The Villa Diner – C-VILLE Weekly

On to greener pastures?

Was it really only a year ago that Timbercreek Market in the old Coca-Cola building on Preston Avenue was revamped, split into a retail farm store on one end and Back 40, the farm-to-fork restaurant manned by chef Tucker Yoder, on the other? Both spots have closed, and there’s no word yet on what’s next for owners and sustainable farmers Zach and Sara Miller or Yoder.

“Back 40 was a project that I felt deeply committed to and I am sorry to see it go,” Yoder says, adding, “I can’t wait to get back behind the stoves and make great food with great local products.”

In the meantime, Yoder, a lifelong cyclist, is gearing up for a big bike ride: He’ll bike 300 miles over three days in September for the 2018 Chefs Cycle: No Kid Hungry ride.

“I was approached by [acclaimed Napa Valley chef] Philip Tessier about forming a team to tackle the 300-mile Charlottesville ride,” says Yoder. “Knowing a bit about the organization and their goals, I felt like it was a no-brainer for me to want to help out this organization in any way I could, so the first logical step was to sign up for the ride. We hope to organize a dinner or two in the coming months.”

Rise and shine

The Pie Chest’s Rachel Pennington will spend the upcoming weekend at Flavored Nation in Columbus, Ohio. The annual event is an expo-style festival in which attendees purchase tickets to sample iconic dishes from all 50 U.S. states.

Pennington’s scrumptious ham biscuit—which has a loyal following at The Whiskey Jar—was selected to represent Virginia at this year’s expo.

“I was honored! I put a lot of work into perfecting my biscuit after the Jar hired me in 2012,” says Pennington. “Much of it comes down to the flour we use—we purchase it locally milled in Ashland [from Patrick Henry at Byrd Mill]. I think it’s a perfect complement to a slice of Kite’s ham.”

More Mochiko, please

Plans are underway for Riki Tanabe’s popular Mochiko Hawaiian food stall at City Market to have a more permanent home at The Yard at 5th Street Station. Tanabe, a native Hawaiian who worked as a pastry chef at Albemarle Baking Company for 17 years before returning to his gustatory roots, says the time was right for the business expansion.

“I’ve been seeing the popularity of the food I grew up with taking over the West Coast and parts of the Northeast, and I realized there was nothing here, so I thought maybe there was interest,” says Tanabe.

Customer demand for a storefront nudged Tanabe along, and he plans to design the primarily takeout shop like an authentic Hawaiian deli. He eventually plans to include popular Hawaiian deserts as well, such as malasada (Portuguese fried donuts), lilikoi (passionflower) cream pie, and coconut chocolate cream pie.

Tanabe expects the restaurant to be open by wintertime, and will serve lunches and dinners. He says the plate lunch—a classic Hawaiian meal that harkens back to the 1970s, when food trucks delivered to construction sites—consisting of a serving dish with meat, rice, vegetable, and a side of Hawaiian macaroni salad, will be the mainstay of the restaurant.

A welcome return

The Villa Diner has hung up its shingle at a new spot, having moved when UVA took over the property where the restaurant previously stood. The popular breakfast and lunch spot re-opened mid-June in the busy Emmet Street North corridor, in the former Royal Indian restaurant location at 1250 Emmet St. N.

“We love our new location,” says Ken Beachley, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Jennifer. “It’s been very convenient for our regular customers and we’ve seen a lot of new faces.”

A tart farewell

With the Monticello Dairy Building facing redevelopment this fall, Three Notch’d Brewing Company ended its five-year run on Grady Avenue on July 29. After the brewery moved most of its operations to IX Art Park last year, the space became Three Notch’d Sour House, which focused on funkier beers that aren’t always easy to brew alongside other types of beer.

But lovers of sour beer, have no fear: Three Notch’d brewmaster Dave Warwick promises that his most popular sours will still be available at the IX location.

The Yard food hall set to open in May

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.