A little background on The Virginian (courtesy of their website), it is actually the oldest restaurant in Charlottesville having opened its doors in 1923 and remaining open in its same location through present day. Billy Gooch and Ellis Brown, both alumni, were the founding owners of The Virginian (glad to see Gooch contributed something memorable to the University community in addition to his beautiful dorm).
It felt like we were home again as we took a seat in booth #9, which was dedicated to some alum via commemorative plaque. I commented that we should have a booth named for us and lo and behold the initials JP were actually carved into the wall of booth #9! Fate? Methinks so.
Anywho, the Virginian was a favorite spot for our post-sorority chapter meeting Monday night dinners and the usual menu item of choice was grilled cheese.
The menu describes their "Gourmet Grilled Cheese" as melted cheddar, provolone, and Swiss between two slices of golden sourdough. While not as fancy as some of the recipes in GGC, the Virginian grilled cheese does not disappoint. Even though there are three kinds of cheese in the sandwich, the bread to cheese ratio is actually just right (you could even argue that there's a little too much bread around the edges as the cheese doesn't ooze enough to get between the pieces of crust). All in all, it's a beloved entree that will forever remind me of good times at UVA and Monday night dinners with the girls-- in essence, a comfort food in its truest form.
I've never liked the term "comfort food." What food is supposed to be uncomfortable?
ReplyDeleteartichokes are uncomfortable - they have thistle type hairs. And if you try to EAT the leaf, by mistake, it takes days to chew and it never gets smaller. Janet's mom.
ReplyDeleteWell, we're making progress. We now know that "comfort food" is any single food in the world -- except artichokes.
ReplyDeleteThere are plenty of others! Yuca, puffer fish, raw almonds and cashews are all poisonous if prepared incorrectly. Cherry pits and apple seeds contain cyanide. Peppers that are too hot for your individual taste can lead to some serious discomfort.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I always take comfort food more to mean food that will help you feel calm and at ease emotionally rather than physically.
So then, wouldn't a comfort food be anyone's favorite food? And each person could potentially have a different, individual, unique comfort food?
ReplyDeleteSounds like that would be a very long menu for any restaurant claiming to sell comfort food.