Keoni and Bonnie

Well, some of you may think this is a lame layover but since Keoni was able to come with me, we had a great time!  We arrived on New Year’s Eve about 10:00 pm and met the rest of the crew in the bar.  This is where we brought the new year in and it was low key but nice.

The next morning we woke up and headed to the gym.  What a way to start the new year!  It was kind of dreary and cold outside but we wanted to walk around downtown Norfolk and see what there was to do.  It was quiet because is was New Year’s day but we found the mall open and ate lunch at California Pizza Kitchen.  It goes against my grain to eat at a chain restaurant in another city but the independent places were closed.  It does seem to be a nice mall and they have a movie theater so for future reference, it’s a good layover.

Keoni had done some research and found a wine bar on Granby Street called Trilogy.  It’s in a historic building and has a nice wine list and menu.   We sat at the bar and enjoyed a couple glasses of wine but their kitchen was depleted from the previous night (New Year’s Eve).  The owner recommended a place just down the street called Empire that serves tapas.  This is just what we wanted.  We shared three tapas, seared asparagus w/cracked pepper and whole grain mustard, panko fried chicken w/ waffles and sweet soy and  a goat cheese and olive tapenade with grilled bread.  All were delicious!  I also noticed that they have half price bottles of wine on Monday from 5pm to 9pm.

If you’re going to be in Norfolk, Jan 24th thru 31st, they’re having restaurant week and lots of places are offering a fixed price menu for $20 to $30 for a 3 course meal.