The 219, on the corner of Granby Street and Tazwell, has been off my list of places to go lately. The past 3-4 times we had lunch there the servers snobby, it took too long to get your meal, and the food was boring. If I am going to spend close to $20 for lunch, I want some bang for my buck. However, one of the landmarks of a good friendship is compromise. Alex wanted to give them another try. She had recently been surprised by a great dinner there, so I folded. In my opinion, 219 did a 180! Service was prompt and appropriately friendly, our salads came in 10-15 minutes and the food was great. Is someone new in the kitchen? They are definitely paying more attention to preparation. There is attention to visual presentation that was lacking previously, and improved content. No more lettuce salads! I had the Pecan Encrusted Goat Cheese with Pears. It was chock full of the ingredients listed on the menu, nicely seasoned and flavorful. (Okay, the pears were too hard to eat, but it didn't ruin the salad.) Lunch entrees run $8-11, salads will cost $3.50-$.50 extra if you add a meat or seafood topping. The place was nearly empty on a Friday at lunchtime, which led us to believe that maybe we weren't the only downtowners to have written it off. Another interesting tidbit...the property and the restaurant are for sale. This may be another reason for the renewed emphasis on service and meal prep.
_Laine
The 219 is known for its eclectic atmosphere and great food. I have had some good meals over the years there, but as Laine said, we wrote them off after our last few salads were basically lettuce and the service was subpar. On a whim, I ate dinner there last Wednesday with a good friend of mine. Johnny* was in from out of town and had been to The 219 for lunch but not for dinner. We both ordered the crab cake, for which The 219 is famous. The Virginian-Pilot publishes a 'top 10' for one particular food item a few times a year and The 219 was near the top of the top 10 best crab cakes in the Tidewater area. Our meals were superb. The crab was jump lump, no filler and grilled to perfection. Johnny went with the standard julienned vegetables and roasted potatoes. I substituted bok choy for the potatoes (I am Sally from 'When Harry Met Sally' for those who have read our previous blogs) and also had the julienned vegetables (squash, zucchini, carrots). We finished with the Blueberry and Peach Cobbler served with Vanilla Bean ice cream. That was wonderful. Service was also good. Prices during dinner are slightly higher, a few 'market price' entrees, like the crab cake. I did not pay so I'm not sure of the total (thanks Johnny), but I would estimate the crab cakes were around the $25 mark from my past dining experiences there. A smaller version of the crab cake is always available during lunch as well.
On 'the review' visit with Laine, I had the Seasonal Grilled Vegetable Salad and it was remarkably good. Loaded with vegetables which were cooked perfectly. Their vinaigrette dressing is made with a unique olive oil which mixes well with this salad. As Laine mentioned, when you are paying $20 for lunch, the meal should be noteworthy, and in a positive way. The 219 has made it back onto 'the good list'. If it is sold, I hope the new owners maintain this renewed quality.
~Alex
*Names are changed to respect the privacy of our guests.
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