It wasn’t my first Virginia love, but it’s my most luxurious. It’s no secret that our little corner of American viticulture – namely the Monticello AVA – is gaining recognition of late, with area wineries producing some notable, if not always consistent, wines. The most famous Old Dominion duo may indeed be Viognier (white) and Cabernet Franc (red), but it’s the unpretentious Petit Verdot that has stolen my wine loving heart and made me a devoted drinker of Virginia reds.

A traditionally lesser-known Bordeaux varietal, Petit Verdot is often used as a blending grape, to add body and depth to other reds. Such was the intention at Veritas Vineyard and Winery, where only an acre of Petit Verdot was originally planted. The varietal grew particularly and surprisingly well here, so much so that winemakers tried bottling it as a single varietal. Fast forward a few years, and the wine has become one of Veritas’ most award-winning.

The 2009 Petit Verdot is Veritas’ most recent release, but I’d miraculously managed to hold on to a bottle I’d bought during one of my early visits to the winery, vintage 2005, and uncorked it last night. If a wine produced during a wet season is this good (’05 was unusually rainy in these parts), then subsequent vintages hold high promise. The ’05 Petit Verdot is big for a Virginia red. It is dark, smoky, and rich – and this just in the nose. What I love best is its smoothness – how, upon first sip, it doesn’t curdle my saliva and curl my tongue. For me, the wine drinks like velvet. Soft without a trace of bitterness. Younger iterations tend to be more fruit forward; though dry, the young wine hints at dark cherry or plum. I get that in the 2009. But, if allowed to mature for a few years, the flavors become more integrated and robust, richly organic without reminding me of dirt. Exactly what you’d expect from a quality red. Top that with a long finish to remind me of what I’d just tasted: Monticello wine ecstasy.

Petit Verdot isn’t your mama’s porch-sipping red. You don’t add ice cubes or make sangria with it. In fact, unless you’re naturally wired for hearty reds, you might not opt to drink it solo; this wine holds up equally well whether paired with red meat or dark chocolate, depending on your fancy. But, if it’s possible for a local red to be simultaneously bold and subtle, this one hits the mark.

Note: While the winery itself is sold out of Petit Verdot, you can track down Veritas wines sold locally through the Veritas wine locator or look forward to the next release, expected in May.

Goodbye Orange Crush. We had heard rumors of Escafé shutting its doors and recently C-ville confirmed it. The good news? Rev Soup Owner Will Richey will take over the space and plans to open The Whiskey Jar in the new year. The bad news? Where in the world will we go for Red Bull-fueled bar dancing? Head to Escafé TONIGHT (Saturday) for what promises to be a bittersweet and debaucherous farewell bash.

Choppers on Meade? In an unlikely and awesome combo, The Dish reports a rumor that the creator of the Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar will be opening a motorcycle-themed restaurant called Vintage Brews on Meade Avenue, but couldn’t confirm the news. Anyone have the scoop?

More on Meade. The growing restaurant strip also just welcomed The Lunchbox Express and Market & Meade. Serving the same food as the original food cart, it will be open until 11 pm on weeknights and 3 am on Friday and Saturday. Hooray for late night eating!

Staunton Sorrow. The area is losing another good one as farm to fork restaurant The Staunton Grocery will serve it last dinner on December 23. If you’re looking for some wine bargains, they’re offering a 50% discount on all wine served in the restaurant or to go until the doors close.

More than Dogs. If you lamented the closing of the Downtown Hot Dog Company, take a ride to Ruckersville to eat at the owners’ new venture, Ericson’s Eatery & Pub. They still serve up gourmet hot dogs but have expanded the menu to include burgers, steak, and a fried thick-cut bologna sandwich. Woah.

The Best and the Worst. We’ve already written about the happiest and saddest news of the year: pho is coming but The Tavern is saying goodbye.

What other big news have we missed?

The street impression of Monsoon is not abundantly positive. The patio area, which has the potential to be one of the hippest outdoor seating areas in town, looks neglected and grungy. With a little fresh paint and creative lighting, Monsoon could jam some serious traffic on both the street and sidewalk. Inside, they’ve added more tables and freshened things up considerably.

For my money, the food has always been solid, though more recent additions have elevated it above some of our other go-to’s. The Kao Pad Ka Pow fried rice doesn’t plumb the same umami depths as Lime Leaf‘s, but it is superior to Downtown Thai’s and makes for a filling and delicious lunch at $8. Included in that price is a bowl of soup or salad – I had the mushroom soup, which was somewhat standard salty broth – and a delicious, if mildly phallic, spring roll drizzled with sweet sauce. We’ve been a handful of times in as many weeks and the food has been solid each time, though their “brown sauce” is occasionally too rich, with the consistency of pudding. There is also a great menu of beverages for drinkers and non-drinkers alike (bubble tea!), though I can’t recommend the Thai Lemon Iced Tea, which showcases the potential pitfalls of Thai/Southern American fusion.

*Thanks to @Echangy for pointing out our error in the Best in Thai post in terms of this original location.

Erin says: “A great downtown option when Lime Leaf seems way too far of a drive.”

Rating: Erin: [rating=3.5] Jed: [rating=3.5]

Pros: Renovated interior, expanded menu, drink menus.

Cons: Crammed seating.

Price: $8 lunch special includes entrée, soup/salad, spring roll; dinner entrées $8-15.

Parking: The usual mall spots.

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Monsoon Siam Facebook Page

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• Yelp: Monsoon Siam – Charlottesville, VA
• urbanspoon: Monsoon Siam – Charlottesville, VA
• TripAdvisor: Monsoon Siam – Charlottesville, VA

It’s always sad to see a longstanding local business close, especially when the rumored backstory is that the wealthy local landlord significantly raised rent prices and wouldn’t agree to a multi-year lease. After 30 years serving the friendliest breakfast in town, The Tavern will soon close and there are whisperings a CVS will be put in its place (if true, I personally vow to never step foot in it). Love or hate The Tavern’s greasy comfort food, it’s a loss for the community.

Shernita and Tabatha, our favorite waitresses

We loved The Tavern because it legitimately served townspeople, students, and tourists, as the sign on the roof claimed. We’d be surrounded by 12-person student groups on one side and regulars over age 70 we’d see every visit on the other. We loved it for the best and friendliest waitresses in town: they were shockingly fast given how many people they’d be covering, but never too busy to sit down and visit. Jed once brought his sister there instead of me as his usual brunch partner, and one of our favorite waitresses immediately came over to tell him he better not be stepping out on me. Now that’s great service.

And we loved The Tavern for its pancakes, the best in town. All varieties were good, but the Lemon Poppyseed and monthly specials such as Pumpkin, Gingerbread, and the decadent Brownie Pancakes were truly amazing. I think there was magic grease on that skillet (and yes, The Tavern had difficulties with health code violations, but they turned things around in 2008 while still keeping the skillet magic). I hope other breakfast places in town will step up their pancake game and fill this soon-to-be lonely void in our bellies.

We wish our best to the entire staff of The Tavern. On our visit this past weekend, our waitress told us she had been there for 33 years and had no idea what would come next. I hope owner Shelly Gordon will find a new location in town and bring the family back together again. In the meantime, we’ll be there chowing down on some gingerbread pancakes over the next two weekends.

Results will be revealed on Wednesday 11/30. Merry Thanksgiving to all!

It might violate symbolic rules of the speakeasy to spread the word, but Fellini’s 9 1/2 Speakeasy is too good to keep a secret. You enter through a door just past the normal Fellini’s entrance and head through a curtained off area up a staircase. The rules (“agreement of participation”) to the speakeasy are posted on a door at the top of the stairs, including a dress code and the secret password you have to give for admittance after you knock and the door slot opens. And they’re not fooling around: on my first visit, some too cool person wouldn’t say the password so the bartender slid the slot closed and left the door shut. I loved it.

We aren’t going to post any pictures besides the door sign to maintain some speakeasy mystique, but I can tell you the ambience is small and cozy with some good sex appeal. The layout includes hidden nooks and great banquettes for two or a group. The drink menu is long and has lots of fun options, including many prohibition-inspired favorites, and they even serve up blk water for any Manzo brother fans. We haven’t yet tried any of the small bites to eat, but the menu includes three types of popcorn, desserts, and an intriguing-sounding Elvis panini.

Sure, if you’re looking for a quick casual beer or a raucous night out, it’s not the ideal pick. But it’s different than anything else we have right now and it’s a great blend of upscale drinks, a unique setting, friendly bartenders, and no danger of a police raid. Open Wednesdays to Sundays from 7 pm on, channel Capone and head there.

No sooner had we finished celebrating that news that we heard that Ten Sushi Chef Pei Chang is planning C-ville’s first pop-up restaurant. Serving?  Pho. “Handsome Boy Noodles” will hit Ten for one night only on Sunday, December 4 from 6:00 – 11:00 pm. Let the pho mania live on.

You’ll first notice the decor, which people seem to love or hate. It’s like upscale Parisian bordello meets nouveau riche in the mountains. There’s paisley silk and cow print and even an enormous water buffalo head reigning over the bar. It’s a little too busy for my tastes, but I can appreciate that it doesn’t look like most other minimal brick interiors these days.

On our first visit as we perused the eclectic dinner menu, we asked our server about the concept behind Tempo. Her reply? “It’s all about a European service experience.” Ummm, okay. I’m not sure European service is the first thing that draws American diners in, but we were willing to give it a try. Unfortunately, our experiences to date have mostly reinforced that skepticism. The servers have been friendly but inconsistently attentive, veering between nowhere to be found and overly intrusive, such as asking us if we were ready to order every minute after we said we would need awhile. Jed ordered the headcheese terrine, which we had heard good things about, and our server brought him the cheese plate instead and seemed unwilling to believe him that it wasn’t the terrine. The service has been nice but lacking a certain professionalism for a place where you’re paying that much, so I hope that’s one area that smooths out over time.

But the good news is the food saved the day. On our first visit, I adored a simple homemade riccotta appetizer with delicious grilled peasant bread, lemon, local honey, and blackberry. The tempura shrimp was another starter standout. For main courses, my grouper was just okay and Jed thought his pork chop and spaetzle was undercooked and unimpressive, but our friends’ ribeye and scallops were delicious. We sampled the desserts extensively and both the lemon tart with toasted marshmallow and blackberry and warm chocolate dome with whipped nutella are worth repeat visits.

While I think Tempo will be a nice dinner option for a fancier night out in line with other upscale downtown prices, we’ve both enjoyed it more for lunch. The quiche was delicious and perfectly cooked, and the salmon BLT earned high marks as well. It’s a great lunch alternative to Hamilton’s or other business favorites. Conveniently, they also serve the warm chocolate dome for lunch and I can report that it’s just as good in the daytime.

Jed says: “The atmosphere isn’t for everyone and the service is strange, but the food is above average – especially the quiche at lunch – and the overall experience is campily unique.”

Rating: Erin: [rating=3.5] Jed: [rating=3]

Pros: Good food and nice upscale option downtown.

Cons: European service has room to grow.

Price: Dinner appetizers $7-19, Main courses $18-29.

Parking: Usual downtown options.

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• Yelp: Tempo Restaurant & Bar – Charlottesville, VA
• Tempo on Facebook

What we did like: It is really easy (as with most ethnic food) to eat vegan. We got the Veggie Spring Rolls, Shredded Pumpkin with Chili Peppers, and Pan Noodles with mixed vegetables.

The spring rolls were pretty typical, nothing to brag about. It is always odd that when you order an appetizer to be shared, you almost always get 3. We are good at sharing but these things are not very big. We were really intrigued by the shredded pumpkin, nice to have an option that is completely new to us. The presentation was pleasing, mainly due to the colors, and the flavor was good.  We were hoping for more intense flavor but it was pretty subtle. The chilies seemed to be bell peppers and didn’t add much. There were whole slices of garlic, though – never a bad thing.

The pan noodles with veggies were only okay. The sauce was the tastiest part, and it was much better the next day. The veggies were the standard call - broccoli, carrots, onion, snow peas, water cress (the boring celery of Chinese food, basically a filler), mushrooms, celery, green peppers, asparagus, and garlic.  We asked for it as spicy as they could make it and yet we were underwhelmed.

What was overwhelming was the portions – we had a ton of food! We were happy to see how much we got for the price (very reasonable) and leftover Chinese food is always a good thing.

For me, the main problem is that the rustic food and family service fit well with the quaint bakery atmosphere. The Bistro, which seems modest enough from outside, is a strange sprawling half-ballroom of a space inside, with the bar towards the back of the room. How can it be that big in there? It looks relatively small from the outside. It’s like stepping into a wormhole. The few times I’ve been it has felt empty and unwelcoming, and more often than not smelled of bleach or other detergent.

The first dinner we had there, shortly after it opened, was not spectacular. The chicken crostini appetizer with goat cheese, olives, tomatoes, and fresh oregano was excellent, but most everything else was forgettable. The server had no idea what some of the listed ingredients were, and couldn’t describe one of the entrees that had no description on the menu.

Repeat visits have been better, however, as the restaurant has started to get its act together. I prefer it more for lunch than dinner, though the psychedelic umbrella lights make for kitschy patio entertainment. The Cevapi (chuh-vah-pee) sausage sandwich with ajvar creamy pepper-eggplant spread is like Eastern European soul/comfort food, though I’d like it if they cut the sausage links up a bit so they don’t keep rolling out when you pick up the sandwich. The iced tea is excellent, too, with fresh ginger, mint, and lemon. For my money, it’s hard to top the fluffy baklava at Aromas Café, but The Balkan Bistro’s larger, richer offering is good for hungrier stomachs or sweeter teeth.

Dave says: “I enjoyed the small selection of well-executed traditional dishes that have true Balkan influence – cevapi, chicken paprikash, baklava, and the ajvar roasted red pepper-based condiment (similar to romesco), but I wish they would focus the menu and leave off the Cesar salad, penne alfredo, crabcakes, etc. Same goes for the beer and wine selections. Beers from Croatia, Russia, Poland, Bulgaria, and Czechoslovakia provide a feeling of authenticity and mystery. No need to water down the choices with mass-produced domestics.”

Rating: Jed: [rating=3] Dave: [rating=2.5]

Pros: Some hearty and authentic dishes, friendly owners.

Cons: Inconsistent, strange interior space, spotty service.

Price: Average  entrée $12-14.

Parking: A number of spaces just to the front and side, and some street parking nearby.

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Balkan Bistro and Bar Facebook Page

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• Yelp: Balkan Bistro & Bar – Charlottesville, VA
• The Hook: Balkan Bistro and Bar Emerges
• Charlottesville-Dining: Balkan Bistro and Bar Comments
• Betsy and Charlie in Charlottesville: Balkan Bistro & Bar