We recently enjoyed a perfect dining experience at The Outback Restaurant on 29 North. It was not just perfectly good, it was perfect. Food, service, everything. Just perfect. Our server was Betty. She greeted us with water almost immediately and there was none of this, “How are you guys, tonight?” She was most professional, introduced herself, offered to get us drinks and in short … [Read more...]

We went out to dinner at Bonefish Grill, but instead of ordering a regular dinner with an entrée, we had a dinner of appetizers  and they were great. Nancy and I started off with an order of Bang Bang Shrimp – a perfect appetizer and I love the sauce they use and the bed of lettuce beneath. I ate the lettuce as a salad along with my meal. After the Bang Bang Shrimp, we ordered another appetizer – … [Read more...]

Good food is where you find it, and often, some of the best fried chicken comes from the most unlikely places. Road food, it’s called. Like at a filling station or a country market. Like Brownsville Market near Old Trail. Far and wide, Brownsville Market has developed a reputation as one of the best fried chicken joints in Central Virginia. The chicken is fried perfectly, and because of the … [Read more...]

We have some good restaurants in Charlottesville, but if someone asked me my top recommendation, it would have to be the Ivy Inn. It is consistently Charlottesville’s finest. It’s the kind of a restaurant you would take a special client or the place where college grads gather for an historic reunion. It’s also a place you take your wife of 53 years out to dinner for our anniversary, and I did just … [Read more...]

It was a typical Sunday night for the Brewers. We couldn’t decide whether to eat leftovers, toss some burgers on the grill or maybe order a pizza. That’s when Nancy said, “How about fried chicken? That’s not fair. If anybody ever mentions fried chicken during a conversation about food, all bets are off. Nothing, absolutely nothing will ever be able satisfy an appetite after “fried chicken” comes … [Read more...]

The Barn. That pretty much says it all. Anyone from Charlottesville or anyone ever associated with the University of Virginia knows that “The Barn” means the Aberdeen Barn, one of Virginia’s finest steak houses. The Barn was conceived and opened in 1965 by George Spathos. I first visited this iconic steak house in 1967. I was the Men’s Buyer at Leggett Department Store at the Barracks Road … [Read more...]

If you don’t want to go out to eat, you can always do a take-out from your favorite restaurant. Or you can cook and make a dish exactly like they do at your favorite restaurant, and save money and travel time. I like Outback Chicken – cooked on “The Barbie”. It has a little kick, spicy but not overly so. It’s good on a sandwich, pasta, in a salad or just by itself. I had a hankering for … [Read more...]

Going out to eat has become a real treat, not a normal activity. There are still many folks who won’t even consider eating a meal in a restaurant. Not the Brewer’s. We don’t go out often, but we enjoy each occasion as something special, not a given. The safety and care of each restaurant we have visited has been most impressive. You are safer in a restaurant than at Lowe’s, I can vouch for … [Read more...]