University of Virginia Library

Charlottesville's Restaurants; Or, Dining Out In Jefferson's Town

By DAVID RITCHIE

We have tried to review as
many as possible of
Charlottesville's most popular
restaurants, with one deliberate
exception: the hamburger
stands. We have always felt
that the American hamburger
should be legally damned as a
crime against humanity, and we
have even suggested leveling
every hamburger house in the
nation and torturing the
managements. Let the burger
chains dissolve! Let every
garish, glass sided house of
degraded beef topple,
nevermore to rise! To war!

In these reviews, we use the
following symbols to denote
overall quality of food, service,
and atmosphere:

Barnaby's, Rt. 29 N. [**]

Barnaby's has a decent if rather
starchy menu, and they
prepare the food competently.
Unfortunately, their system of
placing orders is too slow for
the number of customers
Barnaby's was designed to
handle at once, Benches are
hard, and the fake English pub
atmosphere may turn off as
many diners as if pleases.

Boar's Head Inn, Rt, 250 W.
[*****]

The incomparable BHI,
with food and facilities famous
throughout the United States.
A joy.

Chill Shoppe, W. Main. [*****]

The
Chili Shoppe specializes in chili
and hot dogs; but given this
handicap, they do rather well.
Nice for a quick lunch or
snack.

Chinese Dragon, Rt. 29 S. [**] Here you get Chinese Chinese
food, and we think you'll find
it interesting. Prices are
reasonable, and the staff speaks
serviceable English.

Expresso, W. Main. [**] Expresso offers an interesting
selection of pizzas and
grinders, and to its great credit
stays open until 3 A.M. Service
and food are both fair to good,
and Expresso honors four
major credit cards.

Fiji Island Emmet St. [***]

Located on the ground floor of
the Downtowner Motor Inn,
Fiji Island specializes in
Chinese and Polynesian

victuals, and we found it quite
a pleasant place to eat. Prices
are about average by
Washington standards; the
daily buffets, Monday through
Wednesday, can be delicious.

The Kettle, Emmet St. [*****] A
glorified truck stop, with
mediocre food and dime store
decor. The Kettle is open
twenty-four hours a day,
though in their case we can't
say if that's a virtue or not.
Located near Fiji Island.

Ken Jonson Cafeteria, Barracks
Road Shopping Center. [**] As
cafeterias go, Ken Jonson's is
excellent, and also beautifully
located for hungry Barracks
Road shoppers. Unless you
plan to glut yourself, a
substantial lunch should cost
you about two dollars.

Howard Johnson's, W. Main.
[**] Of late, Hojo's food has
been improving, but service can
still be slow, and they charge
outrageously for some of their
dinners. Their chicken and fish
specials are still good, however,
and we recommend them
above anything else on the
menu.

King's Table, Barracks Road
Shopping Center. [****]

Only
the King could afford it daily.
The key word at King's Table
is excellence, and for that
excellence you pay.
Conveniently located across
from the Virginia National
Bank, where you might ask for
a diner's loan.

Lord Hardwicke Inn, Emmit
St. [***] Hardwicke's is one of
our favorites in Charlottesville,
even if they could use more
parking spaces. Here you can
buy solid victuals at generally
fair prices, and enjoy the
benefits of always courteous
service and unique decor.

Lupo's, Emmet St. (No rating.)
We haven't ordered from them
in some time. Perhaps they've
improved.

Ole Virginia Fried Chicken,
Jefferson Park Avenue, [**] The
name may sound like
something out of "Li'l Abner,"
but the chicken is good and the
service friendly. Try it, if you
don't feel like cooking some
night.

Pancake House, Rt. 29 N. [**] They advertise fifty-six
varieties of pancakes, and the
variety we had was delicious.
(Be careful not to miss the
turnoff.)

Pizza Hut, Emmet St. [*****] It's
inoffensive: that is the highest
praise one can give the Pizza
Hut. It is also the highest praise
one can give an uncooked
bagel.

Poe's, University Avenue. [*****] Poe's specializes in beer. The
food if only tolerable, and we
don't like to think what kind
of customer enjoys the interior
decorations. Don't get there
when the music is playing, else
you may lose both eardrums.

Refugees Schnitzelhouse,
Fontaine Avenue [**] High
quality German food at
correspondingly high prices.
The beverage selection is
excellent, but we think the
waitresses' Bavarian costumes
carry the Old World
atmosphere a bit too far.

Shoney's, Emmet St. [*****] If you
do most of your dining in
airport cafeterias, Shoney's
may appeal to you; otherwise,
we'd hesitate to defend it.

That Steak Place, Emmet St.
[***] Good. Come financially
solvent.

University Cafeteria, University
Avenue. [****] The best dining
on the Corner, and at fairly
low prices to boot. McCall's
termed the UG "outstanding"
And who are we to argue with
McCall's?

University Diner, W. Main. * A
meal at the UD is a marvel of
packaging: who else could fit
so much grease into one little
order of eggs? At least the
colas are tasty.

The Virginian, University
Avenue. [**] A dark, cramped
restaurant with an intriguing
list of sandwiches. Next to
Mincer's, on the Corner.