Last weekend, I embarked on a fall food foray in and around Charlottesville with my friend Emily—a native of Richmond, a gracious hostess, and one of my foodiest friends. I arrived in Richmond Friday afternoon and explored the eclectic shops in its Carytown neighborhood. I finally went into a Penzeys Spices, procuring some needed seeds (sesame, poppy, caraway, fennel) for winter baking. I found some Christmas gifts at Ten Thousand Villages and chatted with the owner of the independent design store Ruth & Ollie. I braved a cat paradise disguised as a bookstore and perused the quirky inventory at Mongrel before returning to Ellwood Thompson’s for a warming bowl of soup.
Emily and I started our weekend with spicy dumplings and the Bombay roll at Osaka. Saturday morning we loaded her car with provisions (veggies, homemade hummus) and drove to Carter Mountain Orchard, just outside Charlottesville. This place definitely deserves to have “mountain” in its name; the ridge along the top had spectacular views. We did some minor hiking to get our apple harvest: Fujis, Winesaps, and Pink Ladies. We also enjoyed cider doughnuts … yum.
After the orchard we drove into Charlottesville—definitely a foodie town. We stopped by Feast and Albemarle Baking Co. to pick up cheeses, sausages, and bread for our picnic at Pollak Vineyards. Feast had some great local cheese offerings; I could have spent several hours looking around. At Pollak we sampled seven or eight wines (who’s counting …) and enjoyed a little Viognier with our lunch.
After the luncheon feast we headed back into Charlottesville and explored the downtown pedestrian mall. The chocolate sorbet at Splendora’s definitely lived up to Emily’s recommendation, and it paired well with pear. We finished the day with Emily’s nourishing butternut squash and potato soup. I’m looking forward to returning to Charlottesville and seeing more of the downtown and campus.
