Ten Course Hospitality – C-VILLE Weekly

Students grab healthier options, and the Downtown Mall faces French paradox

Smoke in our eyes

A new Q joint started smoking last Friday. Vision Barbecue is pioneered by co-owners Mike Blevins and Gabi Barghachie, who came up with their “vision” for the restaurant while working together at Maya. These barbecue boys are on a mission to add their own take on authentic smoked meats and sides to the downtown restaurant scene. “We are using local wood and a match,” Barghachie says. “No chemical starters, no gas, no electric. Everything done the way it’s supposed to be done.” The menu offers meats by the pound, traditional sides with a spicy variation on pimento cheese, and Little Pig- and Big Hen-sized sandwiches for all appetites. Be sure to grab the wet naps when you pick up VB’s signature sammie, The Hot Mess, loaded with 10 ounces of brisket, pork, and chicken, and topped with pickled onions and jalapeño plus housemade cheese and pepper sauces. Vision Barbecue is located next to The Shebeen at 249 Ridge McIntire Rd., and is open Thursday through Monday.

Crammin’ the good stuff

While we can’t imagine students completely ditching Gusburgers, donuts, and Chinese food delivery, it’s exciting to see UVA’s commitment to healthy, sustainable eating through a new partnership with Harvest Table. A subsidiary of Aramark, Harvest Table specializes in bringing locally sourced, high-quality food to institutional dining. Throughout the fall semester, the company tested its “immersive culinary movement” with pop-ups inside Runk dining hall, before fully integrating to bring Hoos a fresh, eco-friendly alternative.

All Runk food now comes from within a 150-mile radius of Charlottesville and is prepared entirely in-house—no premade hamburger patties, no packaged desserts. Through the initiative, students can choose non-GMO, antibiotic-free, and grass-fed as well as plant-based proteins, and there are options for those with food allergies and sensitivities.

Peter Bizon, executive chef for Harvest Table at Runk, says that university dining halls provide an excellent opportunity to bring local businesses together. He’s teamed up with Shenandoah Joe’s for coffee and Blue Ridge Bucha for on-tap kombucha.

“Some farms have the necessary licensing to do business with us and some don’t,” says Bizon. “We specialize in connecting the ones who don’t with the ones who do in order to foster cooperation among local producers. It means a lot when you can work with local farmers. You can get others involved and create a strong community.”

Harvest Table is also partnering with Babylon Micro-Farms, an organization founded by UVA alumni that helps restaurants grow produce in-house with systems that are remotely climate controlled and can support a wide
variety of plants, from lettuces to herbs, and even some edible flowers.

The university hopes to extend Harvest Table’s services to its other two dining halls in the future.

Frites on hold

While many local restos have pivoted creatively to stay open safely, using igloos, outdoor heaters, blankets, and stepped-up takeout offerings, Brasserie Saison has opted to close temporarily for the winter. The official statement from the popular Euro-pub says, “The health and safety of our restaurant family and community come first and we feel that the risk is too great for indoor dining during these winter months.” Owners say they plan to reopen in the spring, after the majority of the restaurant staff is able to receive vaccines. Then we can finally get back to enjoying the moules frites.

Frites on the go

Meanwhile, just up the mall, there’s another new restaurant from Ten Course Hospitality (the group behind Brasserie Saison, Revolutionary Soup, The Alley Light, The Pie Chest, The Bebedero, and most recently The Milkman’s Bar at Dairy Market): Café Frank, with an original menu from Chef Jose De Brito, whose resume includes Fleurie, The Alley Light, and The Inn at Little Washington. The new café is located in the former home of Splendora’s Gelato (we miss you!), and promises casual, French dining on the Downtown Mall (plus a robust daily to-go menu). The café’s bar program is by Mike Stewart, and Will Richey will curate the bistro-style wine list. We are excited to try the Royal Paella-for-Two with lobster, mussels, shrimp, and chorizo, but the hidden gem of this new foodie magnet might be the 4pm aperitif hour, when De Brito creates unique bites to pair with a prosecco bar-style sparkling wine list and cocktails. Café Frank is accepting takeout orders, and will be open for in-house dining Monday through Saturday beginning in March. —Will Ham

Now serving Tex-Mex and Turkish

Tacos in the sky

As the season turns, the Downtown Mall is also seeing some turnover, starting with Champion Hospitality Group’s just-opened culinary venture, Passiflora, which offers Tex-Mex and Baja Mediterranean cuisine. While we are still mourning the loss of Commonwealth Restaurant & Skybar, it’s good to see new openings on the mall. “We put our hearts and soul into this restaurant, and we are excited to share it with Charlottesville,” says General Manager Elizabeth Hood.

Expect to find small plates for around $10, local brews, and plenty of vegetarian options. CHG hopes to finish renovations on the rooftop open-air bar in time to catch the last warm nights of the year: “You can absolutely expect to see live bands as part of the experience,” says Hood. Passiflora is open Thursday through Tuesday, and accepts reservations and walk-ins.

Nod to Nosh and hello wraps

Another transition took place on the outer rim of the Downtown Mall—Modern Nosh closed its doors in September. Known for kosher fare and loaded sandwiches, Modern Nosh was established with a mission to give back to the community. Over two years, the restaurant donated hundreds of pounds of bread and benefited non-profit organizations like The Women’s Initiative and the Companion Animal Fund.

“We are so sad to be leaving,” says owner Stephanie Levin. “With the large number of business people not coming back to work downtown, the loss of tourists, and the lack of outside seating, we just couldn’t find a way.” Levin hopes to reinvent Modern Nosh along with its vision of supporting the community sometime next year. “Numerous people have asked me to open a food truck—maybe so,” she says. “If I find a commercial kitchen, perhaps I will stick to catering.”

Otto Turkish Street Food is slated to open in the space on November 1, introducing yet more authentic flavors to Charlottesville. Owners Ali Sevindi and Haldun Turgay worked at The Clifton together for five years before officially partnering up. Now, they are excited to serve fast-casual fare like döner kebabs (seasoned meat stacked in the shape of an inverted cone that cooks slowly on a rotisserie) and homemade sauces at the corner of Southwest Second and Water streets. Specializing in wraps and bowls, Otto Turkish will have two rotisseries to choose from; one chicken and one a mix of beef and lamb.

Jughead’s a regular

Dairy Market’s food-and-beverage hall is quickly filling its 18 stalls, adding two more merchants this month. Moo Thru, a favorite ice cream stop for D.C. commuters, is expanding to a fourth location in the heart of Charlottesville. The family-operated creamery behind Moo Thru will supply dairy products to market vendors, including The Milkman’s Bar, the cocktail joint from Ten Course Hospitality. Milkman’s promises to be a ’50s-inspired soda-pop shop straight out of Archie comics—but with a lot more of the hard stuff.