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Virtue Feed & Grain, Old Town Alexandria - Chef Santiago Lopez Comes From Cafe Tu-Tu-Tango in Orlando - Eat Good Food Group Departs On Apr 1, 2013


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Was there last Sunday with SO and a friend from Vegas. Food is alright but a little on the pricier side, and they skimp on the bread, even for dishes that beg for it - bone marrow, cheese, pate. 'Service has not found its stride' is an understatement. Slow, surly and slightly shocking -- no warning that the kitchen closed and we never got to order entrees - that was a first for me. We left hungry and upset. I *so* wanted to love this place, too. sad.gif

Gave this place another try last week and am happy to say that the service and the food has improved dramatically! The Scotch egg, duck confit and pastrami sandwich special were all tasty, generous, and well-executed. Even better the service was thoughtful, prompt, and friendly. My Virtuous hot chocolate was indeed special, with a luscious crust of house made marshmallow, and the chai donuts that we ordered were hot pillows of spicy fragrant pastry. We couldn't even finish the last one, they are about as big as clementines and you get five of them. My only quibble is that the skin of the duck could have been rendered a tiny bit crispier, and nearly ten dollars is rather dear for one Scotch egg. Yay V F &G! glad to put you in my rotation again. :)

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Can anyone shed light on what exactly this means?

"Please be advised that Eat Good Food Group has transitioned the operation and management of Virtue Feed and Grain to 106 Union Dublin effective April 1, 2013."

It means that Eat Good Food Group is no longer associated with the restaurant.

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Well I gathered THAT, but the name of the new management company "106 Union Dublin" is the address of the restaurant and the name of a city with some relevance to the Armstrongs. I was wondering if this operation may still be run by some partners of Eat Good Food Group, just not all of the partners.

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Well I gathered THAT, but the name of the new management company "106 Union Dublin" is the address of the restaurant and the name of a city with some relevance to the Armstrongs. I was wondering if this operation my still be run by some partners of Eat Good Food Group, just not all of the partners.

I can't answer this question, but I do note that the letter said "operation and management" and not ownership. It's probably best if someone from the organization itself clarifies any questions.

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The wait staff was told that EatGoodFood Group is no longer affiliated in any way with the ownership company (106 Union Dublin, which has *always* been the ownership company). EatGoodFood Group was responsible for management and operations through March 31.

That's all I know, and it's public information at this point.

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No updates on this? What's been going on there of late and what does this all mean?

The few times we were to Virtue we were never impressed.

Jon, as far as I know, there aren't going to be any updates (*) - Eat Good Food Group (the Armstrong's company) and 106 Union Dublin (the owners of Virtue Feed and Grain) severed ties as of March 31st. Before that date, there was a contract between the two companies for Eat Good Food Group to manage the restaurant.

(*) Don't quote me on this, but anything more would be sheer conjecture on my part - I was simply passing along information that had been released to the public earlier that day.

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Irrespective of ownership, I have never had a flawless meal here. And so it was again tonight.

Three of us had dinner here tonight, and each of us ordered burgers -- two lamb and one bison. I also had the iceberg lettuce wedge. Add one glass of pinot noir and all in, with tax and tip, came to $35 each. I thought that was a bit on the pricey side.

I asked for my lamb burger medium, which I expected to be pink in the middle. I also asked for the beet-laced pasta salad instead of fries. The wedge landed first, and was a bit small. The lamb burger landed next, and it was more medium well than medium. If not for the tzatziki sauce it would have been too dry. Fries were also on the plate, but the waiter quickly covered for the kitchen and said "pasta salad is on the way!" Despite the fact that they weren't ordered, the fries were not bad, but the pasta salad was on the bland side.

I noticed that the menu was less adventurous than my previous visits when it was under Cathal Armstrong's management. Nothing interesting like tongue salad or lamb steak....just straightforward American grub, more or less.

I will say that the outdoor seating was very pleasant on a beautiful Old Town evening, so I can't give the meal a failing grade overall. More like a C or C+....

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Based on location, size, market, etc., it's hard to imagine the food could ever be - or would ever try to be - much more than serviceable. Virtue Feed and Grain tried to out-cuisine the area, and succeeded for a brief while, but ultimately, that part of Old Town is for a tourist crowd (not to say that's automatically bad; Michel Bras is for a tourist crowd, too).

I noted the paradigm shift on a recent visit. Mr. MV missed the duck confit, but with that amazing renovation (gasp!), I'd aim to hit the sweet spot too.

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Based on location, size, market, etc., it's hard to imagine the food could ever be - or would ever try to be - much more than serviceable. Virtue Feed and Grain tried to out-cuisine the area, and succeeded for a brief while, but ultimately, that part of Old Town is for a tourist crowd (not to say that's automatically bad - Michel Bras is for a tourist crowd, too).

Virtue Feed & Grain is exactly what I thought of when I read the blurb in the Patch (& I never ever got around to trying it, but based on recent reports, I'm not sad). Unfortunately, restaurants that have a high tourist quotient don't have much incentive to have really good food, too- they can usually get by for awhile w/ location & atmosphere. Look at Indigo Landing...

I don't 100% agree with these sentiments.  I do agree that in these more touristy areas that very high-end/conceptual food wouldn't work well.  But, Virtue Feed and Grain is not an example of that, they simply produced terrible food and provided awful service both times we were there.  The location is not why they suck(ed), them sucking is why the suck(ed).

Now, I would agree that often when restaurants get prime locations that they take the easy way out and don't try to be great because below average is good enough.

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I stopped into Virtue Feed & Grain yesterday for the first time since the divorce with Eat Good Food Group, and was surprised to see how much the menu has contracted.

I only had a bowl of Seafood Chowder ($7) with coconut milk, which was the soup of the day, and a Diet Coke, so most of my perception was visual, along with menu study.

The Chef de Cuisine is now Santiago Lopez, who was previously Executive Sous Chef at Cafe Tu-o-Tu in Georgetown. This was one heck of a promotion for Chef Lopez.

My bartender was as nice as could be, and this is still a lovely restaurant, but you can tell it's just not the same - this has not been in Italic since the Armstrongs left, and I see no reason to raise or lower my rating based on yesterday. The patio seating in the alley was open yesterday, and in this weather, you couldn't ask for a more pleasant environs to dine al fresco.

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So I went totally off the rails Saturday night and had crab dip at Virtue. (Lactose binge plus hangover the next morning not fun.)  It was fine, but probably not worth the lactose situation later.  Their crab dip is good, but they need to go to some place like McGarvey's in Annapolis and see how it is done. The meatballs were really good though.  I find it strange that for a place with really small tables that gets really crowded, they tend to plate everything on big plates.  We were juggling to find a spot for apps plus drinks.  

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I'm not much on listicles, but I counted on this one during Christmas Day; at 4:55 PM, with the Golden State - Cleveland game five minutes away from tip-off, I found myself standing outside in the rain, in front of a dark, locked-up Union Street Public House.

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Desperate, I asked Siri where the nearest sports bar was, and got some ridiculous answer that was about twenty minutes away. I was caught completely off-guard, trapped, and doomed ... until I turned around.

There, in front of me, across the street, was an open Virtue Feed & Grain. I walked over there, and saw the most beautiful thing I've ever seen: three flat-screen TVs behind the bar, with plenty of empty seats. I walked in, asked the bartender if they'd be showing The Game, and positioned myself right in front of the TV set - my Christmas evening had been saved, and there really *is* a Santa Claus.

I'm sorry to put a lump of coal in your stocking, but like so many other "microbreweries" from several years past (Lagunitas, New Belgium, Deschutes, Harpoon, Stone - yes, even Bell's), Great Lakes Brewing Company has gone over to the dark side. A bottle of Great Lakes Elliot Ness Amber Lager ($7) was lifeless, bland, and a shadow of what it was just a few years ago. The good brothers at Beer Advocate are going to learn - if they haven't already - how incredibly *easy* it is to begin a review website, relative to how incredibly *difficult* it is to keep it up-to-date once you have it populated. Gentlemen, you can throw that 100-point rating straight out the window. Knowing absolutely nothing about their production figures, or whether or not they've been sold, or had an infusion of investment capital, my personal experience has shown me that Great Lakes is a brewery in decline, and that statement is partially based on multiple trips to the Midwest over the past several years. As recently as five years ago, I *loved* this brewery; no longer.

The menu at Virtue Feed & Grain no longer mentions Santiago Lopez as their chef, so I don't know who's running the kitchen at this point. However, under the (perhaps false) assumption that there might be a Latino influence in the kitchen, and seeing some Latino-influenced items on the menu, I decided that would be the basis of my dinner. But first, I had some business to tend to, in the form of Baker's 7-Year 107-Proof Bourbon ($8) served neat, one ice cube on the side, and thanks to both Jake Parrott and Josh Raynolds for their rapid-turnaround help in ordering.

After "a glass or two," it was time to eat something, so I ordered the Wild Mushroom Tacos ($12 for 3), and I now ask myself if I chose the single-best thing on the entire menu, because these tacos were wonderful. Not the tortillas themselves so much as the filling - it was a mushroom-lovers delight (incidentally, have you noticed how preponderant mushrooms are on restaurant menus these past few weeks?), and went perfectly with the Bourbon. Don't read too much into what I'm about to say: They came accompanied with a bowl of rice, and there was something "unusual" about this rice that I simply could not place, despite trying my hardest for over thirty minutes. At first, I thought that there was a touch of rancidity in the oil; then, that something had just started to ferment; finally, I concluded that it was inconclusive, and it could have been something as simple as kidney beans mixed with bits of red pepper - there were also some corn kernels, and maybe a very light application of oil, but not much. I pride myself in being able to peg scents and flavors, but at the end of the day, I'm still left wondering what it was about this rice that has me so perplexed (I finished every bite, mainly in a vain effort to try and satisfy my curiosity). But, forget the rice, because it was just a side dish: The tacos were the star of the show, and deservedly so - this is a great dish for vegetarians.

I nursed these tacos, along with my "one or two glasses" of Baker's, for the entire basketball game, making sure to leave a generous tip for the bartender, but I knew I'd be hungry later, so I also ordered a Chesapeake Crab Cake Sandwich ($16), figuring that I'd have it for lunch the next day if not later in the evening. Virtue has a single crab-cake appetizer for $14, and it's a better value springing for the sandwich since it comes with a cast-iron-seared brioche bun, and an order of hand-cut fries (you also have the option of pasta salad or seasonal vegetables). Eaten much later, and not reheated, the fries were at room temperature so cannot be judged fairly, but they were still very good, and I can verify that there was absolutely nothing wrong with the oil. The sandwich, despite also being at room temperature, was very tasty, seemingly consisting mostly of claw meat, and fairly priced at $16.

This was a much different experience than my previous visit to Virtue Feed & Grain in March, 2014 - the ship has righted itself, at least somewhat, and ... I'll come out and say it now: My previous trip was a disaster; not so any longer.

And they have three flat-screen TVs behind the bar!

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Not a big sports fan, but Bugsy's and Joe Theisman's are the only serious sports bars in Old Town that come to mind. Southside 815 as well I suppose; not a particularly foodie destination, but it's always pretty crowded and the low country cuisine is solid and filling.

Too bad mushrooms are a gout trigger for me, or I'd be all over that fungus on"¦whatever fungus grows on. I do miss Virtue's boneless crubeen. It's a shame nobody ever ordered it.

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That was a huge peeve of mine when I was GM at Union Street...for that short time, the owner, wanted to close if there was a hint of snow in the forecast.  That is why the Fish Market is always open on snowy days and xmas, because very few of the few old town restaurants are.  You need to be open for your guests.  I liken the experience to Tommy Boy the movie...and I actually had this conversation with the owner, who by trade is a lawyer and married into the family that owns the restaurant, not the building, which btw is near the end of the 30 year lease, and I know the Virtue peeps, who have there shit together, are eyeing it and willing to put the $2 million in renovations that space desperately needs....anyway..I made reference to the fact of the butcher comment in tommy Boy.."  Of course, I can get a hell of a good look at a T-Bone steak by sticking my head up a bull's ass, but I'd rather take the butcher's word for it.  Sometimes you should be an owner and follow the guidance of your managers (31 different managers in 5 years there fyi).  Cause I don't dispense law advise  lol 

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Don,

Very happy to hear of your good experience at the awkwardly named "Virtue Feed & Grain." It's been a fair spell since the Armstrong separation, so they should've had a chance to settle down into a rhythm.

Though I haven't had Elliot Ness in a while (I'd much rather have Edmund Fitzgerald), it's widely respected. Ratings are difficult. The 100-point score you mention on BA is from "the Bros." I presume it's not frequently updated, whereas the continually updated "BA Score" is, well, continually updated. To that point, I see quite a few recent high ratings. It's difficult to draw direct comparisons because individual ratings max at "5" and are incorporated into the rating history and converted into the 100-point scale. But it looks to me like Elliot Ness gets some pretty good ratings. Whereas, at RateBeer, Ness also enjoys excellent ratings, and a 100-point score "in style."

As any foodie might tell you, ratings should be taken with a grain of salt. ;) However, in a place like a Virtue I'm more suspicious of how the beer was treated before it got in your glass: how long did it sit in the cooler, or rather the storeroom. The problem with today's abundance of craft beer is that in a place like Virtue"“"“not exactly a destination for beer geeks"“"“a lot of beers will sit, and not necessarily with any care. Similar to the situation with old coffee on the shelf in a café, restaurants do not like to throw away their product. Many of these places are stocking too many types of beer, leading to bottles getting old. Unlike wine, almost all beer should be drunk fresh. The sooner the better.

I just returned from Pennsylvania, where a Weis Market's beer department was full of beers "best before" dates in 2014 and early 2015. Some where IPAs. Outrageous!

Ratings might be hard, but so is a real beer program.

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Stopped in for fish tacos the other day.  I find the bar really high when sitting on their stools to the point it makes me very conscientious of my height.  The tacos are on the small side, but you get three of them and a side, I thought they were very tasty.

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Two lunches here recently.  Fish tacos one day- a little too much guac (I know, but really not balanced).  Next time kale salad with chicken.  The dressing on this salad is delicious and it has lot of good things- apples, raisins, and a bunch of other stuff I can't remember.  I would get this salad again.

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