Written by Heather McGinley
Where do you go to eat healthy outdoors? These dining venues offer organic, locally grown or harvested, vegetarian, vegan and allergy-conscious alternatives.
Croc’s 19th Street Bistro
With four large patio areas, Croc’s 19th Street Bistro in Virginia Beach is one of the most environmentally friendly restaurants in the state. The first Virginia Green restaurant, Croc’s practices sustainability in nearly every aspect of food preparation and venue presentation.
Among other green practices, Croc’s uses aluminum tables and chairs that do not require harmful chemicals for cleaning and refinishing, rain barrels to collect water for the on-site garden and solar panels to heat tap water, owner Laura Habr explains.
Croc’s uses organic and locally grown produce and herbs to create pita pizzas, salads, tacos, wraps, burgers, seafood, Lebanese dishes and more.
Laura and her husband, Kal Habr, grow some of the produce on-site and purchase other items from local farmers’ markets, including the Old Beach Farmers’ Market, which meets every Saturday in the parking log at Croc’s. Laura is one of the founding members of the market.
Additionally, the Habrs harvest honey for the restaurant from bees they raise and purchase meats from local farmers and fishermen who use sustain-able practices.
The menu changes with the seasons as certain vegetables and herbs become available locally, Laura says. Cooks prepare all of the menu items from scratch, including many of the dressings and sauces, making it easy to accommodate guests with food allergies and special dietary needs. Menu prices range from $5 to $29.
Pasha Mezze
If you are looking for other options in Hampton Roads with an international flair, Pasha Mezze, located in the Ghent area of Norfolk, offers a variety of Mediterranean and Anatolian dishes with American and European influences. Beyond serving international and tapas-style dishes, the venue makes use of organic and locally grown ingredients whenever possible.
Pasha Mezze has vegetarian, vegan, organic and gluten-free options that customers can eat indoors or while dining in the large Mediterranean-inspired patio between the main building and its coffeehouse. The coffeehouse features desserts, wraps, salads, international coffees, teas and coffee alternatives.
Long tables, low back chairs, couches, colorful lanterns, Turkish tapestries and pillows adorn the inside of the restaurant while flowers, candles, bistro-style seating and colorful umbrellas decorate the patio.
The bar serves organic beers, and the coffeehouse, open from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., offers several organic food and drink options. Soup and side prices begin at $1.99, small plate and entrée prices range from $6 to $22.
Can Can Brasserie
Modeled after a French café, Can Can Brasserie has two outdoor dining areas and a front wall made of windows that open to West Cary Street in Richmond’s Carytown.
“You can come here three times a day and have three different experiences,” says manager Tony Patterson, who has been with the restaurant since it opened six years ago.
Chefs use French recipes and cooking techniques to prepare breakfast, lunch and dinner. Can Can serves specialty lunch and dinner desserts as well as red and white wines imported from France. It features an afternoon café menu from 3 to 5 p.m.
The menu changes with what is in season locally, while each month highlights a different region in France. July will feature Nice and August will focus on Provence.
Can Can offers a wide selection of soups, salads, greens and steamed produce, Patterson says. Although the restaurant does not necessarily use all organic ingredients, they purchase from local farmers’ markets, USDA-approved grass-fed farms and companies that buy locally, Patterson says. The venue hosts performances by Richmond Ballet-trained Can Can dancers, art shows, an annual fashion show, wine tastings and other special events. Lunch prices range from $6 to $21, dinner items (including appetizers and salads) range from $5.50 to $29.
Beauregard’s Thai Room
Modeled after The Court of Two Sisters in New Orleans, the outdoor courtyard at Beauregard’s Thai Room is the restaurant’s most popular dining area when the weather is nice, explains David Roygulchareon, owner and former New York chef.
The outdoor dining area features a brick and cobblestone floor, exotic plants, trees, a fountain with koi, statues and gas streetlamps.
Beauregard’s uses very few greasy or fattening ingredients, and they do not add MSG, Roygulchareon says. Fried items are pan-fried, Roygulchareon says. Coconut milk is the most fattening ingredient used at the restaurant, and cooks can leave that out of most entrees upon request.
The restaurant boasts gluten-free, peanut-free and vegetarian options. Since menu items are prepared to order, cooks can make substitutions or prepare menu items with regard to allergies and other dietary concerns, Roygulchareon says.
The Thai Room uses vendors who buy produce, fish and other meat locally when the items are
in season.
Lunch prices including salads range from $3.95 to $11.95, dinner prices range from $3.95 to $12.95.
The Trellis
Short, neatly trimmed hedges create a border between the brick-floored patio of the Trellis and one of the most traveled and historic roads in Williamsburg—Duke of Gloucester Street.
Outdoor guests dine under a trellis complete with fans, extending the full length of the patio.
The Trellis has breakfast, lunch and dinner menus daily, an abbreviated afternoon menu from 3 to 4:30 p.m. and a Sunday brunch menu. Menus change according to what is in season and what is available.
The Trellis buys from local and regional farmers, anglers and producers, many of whom use sustainable practices, explains manager Ann Green. They also purchase from organic farmers whenever possible.
Because the chefs prepare foods daily, they can accommodate most visitors with allergies and special dietary needs. Be sure to try the ice cream—it’s all homemade.
Lunch prices, including appetizers, soups and salads, range from $5.50 to $14.95, while dinner prices range from $5 to $28.50.
Rockafeller’s Restaurant
Lined with flowerboxes and overlooking Rudee Inlet, the covered upstairs dining area at Rockafeller’s is open to customers Thursday through Sunday. It will open seven days a week starting in mid-July.
A Virginia Green restaurant, Rockafeller’s strives to preserve and protect the environment. They buy fish from local purveyor Sam Rust, which buys from local anglers who practice sustainable aquaculture, says manager Philip Murphy.
Rockafeller’s can specially prepare food for customers who have allergies or special dietary needs. They use canola oil and offer more than 20 gluten-free options. Rockafeller’s cooks can prepare items with or without butter, and they can broil or grill any fish on the menu. “If it is in reason, we can do it,” Murphy says.
Lunch prices, including salads, range from $3.99 to $18.99, dinner prices range from $3.99 to $31.99.
River’s Inn Restaurant and Crab Deck
In Gloucester Point, River’s Inn Restaurant and Crab Deck boasts two large outdoor dining areas, one of which juts over the marina. The restaurant purchases ingredients from local and organic farms in Gloucester Point and Hayes. They also buy fish from watermen along the Chesapeake Bay and the York River who use sustainable aquaculture, explains Chris Coffman, general manager. Dressings, breads, soups and sauces are made in-house and can accommodate guests with gluten intolerance and other food allergies. Menu items change with what is in season. The venue hosts outdoor acoustic musical entertainment on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 6 to 9 p.m.
Menu items range in price from $5 to $27.95.
Riverwalk Restaurant and High Tide Bar and Grill
High Tide, an outdoor venue attached to the Riverwalk Restaurant in Yorktown, is within walking distance of historic Yorktown and the battlefields. Umbrellas and a tent provide shade to diners on a brick-floored patio facing the York River. High Tide Bar and Grill and the Riverwalk Restaurant have separate menus, but both sides of the restaurant use fish and produce from local distributors who practice sustainable aquaculture methods. Both indoor and outdoor locations prepare entrees to order, catering to those with food allergies and special dietary needs. Menu prices range from $4.95 to $25.95 for Riverwalk and $4.95 to $17.95 for High Tide.