Please welcome Senior Richmond and Deli Correspondent, Les Wexler. I had a comment from Les about a post, and the ensuing conversation led to pastrami. I’ve been thinking about pastrami lately — I keep meaning to get back to Silver and Sons (great smoked lamb) to try theirs — and I”m off on an effort to find top quality pastrami in the Washington area. Les … Continue reading Perly’s Restaurant, Richmond, Virginia
I haven’t researched my family history, but we must go back to the cursed House of Atreus. At least I can empathize with the plight of Tantalus, condemned by Zeus to eternal hunger and thirst as he stood in a pool of water and beside a fruit tree. Each time he reached for the water or fruit, it would recede beyond his grasp. That would be a … Continue reading From Palm Beach to Washington, DC: The Ride through Hell
Raise your hand if you can resist a place named Dude’s Drive In. Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? After a very good lunch at Due South, I drove across the gravel parking lot, crossed a street, and pulled into a space at Dude’s, perhaps 60 yards from my starting point, new personal record for time and distance between two lunches. I’d seen the sign for Dude’s as … Continue reading Dude’s Drive-in, Christianburg, Virginia
I was driving down I-81 as an Official Victim in the famed I-81 Truckers’ Traffic Obstruction Competition, in which the crown goes to the driver who can cut into the left lane at the bottom of the longest hill and downshift to the slowest speed. As fascinating and expert as the competition was, I broke off at Christianburg to check out Due South Pit Cooked … Continue reading Due South, Christianburg, Virginia
Airport food is not an unalloyed joy for the palate, and you usually have to pay a premium for what you get. I think we all can agree on that. There are airports in which you can have a genuinely flavorful meal, and some in which you can do so inside security. I approach airport food with caution, and am anxious to find things that … Continue reading Reservoir, Terminal 1, Reagan National Airport, Arlington, Virginia
I got a line on Rodman’s Bar-B-Que from the Dean of Virginia Barbecue, Joe Haynes. Joe has written a book on Virginia barbecue and is a driving force in the revival of traditional Virginia pork barbecue. He spends hours and hours recreating old recipes. And he told me to try Rodman’s Bar-B-Que in Chesapeake. So I did. It turns out that Rodman’s has been around … Continue reading Rodman’s Bar-B-Que, Chesapeake, Virginia
There was a time when candidates for office in Virginia wooed Virginia voters with barbecue, beer, and brandy. The voters wisely elected people like Washington, Madison, and Monroe. But where are the barbecues of yesteryear? By the late 20th century, when I moved to Washington, what little “barbecue” there was seemed to be cooked in ovens or crock pots, hardly a diet for another generation … Continue reading Ten Best Barbecue Places in Virginia
I waddled out of Bean’s, fully sated by my huge pork sandwich and chips. I was headed to Chantilly to check out another place, and decided that it would be wise to take back roads so that I’d have time to build up an appetite before my next meal. So I drove slowly up Route 11 toward Woodstock, and after seven miles, before I was … Continue reading Smokin’ Jarhead “”, Woodstock, Virginia
Why doesn’t anyone tell me about these things? I’ve been searching high and low for Virginia places that cook exclusively with wood. I hear about Bean’s BBQ, hurry there, and find out that it’s been around for 13 years. Thirteen lost years! Edinburg is an upper Shenandoah Valley town incorporated in 1852. It’s home to a little more than 1,000 souls, a number of historic … Continue reading Bean’s BBQ, Edinburg, Virginia
I was driving south on I-95 through Southside Virginia, through the flat peanut country down in Sussex County. I’d driven that stretch I don’t know how many times before when I saw smoke curling up from that former ice cream stand on the side of the road — you’ve passed it — that has a Big Pig BBQ sign! I’d passed that point a gazillion … Continue reading Big Pig BBQ, Stoney Creek, Virginia
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