Stony Point Development Group is thrilled to announce the long-anticipated debut of Dairy Market, the South’s newest market hall, and the first in Virginia’s Central Piedmont region. Located in the historic Monticello Dairy building in downtown Charlottesville and just steps away from the University of Virginia, Dairy Market is reviving a local community treasure and hometown favorite by bringing together a diverse variety of food and beverage, agriculture, Southern culture, history and arts, all under one roof. With reduced capacity and extensive health and cleanliness protocols in place, the market hall concept has been reimagined for current times while still allowing Charlottesville locals and visitors to experience the destination’s unique array of flavors and artistic inspiration from a selection of Virginia’s leading purveyors, culinary talents and artisans.
Health Monitoring Required for Guests and Staff
Dairy Market’s roots trace back to 1912 with the formation of the Monticello Ice Cream Company, later renamed Monticello Dairy, Inc., known for its production of ice cream, milk, butter and cheese. The company opened its first brick-and-mortar location, the Monticello Dairy building in 1937, which quickly became an iconic community gathering place known for its ice cream parlor and event room. Designed by Cunningham | Quill Architects, Dairy Market is an adaptive reuse of this Charlottesville landmark, celebrating the Virginia culinary community by providing local chefs, breweries and retailers a new home to showcase their craft. Building on the brand’s treasured place in Charlottesville, Dairy Market utilizes its diverse merchants, unique event space and centralized location to bring the local community together.
Featuring a variety of different globally inspired cuisines with authentic flavors, Dairy Market’s merchants showcase the best of what Charlottesville’s expansive culinary scene has to offer. Several merchants are currently open and ready to welcome guests to Dairy Market, followed by staggered openings of the remaining merchants in Spring 2021. With 12 food stalls, one full-service restaurant, a brewery, four retail stalls and a bar, the market is almost at full capacity. Below is a snapshot of the confirmed merchants.
- Angelic’s Kitchen and Catering: The first physical location and extension of owner Angelic Jenkin’s popular food truck serves up Southern soul food, including signature specialties such as fried whiting fish dipped in Angelic’s legendary Southern style breading.
- Bee Conscious Baking Company: Run by husband-and-wife team Patrick and Alexis Strasser, this sustainable community bakery serves up delicious baked goods made with fresh ingredients coming straight from the Strassers’ local farm, Bee Conscious Farm.
- CHIMM St.: Inspired by the busy street markets in Thailand, CHIMM St. features a menu that integrates the regional foods and flavors of Southeast Asian cuisine with the communal aspect of eating that is so popular in Thailand’s food culture.
- Citizen Burger Stand: This new outpost of one of the most popular restaurants in Charlottesville will stay true to its mission, offering the best local grass-fed, grass-finished burgers as well as house-made fries, grilled cheese sandwiches and more.
- Dino’s Wood-Fired Pizza & Rotisserie Chicken: Run by chef and owner Dino Hoxhaj, Dino’s offers a selection of wood-fired artisan pizzas and rotisserie chicken with flavors from around the world, along with a wide variety of gluten-free and vegan options.
- Eleva Coffee: Patrons who want their caffeine fix will enjoy the Brooklyn-based Eleva Coffee, which is committed to bringing together coffee farmers and coffee drinkers by providing the most delicious, sustainable coffee direct from carefully selected farmers in Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Ethiopia.
- GRN Burger: An exciting new fast casual concept featuring a 100% vegetarian menu, GRN offers plant-based burgers, chick’n sandwiches, French fries, and other American meat-free classics that even carnivores will love.
- Maizal: This South American street food concept specializes in a wide range of punchy, bold Latin American ingredients with street food inspired dishes such as grilled arepas, golden empanadas, tacos, tostadas, chicharron and more, served with flavorful sauces and sides.
- Manila Street: Originally started as a food truck by Filipino Chef Fernando Dizon and his wife Jesse, Manila Street will sell delicious homemade Flipino fare, including the chef’s signature lumpia (Filipino spring rolls) as well as recipes that have been handed down for generations
- Mashu Festival: Led by Executive Chef TK Chin, Mashu Festival’s menu will offer authentic Asian festival food in a fun and decorative atmosphere. The dishes, carefully crafted utilizing the team’s deep knowledge of Japanese cuisine and fresh, traditional ingredients, will ensure diners experience a true taste of Japanese culture.
- Moo Thru: The beloved Virginia family-owned-and-operated creamery and ice cream store, known for its real ice cream made by real dairy farmers, serves handcrafted, slow churned ice cream, shakes, pasteurized milk and more.
- Springhouse Sundries: As part of Dairy Market’s retail corner, Springhouse Sundries, run by Certified Sommelier Priscilla Martin Curley and wine industry veteran Matt Hauck, will sell a curated selection of wine and beer, along with local and specialized food items, that are affordable and accessible to the everyday consumer.
- Starr Hill Brewery: Originally established in Charlottesville, Starr Hill is an independent, regional craft brewery founded out of a passion for great beer and live music. They will open their new pilot brewery and taproom as the cornerstone of Dairy Market, serving up a variety of unique craft brews.
- Take it Away Sandwich Shop: A local favorite for the students and alumni of the University of Virginia for the past 27 years, Take it Away continues to serve their original sandwiches and famous House Dressing to the Charlottesville community at Dairy Market.
- The Milkman’s Bar: Led by talented mixologists River Hawkins and Mike Stewart, The Milkman’s Bar serves creative recreations of classic cocktails with whimsical, awe-inspiring presentations in a welcoming space that pays homage to classic 1950’s and 60’s Americana drugstore soda fountains.
In addition to its diverse roster of vendors, Dairy Market will also offer 11,500 square feet of retail space and flexible ground level meeting space for special events, which will open in early 2021.
“We are thrilled to open Dairy Market’s doors and introduce both our incredible community and Charlottesville visitors to the best of the destination’s diverse food and beverage scene, with globally inspired and locally sourced handcrafted cuisine from a selection of talented merchants,” said Stony Point President, Chris Henry. “It was important for us to pay homage to the original Monticello Dairy building which is so beloved in the community, and create a space where everyone feels welcome. Our guests’ and employees’ safety and wellbeing are of utmost importance to us, and we are opening with enhanced health protocols including strict social distancing measures for our patrons. We look forward to welcoming guests from near and far to experience a taste of what Charlottesville has to offer.”
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Following health protocols issued by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the State of Virginia, Dairy Market is currently open at 50% capacity. Seating has been reconfigured and spread out with two of the market hall’s retail spaces repurposed to include additional seating, six feet separation between tables and limited party sizes. Public buffets and common beverage service stations have been eliminated, and there are floor spacing signs between customers while in line. High-contact areas and touch points around the hall and within each merchant’s individual stall are frequently cleaned and disinfected, and tables, chairs and trays are cleaned and sanitized after every use. Merchants are required to provide appropriate barriers between teams and customers and use no-touch menus, contactless payment systems, automated ordering and mobile ordering apps and texts to reduce the need for close customer contact. Face coverings are required for all guests and staff while inside the building and employees will be monitored for any symptoms between each work shift. To limit large groups, Dairy Market will not be hosting any type of opening event or preview.
John Pritzlaff and Jenny Stoner of Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer handled the lease negotiations on behalf of Dairy Market.
