The Virginian – C-VILLE Weekly

Small Bites: Juice boost and cocktails delivered

Frontline feeding

Restaurants throughout the area continue to band together to nourish health care workers and other community members in need. Corner Juice is making bi-weekly drops of immunity-boosting juices to various UVA hospital departments. A $60 donation equals a case of juice for health care workers. Those in a position to give can do so on the Corner Juice website.

Others are teaming up to give back through Frontline Foods Charlottesville, a local organization partnering with World Central Kitchen, led by chef Josè Andrès, to support area restaurants and feed frontline workers and community members. The organization has already served thousands of meals locally.

Fundraising partners

We first covered the Charlottesville Restaurant Community Fund, an effort run by Kate Ellwood, former general manager at Citizen Burger Bar, back in March. Dollars raised are going directly to support local restaurant employees in need, and daily donations continue to arrive. Meanwhile, Ellwood’s launched a second fund that will stretch even further, thanks to a partnership with Charlottesville-based charity Blue Morning, which means fewer fees and faster distribution of grants. The effort’s raised more than $75,000 so far, and donations help a local restaurant employee afford a doctor’s visit or buy a week’s worth of groceries.

Until further notice

The open or closed status of restaurants is understandably in flux at the moment. Some have remained open with creative curbside offerings, some have closed only to re-open again, and at least one local restaurant, The Downtown Grille, has announced permanent closure after 21 years of business on the Downtown Mall. A sincere mea culpa is due to Rapture, which C-VILLE Weekly incorrectly announced as closed for good in a recent issue. Rapture joins a number of other area restaurants, including Brazo’s Tacos, Take It Away, and The Virginian, which are closed indefinitely with plans to re-open at some point. Our team has created an updated guide to area takeout and pickup options.

Is your pet a winner?

Last year, Devils Backbone Brewing Company received more than 6,000 entries from people who wanted to see their own furry friend on a can of the brewery’s Gold Leaf Lager. The contest is back for 2020, and new this year, pets of all varieties are eligible to compete. Through June, pet owners can submit a photo at dbbrewingcompany.com that highlights an adventure of any kind, even one from the couch. In addition to the bragging rights that come with being featured on a beer can, five grand prize winners will receive an adventure pet swag pack for maximum pet spoiling.

Cocktails to go

You can’t go out, but you shouldn’t have to go without a cocktail. Governor Ralph Northam directed Virginia ABC to temporarily allow businesses with mixed beverage licenses, such as restaurants and distilleries, to sell mixed drinks through takeout or delivery. In other words, besides beer and wine, your to-go beverage options now include sangria from Mas, or a margarita from Zocalo. Cheers!

Fan favorites: Charlottesville’s signature dishes and drinks

By Nathan Alderman, Shea Gibbs, Jackson Landers and Caite White

Much in the way that giving directions to a newcomer will never not be thrilling (or is that just us?), recommending an essential dining experience is also a rite of passage: It ups your townie cred and, if you’ve steered the novice correctly, shows off our local culinary aptitude. The food scene here continues to change and grow, but what follows is an abbreviated list of dependable recommendables—those classic Charlottesville foods that make us excited to keep eating here indefinitely. They’re just as good now as they were the day we found them (once someone steered us in the right direction).

All in one

Deli-Egg at Bodo’s

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.

Caff up

Cup of coffee at Mudhouse

Panama, Ethiopia, Colombia, Nicaragua—wherever there are good beans, there’s John and Lynelle Lawrence, the brains of Mudhouse’s successful operation for more than two decades. They get coffee from all over the world, bring it back to Charlottesville and roast it downtown, just up the street from their flagship mall shop. And their hard work continues to pay off, with plenty of buzz from locals and national press, too, like a recent Roaster of the Year award from Roast Magazine.

That’s so cheesy

Stumble Down Mac ‘N’ Cheese at The Virginian

“My chefs don’t need a gym membership,” says Bo Stockton, general manager at The Virginian. “They just carry the mac prep upstairs all day.” He’s joking—probably—but the beloved Corner appetizer does require between 35 and 50 pounds of pasta, roughly 15 pounds of potatoes and more cheese than Stockton cares to guess at, every single day.

Fourteen years ago, owner Andy McClure wanted to create a distinctive twist on macaroni and cheese, combining ultra-twisty cavatappi pasta with spicy pepper jack. Head chef Ernesto Salazar added a cheddar potato cake on top for extra crunch, and diners have been demanding it ever since.

“We get told about how people shared their first date over a mac app,” Stockton says, “while there is a photographer taking their picture eating a mac app because they are getting married that weekend.” Just don’t ask him to explain the Stumble Down name. “People have created their own meaning for the name,” he says, “and we like to think that is special!”

Hungry for more? Read the full list of our favorite iconic Charlottesville eats in the current issue of Knife & Fork!