Richmond: Virginia’s new food capital?

Historians will always think of Virginia’s fourth-largest city as the former capital of the Confederacy and “a stronghold of the tobacco industry,” said TastingTable.com. We’ve spent a lot of time soaking up today’s Richmond, though, and “we suspect the storied city’s current era will be remembered for its food.”

Pasture “Chef Jason Alley is on a crusade to revitalize Richmond’s downtown, one bowl of grits at a time.” His riffs on the classic flavors of Virginia include a roasted potato soup “swiped with curried crème fraîche,” and cheese grits “larded with pickled chiles” and topped with guajillo-braised pork. 413 E. Grace St., (804) 780-0416

The Roosevelt We wish we lived next to Lee Gregory’s restaurant so we could roll out of bed for a brunch of breakfast-sausage corn dogs and steamed mussels with chorizo in a Bloody Mary broth. Come evening, we’d be back for cocktails and a light supper of pig’s-head terrine and chicken-skin sliders. 623 N. 25th St., (804) 658-1935

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Peter Chang China Café Celebrated across the South for his take on Chinese fare, chef Peter Chang recently settled in the Richmond area, bringing with him such acclaimed dishes as a “hot and numbing” dry beef that will “leave your mouth in an altered state for hours.” 11424 W. Broad St., Glen Allen, (804) 364-1688