Flora opens, Garnett's expands, and pop-ups keep poppin' off

Flora's aguachile is a bright, refreshing starter that sets the tone for a great meal to follow.

FROM SCUFFLETOWN TO DOWNTOWN

The Valentine announced yesterday that Garnett's Cafe will take over the Garden Cafe space in the museum's courtyard. According to Domenick Casuccio, Garnett's at the Valentine is hoping for a late May opening.

John Murden, future manager for Garnett's at The Valentine, said the menu will be consistent with many of the Garnett's on Park Ave offerings, adding, "We'll also pull in some items from Ipanema and plan to try out some new stuff as well. We'll have a part of menu set up to be grab and go - akin to a box lunch, for folks with a tight time period for lunch." Murden says healthy and quick options will be essential for this location's menu.

BUCKETS OF HAPPINESS

Our resident comfort food expert, Jason Alley, shared some of his fried chicken picks in Garden & Gun's Fried Chicken Bucket List, including Leon's Oyster Shop in Charleston, Mama J's here in Richmond, and Tanglewood Ordinary in Goochland. This calls for a road trip!

FLO RIDA

Flora, the newest endeavor from restaurateurs Jason Alley, Michele Jones, and Jay Bayer, opens this weekend, with a menu of Oaxaca-inspired specialties and cocktails in the former Balliceaux space. Richmond Magazine got a sneak peek at Flora's offerings, and from mole to mezcal, this looks like a menu we can all get into.

POPWATCH

Iki Kai says 'F YOU' to winter on Monday, March 27th with poke and tropical cocktails, plus new very cool-looking Iki Kai mai tai glasses available for purchase, so you can pretend you're at a pop-up when you're really just at your boring old house.

On May 7th, the Gold Cart folks are hosting a pop-up brunch, aka Jean Claude Van Brunch, at Pasture. Gold Cart team member Andrea Singer says, "While Gold Cart is very much a team effort, the idea behind branching out to brunch service was all Erik Heffernan. He says, 'Jean Claude Van Brunch started out as a joke and became a dream. Now, thanks to my wife and good friends, the dream of drinking a BloodSport Mary while watching Van Damme do splits will come true.'" 

Jean Claude Van Damme-themed dishes will include Kung Pow Chicken and Waffles and Croque Van Damme. Gold Cart will team up with Rostovs and Texas Beach Bloody Mary Mix to ensure propure brunch beverages for all. Singer adds, "Those folks are Richmond brunch staples and we are so excited to be working with them!"

And if you missed The Jackdaw's first Kamayan dinner, good news: Ian Merryman and his crew will do it all again, al fresco! On May 8th, The Jackdaw will host another eat-with-your-hands Filipino feast in a not-yet-named East End location.

IF YOU DO NOTHING ELSE...

I haven't found many people in my travels who love pizza more than I do, but Nick 'Danger' Walthall might just be that dude. I named @pizzanickdanger as 'Gram of the Week not too long ago, and if you enjoy pizza and beer content, you should probably get on that. 

This Sunday, Nick will join the team at Nota Bene for their monthly Pizza Club, where he'll present a pizza that combines smoked mozzarella, Taleggio, Fontina, prosciutto, grapefruit zest, and arugula over red sauce. And the cocktail. My god, the cocktail! Imagine if you will Allagash Hoppy Table Beer, plus mezcal, fresh grapefruit juice and a grapefruit peel garnish. With grapefruit in the pizza and in the signature cocktail, this installment of pizza club promises to be...zesty.

SIP: THE BOATHOUSE OYSTER ALE

The Boathouse and Trapezium Brewing Co. paired up to create a house beer for The Boathouse's three locations. According to a release, "The Boathouse Oyster Ale was developed by steeping The Boathouse Oyster shells in the beer...The oyster flavor is savory and mildly briny, grown to achieve what The Boathouse believes is an ideal flavor profile for an oyster. " This is a crisp American blonde ale, low in the hops department, perfect for drinking with seafood, especially, well...oysters.

Get a sip for yourself this Friday from 6:00 to 9:00 pm at The Boathouse at Sunday Park's pop-up Trapezium Beer Dinner.

BITE: FLORA'S AGUACHILE

Long, slippery strips of clam, dressed with citrus, jalapeño, and cilantro are piled up on a fan of thinly-sliced cucumber in one of Flora's most memorable starter courses. It sets the stage well for the fried cactus paddle and tacos al pastor that are sure to follow.

GRAM: @breij

Big ups to Stephanie Breijo for being our first special guest in our Appleseed Series. Yesterday, Stephanie sat down with us to talk about all things PR, specifically what food businesses need to know about press releases, interviews, and exclusives. One of her recommendations was for chefs and restaurateurs to engage with the writers they want to work with on other mediums, such as Twitter and Instagram, as a way of becoming more visible and memorable to the writer. So, take her advice, and give her a follow on the old Instagrams!