Pizza lovers rejoice: Christian’s will be adding three new locations around town, says today’s Daily Progress. (The story isn’t online.) Owner Christian Tamm had established a Corner location back when he owned Sylvia’s, but has stuck with his downtown location since he established Christian’s a few years back. Now he’s adding locations at Pantops, 29 N. and the Corner, all simultaneously. To keep quality high, he’ll make his best current employees into managers of the new locations.
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Sideblog
Police announced this afternoon that their investigation into what was initially believed to be a fatal fire on Rugby Avenue is now a homicide investigation. #
The Virginia Supreme Court has denied George Huguely’s appeal. His second-degree murder conviction will stand, WRIC reports. #
In a carefully worded story, and not citing specific sources, WTVR reports that forensic evidence belonging to Jesse Matthew Jr., the main suspect in the disappearance of Hannah Graham, matches forensic evidence collected during the investigation of Morgan Harrington’s 2009 murder. #
In the wake of Hannah Graham’s disappearance, and the evidence that came from private security footage, city officials are revisiting the question of installing security cameras on the downtown mall. #
Both Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta and former Electoral Board member Stephanie Commander have turned themselves in to the police on
foursix and four felony counts of embezzlement, respectively. #Ten years ago, the National Institutes of Health budget doubled and schools like the University of Virginia built massive new research facilities. A decade later, those buildings remain largely underutilized. NPR visits UVA in this story on the effect of federal binge and spurge spending in the sciences. #
In 2012, Council approved a new student housing complex on West Main—now some council members are questioning whether what they were shown matches what was built. #
The Architectural Review Board has approved a bike-themed mural on West Market, below the McGuffey Art Center, although at least one member expressed concerns that it might look like the bicyclists were riding away from Charlottesville’s downtown. #
City Police Chief Tim Longo is meeting with city leaders to work on protocols regarding the use of military surplus police weapons in Charlottesville. #
A 100-year-old Colonnades resident received military honors for her service in the WWII Women’s Army Corps #
-
Archive for Sideblog »
NOOOO! :). I can’t eat Pizza, phosphorous and potassium city. And now it’s going to be within walking distance? That is so wrong…..
Oh, Crikey!
Cue Sympatico food rant in 3…2…1…
Hmm. I have to say, I like Christian’s pretty fine. It will be interesting to see if 4 stores will garner enough sales all at once.
i know the one on 29N had to wait for Pizza Bella to go bye bye.
BilCo, you beat me to it. Based on the string of comments on the We’re number 17! post, this about Christian’s Pizza is sure to generate a few more than would be expected.
My neighbor is quite happy that there will be a Christian’s up our way.
Ahhh, sorry to steal your thunder there, Sarabeth, but someone had to be first. Just glad it was me for a change. Hee hee!
I’m very happy for your neighbor Sarabeth, that was a fake rant…well at least it was fake about it being wrong to have food I like and can’t eat coming into my neighborhood, there would be no food in my neighborhood if that was a criteria and I really don’t begrudge anyone else having food they like. Must use more emoticons…..
Sounds good but I am still waiting for Olive Garden…
personwho, did you notice I didn’t say I was excited? I have three children, none who are fond of pizza. My husband cannot have pizza–cheese. I am left to steal a slice from wherever I can on the off chance that I am without the kids. Although, maybe I should be excited that when I do get a chance to have a lunch to myself, I can go to Christian’s for a slice of interesting pizza.
Olive Garden–Gross!
Fabio’s.
UVa08,
That’s a joke, right?
Jack, he might be joking–I thought I recognized a reference to my all-time favorite Cvillenews exchange (pasted in below–it comes from July 2003–the first post is from IamDaMan3 and the reply is from Waldo):
# IamDaMan3 Jul 29th, 2005 at 6:02 pm
On a unrelated note, I heard that the reason why Olive Garden isn’t going to be in Hollymead Town Center is because of BRICKS. Yes, you heard me. Someone told me that OG doesn’t like building BRICKS resturants. SO THERE YOU GO ALBEMARLE COUNTY, THANKS FOR NOT ALLOWING Olive Garden!!!
# Waldo Jul 29th, 2005 at 6:27 pm
SO THERE YOU GO ALBEMARLE COUNTY, THANKS FOR NOT ALLOWING Olive Garden!!!
Wherever shall we eat?
Wherever shall we eat, indeed? I still laugh when I read that.
i like olive garden :(
I do too, actually.
What’s wrong with Olive Garden??? Warm bread sticks, “free” salad, good pasta dishes… I really wish I didn’t have to drive all the way to the Glenside Exit in Richmond to get to one :-( I mean they have one in Fredericksburg and Lynchburg so why not here? Speaking of Fredericksburg there is a really good place there called Joe’s Crab Shack… I want one of those too.
I heard the bricks rumor also. And I also heard the population rumor. Olive Garden stays CVille is a smaller market that couldn’t support it. But if Waynesboro gets one faster then us, I am going to be mad.
But Fredericksburg is smaller than Charlottesville and if you go by population based on a certain radius I am sure Charlottesville and Lynchburg have populations that are similar in size.
Fredericksburg is on 95, and gets a great deal of people passing through, looking for cheap, fast, familiar food.
I think the Sylvias location on the corner happened after Christian sold it, but I could be wrong.
I don’t mind Olive Garden if I’m on the road with my kids, but that is no reason to have that and every other crapy concept food establishment here just because everyone else has one. TGIFridays, Panera Bread….please.
Get a good cook book and make better food at home.
I’d be a-whoopin’ and a-hollerin’ if a Red Hot & Blue would open up around here.
They serve a pulled-pork platter that is a reason for living. Also, while enjoying the cuisine, I get to think about Lee Atwater’s moral 180, which is more food for thought than I get in other restaurants.
All the restaurants we have-and no Tastee-Freeze in Charlottesville/Albemarle!
I’d swap all the overpriced burger joints like Red Robin for one of those! It is a franchise, but it is an old one from childhood days.
Dairy Queen okay too. Anybody remember the old KennyBurger? And the University Diner-great bacon cheeseburgers, and of course the grillswith(the White Spot still do those?).
Back in the good ol’ days, living on 14th st nearby, many a trip up there to satisfy the late-night munchies brought about by herbal stimulation.
And in those days Howard Johnson’ s(where Red Roof is now) had all you can eat fried chicken and fish nights.
And oh yes, Chancellor’s Drug Store on the Corner had a great soda fountain and some good sandwiches-loved their Pimento Cheese Sandwich on toast for lunch. Actually very similar to Timberlake’s -maybe thats why on the infrequent occasions I am Downtown at lunchtime, have probably had lunch at Timberlake’s more than all the other places down there put together!
And when I was an undergrad living in the Alderman dorms there was the Village Inn,off Fontaine, in the area where Anna’s is now. My favorite there was their Spaghetti dinner.
All these fancy new places; and I still miss some of the old ones. And how can I forget the University Cafeteria?
“Home of the Humpburger.” I’m way too young for Kenny Burger, but I’ve heard tell. The owner of that went on to establish Wayside, BTW, so it lives on in some form.
Wasn’t the Caravan on 29N “Home of the Humpburger”? On the Corner, the CK Restaurant (really a diner), was my fave. There was a real dive called the Chili Shoppe, probably where Good Fortune is now, but I don’t remember much about it. There were a couple places like that downtown too, where you could eat breakfast at the counter next to a man drinking a can of beer at 9 A.M. Or even earlier. I think 6 A.M. was the legal limit.
I verified the restaurant names by using the index to Copy Barefoot’s book about the corner…
http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/157427113X/
I’ll defer to anybody who was alive when it existed. :)
Get a good cook book and make better food at home.
By this logic, we don’t need any dining locations, everyone should just cook and eat at home.
Someone wants an Olive Garden? Well, is Olive Garden: The Local Edition a.k.a. Ragazzi’s still open?? I mean, that place IS the Olive Garden with different names for the plates.
Now that I’m no longer living in C’Ville (and working on the mall), I most miss those wonderfully delicious Mennonite chocolate chip cookies, made by the that are sold at Blue Ridge Country Store… somebody want to mail some down here? lol
Ragazzi’s seemed overpriced to me, and the bread doesn’t compare.
Though if they have Zuppa Tuscana under some different name, I may have to go back after all.
Red, Hot & Blue – seriously? That is decent bbq at best. I’d take Big Jim’s over that any day and there are plenty of other places in town that are far better than RHB.
The Caravan on 29N was in fact the Home of the Humpburger”. This was back when there was very little on 29 past K-Mart.
There was also a Caravan on the Corner where Bodo’s is now in the 70s. Unfortunately it and the Lucky Seven next to it become a magnet for the criminal, thug element. Assaults, robberies and other crimes became such a problem that the other Corner merchants were up in arms demanding the police do something. This did not just go on late at night; Hangers-out would start gathering by early afternoon;customers of the bank next door were often robbed or threatened.
Recall that Caravan was replaced by a BurgerKing for awhile, then Kinko’s, and then empty until Bodo’s finally came in. Don’t know what happened to the one on 29N.
I remember and liked the CK Steakhouse too. And of course there was the Mousetrap and its (in)famous red tabs they gave you when you entered and if you lost it was a $5 charge.A lawsuit came about because of that.
And Poe’s, probably the first place to offer live entertainment at the Corner. And who remembers what it was before Poe’s? It was a rather forgettable diner called Jim’s Restaurant.
Only the Virginian, White Spot,and College Inn are left from the restaurants of those days. The Corner is vastly changed, no drugstores, no textbook stores,men’s clothing stores-all of which were there in the 60s and 70s.
For expensive but good Italian food I like Vivace. I can live without Olive Garden. I wish our ‘liquor stores’ stocked grappa or limoncello (or pastis–it’s that time of year again!).
Shortly after I arrived in CV a quarter century ago, a great Texas (i.e. the best) BBQ restaurant opened in the building now housing Keller and George. Although the BBQ was great, the restaurant didn’t last long. I haven’t tried the new place by La Taza but it sounds like NC BBQ to me, though the owner is from Oklahoma. We need more dynamic range in our local BBQs.
Shortly after I arrived in CV a quarter century ago, a great Texas (i.e. the best) BBQ restaurant opened in the building now housing Keller and George. Although the BBQ was great, the restaurant didn’t last long.
Wasn’t it “La Vaca”? I only ate there a few times and thought the place was a bit weird. Then (I think) came Sloans, moving over(circa 1986) from the original location in the North Wing where Scarpa now is.
My C-ville BBQ opinion, for what it’s worth:
Big Jim’s = Gross
Belmont Place = OK
Jinx = Quite nice
Now fight!
What about Pit’s Top and Pig Daddy?
About ancient restaurant history, my informant informs me:
“…And let those who can’t handle the minimal violence that occurred at the Caravan or the Orange Special Sauce at Kenny’s (and you should tell those m’fing wankers they have the humpburger wrong–it was the Dooleyburger at Kenny’s and Humpburger at Caravan…”
followed by a bunch more ranting.
Ah, the food threads are always the best- what we really care about!
I worked at the home of the Humpburger on 29 when I was in high school. We had a great time but the best times were when we all went to Archies Pizza on Fontaine after closing and ate pizza and partied until closing. Who could forget Jay’s old Valiant that he paid $75.00 to get painted bright orange with twin black racing stripes? The Caravan on 29 closed after some punk kids robbed it and forced the employees into the walk in cooler. Dale, the manager when I worked there did buy Wayside. He’s the reason their chicken is so good. I believe he recently retired. I still see Al, the Humpburger “chef” on the Downtown Mall several times a week.
I only went to Kennyburger once, in 1963. My parents, me, my sister, my brother and one African seminarian went there for burgers. My dad ordered six burgers but we got five and one dirty dish rag wrapped up to look like a burger. I think it’s safe to assume that the dirty dish rag was a racist insult intended for our friend, the African seminarian. This sent my dad into an incredible rage. I’ve never seen him so angry. I never went to Kennyburger again.
How about Andy’s Pizza Restaurant way out on 29 North. Remember that place?
More floppy so-called pizza stuff for the masses of gourmet-challenged ignorami. Yuck.
Thanks, Kevin. I didnt know that about the Caravan on 29N. I assume that “Dale” who owns Wayside also was the owner of Dale’s Fried Chicken on High St after it was the Golden Skillet. And you are right, their chicken(and livers, and seafood) is good!
What happened at Kennyburger in 1963 was sadly typical of the times. We forget that Charlottesville was not all the bastion of progressivism and enlightenment we think of it as now. And in 1963 the Civil Rights Act that ended legal discrimination in public accomodations was still a year away.
Don’t remember Andy’s, but I do rememember Archie’s.It was good pizza. All this of course before the chains like Domino’s and Papa John’s were known.
Floppy? Christian’s is as stiff as a board. You can hold it with one hand and it sticks straight out.
Thanks for that terrible story Kevin. These nostalgia trips always make me a little queasy for just that reason.
Anyway… Fabio’s, real pizza, Neapolitan crust, and occupies the former Golden Skillet hillock! Corner of E. High and Willow Sts., look up.
I was wondering how long it would take Sympatico to chime in. We should have been running bets. Next time. :-)
I’ve never seen anyone mention the bbq pizza that the immigrant soul guy made when he had the simeon store (now brix). It was the bomb. weighed about 10 lbs in the box for a small! God it was good.
I could eat pizza everyday (Barnaby’s and Crozet pizza in it’s day were my favs) but I really think Christians has slipped. Mellow Mush is my go to now. And if I’m feeling really healthy (ha!) the college inn pepperoni hits the spot.
Christian’s leaves the pizza out longer now. Look at all those pies on the ready-cooked shelf in the window on the wall to the left of the ovens.
Also, the plain cheese and pepperonis have used a lousy cheese for a long time, but I don’t know if the cheaper ingredients are moving up the chain to the specialty pizzas. The lousy cheese congeals to an orange color, and note to Chr. staff if you read this, it doesn’t help any to hold a slice up by the crust so it flops down like the flap behind a truck wheel in order to show it to the customer. But I think they can do better & they will.
I mean this with no malice in my heart, but some of y’all are just plain goofy! Olive Garden?! Suit yourselves. I’m just sad La Cucina’s gone as it was some pretty decent Italian downtown, though I’ve heard great things about il Cane Pazzo; I’ve not yet tried it. I mean, if you want cheap Italian, make it at home; that’s way better than OG or Ragazzi’s.
Regardless, I’m glad to hear there will be more of Christian’s (though the simultaneous openings seem kinda lofty). Imho, it’s the best pizza in C’ville, hands-down. I just wish they heated up the pizza a bit longer. But seriously: the avocado/basil/tomato slice is worth every bit of $3.50. ::drools::
I lived in the hills of Oakland, California in 1963. I stopped being allowed to play with the boys down the hill and across the street because they yelled the N word at the first African-American family to move into the neighborhood and my best friend stopped being allowed to play with me because I played with the African-American little boy my age. Fun times. Not. I’m not nostalgic.
“Floppy? Christian’s is as stiff as a board. You can hold it with one hand and it sticks straight out.”
One of the hallmarks of a good eatery is CONSISTENCY. I had pizza at Christian’s twice. The first was “edible” adequate pizza, but not particularly special. The second was floppy and that was the last time. Consistency at a pizzeria STARTS with a mastery of the oven and that is sorely lacking there like at so many American pizzerias. ‘Nuff said.
really, no one else had that bbq pizza?
I had the pepperoni. I swear, Jerry Garcia faked his death and started that pizza joint.