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"Louisiana Lobster Roll" Spicy crawfish salad on a New England style roll from Dash at Broad Appétit

#rva #foodporn #foodfestival #crawfish #dash #broadappetite #lobsterroll

RVA Burger Week! House ground chorizo burger with a fried egg on a potato bun at Saison

#rva #rvaburgerweek #chorizo #friedegg #burger #foodporn #saison #potatobun

RVA Burger Week! Lamb, prosciutto, and grilled pineapple w/ jalapeño jelly on a Hawaiian roll at The Franklin Inn

#rva #rvaburgerweek #foodporn #lamb #prosciutto #grilledpineapple #hawiianroll #thefranklininn

RVA Burger Week! Spicy Asian White Bean Sliders with kimchi slaw and yuzu aioli on soft potato rolls at Mosaic

#rva #foodporn #whitebeans #rvaburgerweek #kimchi #yuzu #mosaic

Follow the link and pick out some good burgers to try this week! I'll be posting the burgers I eat.

#rva #foodfestival #burgers #styleweekly #rvaburgerweek

It’s true what they say; sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name. Almost every Friday night my friends and I gather at the same local restaurant to discuss the week, have some delicious cocktails, and eat really well made food. Having done this for a number of years now, we have become almost part of the ambiance that is Helen’s on a Friday night.

When I tell people that Helen’s is my favorite restaurant in all of Richmond it often surprises them. Helen’s has been a part of the RVA food scene for a very long time but it is in its current state that it soars in my book.

Whenever my parents come to visit me from southeastern Maryland, I like to take them to new places. We have hit the usual haunts like Comfort, Tarrant’s, and Mama Zu’s. But it was after they ate at Helen’s that they declared I didn’t need to plan so hard, and they could just eat there. The first time they had dinner at Helen’s my mom ordered the shrimp and grits (which is delicious and rivals other eateries that specialize in such fare). When they went back a second time I encouraged her to try something different, Chef Clay Hostetler has a whole menu of amazing food, which more than satisfies. She toyed with the idea of other things but my mom still got the shrimp and grits. When you know what you like, why switch it up? I had planned to share the mussels with my dad because he is the person who turned me on to mussels to begin with and I think these mussels, with the addictive Pernod broth and matchstick potatoes are beyond (much like my brisket). I was hoping to split them with him, but he was not too apt to share once he tasted them.

Everything at Helen’s is delicious; from burgers to scallops, bacon wrapped chicken to pork belly spring rolls. But, when I tell people that Helen’s is my favorite restaurant in all of Richmond it’s also a bit misleading.

You see, to me, what should make a restaurant your favorite is a place where when you walk in you feel at ease. Where the food, the ambiance, and the conversation always seem to go together like a perfect wine pairing. When I eat at Helen’s I feel like I am really getting what the RVA food scene is in every bite because every bite is more than the fantastic taste of that fork full. Every bite is the scent of the grill just feet away in the open kitchen. Every bite is the perfect Manhattan made by my friend Elizabeth behind the bar. Every bite is the smiles from Clay when I tease him for one thing or another, or the late night conversations with the Leslie about the history of Helen’s and Richmond, or the laughs from all my friends at the bar after some shirtless jogger runs by the windows bringing conversation to a halt. All of these things and more a part of every bite, for me, at Helen’s.

So, I hope that you hold your favorite eatery to the same standard, and if you haven’t found your spot yet I invite you to come check out mine. But don’t sit at the bar on a Friday night...that seat’s taken.

#food musings #rva #helens #fridaynight #shrimpandgrits #mussels