, and Maldon sea salt. Steel-cut oatmeal is on the sweeter side, made in-house and served with berries, sliced banana, and pecans. On the seasonal menu, million dollar bacon may not be healthy, but topped with brown sugar, black pepper, cayenne, and a syrup drizzle, there will be no judgment if you can’t resist!
Essentials:firstwatch.com, Barracks Road Shopping Center
The Juice Laundry
What you need to know: Founders Sarah and Mike Keenan started The Juice Laundry in 2013. Today, there are three locations of the cold-pressed juice shop in Charlottesville, one in Richmond, and one in Washington, D.C. The menu goes beyond juice, with smoothies, acai bowls, nut milks, and other healthy goodies in the lineup.
What you should order: The Waterboy, which can be ordered as a smoothie or acai bowl, is the philanthropic choice. It’s made with pineapple, mango, blue majik (an extract of spirulina), and coconut water, and $2 from every one goes to Chris Long’s Waterboy Foundation. On the juice menu, the Gentle Green combines kale, spinach, cucumber, grapefruit, and apple.
Essentials:thejuicelaundry.com, 1411 University Ave.; 722 Preston Ave., Suite 105; 450 Whitehead Rd. (inside the UVA Aquatic & Fitness Center)
Craving pork chops and eggs at 2am? The Waffle House is open 24-7, and the grill is always hot. Photo: Eze Amos
Midnight breakfast
Breakfast for dinner was novel when you were a kid, and it’s no less delicious when you’re an adult. Plenty of diner-type spots in town keep bacon and eggs on the griddle until close—Blue Moon Diner, The Nook, Tip Top Restaurant, to name a few. But sometimes the breakfast craving hits before morning can come again, and that’s when we thank our lucky stars that we live in a place that has Waffle Houses (on Route 29 South and Fifth Street) and an IHOP (at Rio Hill Shopping Center), two iconic 24-hour breakfast spots with extensive menus. And there’s Sheetz on the Corner, too, where you (and plenty of intoxicated undergrads) can get bacon croissants, hash browns, and the Walker Breakfast Ranger sandwich at all hours. —EO
Photo: Morgan Salyer
A local classic
Bodo’s Deli-Egg isn’t just delicious. It also solves a problem.
“You get to a point where you’re slicing deli meat, and you have an undersized heel you don’t want to use for a sandwich,” says Scott Smith, co-owner of the venerable bagel vendor.
Bodo’s didn’t come up with the idea—it’s an old New York Jewish deli trick—but Smith and his team have taken it a step further. Because they’re not kosher, they’ve added ham, capicola, salami and Swiss, muenster and provolone cheese to the traditional deli egg mixture of pastrami and corned beef.
The result is one of Bodo’s most popular items. Indeed, the sandwich shop sells so much deli egg, they end up using far more cured meat than just the stuff that comes from the unused ends.
Smith says most folks are straight down the middle with their egg sandwich orders—Deli-Egg on an everything bagel is most popular. But some add more meat and cheese, usually bacon and cheddar, or balance out the richness with some punchy pepper spread.
Smith’s pro tip? Try the Deli-Egg a couple times before you make up your mind about it. The meat and cheese contents can vary depending on what’s available to chop on any given day.
Don’t forget the donuts
Spudnuts and now Sugar Shack may be gone, but there are still a few spots to get your morning sugar fix.
Carpe Donut: Organic, local, and delicious, Carpe makes what may be the perfect apple cider donut, rolled in cinnamon sugar. In recent years they’ve added a range of other toppings, from maple bacon to blueberry. 715 Allied Ln., and at City Market
Duck Donuts: A fresh donut is a good donut, and this North Carolina chain delivers with made-to-order cake donuts you can customize with your choice of coating, topping, and “drizzle.” The Shops at Stonefield
Dunkin’ Donuts: Homesick New Englanders can get their Dunkin’ fix off 29 North. The donuts? They’re fine. Rivanna Plaza
Krispy Kreme: For a classic old-school glazed, Krispy Kreme is still the king. Get one hot or follow their advice and microwave for eight seconds—you won’t be sorry. 5th Street Station
Savory breakfast pies at The Pie Chest. Photo: John Robinson
Breakfast on a budget:
Five vegetarian morning options—$5 and under
Last November, my boyfriend suggested we go on a pescaterian diet together. He had done his research, and thought it would be a great way for us to eat and live healthier in the new year. And with relationship weight gain being a very real thing, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try.
So when it comes to grabbing breakfast in the morning, I’m looking for something vegetarian. This isn’t that difficult, with all of the juice bars, coffee shops, and such around town. But what can be hard is finding something delicious and filling on a budget—I certainly can’t afford to buy $7 avocado toast on a regular basis.
Thankfully, there are plenty of spots in town that have vegetarian options priced at $5 or less, for whatever breakfast mood you happen to be in. Here are some of my favorites. —BE
Something classic
For an affordable breakfast, you can never go wrong with Bodo’s. Made-from-scratch bagels are just 85 cents each (75 cents if you buy a dozen or more), and there are an array of spreads, from plain cream cheese ($2.05) to cinnamon sugar or honey and butter. For a little extra change, get the flavored cream cheese—I recommend the cinnamon-raisin bagel with honey pecan cream cheese ($2.40).
If you’re in the mood for a sandwich, there are multiple vegetarian options for under $5, including egg, veggie patty, three cheese, and PBJ, and all will hold you over till lunch. Everyone has their own Bodo’s order: My favorite is the three cheese (muenster, cheddar, and American) on whole wheat.
Something sweet
While MarieBette Bakery & Café does have a breakfast menu, most of the options are over $5. But no worries—if you’re looking for a sweet breakfast treat, its wide selection of authentic French pastries are a step above your standard coffee shop muffin. I recommend the pain au chocolat for $3.25. But if you’d prefer something salty, try the pretzel croissant. At $4, it’s a little pricey, but it’s fairly big, tastes exactly like a pretzel and a croissant (at the same time!), and will fill you up.
Something (a little) spicy
Here’s something to get you out of bed: From 7-8am at Brazos Tacos, tacos are buy one get one free! But if you’re like me and hate waking up early, make sure to stop by on Tuesday, when tacos are $1 off all day. With either deal, you can get a Flora (sautéed spinach, scrambled eggs, refried black beans, queso fresco, and roasted tomato salsa) and an I Willie Love You (scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, sliced avocado, roasted corn pico, and queso fresco), and still get out for under a Lincoln.
Something cheap
If you’re on the run and want something cheap (but still tasty) for breakfast, head over to Market Street Market for a $1.99 egg and cheese biscuit, which you’ll find wrapped in foil near the checkout. The biscuit is light and fluffy, while the egg has the perfect amount of cheese melted on top. And don’t miss the array of fruits, yogurts, and other breakfasty items available to get the most bang for your (five) bucks.
Something savory
The Pie Chest may be known for its delectable desserts, but it certainly does not slack on savory pies. A selection of hand pies for just $5 is available all day, and includes those of the breakfast variety. On some days, the vegetarian breakfast pie is stuffed with salsa, egg, and cheese. Other days, there’s a spinach and feta pie. With a flaky crust and cheesy filling, both are equally delicious.
Most guests at The Farmhouse at Veritas find their way to the porch rockers. Photo: John Robinson
Vineyard lodging is having a growth spurt. As wine tourism grows in Virginia, so, too, do the number of wineries rolling out the welcome mat at everything from refurbished farmhouses to log cabins to luxe suites. More than 30 wineries now offer lodging; here are five local favorites.
The Farmhouse at Veritas, Veritas Vineyard & Winery
A designer’s touch is evident in the updated English countryside feel at The Farmhouse at Veritas, from silk draperies to custom wainscoting to the soft rugs on wide-planked floors. Some of the spacious rooms are snugged up by coffered ceilings over plush, king-sized beds, and a bottle of complimentary Veritas wine waits on a side table. Built in the 1820s as a family home, the Farmhouse at Veritas was updated and reopened as lodging in 2012.
Wine hour begins at 5pm in the salon with small plates of housemade nibbles: cheeses, pickles, charcuterie, and jams. Guests can rack up a game of billiards or take a walk through the Inn’s flower garden and grounds. Most visitors eventually find their way to porch rockers, where they stick like glue until dinner at 7pm.
For late risers, the best part of the Farmhouse schedule is the gloriously late breakfast, served to order from 9 to 11am. A glass of Veritas sparkling wine can be enjoyed solo, or as part of a duet with fresh-squeezed orange juice, along with croissants, fruit, and choice of a sweet or savory main course, such as housemade brioche French toast with house-cultured yogurt, local maple syrup, and granola, or Free Union Grass Farm fried chicken with Gruyère, fried egg, and house-fermented hot sauce honey.
For dinner, guests can drive 30 minutes to Staunton or Charlottesville, but most choose to dine in at the excellent Farmhouse Restaurant. (Reservations required; $85 for four courses, including wine pairings.)
Last fall, there was a particularly riveting photo of Virginia wine country making the rounds—have you seen it? October’s gone-to-orange vines marching in straight rows toward a glittering pond, backed by rising layers of gold-brown and blue mountains, all topped off with puffy white clouds. That iconic image was taken at Afton Mountain Vineyards, and that’s also the view from your private deck when you check in to one of the four Vineyard Cottages. Apartment-sized at 650-square feet, the Cottages feel fresh and airy, with a wheelchair-accessible quadrant design of king bedroom, huge bathroom with walk-in shower, cozy living room with cute electric fireplace, and kitchen with full-size appliances.
A two-bedroom, two-bath Guest House is also available, just 15 long strides from the tasting room. The full kitchen is outfitted for those who love to cook, while a comfortable living room with fireplace, front patio, and screened porch are perfect for those who love to sit.
Lodging fees include two tastings at the winery, and horseback riding in the vineyard can be arranged with a local outfitter. Two of the cottages are dog friendly, but there’s an extra fee.
Dinner options within a 10-minute drive include the excellent Farmhouse at Veritas (reservations required) and the nacho/wings/pizza/burger goodness at Blue Mountain Brewery, both in Afton.
Cottages $165-338; Guest House $225-355, plus fees. 234 Vineyard Ln., Afton. aftonmountain vineyards.com, (540) 456-8667.
Glass House Winery B&B
An extravagance of color, texture, and whimsy, the B&B at Glass House Winery might seem like the harvest of someone’s wildest imagination, were it not for the winery’s other flagship space—a glass conservatory off the tasting room that blooms year-round with 10-foot-tall banana trees, heliconia, and other tropical flowers. Glass House Winery is delightfully exuberant, to put it mildly.
The B&B’s main common areas are modern-meets-jungle with animal print furnishings and lots of greenery around an open kitchen. Outside, wicker furniture surrounds a pool, hot tub, and tiki bar.
Three bedrooms and a large, two-room suite—more sedate in décor—come with ensuite bathrooms, and the live-in innkeeper, Peggy Young, is available to help answer questions and cook up a generous breakfast in the morning.
There’s music and dancing at the winery every Friday from 6-9pm. Children and dogs are welcome at the B&B and winery.
Nearby dining options are few, but Duner’s, a busy local favorite with an upscale American menu, is 20 minutes away, or drive a few more minutes to The Mill Room, reopened this year at Boar’s Head Resort after a multi-year renovation.
$125-395 (book the entire B&B for $650-1,000 a night), 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glass housewinery.com, 964-2190.
Photo courtesy Barboursville Vineyards.
1804 Inn and Cottages, Barboursville Vineyards
An aura of stillness and a sliver of a story begin your stay at Barboursville Vineyards’ 1804 Inn and Cottages, which stands among hulking ancient boxwoods in the shadow of a silent ruin. If former Virginia governor James Barbour’s brick shell of a home (it burned on Christmas Day 1884) reminds you passingly of Monticello, that’s because it was designed in the same Palladian style by a neighbor—Thomas Jefferson.
For sheer elegance, book one of the suites in the 1804 Inn; each has a separate sitting room, fireplace, and wide balcony or patio, plus enough oriental rugs, chintz, and antique furnishings to make you thirsty for an aged brandy. Inn guests breakfast together in the central dining room.
The cottages are more relaxed and casual, each with its own estate history as a schoolhouse, gardener’s cottage, or servant’s quarter. Inside, working fireplaces keep it cozy, and kitchenettes are stocked with DIY breakfast, plus happy hour wine, grapes, and cheese.
A shared deck behind the cottages is great for evening stargazing and sipping on a glass of Barboursville’s luscious dessert wine, Paxxito (available at the winery).
Three additional suites are now open in the Blue Run Cottage, which was the family residence for winemaker Luca Paschina for 30 years.
Though the room rate includes a wine tasting, consider upgrading to the winery’s Library 1821, a quiet, ritzy enclave overlooking orderly rows of cabernet franc vines. For a starting price of $25, you can sample Barboursville vintages dating back 20 years or more.
Reserve ahead for lunch or dinner at Barboursville’s gracious and welcoming Palladio Restaurant, featuring an a la carte menu of Northern Italian cuisine with wine pairings. The price for a three-course dinner pairing is $75 or $105 with wines, while the four-course pairing is $90 or $125.
$240-550, 17655 Winery Rd., Barboursville. bbv wine.com, (540) 832-5384. Library 1821 open Friday- Monday; reservations suggested, (540) 832-3824. Palladio Restaurant open for lunch Wednesday-Sunday and dinner Friday and Saturday, (540) 832-7848.
The tasting room at DelFosse Vineyards sits at the bottom of your palm, just above the wrist. Your fingers hold the trellised vineyard rows, rising up and away. At the top of your middle finger is a log cabin, and as you perch on the cabin’s flagstone patio, big enough for 50 of your friends, the entire estate—lake and winery, tiny cars and people—is your view. You rule. You are master of the universe. At least until the sun goes down; then you are bear bait. Ha! We kid: There’s a huge reinforced fence around the property. So instead, you are simply—alone.
The 150-year-old cabin is the best kind of retreat: full of character yet fully-functional. There’s a comfortable bedroom upstairs, satellite TV, and an updated kitchen and bathroom so thoughtfully done that the integrity of the log house—the smoky, dark woodsiness of it—remains.
The Vineyard Farmhouse, just outside the winery gates, has old-house charm in a modern package. Popular with DelFosse’s wedding parties, the Farmhouse holds nine guests in four ensuite bedrooms, plus full kitchen, dining room, and living room.
For dinner, break out the DIY steaks, or take a country drive 20 minutes northeast to Dr. Ho’s Humble Pie, which, in our opinion, has no reason to be humble: It’s by far the best pizza around.
