By Bob Tagert

We decided to head to Virginia Beach, Virginia, for the March Road Trip trek and to “kill two birds with one stone” so to speak. We needed to meet with Tom Mooney, Jr.- Murphy’s Irish Pub – in Virginia Beach to interview him for the March “Personality Profile”. We decided to head out on February 18th for the two-day trip. The 200-mile drive down went pretty much like you would think when I-95 is involved – construction that added an additional 40 minutes – and having to navigate two bridge tunnels around Norfolk added another extra half hour. We did check the weather before we left so were aware of the snowstorm that was going to blow through the area later in the week but remained a bit skeptical as to the 18” snow forecast for VB. As it turns out, the city took the warning seriously and advised businesses and attractions to close until the storm passed. This put a HUGE damper on our “best laid plans” of visiting the aquarium and the museums and taking a dolphin watching boat ride. Obviously, we had to switch gears and treat this trip like an extended snow day adventure.

Arriving at Ocean Sands Resort – after a four-and-a-half-hour drive – we checked into our room and upon the recommendation of the front desk attendant, went straightaway to one of the only eateries on the strip that remained open – Waterman’s Surfside Grill at the south end of town. About seven years ago we had written about Virginia Beach and Waterman’s was one of our best memories so we needed to recreate that moment. While it is not unusual for many beach front businesses to close during the winter snow storm or not, Waterman’s is one of those who stays open year-round. Pulling into the small parking lot, we hoped to find a spot, but alas, we were greeted by a valet parker. We arrived half way through Happy Hour and since it was one of the only games in town, needless to say, the place was hopping. We swiftly stepped out of the cold windy night and into the crowded bar. We were lucky, right before us were two empty seats at the bar, which we quickly commandeered. The place was rocking as we settled in and ordered our drinks.

Waterman’s dates back to the 1960’s. Renovations and upgrades were made in 1981 and again in 1996. In early 2007, the building was expanded and a new concept emerged…Waterman’s Surfside Grille. While Waterman’s is known for its ocean-minded fare, it is also the beginning of a craze…the Orange Crush. Waterman’s brought this popular cocktail and its original recipe to the shores of the Virginia Beach oceanfront, quickly springboarding it to a cult-like following and creating the term, “Crush Lover.” In keeping with the craze, Lani ordered the “skinny ruby aka grapefruit” version and was quite happy with herself. While glancing at the cocktail menu something caught my eye…Copper Fox rye whiskey. For those of you who regularly read the Old Town Crier you know that Copper Fox is a long-time advertiser of ours as well as good friends. The Copper Fox Old Fashioned was so good I had to have two.

The menu here is impressive and everything we saw dropped off to guests around us looked very tasty. After splitting a half pound of spiced shrimp, I ordered the fried butterflied jumbo shrimp and Lani ordered the blackened flounder (fish of the day). Both were excellent and substantial in size.

As Waterman’s closes at 10 pm, we headed back to the north end of town to Murphy’s Irish Pub for a night cap. On the drive to 30^th Street, we noticed that the wind had begun to really pick up. Murphy’s is a place that stays open after midnight and it was hopping. We grabbed a couple of seats at a high top adjacent to the bar in the main room…turns out there was an annual Firemen’s convention in town…it was rocking. The main room is cozy with a long bar bordering one wall, a performing stage and a huge four-sided fireplace (a larger version of the one in our Old Town Murphy’s) in the center of the room. On this cold night, the heat felt good. We later returned to our room and turned on the Weather Channel. There was Jim Cantore broadcasting from Virginia Beach…not a good sign.

The next morning before the major snow was forecast to start coming down, we decided to find a place for a late breakfast. After cruising up and down both Atlantic and Pacific Avenues, we finally found an open sign at Waffles & Company. We were the only folks in the restaurant and were warmly greeted by owner Manny Magriplis. The breakfast was what you would expect…two eggs over easy with a sausage patty and home fries, expertly cooked by Manny’s wife. Lani enjoyed the French Toast and a side of bacon, also very good.

After our 2 plus hour breakfast and a fun visit with Manny, we took another drive down Atlantic Avenue and saw that Waterman’s Spirits had an open sign. This establishment is owned by a member of the same family as the restaurant. Waterman’s Spirits distills a full line of custom flavored vodkas and are the same ones that are served at the Grille. We spent a couple of hours talking to Lonnie Maines, the distiller and General Manager and his wife Mariah Standing, the Owner. We sampled several of their concoctions – like a wine tasting – and found them all very smooth. In fact, we purchased a bottle of their original version to bring home. This store is worth stopping in even if you aren’t a big vodka drinker. The merchandise alone is worth it for sure.

We returned to our room to turn on the television and check in with Jim Cantore. There he was, big as life a couple of blocks away from us, pontificating on what was to come. As early afternoon went by, the north wind increased substantially as the temperatures continued to drop. The snow began in earnest around 2:30 or so and the ground (beach) was quickly turning white.

We left for our 3 pm meeting with Tom as the wind whipped the snow around. Luckily, we were parked in a garage so no snow on the truck at that point. That would soon change.

We joined Tom and Ann at a round table to talk. The interview commenced for about an hour and then we just relived old times. Tom treated us to a dozen of the Back Creek Beauty oysters from his oyster farm. We then ordered dinner. I enjoyed their hearty Shepherd’s Pie with enough left over for the next day. Both Tom and Lani ordered the special of the day, Filet Mignon. Good choice on their part for sure.

Tom and Ann left and Lani and I stepped up to two seats at the bar for a couple libations before heading back into the storm. When we got back outside I had about six inches of snow on my truck. I grabbed my broom and cleaned it off to drive back to the hotel. It is about this time that we decided to extend our stay for one more day and leave on Friday after the storm cleared.

The Ocean Sands wasn’t exactly “all that” so we checked out of there and checked in to a very nice Holiday Inn Express closer to Murphy’s where we knew we would be spending our Snow Day!

As we pulled out onto Atlantic Avenue, it was thick with ice and snow. Va Beach is NOT prepared for snow in the quantities that were coming down. Streets weren’t treated and it appeared that front end loaders are the only method of snow removal. We settled in to our room for the day and watched the snow pile up and drift as the palm trees lining the beach leaned on their sides. We had skipped breakfast so decided to see if we could find a restaurant close for lunch. After a brief Google search, Lani found Las Palmas a few blocks away, made a phone call to see if they were open and voila! Turns out it was a really good choice. Amazing margaritas and hands down the best pork chile verde she has had since moving to the DMV in 1992.

Lani walked through the snow from Las Palmas to Murphy’s as I drove. She got there almost as fast as I did. Remember, the road conditions were sketchy. We spent the rest of the day swapping snow day stories, making snow angels, and listening to some good music and keeping track of the precipitation on The Weather Channel.

After checking the road conditions and a great complimentary breakfast, we checked out and headed out of town with a brief stop to take the prerequisite photo of Neptune on the beach. It had warmed up substantially and the roads had melted significantly.

It was smooth sailing home – no hold up at either tunnel and we got off of I-95 and on to Route 1 when it started backing up.

We did make a side stop at Copper Fox Distillery in Williamsburg to say hello to Rick Wasmund and his Williamsburg crew. The distillery is located right off of I-64 so it was an easy off/easy on endeavor. Had a nice surprise when we walked in and ran in to one of our very favorite CF people, the very creative Gabby was on the property preparing to video a big event that was taking place that night. Got to visit briefly with Rick and have a beverage before we hit the road back to Old Town.