Hall of Fame: Joe’s Inn

First Place: Don’t Look Back

2929 W. Cary St.
353-8226
dontlookback.co

Second Place: Metro Diner

Third Place: Chicken Fiesta

A plate of spaghetti a la Joe can feed a family — or a couple who doesn’t mind a lot of leftovers. This Richmond stalwart established a permanent base for its Fan neighbors in 1952. How did Don’t Look Back start? With a little luck. Its co-owner, Hamooda Shami, wanted to start a Mexican restaurant across from his New York Deli in Carytown. It just so happened that Nate Gutierrez of Nate’s Taco Truck fame was planning to close his takeout spot on Second Street. “I had friends tell me, if you’re going to go with Mexican, you need to try Nate’s tacos,” Shami says. “I realized I needed to get this guy to be a partner. I was so nervous, it was like being a teenager and asking for digits.”