Last week I attended the Virginia Specialty Food Show in Richmond. After the event, my husband and I had dinner at Stella’s.
The restaurant is named after its Matriarch, Stella, who worked alongside her husband from the time they immigrated to Virginia from Greece in 1956 until she opened her namesake in 1983. The restaurant offers rustic classic and modern Greek cuisine paired with Greek wines. The fluffy bread is even served with Stella’s olive oil, grown, pressed and bottled in Greece and shipped to Virginia by the pallet load. In addition to a second location in South Carolina, the restaurant has opened 7 specialty grocery stores across Richmond.
As we dined on artichoke moussaka — a hearty layered dish of artichoke hearts, fennel, potato and caramelized onions — and sipped on Moschofilero (a wine I had never tried before or even knew existed), I thought about how this one restaurant has helped shaped the city, educating its guests on a specific cuisine; providing a place for so many patrons to celebrate birthdays, engagement parties or a simple night out with a partner; growing and opening 7 specialty food stores where you can find items to facilitate many a dinner party or picnic.
This business that was started by a single family has served thousands over the years.
That’s one of the many things I love about restaurants: how they forge a community. How they can teach you about other cultures and backgrounds. How they can inspire you to incorporate new ingredients into your cooking.
In our Spring Issue, HOME, Simon Davidson writes about how his friend, the late Wilson Richey helped shape the restaurant culture of Charlottesville with the many establishments he opened and the many businesses he supported. Simon shares some of Richey’s favorite spots and through this lens we get to enjoy a gustatorial day in Charlottesville.
Known as the Friendly City, Harrisonburg is home to many Latin American restaurants. Regular EBR contributor Sarah Golibart Gorman spent a day visiting with the owners of three beloved establishments to learn their story and share their experience.
It’s opening weekend for a plethora of farmers markets in our region. To find one nearest you, check out our market guide.
Welcome to the Edible Blue Ridge newsletter that brings you food stories from our region and beyond. You're receiving this email because you've purchased a magazine subscription—thank you!—or you signed up via our online form. If you need to opt out at any time, there's a link at the bottom. We're glad you're here.
Thanks for reading, happy eating, and enjoy your weekend,
Lisa - Publisher & Editor
EVENTS
Have an event you’d like us to share? Email: info@edibleblueridge.com
4.06 Staunton Farmers Market Opening Day - Staunton
4.07 Bottling Workshop at Catoctin Creek - Purcellville
4.07 Mill Race Market - Roseland
4.08 Solar Eclipse Watchparty at Wintergreen - Roseland
4.13 Why Plant Native? - a class with Friendly City Food Coop - Harrisonburg
4.19 Veritas Supper Series Featuring Chef John Sleasman - Afton
4.21 Make a Terrarium - a class with Friendly City Food Coop - Harrisonburg
4.26-5.02 Monticello AVA Wine Week - Various Locations
5.09-5.11 Biodynamic Beekeeping Experience - Floyd
MORE TO CHEW ON
🌾 Is The Federal Crop Insurance Program a barrier to climate-adaptive farming? - Civil Eats Reports
Soy sauce in….your desserts?🍫 - from bon appètit
Starting seeds without the plastic: 🌱soil blocking - Modern Farmer
Friday, May 10th 4-6p.m. Project GROWs Plant Sale & Open House!
Come visit the farm and pick up your veggie, herb, and flower plant starters for your summer garden. There will be music, food, games, giant bubbles and more! This is the perfect way to kick off Mother's Day and celebrate your local farmers. Self-guided farm tours and activities for the whole family are a great way to spend some time outside.
WHAT WE’RE COOKING
POEM OF THE WEEK
After a Greek Proverb By A.E. Stallings Ουδέν μονιμότερον του προσωρινού We’re here for the time being, I answer to the query— Just for a couple of years, we said, a dozen years back. Nothing is more permanent than the temporary. We dine sitting on folding chairs—they were cheap but cheery. We’ve taped the broken window pane. tv’s still out of whack. We’re here for the time being, I answer to the query. When we crossed the water, we only brought what we could carry, But there are always boxes that you never do unpack. Nothing is more permanent than the temporary. Sometimes when I’m feeling weepy, you propose a theory: Nostalgia and tear gas have the same acrid smack. We’re here for the time being, I answer to the query— We stash bones in the closet when we don’t have time to bury, Stuff receipts in envelopes, file papers in a stack. Nothing is more permanent than the temporary. Twelve years now and we’re still eating off the ordinary: We left our wedding china behind, afraid that it might crack. We’re here for the time being, we answer to the query, But nothing is more permanent than the temporary. Source: Poetry (January 2012)
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