Food News: Oktoberfest, Beast Feast, and fighting Yelp, VCU chains

This week: Oktoberfest is in full swing, Beast Feast and the Italian Festival return, and local businesses take on Yelp and VCU’s host of chains. All this and more!

September 25, 2014; 12:10 PM • by Trevor Dickerson

‘Tis the season for Oktoberfest! The festivities continue around town this Saturday with Capital Ale House’s Oktoberfest at the downtown location. Expect over 100 craft brews, live music, and traditional dancing, plus a full menu of traditional German offerings like bratwurst, knockwurst, currywurst, sauerbraten, and dumplings with ginger snap gravy. There’s a $3 cover, with all proceeds benefitting UNOS. You can also reserve VIP tables for a morning or afternoon seating.

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In other beer news, RVANews’s Richard Hayes put together a great rundown of the places for pints and pint-sized people (translation: breweries your kids won’t be bored to death in if you happen to bring them along). This listing covers the city proper, including Triple Crossing, Strangeways, Ardent, Isley, and Hardywood, but he promises a review covering some of the more remote spots once he gets up the courage to brave Short Pump (that could be a while, folks).

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The former home of Stool Pigeons and, most recently Major Willy Mayo’s, will soon have a new tenant of the brewpub variety. Seven Hills BrewPub will open soon in the Dock Street space and feature a lineup of what founder and co-owner Ross Renfrow calls more traditional beers, along with a couple adventurous brews like the Texas Beach ThaiPA, featuring basil, ginger, Thai chili peppers, and lemongrass. Legend Brewing Company’s Jeff Metz has been tapped as head brewer. Richmond.com has more info on the menu and Renfrow’s background.

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By now, you’ve probably heard of the restaurant in Richmond, California offering customers 25% off for poor Yelp reviews as an attempt to undermine the review site, citing what it calls questionable sales and review practices (good on ’em). Well, Sticky Rice in The Fan has jumped on the bandwagon and posted a few of the staff’s favorite negative reviews on their blog, and it’s pretty great. My favorite? “It’s like a mainstream indie rock or folk rock poser band. You know what I’m saying: if you’re in the mood for true indie rock or folk rock music, then Mumford and Sons just don’t cut it. But a long road trip with avid Bieber fans and your [sic] breathing a sigh of relief when ‘I Will Wait’ comes on the radio.” Touché, Lacy H. Touché.

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The State Fair, and all the ooey, gooey, deep fried, battered, and stuck-on-a-stick goodness that comes with it, returns beginning this weekend to The Meadow Event Park in Doswell. Expect to find all your favorite indulgences like deep fried Twinkies and Oreos, funnel cakes, and turkey legs, of course, but there’s also a newcomer on the scene, which honestly sounds more like something you’d find at Hardee’s than the Fair, but it sounds delicious nonethless. It’s called the Piggy Back Burger: “A massive stack of beef, with barbecue pulled pork and onion rings piled on top,” according to the staff at WRIC, who apparently got a taste of the colossal sandwich.

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The Richmond Italian Festival returns for its 10th year at the 17th Street Farmers Market this Saturday and Sunday. Promising a taste of “la dolce vita” (the sweet life), the two day festival features a variety of local Italian restaurants and vendors from around town, along with wine, live music, arts and crafts vendors, and even a meatball eating contest, if you’re so inclined. The event is family friendly and features a kids’ area, but if last year was any indication, you’ll want to get there early. As with most events at the Farmers Market, the space gets crowded and the lines get long pretty early on.

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Some of Richmond’s best chefs and mixologists will come together on Sunday from 1:00-5:00 PM for Beast Feast at Patrick Henry’s home, Scotchtown. Proceeds from the feast will benefit the historic property, owned by Preservation Virginia. Chefs from The Magpie, Julep’s, The Rogue Gentleman, Aziza on Main, and even The Governor’s Mansion and Federal Reserve Bank will be serving up unique carnivorous creations. Tickets are $50 (VIP tickets are $80) and going fast. Get them while you can–they sold out last year!

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Empire, the longtime VCU area watering hole, is closing (temporarily) for some rebranding. Owner Thor LeVesque, who bought the bar and restaurant a year ago, says nearby chains the university has (largely) brought in, are hurting business. “Unfortunately we are surrounded by chains, and that makes it very difficult to get the young kids in,” he tells Richmond.com. LeVesque is planning a counter-strike, though. He aims to make the menu more affordable and offer more vegan and vegetarian options. There’s even talk of reopening Empire’s former upstairs music venue, which hosted a number of popular artists in the ’80s and ’90s.

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On that same front, another local entrepreneur is planning to take on the man (well, VCU’s chain restaurants, anyway). Moo Burgers will soon take over the space formerly occupied by Nile Ethiopian Restaurant on North Lauren Street. Owner Jon Soto plans to take on nearby Five Guys Burgers and Fries with hormone-free, grass-fed beef burgers, as well as chicken and veggie options, he tells Richmond BizSense. Milkshakes and olive oil fries are on the docket, too. ‘Moo’ve over, Five Guys!

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Finally, the space attached to The National, formerly home of Gibson’s Grill, has taken on a new life. Coda, a “refined American, but not pretentious” restaurant, according to co-owner (and founding ‘Fighting Gravity’ member) Dave Peterson, opened last week to coincide with the Foo Fighters show. Expect flat bread pizzas, sliders, and even changing specials inspired by the culinary requests of the acts visiting the venue any given evening, which is pretty cool.

Photo: Flickr/wolfworld