VCU lunches

Given general travails in this department...somewhat in time for the start of the new semester - I add a couple of good, cheap places that are worth a visit near the VCU campus (other than Elephant Thai that I wrote about earlier).

The first is an old favorite - Ipanema cafe with excellent vegetarian options. Truly, its probably because of the sweet potato fries !! Its quite a testament to the place that they maintain a fairly decent range of options in the lunch s3w - soups, salads, sandwiches and wraps without being confined to tofu !
I particularly like the veg chorizo and the smoked gouda.
The only (sort of) knock against Ipanema is the fact that its so small - Arriving at a bit of a "wrong" time ends up making lunch rather prohibitive, time-wise. Also they could perhaps make another copy of their chalk-board menu, which is snuck up right against the door, which makes it difficult for absent-minded people like myself....!

The second is Taste of the Far East, another somewhat hidden gem. I think that for some reason, its neighbor Saigon is better known but TotFE has proved to be a very nice choice the several times we've been there. The noodle options are quite authentic and comparable to something you might find off the street in Singapore....I havent liked the rice dishes as much. Portion sizes are quite hearty and the fish sauce is a bit of an acquired taste..They have some lunch specials which I've never tried, but a typical lunch with t&t runs less than $10...

There is also Nate's Taco Truck - a staple @ First Fridays, Farmers mkt and assorted RVA locations...The $2 tacos make it a good eat but I've found that unless you eat >= 3 tacos, it ends up being a nice snack more than a lunch! I'm always amused with the seriousness at which the duo go about their work!
I like the fact the Nate has a twitter feed advertising his location and times (which has saved me from making futile taco trips on a couple of occasions)...Not a twitterer myself but can see the value of this real-time information dissemination.
http://twitter.com/NatesTacoTruck

I was somewhat tempted to add Cous Cous to this list but their menu (also slightly more expensive than the places above) tends to be rather inconsistent tastewise.
The VCU Dining Commons, in contrast to the one at the Univ of Richmond is quite a place to be avoided.

A lunch at Ipanema is also under $10 (only if you resist getting one of their desserts - in the interest of having a productive, non-drowsy afternoon)....

Back home after some more map-trotting adventures with some interesting tongue twisters and pleasers including xochitl soup.

More restaurants closing in RVA (including one i've been meaning to try for some time) ! the comments were rather interesting...
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/rtd/business/local/article/REST06_20100105-221409/315598/

I noticed that I had written about 5 of these places on this blog !! Is it a bad sign :)? I guess in some minor way, I got to document fragments of recent richmond dining history.
The RTD piece made me think of my very first post, when, prior to moving to RVA, I was quite bothered by the proliferation of chain restaurants on the "best of" lists on Richmond magazine. These closings do not portend well for a locavore either ...