Places to Eat

This is a list of places where we often go (and a few places where we used to go) to eat after we have spent a long day on the trail, working up an appetite. Usually, there is a group that wants to get dinner on the way home & some folks that head straight back to Richmond - it's your choice.

A couple of notes:

• It is always a good idea to carry a spare set of CLEAN CLOTHES whether you plan to go out to eat on the way back or not. Nothing fancy required - T-shirt, jeans/shorts, & comfortable shoes are fine.

• I tried to find the "home page" for the places I listed, but if they didn't have a home page, I tried to find one that had a decent description/directions. If I couldn't find anything, I just put the address.

EAST of the mountains – Charlottesville:

Everyday Cafe  (Link: Everyday Cafe )

#1 Place we stop on the way to a work trip for restroom breaks, to buy lunch for on the trail (wraps, sandwiches, subs, drinks) and sometimes, after a work trip, we eat there at the cafe. They take your order & call you when it's ready, you can pick your spot to eat, get drink refills, etc. Very casual, accommodates a large crowd & if you are dirty, it really doesn't matter.

Tip-Top Restaurant    (Link:  Tip-Top )

#1 Place we stop on the way back for dinner. This is within sight of the Everyday Cafe. They have seated a group of up to 10 and generally handle a large group well. The prices are decent & the food is good. At the web link, scroll down to the review & food recommendations by "William B."

Taiwan Garden Restaurant (no link)

2171 Ivy Road
Charlottesville, VA
This is the little hole-in-the wall Chinese restaurant where we occasionally eat. A very nice young couple runs the place & their young son hangs out there, doing his school work & occasionally bringing something to the table. The adults' English is limited, but they try hard to please. The food is decent, especially their vegetable dishes.


WEST of the mountain – Waynesboro:

Scotto's Italian Restaurant  (Link:  Scotto's )
#1 Choice for best (Italian) food around, in my opinion & my favorite place to go. The only issue is that if your group is larger than 6-8, getting everyone seated will probably be a problem & you might have to wait. This is a popular place and busy. It's not cheap, but the food quality/value has always been good.

Gavid's Steak House  (Link:  Gavid's Steak House )
We used to go here all the time for the buffet and have not been in a couple of years. 'Back in the day', the buffet originally was a really good value, however the price had started going up and folks felt like they had to stuff themselves to get their money's worth - lots of waddle-waddle-limp-limping back to the car going on after eating here! As a result, we gradually quit going to Gavid's .... it would be interesting to check the place out again. There is a large back room that can accommodate a crowd. The thru-hiker crowd loves this all-you-can-eat place. Trail Story From the Past Alert: ask Fran sometime about the day (which just happened to be 'Nude Hiking Day') she invited thru-hiker “Skygod” to dinner at Gavid's!  :-)

Weasies Kitchen  (Link:  Weasies Kitchen )

Truly a diner/greasy spoon sort of place. The maintainer crowd used to eat here all the time back when some of us didn't have gray hair. They had home-made pie & cobbler …. yum! The pinto beans & cornbread were a favorite & they served breakfast any time. We gradually stopped going after the original owner died …. probably worth a re-visit in the future. If you are concerned about eating only low-fat, organic, “healthy” food, this is not the place for you.

The Purple Foot  (Link:  The Purple Foot )

This place used to serve only lunch, but they now open for dinner on a seasonal basis. If you are up on the trail with a friend and want a cute place to stop in, this might do. They have a lovely patio garden if the weather is nice & they have a little gift shop, too. Due to the 'seasonal' nature of dinner, this probably isn't a good option for a hungry trail crew crowd after a hard day of work.


Chickpeas Restaurant (Link: Chickpeas Facebook Page )
This restaurant was recommended by Randy W: " It's a small and affordable Mediterranean restaurant.  I particularly recommend their chicken kabobs.  Their service gets slow with groups > 6, but it's still worth the wait." The FB page has the restaurant address and you can also see their menu.

WINTERGREEN area:

Devil's Backbone Brewing Co.  (Link: Devil's Backbone )

There is nothing like having a nice, cold micro brew while sitting on their outside deck, watching the sun go down over the mountain after a hard day of work on the trail. If the moon is on the way up, that's all the better. Not the cheapest place we go for dinner, but the food is reasonably priced for this type of place & it's good. Their beer is really, really good. We've been here a couple of times.

Wild Wolf Brewing Col.  (Link: Wild Wolf )

We have been here once and we ate inside at the bar. There is plenty of outside seating if the weather is good. The food was decent and the beer was good.



Note: always looking for a good place for the maintainers to eat so send me your suggestions! We're looking for places that can accommodate a 'crowd' that might not be too clean & has been known to get a little 'rowdy' (mostly loud laughter - we have a good time!). The more reasonably priced the food, the better.