Elation Brewing

March 2, 2019

Checked out Elation before heading home, capping off my day in Norfolk. They haven’t officially opened yet and can’t serve their own beer (thanks VA laws) but they are serving other beers brewed in the area. Beautiful space, probably going to be visiting this more often.

Post Oak Smokehouse Beef Brisket and Burnt Ends

I Went To Texas

October 6, 2017

It's been a while since I've stepped foot in Texas - 25 years ago - so it was weird heading back there for a little business trip. My goal while I was there was to eat as much beef brisket as I could and drink as much Texas beer in equal measure. The photo above was from one of the places I tried called Post Oak Smokehouse, it was so good! Bumped into one of the owners while I was there too.

Thought I did eat a lot of brisket and even brought back some to Virginia with me I think I could have done better though on the consumption side of things.

I did eat some other stuff too. I hit In-and-Out burger for the first time which was fun because I got to meet up with my nephew who was passing through town, ate at a chain called Uncle Julio's that turned out to be pretty good! I had to get Whataburger just because it has been ages since I had it, again, not bad. I tried as much of the local beer as I could, which wasn't a ton due to logistical reasons and the fact that everything in Texas is at least one hour apart from each other. I did make it to one brewery in the area called Grapevine though, visiting was a must.

Whenever I go anywhere I try to bring some beer from home to trade. I had actually brought some Veil beer with me too, I thought that would be nice since the brewery has generated a lot of buzz around the world. I had arrived at Grapevine Craft Brewery with my coworker Phil I had a lil stash of brews with me. The brewery's tasting room was pretty cool, it was two levels and had high-tops and regular tables. It happened to be trivia night so there was a good crowd and lots of energy. I talked to the tasting room manager a bit and he asked if we wanted to tour the brewery. We walked through the brewery, maybe did a little trading, and got flight at the end. Check this place out if you're ever in the area.

All in all, I had good time checking out the area. Again the last time I was in Texas was when I was driving to Virginia Beach from El Paso. I was stationed in Ft. Bliss back then I was happy to be leaving! I'd love to check out that place again...

Evening on the Creek

March 22, 2017

I go to a lot of events - I mean a lot! If you follow me on on Instagram (click on my feed to the left) you'll know I'm out and about all the time. Most of the events I go to revolve around beer, reason being is that there are basically more beer events than there are food events. Food events involve a ton of planning, prep work, staging, cooking, etc... I definitely try to attend any food event I'm invited to, they're great for checking out a chef's innovation and creativity. Needless to say, the food is a treat to eat of course!

I was recently contacted by Kate from Hoffman Beverage, a large distributor in our area, about helping promote a beer and food event that would be located at the Virginia Aquarium. They've invited me and Shelby to come hang out and do a couple of my favorite things:

Eat and Drink

Oh, that's Kate in the photo below! She was buying me beers at our meeting in Norfolk but that isn't why I agreed to be involved with this, honest!

Note: If you want to buy me a beer if we ever end up at the bar together, I will gladly accept ;)

Her idea, Evening On The Creek, was to do something that was different than the what has become the standard event model of setting up a table, have volunteers pour beer, rinse-dry-repeat till you're drunk. Kate and the team wanted to pair some unique beers from breweries they have in their catalog with some goods eats. The result looks pretty delicious too! Ticket holders will be treated to some great beer and food at tasting stations that allow people to take their time to appreciate their pairings and peruse the components of the collective meal. All of this will be at the wonderful Virginia Aquarium over looking the beautiful Owl Creek.

I can go on but I'm going to copy and paste the official event notice here for you to check out. There's a link below to purchase tickets too, "Early Bird" tickets are on sale until MARCH 24th, 2017 for $75. I hope to see you there!

Buy tickets here.

The Official Stuff:

Join 20 local, regional and national breweries in support of Virginia Aquarium’s Stranding Response Team as they host the “An Evening on the Creek” on March 25th at 6 pm. Each expertly crafted beer, chosen in part for their rarity or limited quantities will be masterfully paired with complementary artisanal eats created by Chef Jason Congleton. Enjoy these rare, limited quantity beers and amazing food all while overlooking the beautiful view of Owls Creek and stunning environment of the VA Aquarium.

Tasting Station 1: "Bourbon Barrel Aged"
Goose Island Bourbon County '14, Oskar Blues Barrel Aged Ten Fidy '16, Bell's Black Note '16, Founders KBS '17.

(GF) European Cheese & Charcuterie Platter- Rabbit & White Wine Sausage, Wild Boar with Cranberries & Shiraz Sausage, Garlic & Herb Gouda, Dilled Havarti, Aged Provolone, Creamy Gorgonzola, 3 year aged White Cheddar, Spicy Garlic Pickled Veggies (V) *Without the Sausages*

Tasting Station 2: "Sours"
Avery Raspberry Sour, New Belgium La Folie, Brouwerji Omer Vander Ghinste Cuvee Jacobins Rouge, Commonwealth Sophrosyne Sour Saison.

Bavarian Style Smoked & Beer Braised Wild Antelope Bratwurst with House made “Southkraut”, Quick Pickles, & Creole Grain Mustard Crème in Split Top Lobster Roll (Stadium Dog on steroids)

Tasting Station 3: "Hopped Up"
O'Connor Heavy Footer, Starr Hill King of Hop, Alewerks Bitterest Valentine, Heavy Seas Alpha Effect.

Schweineschnitzel Street Taco – Savory Pan Sauteed Breaded Chicken Tenderloin Cutlet with hints of Lemon & Citrus, Red Cabbage & Local Apple Slaw for a little sweetness, Spicy German Potato Drizzle

Tasting Station 4: "Tasting Room Only"
Smartmouth IV Chocolate Porter, Devils Backbone Cocoa Bear (Russian Imperial Stout), Back Bay Owls Kreek (Farmhouse style mixed grain Grisette w montmorency cherries), Young Veterans Brewing Company Goat Locker.

German Spaetzle, sautéed with Wild Forest Mushroom Glace & topped with 48 hour Beer Marinated & House Rub Seasoned Flat Iron Steak (V) *Without the Steak*
**each week new limited beers will be announced!**

Station 5: "Free Pour"
Center of the Universe Pocahoptas, Bold Mariner Frogman Lager, Bold Rock Citrus CIder and Port City Optimal Wit will be on-site with your favorite local craft brews.

Poke Bowl – Duet of Garlicky Spiced Arctic Char & Eastern Shore Blue Crab With Citrus Essence Poke, Shaved Carrot, Pickled Shallot, Diced Mango & Pineapple, Red Ginger Wakame “Salad”, Toasted Sesame, Honey-Gochujang Mayonnaise, Rainbow Trout Roe, Sticky Rice

Redwood Smoke Shack

February 27, 2017

I caught the new BBQ truck on the scene the other weekend - Redwood Smoke Shack. I've bumped into the owner, Bob Roberts, around town at events that usually that involve beer. I got an invite from him to check out his truck at Benchtop Brewing Company in Norfolk, VA.

Bob Roberts (owner) was visited by HomeGrown's chef Nic Hagen

The truck is actually a trailer with the smoker attached to it; looks pretty cool! The menu has lots to offer: ribs, brisket, pulled pork, sides (including the huge Supreme Potato), and much more! I got a sampler plate, a couple of beers and dug in.

Bonus: I saw a lot of friends and my fellow photographer buddy Amanda from Stellar Exposures. Check out the food!

Dinner at Esoteric

September 3, 2016

We actually went out to dinner with friends last week!

You're thinking, "Yeah, yeah big deal", but it is for us. With the regular work week Shelby and I have and my regular schedule running around town, there actually isn't a lot of time we go out to just relax - let alone with friends. In the month of August, in the year 2016 we officially went out to dinner twice with friends. I can't remember that last time that as happened! The first time was with Cappy and Lauren to the Commis dinner earlier in the month (still working on the gazillion photos I took at that one) and the second was with our friends visiting from San Francisco.

Tatiana and Chris were staying in Sandbridge with family and wanted to hang out someplace close to the beach house and after putting together a short list we finally decided to hit Esoteric. I figured the food, beer menu and the atmosphere are great and we have the option to sit inside or out. When we arrived they were already out back on the patio. Warm (hot would be a little more accurate) Virginia summer nights are a little bit different than the cool ones in San Francisco.

Clockwise from the left: Pork Chop, Scallops, Charcuterie, Duck, and Wings.

We ordered the Charred Octopus to start and they house brought out some Roasted Shishitos grown in the garden and Pimento with their housemade crackers (which are great!) Our entree orders were the Pork Chop, Scallops, and Duck. I went ahead and ordered some other things to pick at which included a Charcuterie board and some wings. I had judged a "beer food" contest earlier so I wasn't starving though I got some bites from everyone's plates.

Chef Ian Hock came out to say "Hi" and after a little chat he brought out a couple of The Veil Brewing beers they had stashed away in the fridge. This was a great treat for us and our guests because if you know anything about Veil beer their cans go quick and are only sold at the brewery in Richmond. We all shared the Lil' Kitty Boi IPA and Eternal Shredder DIPA. Man I love their beers, you should check out pedigree on The Veil Brewing's Matt Tarpey, here's a good article at Good Beer Hunting.

Chris with the Ian Hock and his crew. I had to slip in the photo too ;)

After sipping our beers and ordering a few more Resins, I asked if we could slip into the kitchen to meet the crew. Ok, the elephant in the room is that Tatiana's husband is Chris Cosentino, a world renown chef who has pioneered snout-to-tail cooking in the U.S. They also own Boccalone and the restaurant Cockscomb, both in San Francisco. The guys in the kitchen were excited for the fact that he was eating at their shop so it was a treat for Chris to come back and hang out.

Shelby and Tatiana were hanging out back while we were in the kitchen but we all eventually made our way to the bar and drank more beer. Go figure right!? All in all, it was a great time and we were glad we were able to get out and have a proper sit down and just hang out. We need to get to San Francisco those two keep saying. Don't be surprised when we show up on the doorstep Tatiana and Chris, I know we've been saying that for years but it's coming. Here's to seeing you in your town next time!

Tatiana and Shelby. I need to dig up the photos Shelby has of the two of them taken over 25 years ago.

Typical Saturday Running Around

March 27, 2016

Saturdays for me are busy days. Shelby, the saint that she is, lets me lose to run around town so I can document what's happening. This usually means breweries.

I know my page is called I Heart Food but to be honest when it comes to regular events, it's usually the breweries that are releasing a beer, throwing a festival, or inviting a food truck or two that draws me to a location. In this post I'm going to do a quick rundown on a typical Saturday for me. This happened on February 27th, which seems like a while ago, but time just flies by! (Read, I'm always behind...)

bottleBox

First stop of the day was bottleBOX! This great little shop has been open almost a year, but it has been doing great! I've known the owners for a while, so it's nice to swing by to see how thing are going. Fannie and Melissa were opening and Fannie had a little surprise - the twins! Little Craig looks just like CJ, serious.

CJ, also from bottleBOX, doing field work

I stopped by Bold Mariner Brewing next. They were releasing their first Double IPA; drink too many of them and you might lose your chances of liberty! It was a pretty good beer, especially being their first. Karnage Asada was on-site, I love their Kim-chos (kimchi nachos.)

Coelacanth Brewing was the next stop. Kevin and company have done a great job since opening up. Their beers are are different and experiment in tweaking traditional styles. 905 Cafe & Grill were serving a pretty good She-Crab Soup. It was my first time trying any of their food, not bad! When I left the brewery I bumped into a group of Ghent Bar crawlers, love them or hate them, it was fun to watch them all bouncing around town.

I wanted to stop by O'Connor Brewing Co. real quick since I was in the area. The place was packed, as usual. I remember when they were in the spot on 25th St. It was tiny compared to the warehouse and it's hard to imagine them operating in such a small space now. Dan Pellegrino was on stage entertaining the crowd. The guy is super talented, check him out if you get the chance.

I didn't stay long at OBC because I wanted to hit one more spot before I headed home. I usually drive down Granby street or the surrounding area when I leave Norfolk, I like to see what's happening.

Aaron and Christine Holley were there with the boss

Wasserhund Brewing Co. was the last top while I was out that day. It was the Rascal Roggenbier release day! Rye and spice with a tiny bit of banana, not bad! I had a pour then headed home.

Well, I did make one more stop before home. I picked up some ribeye for Shelby and me. They cook fast and are delicious. I really needed something filling after running around all day.

Back Bay Brewing's Lynnhaven Oyster Stout Release

March 21, 2016

Back Bay Brewing released their Lynnhaven River Oyster Stout made with delicious Pleasure House Oysters. The man himself, Chris Ludford, was there shucking his locally raised and farmed oysters to go along with the pints.

This year's Treasure Chest icon - "Hula Gal"

Green Flash Treasure Chest 2015

October 6, 2015

Green Flash Brewing's annual cancer benefit and awareness event called Treasure Chest is happening this Sunday (11 Oct 2015) in Virginia Beach! Throughout the week, in the Hampton Roads area, Green Flash will be throwing #raiseaglass2015 events to raffle off tickets to this great event and help advertise the cause.

(Check out photos from last year's Treasure Chest - Virginia Beach here.)

Green Flash's Phil Shannon and me (always with something strapped to my shoulder)

Treasure Chest was founded in 2011 by Green Flash Co-Founder and breast cancer survivor Lisa Hinkley. All the Treasure Chest related events raise money to support breast cancer charities. A beer and icon are released with the announcement of the event.

This year's Green Flash Treasure Chest beer is a naturally pink IPA with grapefruit and prickly pear juice and hibiscus flowers. I haven't had it yet, but plan on grabbing one this week! Last year's was great, barrel-aged Belgian style saison with plum. It was fermented in red wine barrels with house Brettanomyces, then conditioned with plums for six months. It was very good!

The Green Flash crew at The Birch, Norfolk, VA

Hampton Road's 2nd annual Treasure Chest event will be held at the same place it was last year - on the Green Flash Brewing property connected to where the new brewery will open in 2016. Like last year, they have invited other local breweries and shops to participate as a community to throw the big bash.

I was one of the photographers last year (you can see some of my photos in the video linked above) and can tell you it was a great time. Everyone was having fun (some a little more than others, you know who I'm talking) drinking some great beers and eating delicious food. The first time I ever had a sample of Home Republic food was at Treasure Chest 2014. That's saying something because I get out a lot! Another thing is that my wife, Shelby, will be volunteering at the event too. I can't wait to see her in action.

If you want a chance to win tickets, hit up one of the #raiseaglass2015 events in the area leading up the actual Treasure Chest October 11th. I've sorted them out for you below:

10/6 - Tubby's Tavern from 5:00-8:00 PM (Virginia Beach)
10/7 - DoG Street Pub from 5:00-8:00 PM (Williamsburg)
10/8 - The Public House from 5:00-8:00 PM (Norfolk)
10/9 - Home Republic from 6:00-9:00 PM (Virginia Beach)
10/10 - Lynnhaven Pub from 6:00-10:00 PM (Virginia Beach)

Buy tickets to Treasure Chest on this page.

Photos included were from The Birch's Treasure Chest event last week.

Virginia Craft Beer & Wine Festival 2015

September 10, 2015

We're going to the Virginia Craft Beer & Wine Festival this year for the first time. I'll be honest and say I can't remember the last time I've been to an event in Portsmouth. I guess it would have to have been the Portsmouth Dishcrawl over two years ago! Here is more info from the event's Facebook page:

This Saturday's event will be held from 12:00pm-5:00pm and will feature some of the finest selections of craft breweries and wineries, all hand picked and selected from right here in the state of Virginia.

Tickets are just $35 and include unlimited sampling, a commemorative festival glass, tons of great food options and live entertainment all afternoon featuring Mike Profitt & Dana Silver Cloud.

Breweries include: O’Connor Brewing Company, Smartmouth Brewing Company, Back Bay Brewing Company, Young Veterans Brewing Company, St. George Brewing Company, Larry’s Lemonade, Ale Works Brewing Company, Legend Brewing Company, Devils Backbone Brewing Company, Bold Rock Hard Cider, Starr Hill Brewing Company & Center of the Universe. Each brewery will feature multiple selections of some of the finest craft beers in the state of Virginia for guests to enjoy all afternoon.

Wineries include: Rapidan River Winery, Prince Michel Vineyard & Winery, Barboursville Winery, Trump Winery, Williamsburg Winery, Horton Vineyards & Lake Anna Winery. Each winery will feature multiple selections of premium wines from right here in the state of Virginia for guests to enjoy all afternoon.

Tickets are on sale now at the nTelos Wireless Pavilion Box Office and at all Ticketmaster locations. You can also purchase online at www.ticketmaster.com.

For more information on The Virginia Craft Beer and Wine Festival, visit www.PavilionConcerts.com, or call 757-393-8181.

The Virginia Craft Beer & Wine Festival is proudly sponsored by nTelos Wirless, Hoffman Beverage, Republic National, Rick Hendrick Cadillac, Coastal Limousines and is produced by Integrated Management Group. Proceeds from this year’s event benefit the Virginia Legends Walk Foundation.

Wasserhund Brewing Company Soft Opening

August 1, 2015

Wasserhund Brewing Company! What does that mean exactly? I spent a few years in Germany while I was in the army and the first thing I think of is Pudelhund or Poodle in English - but the dog in the logo is a German Shepherd (Alsatian as my Scottish mother-in-law likes to say.) The first question I had for the brewery was, "What's the meaning of Wasserhund?"

I was able to talk to Craig Lubinski and he said their dogs loved the water. The idea behind Wasserhund Brewing is summed up in the company statement:

Wasserhund Brewing Company, meaning "water dog" in German, was born from a love of the beach, dogs, and German beer. We aspire to bring the German beer culture to Virginia Beach in the best way... by brewing the highest quality ales, lagers, and meads and providing the environment to enjoy them with family, friends, and strangers.

We also match our beer with artisan pizza made to order in our brick oven. Or you can order Richmond made sausages on pretzel rolls and add some sourkraut for a real German experience.

Call it whatever you want... we call it German style brewing with a Beach kick. Really, it's great beer and great times.

Prost!

When you visit Wasserhund, Craig will be manning the stone-brick oven the brewery owns slinging pizza. That's right, in-house pizza at Wasserhund in addition to local brews. The former owner of the space left the oven and the brewery is going to make use of it.

Fresh pizza and local beer, on-site, this is going to be good!

Kevin Erskine of Coelacanth Brewing chats with Craig Lubinski and checks out the new Virginia Beach Brewery. — Kevin Erskine of Coelacanth Brewing chats with Craig Lubinski and checks out the new Virginia Beach Brewery.

I didn't get a chance to talk to Aaron and Christine Holley (owners) but hope to do so at the brewery's soft opening. I did get to meet Aaron's father who is a retired Naval Chaplain. Craig, Aaron's father and myself talked a little bit, throwing out old war stories since the three of us are veterans. That's what usually happens when you get former service people together. The new place looks great and has some nice people associated with it. Keep an eye out for good things to come.

Wasserhund Brewing officially opens August 6, but if you want a sneak peek they're having an soft opening tomorrow, 1 August. Stop by.

July-August HR Growler is out now!

July 17, 2015

Find a copy of the latest HR Growler, I have photos from breweries and events from around the Hampton Roads area. No food articles or recipes this time around, but my Grilled Cheese Bistro story should be in the next one!

Tupelo Honey Cafe - Virginia Beach, VA

July 13, 2015

Tupelo Honey Cafe has opened in Virginia Beach Town Center. What is Tupelo Honey Cafe? I'll be honest and say I've never heard of it before I received an email from someone representing them in the area. She asked if I would be interested in learning more about the Cafe and attend a soft opening and then a media session later that week. Of course I said “Yes!” because who doesn't like a free meal and I love soft openings; there is always a level of energy and excitement in the air at these things. Tupelo Honey Cafe officially opens 13 July 2015, today!

I did a little research and saw that Tupelo Honey started out in Asheville, NC and has expanded into 11 locations in operation. There are two more spots opening soon in Atlanta, GA and Franklin, TN. Tupelo Honey Cafe prepares its menu using classic Southern and/or Southern influenced style. So of course you're thinking okra, grits, fried chicken, greens, etc... They do have those on the menu, but there is a lot more.

First what is Tupelo Honey? Tupelo Honey comes from the White Tupelo is harvested in Florida and Georgia. It's said to be the purist honey you can buy and to harvest it takes a lot of work, read more about it in this great article at Garden & Gun.

The Virginia Beach Town Center location is pretty sweet. It's on the corner of Main St. and Constitution Dr. Lots of windows and a covered, outdoor seating area. The inside of the restaurant is spacious with walls dotted with local and regionally significant art. There is even a WW II era navy uniform on display.

See more photos here.

The bar is large and currently has 20 taps setup. They will eventually be serving kegged cocktails and have an exclusive Virginia mead they'll help get shipped to the restaurant. During the soft opening there was a good selection of local brews on tap in the craft beer line-up; while waited for our seats I grabbed a Tupelo Honey Rye Ale made for Tupelo Honey Cafe by RJ Rockers Brewing Co. Not a bad beer, I enjoyed it. Shelby wanted to try a fancy drink and ordered the “Violet Beauregarde” Champange Cocktail. She loved it. I was able to get a little sip of it too and it was pretty tasty.

After we were seated our server, Tiffany, she went over the limited menu for the soft opening. We had a choice of one appetizer to share, individual entrees and then a shared dessert. From the “Southern Small Plates” section we had a few choices, wrestling with the decision between the Jumbo Lump Crab Cake and the Pecan-Crusted Goat Cheese. We settled on the crab cake. For entrees (with two sides) Shelby chose the broiled Jumbo Shrimp, there was a fried option too, Sauteed Greens and Goat Cheese Grits. I ordered Beef & Bacon Meatloaf with Shaved Brussels Sprouts and Mac-n-Cheese. We sipped our drinks waiting for our food to be brought out.

While we waited I looked around – there were plenty of servers and floor supervisors making sure things were running smoothly. We were at a window table which I requested, I need light for the photos. I didn't like that we sat directly beneath an air vent, I was being blasted by cold air and this proved troublesome for our hot food too.

Tiffany brought out a couple of hot biscuits with a blueberry preserve and some Tupelo honey! Mixing the preserve and honey on the biscuit the way to go. The honey wasn't too sweet and was floral, it was a perfect paired with the blueberry. The biscuit had a lightly crunchy exterior and a moist, light consistency on the inside. We were enjoying our biscuits still when the crab cake came out. The crab cake was good, but living in Virginia Beach where seafood is king, we've had a lot of crab cakes. I would say it's definitely worth a try. Flavor was good and there was a good amount of lump crab inside a breaded coat.

Our “supper plates” as they called them, were decent portions the shrimp were cooked nicely and the cherry pepper buerre blanc sauce was good. Shelby's goat cheese grits were very tasty and I would like to have them again next time we visit. The greens were sauteed perfect and served in a broth – lots of flavor! My meatloaf was covered in a chunky rosemary shallot gravy, it complimented the meatloaf that was flecked with bits of bacon throughout. Shelby and I both loved the Mac-n-Cheese. Some people might think you can mess that stuff up, but you can. Their Mac-n-Cheese had browned bits on the corners and you could taste the cheese consistently with every bite. Serious stuff. My shaved Brussels Sprout salad was good too. It was a cold, raw salad and would be perfect out of the cooler and put out on the picnic table.

Jumbo Shrimp cherry pepper buerre blanc sauce — Jumbo Shrimp cherry pepper buerre blanc sauce

After chatting with Tiffany about the food I mentioned that I was taking photos for the blog she had another server named Matt come to the table. He happened to be in town to help get the Virginia Beach store off to a running start. Matt was a wealth of information about Tupelo Honey Cafe, the people, food and future plans for the site. As he was explaining how things worked around there a sous chef named Caleb came to the table with a restaurant favorite NC Country Ham Wontons. The light, crispy wrappers held a delicious, creamy mixture of ham and cheese. They might have been my favorite bite of the night!

We finished our drinks and ordered another round. I got a Young Veterans Brewing Co. Jet Noise and Shelby tried another cocktail, the tart Honeysuckle & Lavender Flip. She loved this drink too and said they're perfect Summertime drinks.

After trying the wontons we got to meet the Chef du Cuisine, Chris McLeod. I spied him earlier running the line and getting the plates out in order. They brought out more food for us to try, this time some tacos! One plate had a spice encrusted chicken and other had crumbled meatloaf, similar to what I had in my entree. Thin slices of jalapeno, some cilantro and slaw topped the meat and fresh squeezed lime on top finished them off. There were good too, but I would have liked a thinner tortilla. The apple salsa on the chicken tacos was very nice and different.

While trying to work our way through the mountain of food we were accumulating, they brought out more! I'll give a quick run down:

Shrimp and Grits – A lot of flavor, loved how the grits were creamy and had goat cheese in them. There was a roasted red pepper sauce in the center of the bowl that was surrounded by some plump shrimp. We let a friend try some and he said he's had better, but I do think they're worth a try. Eat it hot!

Pan-Seared Scallops with Brown Butter French Green Beans and Spring Green Pea Risotto – The scallops were cooked nicely with great texture. My favorite part of this dish was the risotto. Creamy and seasoned perfectly.

Herbed Lamb Meatballs in Tomato Curry with Feta – Shelby loved this one. She loves lamb and meatballs, so this was the best of both worlds. Great sauce, very good over all.

You could probably guess that we didn't eat all of this. Luckily we bumped into some friends who were there and we were able to share a good bit of our food with them. Sharing was highly encouraged by Matt early on. We did want to try dessert and ordered a slice of Brown Butter Pecan Pie with Dark Chocolate Sauce and the Heavenly Banana Pudding.

The pecan pie was warm and gooey, the chocolate sauce was delicious, it was put together really well and I'd like to try it again when I wasn't so full. The banana pudding was good too, but the thought of eating another bite seemed like an impossible task. We boxed up what was left over and headed home.

After getting in the house I almost passed out on the couch from a food coma.

Tupelo Honey Cafe opens 13 July, 2015. Virginia Beach Town Center on the corner of Main St. and Constitution Dr.

Check it out, it's a nice little addition to our area and the food is good! We definitely plan on visiting again and trying out more of the menu. Here's the little blurb they sent me originally:

Originally opened in 2000 in downtown Asheville, Tupelo Honey Cafe has grown to become a beloved Southern staple serving fresh, made-from-scratch dishes. The Virginia Beach location of Tupelo Honey Cafe is located at 4501 Main St. in Town Center. Upon opening this July, lunch and dinner will be available Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Brunch will also be served from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Known for its incredible Southerncuisine and locally inspired décor, ten Tupelo Honey Cafe locations are currently open in the Southeast with three future openings planned for Virginia Beach, Virginia; Franklin, Tennessee and Atlanta, Georgia. Two nationally distributed Tupelo Honey Cafe cookbooks are available for purchase on the website and in stores. For more information, reservations and menus, visit tupelohoneycafe.com.

See all the photos from our visit HERE.

Needed a Burger

July 9, 2015

Last weekend Shelby mentioned grilling burgers for dinner but we ended up making this instead. It was super tasty but for the next few days I just wanted a burger!

Yesterday I came home later than usual and Shelby was in Norfolk, I figured I'd grab a bite to eat somewhere and get my burger fix. It had been a while since I visited Home Republic at the Oceanfront and they have one of my favorite burgers in the area called the Galaxy Burger.

The Galaxy Burger has thick applewood smoked bacon, grilled onions, hop infused cheddar cream and Galaxy Sauce. All of these things makes a great burger - check out the photo, I had it in a to-go box and it still looked great!

When I got to the restaurant I said my hellos and chatted with Keith and Jeremy in the kitchen briefly. I ordered a Juice "Sea" Fruit IPA that Home Republic brews in the shop and sat down for a bit. It's Shark Week and one of the televisions had some knucklehead swimming around on a shark-silhouetted board mounted with cameras baiting the sharks. Real smart...

I asked for my burger to be put in a to-go box because I planned on giving Shelby half of it (mmm...maybe a little less) but I ate about three-quarters of it and all the fries.

Sorry Shel!

I finished my beer and headed out feeling satisfied and full. Grab a Galaxy if you're in town, it's a good one.

A little kick-off for the Independence Day weekend - Avery's Maharaja!

Dinner at Lynnhaven Pub

July 8, 2015

Our friends Cappy and Lauren wanted to meet-up at The Pub for dinner and a drink. Obviously I do not need a whole lot of convincing to grab a drink at Lynnhaven Pub and Shelby was up for it. Done deal.

Friday nights host "Charlotte Hour" out back where Charlotte, longtime Pub regular, pours some of her favorites till 8:00 PM. Decent line-up too, I always enjoy a pour of the latest "Enjoy By" when I can get it.

After the tasting we headed inside for bite. Lauren said she wanted to try the ribs The Pub has been smoking this year, we crossed our fingers hoping there were some left. They used to only make them on a Thursday and only about 8-10 racks, I don't know if this is true still but they usually sell out.

She was in luck, there were some left, they had some left so she ordered up a rack and Cappy had the brisket tacos. Shelby and I had beef brisket sandwiches, it's hard not to eat that stuff whenever we go (so good, you gotta try it.)

Lauren, "You guys can have some." Um, not unless I want to lose a finger!

We had a round of drinks after we finished eating then gave Cappy and Lauren a ride home, it started to rain and they rode their bikes to meet us earlier. Luckily my car (Honda Element) is like a Transformer and I folded the seats up and we crammed their two bikes, Cappy and myself in the back.

We did all this and got home in time to watch and movie. Very nice night.

Crabbie's Visits Hampton Roads!

June 14, 2015

This past week I was contacted by Jennie who is working on getting the word out about Crabbie's Alcoholic Ginger Beer. We've enjoyed it before, it's good stuff. We first bought it because the thistle on the label caught our eye. Shelby is half Scottish so she naturally to support her kin!

Red, White & Brew

June 5, 2015

Drink the District is following up their highly successful Hampton Roads Beer Fest at the Zoo with "Red, White & Brew", also at the Virginia Zoo, 13 June 2015. This Americana-themed craft beer and wine tasting event will feature 35 craft breweries, 18 wineries, domestic party water trucks, apple pie eating contests, a DJ and a special appearance and performance by former contestant on The Voice, Sam James.

There will be two sessions: 2:30-5:30 PM and 7:00-10:00.

Children are not permitted to the event and people are not allowed to jump into any of the cages with the animals (leave the tigers alone!)

The last event sold out quick so make sure you buy your tickets now! If you use the following link you will get you a $10 discount with your online purchase!

Buy tickets here!

You can also use the coupon code "iheartfood" for a $10 discount.

Check out photos from the last Hampton Roads Drink the District event:

Drink the District at the Virginia Zoo

April 2, 2015

I was contacted recently and was given information on a event happening this weekend called "Drink the District's Hampton Roads Beer Fest" . I'll be honest and say I don't know much about the group but apparently Drink the District started in D.C. as a way to put together affordable beer events for young professionals as one site put it.

Sounds like a good excuse to have a drink to me! Seriously though, I'm glad the Virginia Zoo will be getting some exposure and the brewery line-up is pretty sweet. There will be over 75 beers and a couple ciders to sample. Check out the list below:

The event will be help in two sessions: 1:00-4:00 PM and 5:30-8:30 PM. Unfortunately it appears both sessions have been sold out but there looks like a stand-by list is open for the evening session.

There were 5,500 tickets, total for both sessions, which is pretty impressive for an event that had minimal advertising. Go ahead and head over to the registration page where you can buy tickets here. Maybe something will pop-up, and you'll be able to get in! They gave me a spiffy promo code ("ihf") for $10 off the online price if you can get in. Good luck and say "Hi" if you see me there!

- All images courtesy of Drink the District.

O'Connor Brewing Co. Tap Take-over at Lynnhaven Pub

November 17, 2014

About 3 weeks back O'Connor Brewing Co. took over the taps at Lynnhaven Pub. Since then a ton has been going on and I forgot to post about it!

OBC brought 5 casks of one-offs the brewers had experimented with. The casks were brand staples with added ingredients, mixing it up a bit. It was a Friday night so Charolette was pouring out back for $5 a pour.

O'Connor was represented by several of the brewers who were willing to discuss their casks with Pub patrons. Rob, Lynnhaven Pub owner, was out back smoking meat and experimenting with coffee grinds he got from Lynnhaven Coffee Roasters.

The tasting room was open during the CRAFTED event.

Running Around Town - Oct 11, 2014

October 20, 2014

October 11th was a busy day. Saturday kicked off with the CRAFTED: Indie Arts & Craft Market at O'Connor Brewing in Norfolk, VA. Local crafters were joined by crafters from Richmond to display and sell their work. We saw a lot of friends and our buddies at HomebrewUSA were there serving up their beer; a demonstration on home brewing was setup for those who wanted to see how it's done.

After O'Connor went headed over to Smartmouth Brewing--also in Norfolk--because Shelby saw that New York Souvlaki was setup there that day. We kept missing it when it was out so this was the perfect opportunity to finally try it. It was great! Lucas inside poured me a nice, cool Rule G Shelby and I finished while we ate our chicken and pork kebabs.

We went to Cheap and Cheery at Grape & Gourmet in Virginia Beach, VA after we finished up at Smartmouth. I've posted plenty of Cheap and Cheery event photos and it's one of the events Shelby and I look forward to every month. We bumped into a bunch of friends while perused and sampled wines, beers and ciders on the tables. A great event that lets you sample things you might not normally buy. Wen we finished at Grape & Gourmet we took a little break at home to finish up a pita full of meat called "The Bomb" we got from New York Souvlaki earlier. After our brief down time we headed out again.

The last stop of our run for the day was at Lynnhaven Pub to meet the local chapter of Barley's Angels. Barley's Angels Coastal Virginia is a group of female craft beer enthusiasts who aim to educate and promote craft beer in their region. One of the ways they do this is through volunteering and that night's meeting was a big one because the next day they were going to work the Treasure Chest event.

San Diego brewing company Green Flash has held a breast cancer awareness benefit called Treasure Chest Fest. This year is special for Virginia Beach because it was going to the first one and held on the future spot for a brand new Green Flash brewery! We bumped into a lot of friends and met the friendly people from Green Flash mingled about.

We headed home at a decent time but I still stayed up too late. In the morning I was headed to Treasure Chest Fest where I was asked to be the event photographer. I'll write about that later.