Pearl’s Bake Shoppe – C-VILLE Weekly

By Sam Padgett and Erin O’Hare

The Yard food hall at 5th Street Station is gearing up to open in May, in the building next to Alamo Drafthouse Cinema. Jeff Garrison, the project’s lead, says he wanted to “create an active community-engaged area…a great area to hang out.” And so The Yard put extra emphasis on seating, including a shaded outdoor patio and complimentary WiFi. Additionally, if Garrison can obtain a coveted festival liquor license for the space, drinks can be openly carried between the businesses, which is beneficial because The Yard could also serve as an entertainment venue. As for the food half of the hall, The Yard already has leases from Basil Mediterranean Bistro & Wine Bar, Extreme Pizza and Chim, an Asian street food restaurant. While the first restaurants are going to be opening this May, The Yard will continue to add more options.

Fresh start

Back in December, we reported that The Villa Diner would be moving to a new location in town, as its current home at 129 Emmet St. N will soon be demolished when the University of Virginia begins to develop the land at the corner of Emmet Street and Ivy Road later this year.

Now we can report that The Villa’s moving down the road, into the former location of the Royal Indian Restaurant at 1250 Emmet St. N, adjacent to the new Zaxby’s. Villa Diner co-owner Jenifer Beachley describes the relocation as “terrifyingly exciting.” She says that the same atmosphere and service that customers have come to expect at The Villa will move with the business, and there will be a few additions to the menu. The Villa’s final day in its current location will be Memorial Day, and the Beachleys expect the new location to open in June.

Best of the South

In Southern Living magazine’s 2018 Best of the South poll, Charlottesville was named the eighth best food town in the region (food cities are in a different category). In that same poll, Blue Mountain Brewery in Afton was named the best brewery in Virginia.

And in Garden & Gun magazine’s Southern Craft Brewery bracket, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, whose flagship is in Richmond but operates a pilot brewery and taproom in Charlottesville, made it to the final matchup out of a field of 32 breweries, to take on Scofflaw Brewing Company of Atlanta for the championship. Hardywood was named the bracket winner on Tuesday.

Losing a gem

Pearl’s Bake Shoppe, known around town for its vegan cupcake offerings, among other sweet treats, closed its Charlottesville location on March 24. According to information posted to the bakery’s Facebook page, the owners have chosen to focus attention on their Richmond location instead.

Another closing

Water Street Restaurant—or, chef Brice Cunningham’s rebranded Tempo—closed after service on March 31. The eatery, which served upscale casual French and American cuisine, opened in September 2016.

Brunch game just got stronger

In a March 12 Facebook post, Kung Fu Tea Charlottesville at 1001 W. Main St. announced that it will soon begin serving dim sum (and judging by the hundreds of comments and shares on the post, folks are excited about it). For those unfamiliar with dim sum, it’s a style of Chinese (usually Cantonese) cuisine served with tea for a brunch-type meal. The bite-sized portions of food—think steamed buns, steamed vegetables, slow-roasted meats, congee soups and even dessert dim sum such as egg tarts—are served on small plates or nestled inside little steam baskets.

Quality time

In the last few weeks, a Facebook page called Quality Pie has popped up and begun sharing photos of baked goods, as well as both interior and exterior shots of the former Spudnuts donut shop on Avon Street in Belmont. It appears as though the bakery is the work of former Mas Tapas chef Tomas Rahal.

Bakeries share their holiday treats

’Tis the season to gather around a table piled high with foods galore. And, thankfully, Charlottesville artisans are preparing plenty of specialty items for the holidays. Here is a sampling of seasonal treats you can find around town.

Albemarle Baking Company

Panettone, the much more popular Italian cousin of fruitcake, is available at Albemarle Baking Company from November through January. ABC makes a traditional panettone with raisins and candied oranges, and uses naturally fermented dough, farm fresh eggs and butter with no preservatives, which give it a rich texture. For many, holiday baking can bring back memories of simpler times, and for Gerry and Millie Newman, owners of Albemarle Baking Company, the panettone does just that. “We like to bake holiday favorites from around the world (including panettone from Italy and stollen from Germany) and share the histories and folklore behind those treats with our customers,” Gerry says.

For the Newmans, one of the best parts of holiday baking is hearing how customers have made panettone part of their own traditions: Some make French toast out of it or hollow it out and fill it with ice cream for a decadent treat.

MarieBette Café & Bakery

Stollen is a type of fruit bread made with candied and/or dried fruits that originated in Germany. At MarieBette, this holiday treat is a departure from tradition with a buttery and dense fruit bread rather than a dry and preserved loaf. They use brioche dough and dried fruit soaked in golden rum then sprinkle the loaf with powdered sugar.

Head baker Hilary Salmon adds a unique rich twist by filling the stollen with crystallized ginger, apricots, raisins, almonds and pockets of housemade marzipan. The hints of crystallized ginger and orange zest come through upon first bite and complement the creamy texture of the marzipan. “I love that it’s a childhood memory [Salmon’s mother is German],” Salmon says. “The spiciness of the crystallized ginger and the sweetness of the bread make for a sweet and spicy combination.”

Pearl’s Bake Shoppe

Buche de noels (also known as yule logs) are a holiday tradition for many, usually made from sponge cake and layered with icing. At Pearl’s Bake Shoppe, they create custom buche de noels for the holiday season. You can choose from a vanilla or chocolate base (the chocolate base is naturally gluten-free, but the vanilla can be made gluten-free as well), and from unique designs that include a birch tree or a vertical log. “We love making them because not only is it a great dessert, but it can also serve as a centerpiece for your holiday celebration,” says Laurie Blakely, co-owner and operator of Pearl’s. With the holidays around the corner, demand is high for this seasonal specialty, she says.

Arley Cakes

In celebration of her first year in business, Arley Arrington, owner of Arley Cakes, is making unique pies for the holiday season. Her spiked eggnog is a custard pie filled with holiday spices and booze—what could be better? Arrington also prides herself on adding unique visual elements to her pies. “This one has a decorative edge made of little pie-crust ‘gingerbread’ people. Spicy, cute and boozy,” she says. Her inspiration for the pie comes from her limitless childhood desire for eggnog. “Each year when I was a kid, once the temperatures dropped and the days got shorter, I’d always start searching for it in the grocery store—it was never too early for eggnog season,” she says.

The Pie Chest

The Pie Chest is known for its seasonal flavors, and this time of year is no exception. The peppermint crunch pie is a play on a truffle, with Callebaut dark chocolate, natural peppermint oil and crushed-up candy canes for layers of crunch. The filling is placed in a chocolate cookie crust and topped with a mint-infused whipped cream. “Nothing says winter quite like this pie,” says Rachel Pennington, owner of The Pie Chest. “The contrast of colors (white, red and black) and textures (fluffy, crunchy and smooth) make for the perfect slice of holiday pie.”