Cazon Tropical

Note: Apologies for the long hiatus. Who knew that the semester would take away all my time to travel and explore new restaurants?

Cazon Tropical

Wood Brook Shopping Center
1871 Seminole Trail - (In the Wood Brook Shopping Center behind the Kohr Brothers Frozen Custard place with the merry-go-round)Charlottesville, Virginia
(Check out their website and browse their entire menu here!)

A bit tucked away behind some stores, this spot on Route 29 North is a tasty one. Specializing in Dominican, Hondurian, and Salvadorian food,

they make a good meal for the hungry traveler. The prices are really reasonable as well.

Start off your meal with the chicken-filled corn tamals, which are wrapped in plantain leaves and are really, really hot inside. After your tongue stops burning from the first bite, try another and savor the tender meat and mushy corn. Or, start off with some Salvadorian meat pies, which are also really hot but delicious. They are actually sort of like fried pouches of ground beef.

Hungry for a big meal? Try the Pica Pollo, which is a "Dominican style" fried chicken, served with plantains and coleslaw. Be prepared because this is about half a chicken fried for your enjoyment. And enjoy it you will. I generally dislike white meat because it can come out really dry if not done correctly. Well, these guys know how to do breast meat because it was very crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. But the meat was also really rich and tasty. Perhaps some special seasoning makes this "Dominican style"?

If you feel like something smaller but just as good, try the Fajitas Tropicales. You get your choice of meat. This is mixed with onions, tomatoes, bell peppers and melty mozzarella and served on a tortilla. It's so soft and tasty that you'll wish you had ordered more than one.

But wait, there's more. Try the Tipico Salvadoreno, which is a grilled sirloin served with rice, beans, cheese, chorizo, and avocado. This is one tasty dish. Mix the meat with the other items provided and you get a good blend of the flavors all together.

For dessert try the deliciously soaked Tres Leches or the caramel flan. But you may be too full by then.

Café 88

Café 88
923 Preston Avenue
Charlottesville, VA

I have long complained about the dearth of good Chinese food in Charlottesville, but the opening of Café 88 requires me to revise my assessment of the town's offerings. True, Charlottesville doesn't have large Chinese restaurants like the ones I grew up with in California, but Café 88 - a small, spunky, innovative little restaurant - substantially raises the bar.

Café 88 offers - as its menu attests - Dim Sum, Snacks, and Chinese Bento Box.

I've tried a range of their dim sum offerings.

Crispy Chicken is a delicately fried chicken, spiced with basil. As with all of their other offerings, the food is handled with extreme care and attention.

I loved their Scallion Pancake, which had a perfect finish to it.

Spring Rolls are another strong suit - a wonderful contrast to the factory-made rolls I've encountered elsewhere in town.

Under Bento Specials, there are a variety of chicken and pork dishes. I've tried Wonderful Chicken and Amazing Chicken. In both cases, the chicken was prepared just right - with a crisp, thin crust on the surface and tender meat inside. Also - Bento specials are served with rotating side dishes, most memorably fried eggplant.

I'm consistently impressed with the degree of attention each dish receives. The chef holds herself to high standards.

Café 88 is, in short, must-eat Chinese - and an ideal lunch stop. It is located at 923 Preston Avenue, next door to Integral Yoga.

Where to Eat in Charlottesville

OK, so this is a week old but I've been busy. The Washington Post recommends a few spots, which I should check out when I'm in Cville. Among the recommendations are Mas, Revolutionary Soup, the Albemarle Baking Co., HotCakes, and Aroma's Cafe. I've been to a few of these but will give further thought before reviewing them. Check out the article to see what they have to say.

Carpe Donut

(Check out their website for where they'll be!)

The donuts that these guys make are always a treat. Think about it: organic apple cider donuts that are warm and soft and just leave you feeling all good inside. What more could you ask for except an actual store where you could walk in daily and get a dose of these goodies? Until then, however, you'll just have to keep checking the website to see where they'll be. Looks like you can probably catch them on the Downtown Mall on Fridays on a fairly regular basis.

Copacabana

Copacabana Brazilian International
400 Shoppers World Ct
Charlottesville, VA 22901

This little restaurant, tucked away in Shoppers World on Route 29 is a terrific place for good food that is light and tasty. Located next to the local Whole Foods , Copacabana boasts a solid menu of seafood, pasta, and meats. The variety may not be so large but almost everything on the menu looks appetizing and you spend a lot of time trying to figure out what you want to try. The setting is a bit dark and the little candles don't give off much light so consider it a place for a romantic gathering. From what I could observe, however, there weren't many young couples there and a lot of business types, older folks, or couples in their 30s seemed to frequent this place.

I started off with the escargot with artichokes in a light cream sauce which also came with small pieces of tender cheese. The escargot was perfect and the artichokes really complimented the taste of the dish. The appetizer came with warm bread, which is just terrific and probably the best bread I've had in Charlottesville. The bread works great with just butter but dip it into the cream sauce and it just takes appetizers to a whole new level.

Entrees are served with a small salad with some shaved carrots to top it off. The house dressing, which is an avocado vinaigrette is wonderful and I have asked for just the dressing in a small container to take with me. They might overdo it a bit though when they drench their salads in this sauce.

For the main course I had the special, which was the fillet mignon with scallops in a red wine sauce. The meat was cooked perfectly and the scallops added a nice flavor to the dish. The sauce was creamy and a bit sweet, which made this a favorite dish of mine. I think they ran out of fillet mignons since, later in the evening, they started introducing New York strips as their special of the day. The fillet must have been a favorite.

Always top off a meal at Copacabana with the banana flan, which is served with a tasty strawberry sauce and whipped cream. This wonderful custard melts in your mouth and gives your tongue a nice treat after a full meal.

At the end, they give you a nice little mint and a hefty check. Maybe that's why this is not more popular with the student population. Still, it is well worth it and you leave the restaurant satisfied but not completely stuffed. They know how to do creamy dishes and entrees so that they taste great but don't make you so stuffed that you can't walk later.

Highly recommended!

Mesob

Mesob
104 14th Street Parking Garage
N.W. Suite #8
Charlottesville, VA
(Check out their online menu!)

It’s hard to find good Ethiopian food in Central Virginia so Mesob is a blessing to those who love this terrific cuisine. Mesob boasts a nice lunch buffet on weekdays and features a variety of tasty dishes. The injera is very good – soft and spongy, absorbing all the flavors of your meal. (And in recent visits, the injeras has been even better than usual. I really enjoy it when it is a bit sticky and soft.)

I always love the cabbage dish although I am not sure what it is called. I’m also not sure what they do with it but it has a great flavor, slightly sweet and delicious flavor that soaks right into the thoroughly cooked vegetable.

Other buffet items have included Alicha Doro Wet, which, according to their menu, consists of chicken drum sticks and hard boiled eggs in a wonderful broth of “spiced and purified butter, garlic, tomato, turmeric, and onion.” I’m pretty sure that I’ve also had the Minchet Abish-Alicha Wet, which is a dish of minced meat “stweed in spiced and purified butter, onion ,turmeric, tomato paste, and garlic.”

For vegetarian lovers, I don’t think can go wrong with the cabbage but there is also the Gomen, which is a dish of chopped “and boiled collard greens cooked with olive oil, onion, ginger, garlic, and jalapeno.”

All in all, this is a terrific place with friendly service and excellent food.

(Images by AG)

Lunch at Brasserie Montiel

Brasserie Montiel & Coffee House
2001 Commonwealth Dr.
Charlottesville, VA

I have given this restaurant a fine review in the past for their breakfast options (crepes are good for any time of the day!) but their record with lunch items is also very good. Their chicken potpie is hearty and perfect for a cold, rainy day. The pie isn’t actually a pie as the puff pastry comes on top of everything else. The pasty itself is flakey and well baked. I think I prefer my pies to be a bit gooier but I’m probably an outlier. The chicken, carrots, and gravy are well done.

The jambalaya is also an excellent lunch item. Filled with tasty sausage, mussels, shrimp, okra, and a variety of excellent spices, this dish is also quite filling. I had my doubts about it when I saw the quantity (it comes in a somewhat small portion in a square plate) but this is a filling dish so order a cup of coffee afterwards or you’ll fall asleep at work. It was $12 and more than I usually spend on lunch so I think I will reserve this dish for very special occasions.


Finally, the mini-cheeseburgers are, as you can see, well-presented and a good lunch-sized meal. I think I prefer my burgers to be a bit less rare than this (it was a bit pink in the middle) but the taste was good and the fries complimented the dish very well. The fries, by the way, have a bit too much salt in them but that’s my health-conscious side talking. They taste great.

(Image by MB)

Brasserie Montiel & Coffee House

Brasserie Montiel & Coffee House
2001 Commonwealth Dr.

Charlottesville, VA

Brasserie Montiel: well lit and well decorated.

This coffee house and restaurant is a superb place for breakfast, brunch, and lunch. The place is rather new but there is no learning curve necessary for the chefs here. Well decorated with bright colors and filled with light, Brasserie Montiel is just a really nice spot for a leisurely or fast meal. Here, my companion and I tried the crepes and we were not disappointed. The Nutella and banana crepes are terrific. The crepe itself is soft and well made. Some places just don’t care about the batter but these guys know how to make a good crepe that is soft, not burnt, not greasy, and tasteful. The crepe can certainly hold its own without any toppings like Nutella. My dining companion had the orange crepes and they were just as good. Another plus is that these guys use actual fruit. None of that slimy, overly sweet preservative! These are fresh fruits that really mix well with the crepe.

Tasty crepes: orange on the left and bananas with Nutella on the right.

The coffee here is also very good and I’ve enjoyed more than a few tasty cups. But what about the other breakfast items? The three-egg omelet is great too. You have your choice of cheeses: Cheddar, Mozzarella, or Boursin. Add to that chopped tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, spinach, peppers, bacon, or ham. The omelet comes with toast and hash browns. Now, are they too heavy and greasy like at most breakfast joints and diners? Not at all. These omelets are gourmet. They taste good and they’re not greasy. I don’t know how they do it but these guys have made a terrific meal that isn’t too heavy and leaves you feeling very good. Here, I’ve had an omelet with Mozzarella, spinach, onions, and ham. OK, the ham may be a bit salty but that’s a minor criticism of this really great place.

(Images by AG and MB)

Himalayan Fusion

Himalayan Fusion
520 E. Main Street
Charlottesville, VA 22902

This recent addition to Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall is gaining quite a following. The menu posted outside this restaurant plus the rave reviews it got from people who had been there lured me inside even though I generally don’t’ like Indian cuisine. Of course, this isn’t exactly Indian cuisine. Whatever the difference, it makes Himalayan Fusion much tastier.

Their buffets are pretty awesome. Go on weekends and get free soft drinks and some special dishes too (for a bit extra). The general buffet isn’t bad though. Still, I’m sold on the weekend meals. Their vegetable dishes can vary in taste. I can’t remember what I had the first time but it was pretty delicious. The broccoli with mushrooms (pictured here) aren’t special but they’ll do. The salad is a bit bland with lots of onions. But their strength is in what do they do with their meats and noodles. I don’t know what they put in these stir-fried noodles with vegetables but the taste has you wanting more even though you are completely stuffed.

The fish curry is pretty good although I think there was one with more coconut milk, which was a lot tastier. Still, the meat is nice and tender. The rich flavor can be a bit overwhelming but that’s where the nan comes in. The problem is that they often run out of nan and they don’t put it in the buffet as much. Sometimes they’ll tell you that they’ve run out or that the chef is working on making more. With a staple like nan, you should have tons on hand. Does it go bad if it is left out too long? Their nan, however, is worth the wait and it is tasty.

How much nan can a person eat though? The waiters will sometimes bring you a basket of nan when it’s not available in the buffet. But the deal with the buffet is that you can police how much nan you consume. Here, I had to waste a few wonderful pieces just because I was already stuffed. They should certainly reevaluate their nan policy.

(Since originally writing this review, I have gone back to there and they seem to have taken note of the waste of nan and so it seems to now be in the buffet line.)

In the past, service has been poor but recently they have made additions to their wait staff and I have no complaints about them. One last point, they should vary the dishes in the buffets. I love chicken but I’m sure there are other meats that these folks can make scrumptious.

(Images by AG)

Tokyo Rose

2171 Ivy Rd # 13
Charlottesville, VA 22903

While sushi has ascended in status from exotic fad to international staple (I think I saw tuna rolls for sale in my local Safeway last week), it remains somewhat difficult to find restaurants serving more traditional Japanese dishes. Tokyo Rose combines a solid sushi bar with some slightly adventurous takes on Japanese foods. The restaurant is hidden away in a strip mall; while it presents an unimpressive facade, the interior is pleasant, with soft lighting and a natural decor. After some discussion, my companion Mr. K and myself decided on main dishes from the entree menu, to be accompanied by a few orders from the in-house sushi bar. And I was in for a treat- though I didn't see salmon skin sushi on the menu, the waiter informed me that they would be happy to make me rolls (above, middle). I also ordered eel nigiri (above, top), while Mr K selected the Alaska roll (above, bottom), containing salmon, avocado, and cucumber.

While most Japanese restaurants I've been to serve their sushi before the meal, Tokyo Rose brought our order to the table with the entrees- a slight disappointment, if you're expecting to be able to concentrate on your fish. My salmon skin rolls, however, eliminated all disappointment; the wonderfully crunchy texture of the salmon skin was well-supported by a mix of dense rice and crisp cucumber. The eel, too, was all eel should be- mild, flaky, and lightly glazed (though perhaps a little bland)- while the Alaska roll was (I felt) good without being great.


For my entree, I chose the nabeyaki udon, which has been described as a "Japanese hotpot". The base of the dish is udon noodles in a mild stock; chefs then add a variety of meats, seafood, and vegetables. (I, for one, have never had nabeyaki udon without fish cakes and an egg cooked in the broth.) Tokyo Rose's nabeyaki came to the table in the traditional earthenware pot, which keeps the dish hot (and also provides chilly diners with a place to warm their hands as the meal progresses). There were, of course, thinly sliced fish cakes floating in the broth, as well as squash, mushrooms, chicken, an number of plump shrimp, and the requisite egg, which I attacked with abandon. While the broth was more heavily seasoned then I was used to, I found it to be a pleasant counterpoint to the dense udon noodles rather than a nuisance. My only quibble with the dish was the chicken, which was too sweetly seasoned for my palate, and contrasted oddly with the rich, meaty tone of the broth. Soup and stew in much of Western cooking is frequently an opportunity to use cosmetically flawed ingredients. In contrast, Tokyo Rose takes delight in assembling a broth dish that is pleasing to both the eye and the stomach.

Mr K and I finished the meal with some green tea and adjourned to Ben and Jerry's for ice cream. I'm certain we'll dine at Tokyo Rose again; when we do, we'll be sure to try the
dessert menu. And if you find yourself in Charlottesville, I'd recommend uncovering a good meal at this little secret.