The Woodbrook Shopping Center is where restaurants go to die. It’s tucked away and hidden for the most part, and there aren’t enough Woodbrook families to keep a restaurant going – with one exception. Al Carbon, an authentic Mexican/Peru restaurant specializing in charcoal rotisserie chicken. Early this week, the grout people were working on our kitchen, and it was off limits, so I … [Read more...]

  Bonefish Grill is known for one thing – Bang Bang Shrimp. It’s their specialty and they do it like no one else. For Valentine’s Day this year, Nancy and I decided to celebrate the occasion of Valentine’s Eve – the night before. That way we could enjoy a leisurely Valentine’s Day dinner without standing in line, having to wait on servers and being rushed though dinner. We chose … [Read more...]

Need I say more? We’re talking Big Macs here, the most famous sandwich ever created, not only in America but around the world. The Big Mac came into being in 1967 when one of the Ray Kroc’s franchise owners in Pittsburg added the 45-cent sandwich to his menu. The name was subsequently created by Ester Rose, a 21-year-old ad secretary who worked in the corporate office. In a brilliant … [Read more...]

  Okay, Brewer. It’s your last meal. We caught you pulling the tags off two bed pillows without authorization and the warden’s going to throw the switch in the morning. What do you want to eat, and it has to be from a restaurant in Charlottesville? But those tags were sticking out of the pillowcase, and they were from My Pillows.com!  And I used the Promo Code!  It doesn’t … [Read more...]

Just back from a long drive from Atlanta, I didn’t want to cook anything for dinner. So, pizza or fried chicken? We flipped a coin, it was pizza, but Nancy over-ruled the coin toss and said, “Get chicken. I don’t care what the penny said.” Hopping in the car again after a 510-mile jaunt up I-85 and Route 29, I ordered a box of chicken at KFC, original, of course. But they were all out - not of … [Read more...]

It’s one of our top three restaurants. We go here and know we’ll get great food and service. It’s Bonefish Grill, consistently good. We met friends at Bonefish this week to exchange a few gifts and to sit back and enjoy a delicious meal. We shared a couple plates of Bang-Bang Shrimp and some Calamari for appetizers, then ordered a range of entrees for Crusted Trout to  Salmon and Pasta and to … [Read more...]

The secret to the long-term success of any restaurant is consistency. It must be good every time. One bad experience and you go elsewhere. There are simply too many good restaurants to patronize. We have found Carmello’s Restaurant and Wine Bar to provide excellent food and service with every trip. This past weekend, we asked our friend’s, Tony and Barbara Kinn, to join us for an evening out. … [Read more...]

They opened in Charlottesville in 1974. We visited soon after and have been returning for nearly 50 years. But in a few weeks, Anna’s Pizza will shutter their shingles and say goodbye. “It was time,” said the two sisters who have baked tens of thousands of great pies. Maria Buzzetta, 65, and her sister Marta Grado, 69, will soon retire and a great Charlottesville institution will be no … [Read more...]

  I wrote last week about getting a great Chicken Sandwich from Bojangles at Zion Crossroads, but there is no Bojangles near Spring Creek. It was Popeyes. Popeyes, of course, is an American multinational chain of fried chicken fast food restaurants that was formed during 1972 in New Orleans, Louisiana and headquartered in Miami. They have nearly 3,000 restaurants across the United … [Read more...]

  I rarely eat at fast food establishments. I gain a half pound when I drive by a Burger King, so unless I’m on the road or starving, I keep my distance. Last Tuesday, my golf buddy and I were both on the road and starving. We had just played a round at Tanyard in Louisa, it was 1 PM, and we were hungry. We pulled into a Hardees for an apres golf  hot dog (they have really good dogs), … [Read more...]