With restaurateur Will Richey, chef Jose De Brito, and bar manager Micah LeMon, The Alley Light is like the Miami Heat of Charlottesville restaurants. The grown-up lounge combines wines chosen by connoisseur Richey, cocktails by mixologist LeMon, and De Brito’s small plates of sophisticated French cuisine, like green beans with grated foie gras and almond-shallot vinaigrette.

The September expansion of Michael McCarthy’s pizzeria has given the classically trained chef room to let loose. While pizzas are still the main draw, there are now expanded daily specials, chefs’ dinners, and a full menu of sandwiches on house-made rolls like the Phat Philly with seared shaved rib-eye, caramelized onions, mushrooms, peppers, mozzarella, and provolone.

Charlottesville has its first serious shop dedicated solely to cheese, thanks to trained cheesemonger Nadjeeb Chouaf, who opened Flora in the rear of Milli Joe Coffee. Chouaf will stop at nothing to bring his hard-to-find favorites to Charlottesville, and regulars know to grab a table, relax, and let Chouaf create them a platter.

Fish expert Yoshihiro Tauchi recently left the upscale TEN Sushi to open the much less upscale Kokoro, where his focus is squarely on raw fish. While Tauchi learned from Nobu-trained chef Bryan Emperor at TEN, he is putting his own stamp on things at Kokoro. A house favorite is madai, a fish famous in Tauchi’s birthplace of Shikoku that he has flown in each week.

A former beverage director of José Andrés's Zaytinya, Justin Ross has filled a longtime Charlottesville void: a mezze restaurant. With an Advanced Sommelier certification, Ross personally created the list of 100 wines, all available by the glass. Meanwhile, chef Alfredo Malinis Jr., formerly of Annapolis’ Level Small Plates Lounge, offers his updated take on the cuisines of the Mediterranean.

Transfers to Charlottesville from areas along the East Coast have long wished for a seafood shack like those back home. Public Fish & Oyster is not quite a shack, but it does fit the bill with an ever-changing selection of oysters and clams, along with four different kinds of moules frites.

2013 Beard Award semi-finalist Ian Boden bounced back quickly from the sudden closing of Glass Haus Kitchen last October. Less than two months after opening, Boden’s unassuming Staunton restaurant already won praise from Esquire and the Washington Post. A daily-changing menu regularly lures Charlottesville diners to trek over the mountain for Boden’s latest inspirations.

Charlottesville always seemed a natural fit for food trucks, so their rapid growth is no surprise. Among the latest entries, Southfork has emerged as one of the most popular. With an inexpensive menu of gussied up Southern food, it has pulled off a rare feat in the home of the University of Virginia: won a following among students and locals alike.