marco and luca’s – Victoria F Hu

We were planning to go to Eppie’s, but that fell through because it was late and Eppie’s was closed. That was probably my fault because I was supposed to plan this, and I thought that Eppie’s was open but apparently not. However, since we were already downtown and it was late and we didn’t want to go anywhere bar-ish, we ended up at Christian’s!!! Except, we weren’t satisfied with just Christian’s, so half of us went next door to get some Marco and Luca’s dumplings and the other half of us got Chinese takeout.

I have actually never been to Christian’s before this. I know. I know. I’m a terrible person because Christian’s Pizza is such a Cville classic. But I can redeem myself because I LOVED CHRISTIAN’S!! I prefer pizza with really thin, crisp crusts over the thick, deep dish kind and Christian’s does the thin and crispy the best. Plus they’ve got toppings that are interesting and different from the usual pepperoni and cheese. I got a slice of Spicy Chicken Pizza, which was really spicy. Yay! I love spicy.

Marco and Luca’s Noodle Shop is a family-owned restaurant that is extremely popular in Charlottesville and especially with college students because it’s really cheap. The menu has only around 6 items. They have dumplings, hot buns of either meat or vegetables, 2 types of noodles, and hot sour soup. What is so special about this place is their dipping sauce for the dumplings. It’s amazing!! It’s the perfect balance of savory, sweet, and spicy. Every time I go, I get 2 orders of dumplings and a vegetable hot bun. It’s awesome.

After stuffing our faces, we decided to get even more food: dessert! At Splendora’s!! Splendora’s is a gelato place downtown that is consistently lovely and delicious. They have at least 30 different flavors ranging from the classic chocolate or cookies and cream to the more adventurous amaretto and blood orange. This time, I got pumpkin, which was a seasonal flavor. I loved it! Another one of my favorites is Gianduia. You must try that if you go to Splendora’s!