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photo courtesy of the buttery Grilled flank steak with roasted tomato choka sauce and an Israeli couscous salad.

Starters MILLWOOD MELTS FOR THE BUTTERY

A local favorite shines with expanding offerings. By Ashley Hunter

Clarke County locals have long loved The Locke Store—a modern country store in Millwood offering fresh, made-to-go food along with wine, beer, and local goods—but the opening of the store’s restaurant, The Buttery, has brought even more foodie fanfare. “Millwood was in need of a sit-down restaurant where people could get really delicious, locally sourced food without having to travel out of town,” says Ruth Emma, who owns The Locke Store and The Buttery restaurant with her husband Max. The Buttery’s three-course menu rotates every three weeks. “Executive chef Ellie McMillen and Buttery chef Adam Steudler prepare a seasonally inspired menu, with a primary focus on locally sourced ingredients,” says Emma. “Each menu is carefully paired with wine, beer, and cocktails by our beverage director, Jason Bise, and head bartender Marshal Middleton.” Past menus have included braised beef short rib with barley arancini, beet slaw, and chard, with cocktails like the Stableyard Smash with bourbon, honey-thyme simple syrup, lemon, and acorn bitters. The Buttery team will host a Burgundy Wine Dinner on Nov. 13 and introduce a new menu on the 18th. Diners can also look forward to Sunday Suppers on Nov. 28 and Dec. 19, along with an upcoming expansion of The Locke Store. TheButteryVa.com

DOCK-TO-DISH

Farmasea is making delicious waves in Gloucester.

Casa de Avila’s quesabirria tacos. Below: Al pastor taco plate.

TACO TOUCHDOWN

This Herndon taqueria is FedEx Field’s newest vendor.

WHETHER YOU’VE GOT TICKETS on the 50-yard line, are tailgating, or watching from home, no gameday is complete without one crucial element: food. This season at D.C.’s FedEx Field, home of the Washington Football Team, fans can satisfy thirdquarter cravings with local fare. Herndon’s Casa de Avila Tacos is one of the stadium’s newest vendors as winners of the Washington Football Team’s Flavors of the DMV Showcase.

Owner Abraham Avila, who opened the taqueria with his wife Stephanie, as well as his mother and sister, beat out entrants from D.C., Maryland, and Virginia (aka, “the DMV”) after one of their customers suggested they enter the contest. The family business brings traditional recipes from Guadalajara, Mexico, to Virginia. At FedEx Field, fans can enjoy quesabirria tacos, which feature beef and shredded mozzarella, for an American twist, in tortillas painted with oil from the meat. “The trend of quesabirria is only getting stronger,” says Avila. The menu also offers carnitas tacos and a rotating option of al pastor with pineapple, chicken, or carne asada.

Avila describes the opportunity of serving as a vendor at FedEx Field as a “huge responsibility,” and hopes to “elevate the game when it comes to concession food.” Facebook: @casadeavilatacos

—By Ashley Hunter Oysters Rockefeller

THE BUZZ IN GLOUCESTER is all about Farmasea, the new restaurant nestled in the old Morgan’s Drug Store (pharmacy—get it?). “We wanted to capture old-timey Gloucester with a nod to Morgan’s,” says William Mitchell, Farmasea’s owner and executive chef, whose neo-Southern, farm-to-table-inspired dishes are earning raves.

Mitchell’s kitchen cred includes stints in New York and Charleston, and his Farmasea menu features favorites like chicken and waffles and shrimp and grits. Mitchell’s own riff on Oysters Rockefeller includes off-the-boat Mobjack Bay oysters with Virginia Ham, sautéd kale, and his famous pimento cheese. And his sea scallops are unexpectedly and deliciously paired with an English pea vichyssoise.

The trifecta of super-fresh ingredients, inventive presentations, and a thoughtfully curated menu is sure to guarantee Farmasea’s continued success. Stop in for dinner Thursday through Saturday or Sunday brunch. @farmasearestaurant —By Madeline Mayhood

THE BRUNCH MARKET Tasty event supports local makers.

BROWSE AND BRUNCH at Richmond’s most flavorful shopping experience: The Brunch Market. Founded in 2017 by Brittanny DeRaffele, the jeweler behind the Sun & Selene brand, this curated pop-up market allows visitors to shop local makers while sipping mimosas and enjoying delicious brunch fare. Now, after a 2020 hiatus, The Brunch Market is back with an upcoming date on Dec. 12.

This year, market goers can enjoy French omelettes, toasts, and bowls in Pinky’s airy Scott’s Addition dining room and patio space while browsing popular vendors such as Lineage

Goods, Let’s Talk Towels, and Morris and Norris, along with newcomers Giant Lion, and L&M Company. “Being able to gather again and support small businesses that are still hustling to make a living is why we started this event in the first place,” says DeRaffele. “Our network of vendors and makers have really rallied together to stay in business, and we’re excited that we have the opportunity this year to celebrate that.”

Get into the Christmas spirit while sipping and shopping. “Our December market is always a fun one with the holiday vibes and gift shopping,” says

DeRaffele. TheBrunchMarket.com —By A.H.

The first Brunch Market at Pinky’s in September.

HAPPY FARMERS — HEALTHY CHICKENS

Farmer Focus brings better birds to your table.

DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR CHICKEN crossed the road? Unless you’re buying from a local farmer or specialty market, it’s hard to know where your chicken comes from.

Farmer Focus is changing that. Founded in 2012 with 300 birds by Shenandoah Valley farmer Corwin Heatwole, the business partners with more than 60 like-minded independent farmers in a win-win model: Consumers get fresh 100% USDA organic chicken, while participating farmers find a ready market for their wholesome birds. The founders of Farmer Focus handle the business of chicken processing, sales, and distribution, allowing participating farmers to devote their full attention to raising happy, healthy birds.

You may have seen the brand in stores: Each package of Farmer Focus chicken includes a fourletter farm ID, tracing the chicken you’re buying to the humane-certified farm where it was raised. To ensure a consistent product, all processing is centralized.

You can find Farmer Focus boneless breasts, thighs, tenders, whole chickens, and more at Publix, Harris Teeter, Kroger, and Lidl supermarkets. Their butterflied and seasoned spatchcocked chicken is perfect for throwing on the grill, while their flavorful chicken livers are ideal in silky homemade pâté.

Jason Daugherty of Pleasant Hill Poultry partnered with Farmer Focus four years ago. After raising chickens conventionally for years, he adopted their methods and mission of Happy, Healthy, and Humane farming and says the partnership has been life-changing— for him and his birds. “We continue to strive to be better caretakers for our birds and take great joy and pride in what we do. Healthy chickens are happy chickens. Happy chickens are Farmer Focus Chickens.” FarmerFocus.com

—By John Haddad

Winter spice bread with maple glaze. Right: Sourdough French boule. Chickens enjoy ample space and organic feed on Farmer Focus partner Deer Creek Farm in Bridgewater. Right: CEO Corwin Heatwole and his daughter Sierra.

THE SWEETEST THING

A Richmond microbakery offers irresistible indulgences.

ON MARKET DAYS, fans of Jenna Foti’s scones, cookies, cakes, and morning buns know to get there early before her supply runs out. Foti launched Richmond’s Saltncinnamon bakery in 2020, offering small batch baked goods made with high quality ingredients. “Our products are truly local and made with lots of love,” she says.

Most popular are Foti’s slow-fermented sourdough and fluffy English muffins. “I have been told they are both ‘magical!’” she says. (She’s not exaggerating—we’ve tasted them.) “We have wonderful customers who pre-order every week or come to the market just to purchase these items.” For the holidays, Saltncinnamon’s seasonal specialties include pumpkin and cinnamon pecan scones, autumn tea biscuits, autumn spice cake with maple glaze, cardamom and pistachio morning buns, and an invention she calls, Panescones, “a play on the traditional Panettone holiday sweet bread,” says Foti.

Want to give the gift of sweets this Christmas? You can find Saltncinnamon’s goods at Grit Coffee on Libbie Avenue as well as St. Stephen’s Farmers’ Market (Saturdays) and Birdhouse Farmers’ Market (Tuesdays). Saltncinnamon.com —By Ashley Hunter