New restaurants offer students variety

Giant ram horns aren’t the only new addition to the Monroe Park area this year. Joining the ranks of the area’s established eateries are Panera Bread, Chipotle, Smoothie King, Little Mexico Burrito Chop and City Dogs in the Fan.

Once home to a dollar store and a Pizza Hut, the corner of Laurel and Grace streets has a brand new look. Hot Spot One LLC’s major redevelopment project resulted in a Panera Bread, Chipotle and soon-to-be Verizon Wireless store.

According to co-owner Vincent Riggi, Smoothie King recently acquired an old hair salon on W. Broad Street, located across from the Stuart C. Siegel Center.

Riggi said by being closer to campus, he hopes to broaden the company’s customer base. “I think what separates us is the fact that we have more of a health component,” said Ryan Taylor, consultant and former owner of Smoothie King. “Especially with a lot of vegans, vegetarians and other more health oriented people in the VCU student body, we tend to be able to accommodate them more.”

Riggi and Taylor said they expect the new location to open within two weeks, and Smoothie King will accept RAMbucks.

Riggi co-owns two other Smoothie King locations in the Richmond area with Alex Wotring.

Main Street’s Nara Sushi, known for cheap eats and late-night show fame, has closed its doors for good.

In its place will soon be the second location of locally owned hot dog joint City Dogs. Tentatively expected to open around Oct. 1, owners said City Dogs in the Fan will have a sports bar feel.

“Everybody loves hot dogs and our prices are beyond reasonable,” said City Dogs co-owner Cliff Irby.

With a menu touting vegan and vegetarian options as well as famous American-city themed weiners, Irby and co-owner Larry Boykin said their aim is for the whole community to feel welcomed.

“The community embraced our first location and it’s atypical to have that growth vehicle,” Boykin said. “We’re really creating a fun, safe environment for everyone to enjoy.”

A full bar, basement game room and exposed kitchen are elements Boykin said he hopes will attract customers.

Little Mexico Burrito Chop is taking the place of Kabob Pit – Halal Tandoori Grill Restaurant on Laurel Street. Co-owner Rosio Garcia said the building had been vacant for quite some time and required a lot of hard work to make repairs.

An extension of Little Mexico on Cary Street, Burrito Chop is geared toward customers running short on time. Because everything is chopped and ready to go when ordered, Garcia said quality and freshness are held to a very high standard.

“We’ve established such a good relationship already, people know what to expect,” Garcia said. “You can eat chain restaurant food anywhere but Little Mexico is only here in Richmond.”

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