Fall is just around the corner and we are getting into that brown liquor with Mary Allison, distiller at Richmond's own Reservoir Distillery. Reservoir has a small portfolio of whiskeys made with Virginia-grown grains—and often aged in Virginia wood, too—making their bottles a real local treat. We sat down with Mary to drink some rye and talk about…

Next up on the beverage parade, Virginia's OG historical quaff, CIDER! Courtney Mailey, founder and original cider maker, opened Blue Bee in 2012. It quickly became one of Richmond's most-loved beverages and since 2016 has resided in the old Richmond city stables in Scott's Addition. We joined Courtney at the cidery and she talked to us about wildl…

Since 2009 Lamplighter Coffee Roasters has been at the forefront of the RVA coffee scene. Their original location on Addison street in the Fan has been called "Richmond's Living Room" and coffee lovers all over the city know them for their friendly, warm vibe, incredible specialty coffee, and coffee training and education programs. We chatted with …

Richmond’s chefs, home cooks, and those with an eye for impeccable design already know Mr. Rob Bland, the proprietor and curator of specialty home and kitchen goods shop Accoutre in Scott’s Addition. We visited with him at the beautiful space and talked shop. (Get it?) Accoutre is the spot for hand-crafted, well-designed kitchen and housewares. We …

To celebrate their 20th episode, Nicole and Laura asked each other some of the questions they always ask their guests: how’d you end up in Richmond? How did you start working on food? What is your motto and WHERE DO YOU LIKE TO EAT PIZZA? Listen in to hear the answers. Mentioned in this episode: Dinamo Nota Bene Giustino’s Pizza Patrick Henry Pub V…

Nominated as a James Beard Award semifinalist three times and known around the country for its incomparable bread and pastry work, Richmond’s own Sub Rosa Bakery hardly needs an introduction. Brother and sister team Evrim and Evin Dogu have put their all into the Church Hill spot, building it from a table in Evrim’s apartment to the thriving neighb…

We know you’ve heard of Abuelita’s: #rvadine can’t stop talking about the delicious food coming out of Karina Benavides' and Everardo Fonseca’s temple to guisos Mexicanos. The two restaurant veterans, who are partners both in life and in love, opened a spot centered around Mexican home cooking and hospitality that is truly their own. We talk about …

017 Michelle Parrish Soul N’ Vinegar Show Notes: Nestled in the north end of Church Hill, in an area not far from some of the restaurants that helped put Richmond on the national dining map is a humble and petite food shop on a mission to feed its neighbors. Michelle Parrish talks with us about Soul N’ Vinegar, her oasis in a food desert, which ser…

Richmond restaurant stalwart Abi Huntington, General Manager at beloved Italian-Jewish spot Dinamo, is our guest this week. Abbi cut her industry teeth at old-school Richmond haunts like Joe’s Inn and Avalon, where she started to fall for wine. Self-described as a "half-ass oenophile," she chatted with us about wine, the restaurant industry, leavin…

From working together in the restaurant scene—long before Richmond was even a blip on the national food radar—to learning the ins and outs of growing food from seed up at a Northern farm, Melissa and Frayser Micou have had quite a journey to their current oasis in the city, Pomona Plants and Coffee. These past adventures inform their plant shop-cum…

014 Justin Ayotte We sat down with Justin Ayotte, beverage director of Jackson Ward’s Saison restaurant and next-door neighbor Saison Market. These two are regulars on lists of the best bars in Richmond, thanks to a well-executed drink program coupled with an easygoing environment. Born in Virginia Beach and raised in Chesterfield, Justin entered t…

013 Vanessa Beller: A Secret Forest This episode, we wander into A Secret Forest with candy maker/magical fairy Vanessa Beller. A native of Los Angeles, Vanessa moved to Richmond less than a year ago and opened a brick and mortar biz on Broad St, giving her thriving online shop for luxe lollipops a local outpost in the arts district downtown. Show …

Show Notes: It's the holidays and we are excited for treats! From holiday classics like panettone & buche de Noel to magical sugar spun lollys and electric pink pan dulces, Richmond has your holiday sweet tooth covered. Tune in to hear who is offering what and how you can represent your hometown with lovely and delicious sweet treats this season. M…

011 Kate Lee After our wine episode, we figured it was time to give Richmond beer its due, and what better place to start than one of the breweries that put the Richmond beer scene on the map? Kate Lee, Vice President of Operations and Quality at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, is the woman in charge of just about everything that goes into making Har…

010 Giustino Riccio IT’S OUR TENTH EP! IT’S GIUSTINO’S PIZZA! We’re screaming! Have you been to Galley Go-To in Southside to have what is one of the very best pies in Richmond, made by the charming and hilarious Giustino Riccio? Go ahead; we’ll wait. On the way you can listen to Giustino explain his pizza philosophy and how it is similar to his app…

009 The Wine Jerks This week we're joined by four Richmond-area wine experts: Booth Hardy of Barrel Thief, Nathan Conway of the Metzger/Brenner Pass family, Virginia Samsel of Native Selections, and Jeremy Wilson, former wine and food director at The Jasper (now part of the staff at the Inn at Little Washington—congrats Jeremy!). Over the course of…

008 Chef Lee Gregory We sit down with Lee Gregory amidst the clamor and frenzy of the first few weeks into the opening of his third restaurant, Alewife. Gregory is chef/owner/partner at well-known Richmond restaurants The Roosevelt and Southbound, and Alewife is his first solo project. We talk about how his focus on seafood has roots in both his up…

We know Richmond has a lotta good food—but if you had to make a top-five list, what dishes would make the cut? In this special mini-episode, we talk RVA's most iconic foods, from Sally Bell's cupcakes to cheese Columbos to Sailor Sandwiches, and Nicole and Laura throw out a few of their personal favorite eats from around town. Chime in with your mu…

Richmond has quite a few restaurant families, folks for whom hard work and culinary creativity is a family affair and whose legacies are deeply tied into the food community here. The story of the Teklemariam family, who operate The Nile Ethiopian Bistro, crosses continents, the Midwest and Mid Atlantic and lands right here in Richmond. Consistency …

It’s summer! A wet and rainy summer to be sure, but that's not stopping the ice cream lovers of Richmond from queuing up at Charm School Social Club. Meryl Hillerson and Alex Zavaleta joined us to talk about how their friendship and punk ethos informs all they do at their ice cream shop. From the cheeky decor to the vegan, homemade waffle cones, th…

004 Gold Cart Jean-Claude Van Dinner-Dance. Fire Brunch with Me. Fantasy Fair. Perhaps you attended one of these local events. If not, you should have! Meet Erik Heffernan, Liz Rosenberg, Andrea Singer-Curry and Ned Curry of Gold Cart, an unconventional catering biz that creates themed pop-ups and private parties all over Richmond (their fellow par…

003 Bartender Lindsey Scheer If you frequent the restaurants and bars of Richmond you’ve probably been served by bartender Lindsey Scheer. Years of honing her hustle and craft has led her to the beloved palace of hospitality, Heritage, where as bar manager she is infusing her unfussy approach and joyful spirit into their drink program. Show Notes: …

The ever talented Chauncey Jenkins, aka Chance Fischer—fresh from performing at the opening day reception at the Institute of Contemporary Arts and his recent promotion to General Manager at Lemaire—stopped by the kitchen table. We talked wine, women and song (well, not so much women, unless you count us) and what it’s like running the massive enti…

Links Mentioned: Pho Tay Do vs. Pho So 1 La Cabaña Shelly's Food, Comida Latina Randall (Randy) Doetzer, former chef at Nota Bene Longoven Indie Chefs Week Chefs Cycle for No Kid Hungry The Roosevelt Susan Winiecki, editorial director of Richmond Magazine and half of the force behind Fire, Flour & Fork Follow Us: RichmondFamous.com @rvafamous on In…