Food News: Southbound opens, Inner City Blues to close, and last minute Thanksgiving options

This week: A new Southside concept from chefs Joe Sparatta and Lee Gregory opened this past week, a Gilpin Court soul food joint gets the boot after mere months in business, and some last minute Thanksgiving options just in case you really like to live your life spontaneously.

November 27, 2014; 1:08 PM • by Trevor Dickerson

Inner City Blues, the first restaurant to take a chance on the Gilpin Court neighborhood in more than a decade, will close on December 1st, according to Style Weekly. Owners Alicia and Lamont Hawkins say an unspecified dispute with the landlord is to blame. The couple’s soul food will live on at their second location, the recently-opened Carolina Bar B Que on Nine Mile Road, according to a Facebook post.

— ∮∮∮ —

Southbound, the new Southside restaurant from Joe Sparatta of Heritage and Lee Gregory of The Roosevelt, officially opened for business on Tuesday. The two partners’ aim is to bring “casual and approachable” fare to the Stony Point area. Style’s Brandon Fox has a great Q&A with Sparatta and Gregory and the story of how Southbound came to be.

— ∮∮∮ —

Gelati Celesti, a Richmond ice cream staple for 30 years, opened its third shop in The Corner at Short Pump, near Kroger, this month. The first location opened in Gold’s Gym Plaza at West Broad Street and West End Drive in 1984. Owner Steve Rosser, who purchased the company in 2010, later added a location in Bon Air as well as an ice cream truck.

— ∮∮∮ —

Shoutout to Near West End News editor Alison Brown for the headline of the week–‘Barrel Thief thief steals butt.’ The crime is no laughing matter for Barrel Thief though, who lost a 10 pound pork butt last Saturday. Owners of the wine shop and café have resorted to putting a padlock on their smoker to deter any future pork-knappers.

— ∮∮∮ —

Willow Lawn is not only Richmond’s oldest shopping center, but also one of its most successful. The West Broad Street shopping plaza, built in 1956, has outlived many other malls and shopping centers in the area due to its continuous evolution and the addition of several new restaurants which continue to make it a destination for many. Travinia Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar opened on the first floor of the former Thalhimer’s department store earlier this year, and early next year, popular D.C. chef and Top Chef runner-up Bryan Voltaggio is expected to open another location of his popular Family Meal restaurant–the first in the Richmond area.

— ∮∮∮ —

Shyndigz, the popular spot that literally serves nothing but dessert, proved such a concept could not only survive, but thrive, in Richmond. In fact, owners Nicole and Bryon Jessee had to expand their operation, recently taking over the former Bogart’s location on Cary Street. RVANews’ Nathan Cushing has a great profile on the pair and how they ended up running the desserterie.

— ∮∮∮ —

By the time you read this, you’ll probably either be helping yourself to seconds of turkey and stuffing or about to pass out from all that tryptophan, but if you like to fly by the seat of your pants, Richmond.com’s Karri Peifer has an expansive list of restaurants serving up Thanksgiving fare if you find yourself looking for a last minute option. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

Photo: Southbound Facebook page