The long-running “Virginia is for Lovers” marketing campaign just got a little more flavorful. In early October, the Virginia Restaurant, Lodging & Travel Association (VRLTA) partnered with the Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC) to launch “Virginia is for Restaurant Lovers” to shine a spotlight on the Commonwealth’s 15,000 restaurants and unique food experiences.
“When it comes to Virginia cuisine, our food is as intertwined with history as it is taste,” reads the campaign website. “Virginia is known for its Southern-style fare including oysters, peanuts, barbecue, country ham, blue crabs, trout, apples and Brunswick stew. Virginia offers culinary delights for every palate—from vine-ripened produce picked fresh from the rich fields of the Shenandoah Valley to the sustainably farmed Chesapeake Bay oysters.”
The campaign encourages you to “eat and drink what you love in Virginia,” and included a series of kickoff events such as one held at Rockafeller's Restaurant in Virginia Beach. In addition to promoting the quality and variety of restaurants in Virginia, the VRLTA announced special initiatives to take place in 2020 in association with the “Virginia is for Restaurant Lovers” effort. Those include the promotion of regional restaurant weeks and the Second Annual Crab Cake week in early June.
“From the coast to the mountains, Virginia has some of the finest restaurants anywhere in America,” says Rita McClenny, president of the VTC, which manages the 50-year-old “Virginia is for Lovers” brand, one of the most popular in the country. “‘Virginia is for Restaurant Lovers’ will remind all Virginians about the fantastic food options right in our backyard and how important they are to localities and their citizens.”
Visit Virginia.org/EatDrinkLove for articles, guides, videos and all things Virginia oysters.
Leona Baker
Leona Baker is the former Editor-in-Chief of Coastal Virginia Magazine. She is a writer, creative, communications professional, food freak, news junkie, nature and travel lover and mom. She holds a degree in English from James Madison University and a degree in Dance & Choreography from Virginia Commonwealth University. She previously served as Senior Copywriter for Spark 451, Director of Marketing & Communications at Virginia Wesleyan University, and Senior Editor of Port Folio Weekly.
