One of the great pleasures involved in any trip to the beach is eating out. On the Outer Banks, most all the seafood is fresh, caught by local fishermen and nothing beats fresh seafood. Nancy and I have a number of go-to places we eat including Kelly’s, Owen’s, Bass Nights, Darrell’s in Manteo, Fish Head’s, Tale of the Whale and Sugar Creek (formerly RV’s). On our last trip, we … [Read more...]

Last Saturday evening we found ourselves without an entrée in our fridge (by design), so Nancy and I decided to go out to eat. Nothing fancy, we thought. Maybe Lord Hardwicke’s? We had not eaten there since they closed their doors on Emmett Street, but there was one north of town. Or so we thought. When we arrived at their former location at a strip mall in Greene County, there was no Lord … [Read more...]

  Mineral, Virginia may be one of the least likely places you’d expect to find a fine eating establishment, but according to Sherman Shifflett, Tavern on the Rail, located about ten miles northeast of Mineral and not far from the power plant, is a nuclear option for dining out. Says Sherman, “Last Saturday afternoon, Ava and I and another couple had dinner at Tavern on the Rail in rural … [Read more...]

  I’m jealous. My friend, Sherman Shifflett sent me an email last week saying that since it was Ava’s birthday, he took his special lady clear down to Tappahannock to Lowery’s Seafood Restaurant to celebrate. Sherman lives in Louisa, so that’s a pretty long haul for a meal, but if you get the “hungries” for seafood, it’s hard to beat Lowery’s. On my way to a fishing trip on the … [Read more...]

Wegman’s is a grocery store, not a restaurant. Isn’t it? Actually, Wegman’s is a grocery store with a restaurant inside. Nancy and I were in that area of town last Sunday and stopped by to check out the new store (it was my first visit) and since it was lunchtime, we went to their restaurant and ordered food and drinks. Wegman’s Food Markets, Inc. is a privately held American supermarket chain … [Read more...]

  Last week, I mentioned the Blue Cheese Dressing at Sting Ray’s Restaurant on the Eastern Shore. Since some of the readers of CvilleBuzz might be heading that way this summer, Sting Ray’s is the featured restaurant this week in “Eating Out.” My family has been visiting the Eastern Shore since 1975 when we first camped at Cherrystone Campground on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. Most … [Read more...]

  We met family and in-laws for dinner in Richmond last week, and the recommendation was Mama Cucina’s, an Italian restaurant in Glen Allen. What an experience. The smallish restaurant is located in a small strip mall on Cox Street. It was unpretentious, but the food and service were phenomenal. For starters, they bring you all the homemade Italian bread you can handle with a … [Read more...]

  One of our stand-by restaurants these days is Bonefish Grill. It used to be Outback, but when they moved to a larger location here in Charlottesville, they outgrew their wait staff. The service suffered, we had a bad experience and we looked for another spot to eat on short notice. We have eaten at Bonefish off and on since they opened about 10 years ago, but without reservations, we … [Read more...]

Charlottesville, Virginia, home of CvilleBuzz, had 225 restaurants at last count. That’s a lot of choices, but if I had special guests coming to town, price was no object and I wanted to make sure they dined at one of Charlottesville’s finest restaurants, I would take them to the Ivy Inn. Over the years, my wife Nancy and I have had many enjoyable meals at The Inn (mostly anniversaries … [Read more...]

How far would you drive for a hot dog? For me and my friend George Gillespie, put us down for an 80-mile round-trip jaunt from above Covington clear across to Lewisburg, WV and back. We went exclusively for a couple of Jim’s Drive In hot dogs, perhaps the best dogs on the planet. And I should know. I grew up on them. I don’t know exactly, but Jim’s Drive In probably dates back to the late 40’s. … [Read more...]