Tarrant's Cafe: New Addition to My Top 5 Fav RVA Restaurants

A hidden gem on Broad Street in an area not usually associated with desirable destinations – who know?!  Located at W. Broad Street (that’s right….1) near the corner of Broad and Foushee St., Tarrant’s Café blends in so much with its neighbors that people may not notice it when they drive by (if it weren’t for the valet parking sign out front).  Apparently the building used to be used as a pharmacy, which would explain the “Prescriptions” sign hanging about the bar.  But now the interior is beautiful decorated with chandeliers and old-timey paintings/posters/”artifacts”.  I loved the décor almost as much as I loved their menu.  It’s all over the place and has something for everyone, from salads to pizzas to tacos.  The wine menu isn’t as extensive, but it’s definitely decent.  And we happened to be there on Monday which is half off glasses of wine night (I realize as I keep writing these blogs that I should venture out of comfort zone and try different wines, but this night I chose to stand by my usual Pinot Grigio and it was DELISH haha).

To start out with, I took my friend’s advice and ordered the She Crab Soup.  In the past I’d had versions of this soup that were runny and thin and…bleh.  This was almost like a chowder!  It ridiculous…ly delicious J And filling.  If you order this as an appetizer, trust me, you do not need a heavy dinner (go ahead and order something light and save some money, since a cup of this soup is $7 alone).  

 

So predicting/hoping that the soup would be filling, I preemptively decided to order a nightly special appetizer for my entrée instead of a big dish:  a risotto with shiitake mushrooms, sausage, and asparagus in a creamy garlic sauce.  How funny that I thought that it wouldn’t be filling!

This was a special outing to celebrate a friend’s diagnosis of good health, and not exactly something I’d budgeted for, so I had to pass on dessert sadly.  But I managed to get an appetizer, “entrée”, and 2 glasses of wine for about $24.  So that’s pretty damn good!  Obviously the real entrees were a bit pricier, but this is just proof that Tarrant’s is a restaurant would delicious food that makes for an enjoyable evening without breaking the bank.  I’ll definitely be going back…. At least 10 times in order to try everything I saw on the menu that looked good J Or maybe just 1 time when I’m reeaally really hungry lol

 Oh and PS- the garlic bread that came out before the meal was so delicious it was addictive, and presumably another part of the reason I was sooooo full by the end of the meal! lol