Bella Monte, Virginia Beach, Virginia

Bella Monte, located on Laskin Road in Virginia Beach is a restaurant I certainly should have visited in the past and consider myself fortunate to have gone recently with a good friend. We snagged one of the last reservations on a Saturday evening, so I do suggest making one.

We walked in to an energetic restaurant filled to capacity and I was instantly excited. The restaurant's slightly busier decor makes you feel at home but not claustrophobic because it was designed with good taste. Tables are closer together and I do like this style. You can focus on your own party's conversation but appreciate the good chatter of your neighbors. Who does not enjoy some interesting information gathered unintentionally! In all seriousness, it is nice to see others laughing and having fun over a good meal.

It took more than a few minutes for the server to bring our drinks, but after that initial delay, she was very attentive. We started our meal with the focaccia appetizer. There is no better way to start a meal than with hearty bread dipped in a good olive oil and balsamic vinegar. For my entree, I was torn between the gnocchi and the tortellini and the latter won due to its accompanying sun-dried tomato pesto cream sauce. If you like rich cream sauce, which I certainly do, this entree is for you.  Nice additions, the sun-dried tomatoes and artichokes made it much more than your average cream sauce. My partner in crime ordered the penne alla vodka, minus the pancetta. She and I are both vegetarians and the server has no qualms in meeting her request.

Cheese tortellini, artichokes, fresh basil, sundried tomato pesto cream sauce

Penne alla Vodka

Our entrees arrived just as we finished our focaccia and we were both thrilled with our choices. The quantity was adequate and we polished off every last bite. I look forward to trying to gnocchi next time but it will be really difficult not to order the tortellini again. The trials and tribulations of eating at a nice restaurant. Last but certainly not least, dessert menus arrived. Apparently, our server is also a bread pudding fanatic, as I am, and when I said we were torn between a few of the choices, she revealed her loyalty to my favorite dessert and her love for Bella Monte's take on this popular dessert. That was an easy decision and we threw in the white chocolate cherry cheesecake for good measure. The bread pudding is made with Panettone and a rum sauce. As our server said, it was delicious but piping hot so watch your first couple bites. The cheesecake was rich and creamy and the cherries that sat atop the dish were perfect with the white chocolate. We managed to also finish these before finally resigning ourselves to asking for the check, but neither of us really wanted to leave.

Panettone Bread Pudding w/Rum Sauce

White Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake

I also ordered a take-out while we dined for a hungry boyfriend at home and he was thrilled with the chicken Parmesan. The only small blemish of the night was the side of meatballs I had ordered for him to go with the entree. I asked for a side of the Italian sausage and a side of the large meatballs in the prepared food case I spied in the back of the restaurant. I was explicit in describing them, even quoting the price. When I got home, there were much, much smaller meatballs in the box, so there was some mix-up between my order and the take-out box. Immediately upon discovering this mishap, I phoned the restaurant and the staff said to come by the following week and pick up the 'real' meatballs. We do not live close and while one of us will try to make it by the restaurant to obtain the bigger and better meatballs, I had hoped for some easier remedy. Something is better than nothing though, and as we know there are restaurants out there that would have simply done that...nothing.

There is a cute market attached to the restaurant. They have wonderful provisions for the cook, food lover or anyone who appreciates a nice gift for their home. I will definitely use them in the future for host/hostess gifts and will be able to find something unique, a little change from the typical bottle of wine. Bella Monte is also open for lunch, another meal there in my future.
Food-
Service-4
Beverage-4
Restrooms-5
Value-4
Ambiance-5


Bella Monte Gourmet Market and Italian Marketplace
http://www.bellamontevb.com/
1201 Laskin Rd #100 Virginia Beach, VA 23451
(757) 425-6290

Rockafellers - Virginia Beach, VA

Back in the day, I used to frequent Rockafeller’s quite often. The bar and deck could get packed with summertime revelers, and their food was always good. One of my favorite hangover “cures” was their Eggs Benedict with Lump Crab meat, with a corresponding Bloody Mary … or two. My hangover days are a thing of the past, and I rarely find myself down at the oceanfront looking for a place to have lunch. However, free tickets to the Home and Garden show at the Virginia Beach Pavilion had me thinking about switching things up and dining at the beach.
I called up my buddy Alex and asked her for some oceanfront suggestions. The one that hit me most was Eurasia, which unfortunately for me, is not open on Sunday’s. I had been thinking about Rockafeller’s but had no idea if it still had its luster.

The parking lot was full, but valet was a thing of the past. That’s okay; we know how to park our car. We were seated promptly at a comfortable 4 top by the window. Since it was rainy this gave me a place to stash purse, hats, jackets, etc. The weather was pretty dreary, but I will always love a water view. It’s peaceful to watch the activity on the water and the rocking of boats in their slips. Rockafeller’s still has a nice brunch menu, which leans heavily toward seafood dishes. In addition, I was pleased to see a nice selection of both lunch and brunch specials on the chalk board. We are early risers and had already had our breakfast hours ago, so lunch was more on our minds. Our server was prompt, and pleasant. We started out with Bloody Mary’s (of course) and raw oysters. The Bloody Mary’s hit the spot. They have a slight kick, lots of pepper, and a dash of seafood flavor (my guess is clam juice). A Stoli’s Bloody Mary is $5.50. Folks, that is a bargain anywhere! The oysters were not the best I have ever had because I wanted them to be bigger. However, they tasted wonderful, and were nicely cleaned and presented. Oysters and Bloody Marys go together like Johnny and June. Honestly, I would have been very happy to sit there eating oysters and drinking Bloody Marys for a good part of the afternoon.




For the main course, I selected the Grilled Tuna Caesar Salad and my husband order a special, Fish and Chips. The orders came out rather quickly. My tuna was cooked to perfection. I ordered it medium rare, and was served something closer to rare, which was actually better! It was a good grade of fish, and really melted in my mouth. The salad was pretty basic, and a bit heavy on the dressing, but paired nicely with the fish. The Fish and Chips looked awesome, and my husband commented that the accompanying salsa was really good.

We were in and out of the restaurant in about an hour and 15 minutes. We never felt rushed, and at the same time we never had to wait for a refill or our check or anything. The server did an excellent job. I really enjoyed myself and would not hesitate to return to Rockafeller’s in the future. It’s nice to know that there are still some oldies out there with some game!


Rockafeller’s
308 Mediterranean Ave, Rudee Inlet
Virginia Beach,
757-422-5654
http://www.rockafellers.com/

Monday - Saturday
Lunch: 11am-3pm
Dinner menu is available
during lunch hours
Dinner: 3pm-10pm
Early Birds: 3pm-5:30pm
Sunday
Brunch 10am-2pm
Dinner 2pm-10pm