Helping You Eat Healthier Restaurant/Farm Review #15

Helping You Eat Healthier

                         Review #15

Welcome to our fifteenth review of restaurants and farm markets in our healthy eating series. This restaurant focuses on using local ingredients and putting a modern twist on the classics. Here you can find fun and creative cuisine in a quaint atmosphere. 

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Eurasia Café & Wine Bar

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Eurasia is a New American cuisine with heavy influences from Asia, Europe and southern cooking. Eurasia's cooking is mostly distinguished by a fresh, flavorful style using local and organic products. Their food is consistently delicious with an outstanding menu that changes seasonally. The seasonal menu features the freshest fruits and vegetables from local independent farmers. The menu changes seasonally, but they do keep some house favorites all year round. The menu ranges from upscale sandwiches to creative small bites and entrees. Some specialties include Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio, Sautéed Shrimp and Gouda Grits, Pan Seared Ahi Tuna, Lobster Mac and Cheese, Vegetable Spring Rolls, Fried Eastern Shore Oysters, Oysters Eurasia and more.  

Eurasia prides itself in using fresh seasonal ingredients. Every night Monday through Friday they have a list of specials and also a Happy Hour on appetizers and drinks. They offer a "New World" inspired wine list as well as an excellent selection of microbrews. Also, because Eurasia has a wine shop attached you can pick out a bottle of wine at the shop and bring it to dinner for a corkage fee. Eurasia's atmosphere is lively yet intimate with a mix of bar seating, high bar tops, more formal low tops, and even outdoor seating when the weather is accommodating. Be sure to check out Eurasia Café & Wine Bar for a creative cuisine that is seasonal, local and fresh in a quaint atmosphere. Eurasia is located at 960 Laskin Road in Virginia Beach; they are open Monday through Thursday from 11:00am-9:30pm, Friday and Saturday from 11:00am-10:00pm and Sunday from 11:00am-9:00pm. 

For more information about Eurasia Café & Wine Bar give them a call at 757-422-0184 or visit their website at http://www.eurasiavb.com/home.

Helping You Eat Healthier Restaurant/Farm Review #14

Helping You Eat Healthier

                         Review #14

Welcome to our fourteenth review of restaurants and farm markets in our healthy eating series. This farm is known for its freshly picked, high quality produce. Whether you visit them at their stand or at a farmers market, you will not be disappointed. 

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Cromwell's Produce

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Cromwell's produce is picked fresh daily and brought directly to their stand. They offer a seasonal bounty of fruits, vegetables, honey, herbs, flowers and more. Their season begins with strawberries, beets, sugar snaps and may peas; but the real specialty is in late June with sweet corn (the corn is said to be "the best in town"), and moving into July with tomatoes and fresh shelled butterbeans. They also offer a variety of additional produce such as squash, cucumbers, snap beans, melons, greens, lettuce, melons, sweet potatoes, Christmas trees and wreaths. They also bring in special items such as delicious peaches from South Carolina twice weekly.

Cromwell's produce is largely sold at the stand and through farmers markets. Cromwell's stand is located in the Sandbridge area of Virginia Beach on their farm. They are minutes away from Back Bay Wildlife Refuge and public beaches. You can even pick your own strawberries while you are there. Their farm stand is open daily  April-December everyday from 9:00am-6:00pm. You can also find their produce on Saturdays from 8:00am-12:00pm at Old Beach Farmers Market in the Summer. 

Helping You Eat Healthier Restaurant/Farm Review #13

Helping You Eat Healthier

                         Review #13

Welcome to our thirteenth review of restaurants and farm markets in our healthy eating series. This restaurant serves nourishing and wholesome dishes using local products and healthy, clean cooking. I was fortunate enough to talk to Ruzie; she is in charge of the marketing at Pasha Mezze. She was able to tell me a bunch of great things about this restaurant to share with you.

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Pasha Mezze

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Pasha Mezze is a Turkish restaurant with an American influence, their menu is full of Old World recipes made with healthy, clean cooking. Their mission has always been and still is to eventually serve 100% organic in the near future. Since certified organic food is hard to find, they try to get as much organic food as they can. They want their dishes to be nourishing and wholesome, so cooking is done the old fashioned way. Their produce is from local farms, everything is made from scratch, no preservatives, no food additives, no canned food and no trans-fat used.  

Pasha Mezze's menu shows that healthy can be tasty. Some items that you would find on their menu are soups, salads, wraps, sandwiches, hummus, sampler platters, and entrees. They also offer brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 10:00am-3:00pm, which will include eggs and omelets, brunch signatures, plus the lunch menu. Pasha Mezze offers a lot of vegan, vegetarian and gluten free choices. The menu will tell you what is gluten free, although if you see something on the menu that you want and it is not gluten free, you have the option to make it gluten free, just let them know and they will take care of you. They have a few award winning dishes such as their hummus, red lentil soup, red lentil cake and baklava. They try to add some items to their menu about every six months; they also have specials sometimes such as Farmer's Market specials, and holiday specials such as Valentine's Day and Mothers Day.

If you are looking for a health conscious restaurant go to Pasha Mezze; they are located at 350 W 22nd Street in Norfolk and open Monday through Friday from 11:00am-9:30pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10:00am-9:30pm. They also sell retail; you can buy some of their products at Whole Foods, Organic Food Depot and The Heritage Food Store. They also have a PIP (Pasha's Important People) membership card. This card is free, all you have to do is fill out a simple form and then you can start earning points each time you shop. Once you spend $100 with them, they give you $15 back, and you will also be receiving e-mails in which they send coupons, discounts or other updated information about the restaurant and events. Also, you can follow their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/PashaMezzeNorfolk to catch up with specials, live music, etc. 

For more information about Pasha Mezze give them a call at 757-627-1318 or visit their website at http://www.pashamezze.com/

Helping You Eat Healthier Restaurant/Farm Review #12

Helping You Eat Healthier

                         Review #12

Welcome to our twelfth review of restaurants and farm markets in our healthy eating series. This is a farmers market where you will find many great local vendors. Laura, one of the owners of Croc's 19th Street Bistro that I talked to last week is also the founder of Old Beach Farmers Market. Along with telling me great things about her restaurant, she has also told me all of the great things about Old Beach Farmers Market!

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Old Beach Farmers Market

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On Saturday's, from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend, Croc's 19th Street Bistro offers up its parking lot to Old Beach Farmers Market. This is a place for local farmers, fishermen and artisans to sell their goods. They feature seasonal fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, eggs, seafood, cheeses, a wide assortment of baked goods, artisanal breads and savory foods from local chefs, soaps and flowers. Old Beach Farmers Market has been a certified Virginia Green Event since 2008, the first certified farmers market in the commonwealth's new voluntary Virginia Green Program that promotes eco-friendly practices in all aspects of Virginia's tourism. The market has grown from just a handful of farmers to between two and three dozen vendors, including a vibrant array of vegetable farmers, local ranchers and fisheries, all from within 50 miles. It is a "producer-only" market in the European tradition, meaning that the vendors grow - or make or harvest - all of the produce or products that they sell from their stalls. 

Here you will find a lot of places that we have reviewed in our nutrition blog such as Full Quiver Farm, Mattawoman Creek Farm (Old Beach Farmers Market is a pick up location for their CSA), New Earth Farm, Cromwell's Produce and Fruitive. Some vendors only come to Old Beach Farmers Market once a month, but you can subscribe to Old Beach Farmer's Market's newsletter to learn who's coming each week. Also, many of the vendors encourage customers to order ahead to avoid the disappointment of having a product sell out early. If you want your vegetables, seafood, meats, poultry, eggs and dairy products to be at their freshest, and, if you want to support local farmers, watermen and wineries, you must certainly give Old Beach Farmers Market a try!

For more information check out their website at  http://www.oldbeachfarmersmarket.com/

Helping You Eat Healthier Restaurant/Farm Review #11

Helping You Eat Healthier

                         Review #11

Welcome to our eleventh review of restaurants and farm markets in our healthy eating series. This restaurant was recognized in 2005 by the National Restaurant Association in "going above and beyond in giving back to its community" with the Good Neighbor Award for Virginia. Here you will find delicious food made with all local ingredients. I was fortunate enough to meet and talk to co-owner Laura, and she was able to tell me all the great things that this restaurant has to offer!

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Croc's 19th Street Bistro

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Croc's is an eco-friendly Mediterranean and Middle eastern bistro that has been locally owned and operated since 1993. Croc's was the first Virginia Green Restaurant in 2007 with amenities including solar hot water system, rain barrel and garden, on-premise chef garden, locally made craft beer, wine and spirits, an interface flooring system made from 45% recycled carpet and an S.O.L. purchasing policy of Sustainable, Organic or Local. They are recognized as a full service AAA Three Diamond Restaurant with an award winning wine list, and partnerships with Virginia Aquarium Sensible Seafood, Buy Fresh Buy Local, and S.O.S. Lynnhaven now (Saving Oyster Shells). Croc's references itself as the original Eco-bistro to reflect an environmental awareness coupled with an appreciation of good food and good times.

Croc's strives to feature produce from nearby farms such as Mattawoman Creek Farms, Cromwell Farms, Dave & Dee's Mushrooms and sustainable seafood fresh from local waters. The seafood is approved from the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch List and Sensible Seafood programs. Their menu items are infused with Caribbean, Middle Eastern and American inspired flair using the very best garden-fresh ingredients, many of which are taken right from their own on-premise garden. Some of the things on their menu include appetizers, salads, sandwiches, entrees and side dishes. Some suggested favorite items on the menu are: the mezze sampler which is an authentic healthy Lebanese appetizer sampler made with Kal's (one of the owners) family recipes, the five pepper tuna steak, crabcakes, and the vibe veggie wrap. But don't let that stop you from getting other delicious items on the menu; there are usually chef specials everyday and many gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan options as well. Also, if you are in the mood for a cocktail, on the third Thursday of every month they have an environmentally friendly happy hour called "Green Drinks", which includes cocktails made with herbs grown right from Croc's cocktail garden. 

On Saturdays in the summer and some in late fall check out Old Beach Farmers Market, a fresh outdoor marketplace in Croc's 19th Street Bistro's parking lot. While the market is open to the public, Croc's purchases a large supply of produce, meats, fish and other products from these farmers in addition to their own garden. So come check out Croc's for a delicious fresh Mediterranean/American meal in a vibrant dining room setting!

For more information about Croc's 19th Street Bistro give them a call at 757-428-5444 or visit their website at http://www.crocs19thstreetbistro.com/