Click here to download our Eat Well This Summer To-Go Guide.
Sun-filled, active days and lazy, enjoyable nights call for meals that come together quickly and easily, preferably using healthy ingredients from the garden or bypassing the stove and oven for the grill. When everyone is part of the good times, the cook may want to pull together a seasonally appropriate meal from a local market. That could mean picking up prepared foods or simply taking advantage of easy access to unique and healthy ingredients you’ll likely not find at major grocery stores.
A trio of top-notch local markets all but guarantee that your next summer meal is as easy as visiting to check out their myriad offerings. Whether you’re looking for breakfast or lunch sandwiches, ready-to-go dinners, meat for the grill, or the components for vegetable-laden salads, Kinsale Market, Nuttall’s Store and Bay Bistro To-Go can help put food on the summer table.
And when you’re headed to the beach or out on the boat to cruise the river, these markets offer a variety of snacks, charcuterie and crackers, dips and chips, not to mention beverages of all kinds. If you’re not hungry yet, a stop by your local market will likely change that.
1 of 5
Tommy and Darla Hicks’ Kinsale Market was an immediate asset to the waterfront village, both in terms of its unique inventory and its involvement in the community. In reopening the 109-year-old store, their goal was to preserve a part of Kinsale’s history, and the result was a community that embraced them. Photo by Corey Miller.
2 of 5
Photo by Corey Miller.
3 of 5
Photo by Corey Miller.
4 of 5
Photo by Corey Miller.
5 of 5
Photo by Corey Miller.
Kinsale Market
Built in 1915 as the W.D. Parks General Store, the building overlooking the water sat vacant for 39 years before Tommy and Darla Hicks brought new life to it.
The couple, part of Windy Knoll Farm, their family farm in Hanover County, live just across the bridge in Kinsale. As they watched the revival of the adjacent marina known as The Slips, the idea to resurrect the old building owned by the Arnest family emerged. “My wife and I often talked about the void left in the community when the Callao Supermarket closed,” Tommy says. “We wanted to serve today’s needs while honoring the store’s history and stories.”
Kinsale Market opened its doors last May. Respectful of the store’s heritage, Tommy took care to preserve the store’s past while adding modern touches. The hardwood floors, counters, butcher block and cash register are original, while updated utilities ensure safety and functionality. Darla had a vision of what the market should carry. “I wanted to bring things to Kinsale that customers would otherwise have to drive for,” Darla says. “We wanted to offer unique items complementing regular staples found in the surrounding larger grocery stores.”
The Market carries many Virginia brands, local produce arranged in an old boat, charcuterie and 45 different kinds of cheese, and staples like soup mixes, local eggs, and Chesapeake Bay ice. Meats are sourced from Virginia farms, and the market’s ground beef prices are competitive with larger grocery stores. “We worked hard to keep price points to what’s typical,” Tommy says. We’re not a specialty boutique market, but we do carry specialty items.”
One corner is devoted to drink mixers, jars of bases for batch cocktails, and an array of craft beers. Wine tastings from their expanding inventory of over 75 wines occur from noon to 4 pm on the third Saturday of each month. Market snacks are served to introduce customers to what they carry. “We want people to feel comfortable at our tastings because ‘come as you are’ is part of the experience we’re offering,” Darla says.
The market’s deli offers sandwiches, cheese and meat by the pound—a real convenience for those who want to boat up and pick up lunch, drinks, and snacks. For those on land, Darla intentionally chose products to inspire culinary creativity but come together easily. “Customers have told us that they find the store’s inventory inspiring when they’re unsure what they want to make,” Darla says. “We love it when people create a dish from something new they found here.”
Community engagement is important to Kinsale Market’s owners. In May, they held a fundraiser for the local fire department—Tommy has been involved with the fire service for over 30 years—featuring a 5K, dueling pianos and fireworks. “We’re beyond blessed with such great people in Kinsale and the surrounding communities,” Darla says. We want to give back where we can.”
They also partner with the Kinsale Museum and the Slips for special events. Upstairs from the market is a business center open to the public, with computer space, copiers, coffee and, for boaters, a welcome change of scenery. “We’re striving to be an asset to the community,” Tommy says of their efforts to provide curated offerings and warm hospitality. “We want to create a vibrancy and synergy here while honoring Kinsale’s historical essence.”
Kinsale Market | 11 Steamboat Landing, Kinsale | Monday-Saturday, 10 am-7 pm | kinsalemarket.com | Find Kinsale Market on Facebook and Instagram
1 of 4
Of the myriad reasons to visit Nuttall’s Store—pick up your mail, grab a bottle of wine or a hand-cut tri-tip, shop for Virginia-made foodstuffs or fishing tackle —one of the most compelling is to have lunch from the deli or grab dinners to go. Chef Win Goodier aims not only to feed his customers but educate them. Photo by Corey Miller.
2 of 4
Photo by Corey Miller.
3 of 4
Photo by Corey Miller.
4 of 4
Photo by Corey Miller.
Nuttall’s Store
Nuttall’s Store is not your typical food market, inside or out.
The Ware Neck Store and Post Office, which houses Nuttall’s Store, was originally built in 1877 and takes its name from Rudy Nuttall, who ran the store for 68 years. Five years ago, a group of local families formed a nonprofit to buy the store to ensure the post office remained so their grandchildren could grow up with the store.
Chef Win Goodier, who’d taught Culinary Arts in Henrico County before working on an oyster farm, was brought on to advise the nonprofit on expanding the store’s offerings. Goodier was eager to be back in the kitchen but soon realized that his biggest challenge was the store’s remote location. “I do a lot of social media: Facebook, Instagram and YouTube,” he says. “Whether it’s a picture of a cat sleeping on the front porch or today’s special, I try to grab people’s attention. We started with 400 followers and now have 7,800.”
All that attention has made Nuttall’s Store a lunch destination. When COVID hit, and stores ran out of meat, Nuttall’s had beef and pork because it used restaurant suppliers. “We were the only place in the county with meat, so people came to buy it,” Goodier recalls. “After COVID, we knew having local meat would set us apart, so we source exclusively from Virginia farms.”
It’s not just the meat that’s local, either. Oysters come from the Rappahannock, grits and cornmeal from Amherst County, coffee from Yorktown and sea salt from the Eastern Shore. “My favorite part of the job is procuring stuff because the people who make it are so passionate about what they do,” he says. “We upped our wine game, carrying one of the largest selections of Virginia wines as well as special occasion wines. But we also carry $12-$13 bottles for everyday drinking.”
Customers can order lunch and eat it at the store or take it with them. An array of dinners-to-go, such as southwest chicken with five grains and roasted vegetables, changes daily, but crabcakes made from the recipe of an Eastern Shore waterman’s wife are always available.
The store’s history can be experienced throughout, from Rudy’s red Coke machine, which still works, to his butcher block, meat grinder, deli case and broken scale. “I even found Rudy’s old meat saw and cleaned off 30 years of fat and dust and ordered a new blade so I could use it,” Goodier says. “I like to keep stuff going. Visitors come from all over for lunch—some even make a day trip of it—and some people come just for this building.”
Nuttall’s Store | 6495 Ware Neck Road, Ware Neck | Monday-Saturday, 9 am-5 pm | 804-693-3067 | nuttallstore.com | Find Nuttall's Store on Facebook and Instagram.
1 of 4
Owner Emily Hoar and Chef Dale Ross created Bay Bistro To-Go, offering fast food made with fresh ingredients and enough indoor and outdoor seating for customers to enjoy the street theater of downtown Kilmarnock. Shelves are stocked with fun new products like Chesapeake Bay-seasoned linguine and London Fog specialty teas. Photo by Corey Miller.
2 of 4
Photo by Corey Miller.
3 of 4
Photo by Corey Miller.
4 of 4
Photo by Corey Miller.
Bay Bistro To-Go
Bay Bistro To-Go pulled together some local besties to create a combination fast-casual restaurant and gourmet market on Kilmarnock’s Main Street.
Their credentials were impressive. Dale Ross’ One Cracked Yolk was voted the “Best Food Truck” in Eastern Virginia, while Emily Hoar, owner of The Rivah, consistently wins “Best Gift Shop” in Eastern Virginia.
Together, they set out to provide fresh food, fast service, and generous portions with counter service. A large deli case holds everything from seasonal chicken salad and crab dip to pulled pork barbecue and orzo salad. “Besides our breakfast and lunch menus, we’ve got lots of takeout options,” Hoar says. “Whether you’re busy using our wi-fi to work or headed out on the boat, you can just grab and go.”
Open seven days a week until 5:30 pm and Sundays until 4 pm, the kitchen at Bay Bistro To-Go serves breakfast and made-to-order sandwiches until 3 pm daily. Now that it’s summer, crabs to go are available. “We make everything fresh, and there’s no cutoff between breakfast and lunch,” says Ross. “You can order a lunch sandwich first thing in the morning or breakfast mid-afternoon.”
For those who want to eat on-site, there are tables and chairs inside and out as well as a large community table. Beer and wine can be enjoyed there or at home, and gluten-free options -from sandwiches to desserts- abound, along with gluten-free options in the market. “If you’re hosting, we’ve got you covered with charcuterie, cheese, chips, dips, crackers, drink mixes and garnishes,” Hoar says. “We have lots of great coffee options like cold brews, specialty teas, and our own Bay Gourmet brand of jams, hot pepper jelly and Bloody Mary mix.”
The black, white, and red interior has a fun, coastal vibe, with crab décor and plenty of tasty offerings no matter the season. “I call our soups, salads and sandwiches affordable indulgences.”
Bay Bistro To-Go | 10 North Main Street, Kilmarnock | Monday-Saturday, 9 am-5:30 pm; Sunday, 9 am-4 pm | The kitchen closes daily at 3 pm. | 804-577-4206 | order.toasttab.com/online/baybistrotogo | Find Bay Bistro To-Go on Facebook and Instagram.