(Isle of Capri servers and Caesar Salad makers Justin Zobel, Nancy Binetti and Az Tomouro with restaurant GM Dave Cox)
by Joel Rubin
If you are a “server” at Isle of Capri Restaurant on the 6th floor of the Holiday Inn Express (39th and the oceanfront), you do much more than take food and drink orders and ensure water glasses stay full. “We all prepare our signature table side Caesar Salads,” says Justin Zobel, on his second stint here.
And at Isle of Capri, started in 1952 on Laskin Road and at the oceanfront location since the early 90’s, it is a sacred trust. “Between just the three of us, we have probably made more than 20,000 over the past decade,” says Nancy Binetti, figuring she alone fashions a hundred a month. “It’s very popular.”
Az Tamouro, who hails from Morocco, was our chef this night, working from one of four well-equipped mobile carts. Before tossing in the thoroughly washed and linen dried romaine, says Az, “we start with garlic that we press each day, then mix it with anchovies, stone ground and Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, three freshly grated cheeses, olive oil and our special ingredient.” That would be an egg yolk to “emulsify” or bond the ingredients. Add in the croutons, baked in the back using Isle of Capri’s own tasty bread, and you have a salad for the ages. And who’s in the kitchen? “Pasquale Arcese is our head chef,” says Dave Cox, longtime GM. “He’s the son of Pascal the founder, so you know we are staying true to the people who made Isle of Capri a culinary destination in Virginia Beach.”
And from whence do Caesar Salads hail? Credit an Italian chef, Caesar Cardini, but he didn’t devise it in Italy. From Wikipedia: “His daughter, Rosa, recounted that her father invented the salad at his Tijuana restaurant when a 4th of July rush in 1924 depleted the kitchen’s supplies. Cardini made do with what he had, adding the dramatic flair of table-side tossing by the chef. “
If you come to Isle of Capri (www.isleofcaprivb.com), make a reservation and dress appropriately. Even though you can see the sand from your seat, “not accepted are beach wear, tank tops, logoed T-shirts, hats, hooded sweatshirts, cut off shorts or swim trunks.” This is a nice place, with superior veal, pasta, seafood and other entrees plus an extensive wine list and of course the entertainment, a waitstaff crafted Caesar in the tradition of the creator, a taste of Mexico on Atlantic Ave.
Stacy Baker Landed at The Coffee Shoppe and is Loving It
When Charles Greenhood, the legendary owner of Brutti’s restaurant on Court Street in downtown Portsmouth, died in 2022, it left a gaping hole in the heart of Stacy Baker, who was his chef, manager and all-around right-hand woman. “I loved that man and miss him.” She still has a Brutti’s sign.
Fortunately Stacy has a new place of work and one that mimics the friendly atmosphere that made Brutti’s (where she cooked their prized corn beef and brisket among other “deli”cacies) so popular. It’s The Coffee Shoppe, a couple blocks away on High Street across from the Children’s Museum, where truly “everybody knows your name” and loves front end manager and Portsmouth native Allen Hudson. “I live in this place,” says the fast working and talking barista who also fronts a band that performed at Harborfest and will do so at the Norva on August 24.
Lamar and Tiffany Linton own The Coffee Shoppe https://www.thecoffeeshoppeva.com, which is routinely busy. “I come in every day before driving to work in Virginia Beach,” says Olde Towne neighbor Dana Harris, always ordering an everything bagel and whatever coffee Allen recommends. “Many customers let me make what I call a ‘Trust Me Latte’,” says Hudson.
It’s Stacey, who lives a block away and a few more miles from her high school alma mater, Churchland, who grills the hot food. The menu is not as extensive as it was at Brutti’s, but Stacey is happy to still be downtown and with friends, new and old. “We’re like a big family.” Join it any day (including Sunday), and don’t be afraid to speak up. Like Cheers, you could be the next Norm.
Sushi Mama is Also Korean Fried Chicken, in Multiple Flavors
There is fried chicken, and then there is Korean Fried Chicken.
Yes, KFC, Popeyes, Pollard’s, Zaxby’s, Royal Farms, Jollibee’s and local favorites like Pollard’s have their versions, and they’ll all fine.
But what John Shin cooks up at Sushi Mama on Newtown Road just off VB Blvd takes a while to order because the choices of flavors, from Honey Lemon, Soy Garlic, Curry, and Golden Cheese to Sweet Onion, Hot BBQ and Kkan Pung Gi (look it up) are all pretty tempting.
John came to America with nothing but a backpack 30 years ago, following family who preceded him from South Korea. “I always wanted to have my own restaurant,” and so he and his brother set their sights on Sushi Mama and bought it. “Yes, it was a sushi place, but we wanted to add the kind of chicken we had in Korea.” And so for the past two years, that has been the menu for lunch and dinner.
Order online for pickup at www.sushimama.menu11.com, call 757-554-0120 or follow John on Instagram. And tell Colonel Sanders you’ll catch him next time.
I Met My New Best Friends at Maracaibo in Virginia Beach
It was pure happenstance that I was wearing Orioles gear when I visited Maracaibo’s Venezuelan Bistro on a spring Thursday afternoon. Because when Leonardo Rangel walked in with his chef, co-owner and father of the same name, he was similarly clad. “You’re a Baltimore fan too?” I asked. “Yeah, and we just came back from a Tides’ home game” was the reply. Two men after my own heart.
Well, they are from baseball crazy Venezuela. And their menu, featuring such authentic dishes as Lemito Neptuno, Paella Marnera, and Arepas, makes you want to hop a flight to Maracaibo, their hometown, where papa sold cars for two decades before he, his wife and son, who was armed with a business degree, came to America. “I love to cook but hadn’t worked in a restaurant until I got here,” says Leonardo I. After a modest success on Newtown Road, they went bigger on VB Blvd closer to Lynnhaven, even opening a Venezuelan steakhouse, La Cuisina, next door.
But back to baseball, several of which sit among bottles behind the bar along with a Grayson Rodriguez bobblehead, yes, the Grayson Rodriguez now starting for the O’s after a successful stint in Norfolk. “In 2022 we got a call from the Tides, asking if we could make meals for the players and staff,” says Leonardo II. And they did and continue to do so, delivering three dinners and two breakfasts a week, the latter from Granier, a bakery the Rangels own on Laskin Road.
If you come to Maracaibo, you can also enjoy live Latin music, drinks and dancing and talk to the proprietors about beisbol. I have a lot of WINDSday friends. Needless to say, Leonardo Sr. and Jr. are now two of my faves.
Joel Rubin is editor of It’s WINDSday, a weekly newsletter that raises awareness of the offshore wind industry. To receive it, visit www.windsdays.com.
