Pirate’s Cove Mini Golf

Have you ever been to Pirate’s Cove Mini Golf on Bypass and Mooretown (by K-Mart)? It’s one of my favorite mini golf courses I’ve ever played on. I’m totally into the pirate theme, and every hole has a sign with an interesting fact about some pirate. There are two different courses here, “Captain’s Course” or “Blackbeard’s Challenge”and if you’re really feisty, you can play them both for a discounted price. This place is almost always hoppin’, but for good reason – it’s well worth a visit!  Pirate’s Cove is also right next to Dairy Queen, so you can walk over after your game and have a hot fudge sundae or a Blizzard! I suggest this for a casual date, or a night out with the family. I mean, pirates, mini-golf, and DQ? You can’t go wrong with that combo!

Local restaurant review blog

I’ve found that Shelley Rauch’s blog on DailyPress.com is usually pretty dead-on when it comes to restaurant reviews. She has reviewed quite a few Williamsburg eateries, as well as others on the peninsula. If you’re looking for a good place to eat, check out her blog for advice on where to go and where to avoid!

Vegan Restaurant coming to Williamsburg!

I was really excited when I read about the vegan restaurant looking to come to Williamsburg.

The following is copied+pasted from the Daily Press:

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Restaurateur puts vegan cafe on JCC’s plate
The market and cafe will also offer classes on vegetarian and vegan cooking.

By SETH FREEDLAND | 247-7840
May 15, 2008

JAMES CITY – Care for a lunch of wheat gluten with organic fruit juice?

This meal — and many others like it — will be the food of choice offered by a proposed cafe for James City County. The restaurant and an attached market will offer vegetarian, vegan and “raw” food to locals and tourists looking for something different.

Green Earth Market and Cafe is the idea of Sydney Duvall, who moved to Virginia from Ohio and was disappointed to find the Historic Triangle without an eatery that provides the “dietary flair” she enjoys, Duvall said. After graduating from a vegetarian/vegan culinary school in New York City last fall, she plans to bring her veggie love to the area later this year.

A quick, basic primer: Vegetarians are those who don’t eat meat; vegans don’t eat animal products, including eggs and milk; and “raw foodists” primarily dine on uncooked, unprocessed and usually organic food. Green Earth will offer all three.

For one example of a likely entree, seitan — also known as wheat gluten or gluten meat — is made by washing out the starch from wheat flour, leaving behind a meatless, fatless protein substitute with the flavor and consistency of meat.

“I am going out on a limb here in Williamsburg, to see if people are ready for it,” Duvall said. “That’s the chance you take. I’m just tired of fillers and preservatives in our food. Once you start eating fresher and lighter, it’s kind of addictive.”

Duvall would not discuss the ongoing negotiations over her targeted property, but her correspondence with James City County planners lists her location as the junction of Ironbound and Jamestown roads. County planners have told Duvall that her plans will require special use permits and public hearings.

Green Earth will also offer cooking classes to help people understand that vegetarian cooking doesn’t have to be flavorless, Duvall said. She plans to be the restaurant’s raw food chef, and will hire another chef for the lion’s share of the cooking.

The cafe will seat 60 inside and 20 outside, according to the county paperwork. The market will offer foods such as wheatgrass and organic juices, but probably not perishables, Duvall said.

Duvall, who has a daughter at the College of William and Mary, said she hopes to be up and running within six to eight months.

“I think this will be targeted more toward locals … but a lot of people who travel don’t have a lot of choices,” Duvall said. “There just aren’t a lot of healthy cooked meals available. All meat and potatoes — that’s the old mind-set.”

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Tell me that doesn’t sound awesome! With the whole “green” trend going around, I think this area could be a prime market for it. I, for one, am totally excited to check it out when it opens.

News from Prime Outlets

Shopaholics, rejoice! Williamsburg is getting MORE shopping!

The new Ewell Station addition of Prime Outlets is scheduled to open the week of April 18th. Williamsburg shopaholics will be happy to find new stores such as ALDO Shoes, American Eagle Outfitters, Burberry, Charlotte Russe, Disney Outlet, Icon Sunglasses, Juicy Couture, Kate Spade, Kenneth Cole, Lucky Brand Jeans, True Religion, Papaya, PUMA, Sketchers, and Tommy Bahama.

What strikes me as odd are the additions of Bath & Body Works, Journeys, and Pac Sun – they already have storefronts in New Town. I’m curious to see if these new stores will be in addition to those already existing, or if they are anxious to get away from what I assume are high rents in New Town. Only time will tell!

The new food options for Prime Outlet shoppers include China Max, Frankie’s Deli, and Sbarro’s. I am curious to see how these restaurants fare in competition with the existing restaurants. Sbarro’s is joining the smattering of Italian restaurants in the area, including Giuseppe’s Italian Cafe and Victor’s Pizza and Deli across the street, and China Max will have to compete with Grand Shanghai and Hayashi restaurants. I’ve never been to a Frankie’s Deli, but there’s already a Subway in Ewell Station. See more restaurants around Ewell Station at Yahoo! Maps.

Thankfully, there will be three new public restroom areas and LOTS of new parking, so that sounds like wonderful news on it’s own!

In other Prime Outlets news: On March 2nd, the Coach outlet reported a break-in, with a broken window and $1600 in merchandise missing. Brooks Brothers is renovating and should reopen 3/17, and Columbia Sportswear Outlet is coming in where Mikasa used to be on 3/28.

This post couldn’t be completely about shopping and consumerism, so for your educational knowledge, read about the man who Ewell Station is named for, Benjamin S. Ewell.

Sources: Daily Press 1, Daily Press 2.

New “local” celebrity!

Have you ever watched the TV show called Top Chef? It’s a neat reality show competition for chefs and recently completed it’s third season.

So you ‘Burgers (like me) that keep hunting for a reason to travel all the way down to Virginia Beach (can we say “tunnel traffic?”), here it is! Otto Borsich, a competitor in the second season of Top Chef, was hired at Mahi Mah’s!

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Source: The Daily Press