Virginia Restaurants

Sonoma Wine Bar & Bistro's selection of 325 wines from around the world has repeatedly earned the venue Wine Spectator's Award of Excellence, as well as one of the readers’ choice awards for Best Wine List from Hampton Roads magazine in 2011. Many varietals hail from smaller-production vineyards, allowing oenophiles to sample the flavors of tucked-away Italian wineries without chartering a hovercraft. At the bar, bartenders dispense 2- and 5-ounce pours from 50 climate-controlled bottles that ensure prolonged freshness of flavor. In the bistro, executive chef Mackenzie Hess works with the staff's wine experts to pair grass-fed steaks and pan-seared crab cakes with the ideal wines from Sonoma's expansive collection.

Perhaps it’s the dining room’s glittering chandeliers that make diners feel as though they’ve stepped back in time, or maybe it’s the silver tea sets displayed atop baroque-style tables that bring to mind a bygone era. Though it’s difficult to single out the one element of First Ladies Tea Parlor that transports diners to the past, it’s evident that owner KJ Jordan has realized her vision. KJ’s passion for all things old-timey manifests itself in the parlor’s varied schedule of events, from historic fashion shows and presentations by authors and historical interpreters to speakeasy dinners that keep the spirit of the 1920s alive via live jazz and free admission for ghosts. Away from the sun-dappled dining room, chef Gabby Bauman and her culinary crew bustle about the kitchen whipping up light lunches featuring entrees named after first ladies, including the Lady Dolley sandwich filled with roasted turkey and avocado and the Lady Betty salad dappled with salmon fillet and apricot-ginger dressing.

Wall sconces cast warm light across the exposed brick walls at Monastery Restaurant, where guests dine on European cuisine at small, candle-lit tables. Owners Anna and Adolf Jerabek first opened a restaurant in New York City after leaving their native Czechoslovakia in 1967, and later journeyed to Virginia to open their old-world eatery at the current downtown Norfolk locale. There, they serve breaded port cutlet with Lyonnaise potatoes and steamed broccoli, steak tartare—raw, seasoned filet mignon on lettuce—and veal-stuffed cabbage with dumplings. A painting of a portly monk with a half-finished beer hangs behind the bar, where visitors can enjoy selections from the drink list—wine, beer, champagne, and cocktails.