At Bia Kitchen in downtown Purcellville, the tile was painted by hand, just north of Valencia, Spain. The bar top? It hails from Italy’s Amalfi Coast. The antique glass was all brought in from Germany, says chef and co-owner Shane O’Connor. He himself hails from Ireland. But the food at his restaurant, which opened in April, almost uniformly comes to the Loudoun County kitchen from less than 30 miles away.
One exception is the wheat, grown in southern Virginia. But O’Connor and his team mill their grains in-house for a variety of breads. “In 30 to 45 minutes, we can have a whole bucket of flour,” says the chef. “It’s actually working really well.” Those breads are augmented by loaves that are made to O’Connor’s specifications by Lyon Bakery in Maryland. It’s worth it to spring for the bread basket, filled with everything from the kitchen’s hearty whole-grain slices to thick-crusted French baguettes, all served with a swirl of soft butter and a tiny bowl of light-colored local honey.
Bia, which is Irish Gaelic for “food,” has an upstairs-downstairs separation, but privation isn’t a part of the meal wherever you sit. Upstairs, diners sit down for a tasting menu that changes every week. Downstairs, a menu of small plates also flexes with the seasons, with a complete overhaul about six times a year. The cuisine on both floors, says O’Connor, is a “European bistro concept,” but the regions he covers will change based on available produce.
An early menu, for example, relied heavily on small game, including a mixed grill that combined ideally rendered, grilled pork belly with lightly charred pheasant sausage and ultra-crispy halves of a quail. This summer, dishes will lean more southwestern Europe. In the winter, O’Connor plans to serve more Scandinavian-style dishes. It’s a taste of a faraway place, prepared with ingredients from the restaurant’s neighbors. 108 N. 21st St., Purcellville
Feature image by Rey Lopez
This story originally ran in our August issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to our monthly magazine.
