New York & the Mid-Atlantic Trips 2 - Full PDF eBook

full of red-brick and
brownstone row
houses that leave a
softer impression
than their sometimes
staid Northeastern
counterparts.
History is ubiquitous
and sometimes
uncomfortable; this was
where patriot Patrick
Henry gave his famous
‘Give me Liberty, or give
me Death!’ speech, and
where the slave-holding
Southern Confederate
States placed their
capital.
Monument Avenue,
a tree-lined boulevard
in northeast Richmond,

holds statues of such

revered Southern heroes

as JEB Stuart, Robert E

Lee, Matthew Fontaine

Maury, Jefferson Davis,

Stonewall Jackson and,

in a nod to diversity,

African American tennis

champion Arthur Ashe.

Designed by Thomas

Jefferson, the Virginia

State Capitol (p332)

was completed in 1788.

Free tours are offered

throughout the week.

The Virginia Museum

of Fine Arts (VMFA;

%804-340-1400; http://www.vmfa.

state.va.us; 2800 Grove Ave;

h10am-5pm Sat-Wed, to 9pm

Thu & Fri) has a remarkable

collection of European

works, sacred Himalayan

art and one of the largest

Fabergé egg collections

on display outside Russia.

It also hosts excellent

temporary exhibitions

(admission free to $20).

The Drive »Take I-64

westbound for 63 miles, then

take exit 124 to follow US 250

westbound. Follow 250 for

2 miles, then turn left onto

High St to reach downtown

Charlottesville.

6 Charlottesville

Set in the shadow of the

Blue Ridge Mountains,

Charlottesville is

Start: 6 Charlottesville

Feeling hungry? Not just ‘I could use a sandwich’ hungry but ‘In the mood for

a rustic five-star gastronomic head-explosion’ hungry? Then head 60 miles

northeast towards Washington (the town, not the capital) and settle in at the Inn

at Little Washington (%540-675-3800; http://www.theinnatlittlewashington.com; cnr Middle &

Main Sts, Washington, VA; dinner prix fixe $148-165; h5:30-11pm), a sacred destination on

the epicurean trail. Founded more than 30 years ago by Patrick O’Connell and his

partner, it has been named one of the ‘10 Best Restaurants in the World’ by the

International Herald Tribune. But the inn’s pleasures come at a price so beware –

the dinner prix fixe started at $148 on a recent visit and goes higher on weekends.

It is worth every penny.

First of all the service is, unsurprisingly, impeccable, and the food hits all the

grace notes. For the first course you might try the beet fantasia or the eggs in an egg

(once prepared for the Queen of England on her visit to American shores). Next, you

could try the pecan-crusted soft-shell crab tempura with Italian mustard fruit. The

‘pepper crusted tuna pretending to be a filet mignon capped with seared duck fois

gras on charred onions with a burgundy butter sauce’ is a good example of what’s

happening in the kitchen; namely, taking the finest ingredients and turning them

into a global medley, a sort of international gastronomic carnival.

So, yeah, any questions? Go. Toss your credit score to the wind and just go. To

really make the evening count, reserve one of the achingly perfect rooms at the

adjacent inn from which the restaurant gets its name.

THE INN AT LITTLE WASHINGTON

DETOUR:

VIRGINIA.TRIPS.

26

.PENINSULA TO THE PIEDMONT