CoVa's 2017 Best Of Party — The Cravings Queen

Dressed in my best attempt at "vintage Hollywood," I walked the red carpet to a foodies paradise at Coastal Virginia Magazine's 2017 Best Of Party.

Image courtesy of CoastalVirginiaMag.com

CoVa's Best Of Party, on Thursday, July 27, was a night of dancing, celebration and, most importantly, delicious food. Each year, Coastal Virginia Magazine holds a "Readers' Choice Awards" and the winners are honored at the Best Of Party.

In late June, I received the best birthday present ever–a job with VistaGraphics, Inc. as Content Editor. As if this opportunity couldn't get better, I soon found out that I get to attend the events like the Best Of Party.

The day of the Best Of Party, I ate a light lunch to prepare for the smorgasbord of tastings I was going to enjoy that night.

I walked in about 7:30 p.m., accompanied by my friend Ciara, ready to sample Hampton Roads' finest foods. The Bachelor Boys Band was in full swing, while people mingled and enjoyed not just the food, but the photo booth and caricature artist.

I was focused on the food. Fourteen Best Of restaurant winners served unlimited samples of some of their signature dishes. I was able to try 11 restaurants, some multiple times. Here are some of the night's food highlights:

Ruth's Chris Steak House was first up. I was slightly let down when I looked at the table and only saw a toothpick caprese salad. As a devout red meat eater, I was hoping for some steak. I did, however, eat about four of their salads throughout the night.

Sweetwater Cuisine provided the bar and two hot appetizers. Ciara and I quickly grabbed the last of the white cheddar chicken. At first, we could not identify the second appetizer–all we knew is that it was wrapped in bacon. It ended up being a bacon wrapped fig with jalepeño. Who knew such a small bite could have so many amazing flavors. The saltiness of the bacon paired well with the sweetness of the fig, then came the kick of the jalepeño.

Volcano Sushi offered a seaweeed salad and a simple sushi roll.

Rajput Indian Cuisine was a totally new experience for me because I've never had Indian food before. While I waited in line, I sipped on mango lassi–a yogurt shake. If I ever learn how to make this myself, it could replace my favorite mango milkshakes. Next I tried the butter chicken golgappa and golgappa chat. Golgappa is the equivalent of a snack-sized puff pastry filled with something. Butter chicken is a traditional Indian cuisine made with chicken and a mild curry sauce. The chat was served cold and was made with chick peas. I loved getting to send my tastebuds on an international adventure.

P.F. Changs served up chicken lettuce wraps. I added some of their Kung Pao sauce to give it some heat.

Freemason Abbey Restaurant featured their award-winning She-Crab soup. The rich, creamy soup was set over the top with lumps of crab meat. I went back at least three times for this.

Swan Terrace Grill, at the Founders Inn and Spa, had a chocolate lovers dream–a double chocolate cupcake, topped with a strawberry.

After trying half of the party options, we were in desperate need of something to drink. Tupelo Honey to the rescue! They offered three of their signature house-made non-alcoholic drinks: Rosemary-Peach Lemonade, Sparkling Blueberry Punch and Lavender-Limeade Fizz. Out of all three, my favorite was the Sparkling Blueberry Punch. I don't typically go for blueberry-flavored anything, but the sweetness of the blueberries paired so well with whatever gave the drink that "punch."

The Landing, a restaurant that specializes in local seafood, meat and produce, served up Tuna Tataki. This was my first time eating raw tuna, but I really liked the taste of the ahi tuna topped with toasted sesame seeds and crispy wontons. The texture took me a couple bites to get used to.

Baladi Mediterranean Cafe's signature hummus had a great, smooth texture.

Roger Brown's Restaurant and Sports Bar had an assembly line going for their Portsmouth pit-cooked pulled BBQ, served with cole slaw and BBQ sauce.

Also serving BBQ at the next table was Pierce's Pitt Bar-B-Que Restaurant. I wish I had a bigger plate to fit the BBQ pulled pork, BBQ pulled chicken and slow-cooked beef brisket. To be honest, I could probably eat anything that was cooked in "Doc" Pierce's barbecue sauce–the perfect combination of sweet, heat and a little bit of tanginess.

We didn't quite save dessert for last when we went to Twisted Sisters' table. I remember watching the Twisted Sisters duo on an episode of "Cupcake Wars," and have been dying to try them since. Their Orange Crush Cupcake, made with vanilla vodka, is a play on the popular orange crush drink.

Last, but not least, was a great surprise. If you know me, you know how much I love pork belly. Vino Italian + Bistro must've known I was coming. You could smell the pan seared pancetta from feet away.

Each guest was given a gold coin to vote for their favorite restaurant of the night. It was no surprise when Freemason Abbey won another award, the People's Choice Award, for their She-Crab soup.

CoVa's 2017 Best Of Party was a great way to try many local restaurants all at once. For the full list of Best Of winners, including all the restaurants, click here. For a full gallery of photos from the Best Of Party, click here.