(rshsdepot) Charlottesville, Virginia

[Jim Dent <jdent_@_erols.com>]

rshsdepot
-From The Bullsheet...

Restaurant Opens at Charlottesville Station

[By Allen Brougham] . . .

When Amtrak moved into its modernized former Railway Express Agency building in 
Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1999, following a $700,000 renovation effort to 
better serve train customers, plans for the adjacent facility it left behind 
were uncertain. That has now all changed, and what had served as the city's 
union station since before the turn of the last century is now a trendy 
restaurant. The Wild Wing Cafe opened for business on February 1.

I had wanted to attend its opening day. But the matter at hand (the pending move 
of Miller Tower) took precedence. Anyway, it was probably best to sample the 
place when things were a little quieter, so it was on February 23 that I joined 
Vic Stone for lunch to check things out.

The Wild Wing Cafe (I would call it a "sports bar") is one of a chain of eateries
 - now six in all - which includes establishments in Georgia and
South Carolina. "Hot Wings, Cold Beer, Great Food" sets the menu's description 
for what the place is all about. Vic, who had dined here before,
raved about their numerous chicken platters. He added, too, that the place 
had become quite popular, and the middle of the afternoon was the
best time to enjoy the place.

The restaurant makes use of both floors of the old station. In the later years 
of Amtrak use, its waiting room formed a U-shape with partitions
keeping its classic mid-room wooden staircase out of sight. The 
partitions have now been removed, and patrons may once again use the staircase
to reach the second floor - optionally, as meals are served on both levels. There 
is a bar on each level, too.

We chose to eat on the second floor, both as an excuse to climb the classic 
staircase, and to get a better view of passing trains. In fact, we opted
for a corner table - on the raised stage used at night by the band - overlooking 
the CSXT line. Indeed, a train of westbound coal hoppers did
come through shortly after we started eating. The westbound Cardinal (late) 
came into the station just after we had finished.

For our selections, Vic chose the Tomato Basil Soup ("Really good; very 
creamy," he said) and the Chicken Buffet; I chose "Herb's Buffalo
Breath Chili" and "Bubba's Big BBQ Sandwich."

The chili, garnished with parsley (but no chopped onions or croutons) was 
"very zesty." The barbecue was - well, OK - but, then, I was not really
expecting it to be what might be served in a Five-Star restaurant.

Prices are reasonable. Their Chargrilled Chicken Platters are priced at less 
than $8.00, including two veggies; and their "Wild Wing Sampler," 25
wings in all, comes to $10.99.

If the fare at the Wild Wing Cafe is not what could be truly called 
"gourmet," it more than makes up for it in "atmosphere and location." As for
atmosphere, the place has been appointed with a motif appropriate to its 
heritage; the walls, for example, expose their original brickwork. But the
harbinger of things to come - once the weather warms up, that is - will be 
its outside "roof garden" (or will it be a dance floor?) on the second level
overlooking both the CSXT and Norfolk Southern mainlines that cross at the 
diamond just south of the station.

As mentioned earlier, the month-old restaurant has become quite popular. 
By 8 o'clock that evening (it was a Friday), the spacious parking lot,
shared by both the restaurant and by Amtrak, was nearly full.

It was a very memorable meal, owing to its location. But I'm reminded 
that this was not my very first meal here. That one, even more memorable,
was in February 1999 - it being served aboard the dining car of a parked 
Amtrak train, there for the occasion of the building's dedication
ceremony. Now THAT was a great meal!

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