L’etoile Fine Virginia cuisine with a French touch. Exceptional wines. Right across from the Amtrak station. 817 W. Main. 979-7957.

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A couple of weeks ago, Eppie’s on the Downtown Mall, known for their heaping plates of jerk chicken and steamed broccoli, began quietly serving up sandwiches, including the apple and brie and hummus and apple sandwiches shown here, along with Eppie’s signature pumpkin bread ham biscuit. Oh, as we already mentioned…Eppie’s is now serving dinner too.

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The Washington Post has a story today on Charlottesville coffee bars, and writer Roger Piantadosi confirms what we’ve known for some time:

“Charlottesville today has more restaurants per capita than any city in Virginia, or possibly France, and is home to the kind of insanely committed foodies who post photos on their blogs of (I’m not kidding) handwritten estimates of opening dates that the owners have taped to the doors of restaurants that are still under construction. And who then discuss it online for days.”

Whoa! France? We’re not sure if local foodies should slap themselves on the back or seek counseling.

Sadly, Piantadosi’s “coffee bar tour” covers only four places, The Mudhouse, Cafe Cubano, Shenandoah Joe, and C’Ville Coffee. There is a photo of La Taza accompanying the piece, but no mention of it in the story. (Update 4:20pm: Doh! As “Zooey” noticed, there is a hard to see link to a selection of other places, including Milano, La Taza, The Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar, Fox Park Cafe, and Starbucks.) Here are a few snippets from the Post story:

The Mudhouse: “….young people with really interesting hair or pierced what-have-yous, plus at least seven laptops and a table of tweedy professor-looking guys…arguably the most diverse clientele and one of the best locations of all of C’ville’s coffee bars.”

Cafe Cubano: “…definitively cool, inasmuch as a clearly non-hip guy like me always feels more as if I’m missing something amid the deco decor at Cafe Cubano than at, say, Mudhouse.”

Shenandoah Joe: “What distinguishes it from the others — besides the fact that more than half of the enormous, high-ceilinged space is an active, humming roastery with at least 30 types of beans stacked on shelves and counters — is that the baristas know everything about the beans that made the coffee they’re making into your personal drink and are happy to discuss any part of the process with you.”

C’Ville Coffee: “I wrote my last book here,” says Heather Hummel, sitting in the sunniest corner of the adult room with her laptop and coffee. “I think a lot of writers like to work here.”

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All month, the Charlottesville Cooking School in the Meadowbrook Shopping Center will be offering a 2 for the price of 1 special on its Basics of Spring Cooking 1 Class.

In addition, there are Mother’s Day gift certificates available. If you purchase them before May 11, its $5 off the class.

The school will also be offering a special class for kids–Cupcakes 101 with Clare Rannigan (For kids age 9 and up). $45–1 Session.

Call 963-COOK or email info@charlottesvillecookingschool.com. The school is located in the Meadowbrook Shopping Centre between El Puerto and Cottonwood at 2041 Barracks Road.

May schedule: (more)

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Tomorrow, Crush welcomes Ellen Taylor from the Henry Wine Group.

“Ellen is one of our favorites due to the abundance of great wine she represents and her sparkling personality,” says Crush’s Gregg Oxley. ” She is also famous for her quote, “When life hands you lemons, grab a bottle of tequila, some salt and a lime and invite me over.”

Here are the featured wines, with descriptions from Mr. Oxley. As always, there is no charge for the food or wine tasting. (more)

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