RICHMOND, Va. — Every month Robey Martin is putting together a Hot List of Richmond restaurants. Her goal is to suggest places to eat and educate you on what’s new in the Richmond restaurant scene. Happening this month:
All vegan, all the time. Hang Space in south Richmond is brought to you by the folks behind YummVees Catering, Tracy Flitcraft and the individuals who own GoGoVegan food truck, April Viar and Dave Witte. The goal? To bring more accessibility (and fun!) to vegan cuisine. Not to miss is their take on a classic Chic-Fil-a chicken sandwich, the Philly Cheesesteak or anything sweet and chocolate.
Hang Space
8002 Buford Court
Richmond, Va.
Richmond loves little more than a midday meal. Brunch, in the old Star-lite building, has fresh paint (inside and outside) and a bold (and HUGE) breakfast-centric menu. Think bowls of grits, eggs and potatoes. Or make your way through egg Benedict with house-made English muffins from pork loin to portobello. The communal cocktail (read: a table-sized drink for sharing) list is worth your eyeballs and tastebuds as is the Monday-Thursday only “Chicken and Bubbles” — four cans of Prosecco and six pieces of fried chicken.
Brunch
2600 West Main Street
Richmond, Va..
It’s the first brewery to enter the hot list and I’m OK with it. Nic Caudle and Travis Dise have been staples in the Richmond brewing scene for years so the brewery feels like it’s been around for longer than its busy first week. The two describe their brewing style as “local yeasts and micro-biota found amongst us, most of our beer leans to the more rustic side – wild, funk and/or sour”. What does that mean for drinking? Richmond flavors, of course. Expect nothing short of delicious.
Tabol
704 Dawn Street
Richmond, Va.
After over a month of “soft opening”, The Big Kitchen, by the people behind Tazza Kitchen, opened its garage doors for drive-in service. The concept is killer— pop on their website, order away from their local-centric, scratch-made menu and then scoot through their drive-around garage bay to pick up your meal(s). The idea is seamless dining from online to car pick-up to reheat. The spaghetti and meatballs are super solid and the crab cake. Don’t forget your adult libations — though due to Virginia ABC Laws (and good general safety), you do have to get out of the car for those.
The Big Kitchen
1600 Altamont Avenue
Richmond, Va.
Craft beer, local foodstuffs, and a short sweet menu make up this new market in Manchester, The Butterbean Market & Cafe, the newest opening in Michael and Laura Hild’s empire – Hot Diggity Donuts, the first and Dogtown Brewing looks to be the next. The market is beating to its own appetizing creative drum. A 10-hour Wild Boar Chili is a daily offering as are piadine (or grilled “piadinas” as the menu states). These flatbreads swing more southern than Adriatic Italian with toppings like smoked trout and country ham.
The Butterbean Market
1204 Hull Street
Richmond, Va.
This 100% gluten-free food truck peddling all potatoes is finding itself over-booked. Southern Spud is serving Idaho potatoes in all the good ways: smothered french fries, bowls of mashed and hot bakers. Cue the phone call from my mother who loves a good baked potato. And apparently, so does Richmond. So why no gluten? Owners Shena-Rae and Al Schramm learned that Shena-Rae had celiac disease in 2015. Their simple combinations are the winners, like the packed baker with broccoli and cheese dotted with green onion or the crispy fries with garlic salt.
Southern Spud
Upcoming dates
February 22 – Steam Bell Beer Works
February 24 – Final Gravity
Check their Facebook for updates.
