When the car dealership gives you a rental for the weekend because they f#cked up… don’t just leave it parked, use it! We decided to take full advantage of not putting miles on our own vehicles and finally gave Richmond, VA a visit. Saturday’s weather was less than favorable, but we made the best of the break in the rain to walk around the canal and check out the floodwall, eat food and see an improve show.
Southern livin’ also means BBQ eatin’. So yes, we headed to the outskirts of VA for some highly ranked BBQ. Hogshead Cafe is in Henrico County, VA. A quick trip on 64 West will get there. From the outside, nestled between a Chinese restaurant and an Asian market, is hogs heaven. Well, where they go to finish out their purpose to humans.
Saturday was brisket day! All specials were centered around beef briskets. He loves a good brisket, so naturally that was his choice. He chose the platter with two sides. A large portion of soft brisket, including burnt ends came out with two piping hot cheesy sides. The brisket was super tender, but a little greasy. When I was stealing my second sampling, my fork just kept shredding it more. The burnt ends had a ton of flavor, but the brisket as a whole lacked a desired smoke flavor. The creamy Mac n cheese was a thick cheddar, but I even thought it was tasty. We both had a side of the scalloped potatoes. The potatoes were sliced ultra thin and layered in cream. It became a creamy starch casserole of fat calories and goodness. ($19)
I had to have my favorite, pulled pork. Like the brisket, it was also very soft and tender. On the platter, it was served without BBQ sauce, but was still rich with flavor. My other side were baked apples. The cafe provided decent BBQ sauces on the table. I decided to play with flavors adding a little vinegar based Carolina style and mixing in a few baked apples. It was the perfect combination to add to this heap of pulled pork. ($16)
We were stuffed and happy with our choices. After the Preakness (to which the owner would not turn up the sound), we headed back the Richmond area district, Broad Street. Our day was super spontaneous, so looking back it seems even more fitting that we saw a witty entertaining improve show at Coalition Theatre.
Dine There Eat That 