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Girasole Italian Cuisine - The Plains, VA

Girasole

Authentic Regional Italian Cusine

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Girasole entrance

COVID-19 Operations

We are open for curbside pickup and full-service dining on our patio and indoors! We are offering our full dinner menu and featured chef’s specials. Our featured specials, cocktail, and house made desserts change weekly and are posted every Friday morning. View our wine list here, and our cocktail list here.

Take our pantry home with you! Visit the Pantry section of our website to purchase local, imported, and house made specialties for use in your own home. Order items individually or in a gift basket for yourself, a friend, or a loved one.

We also have the license to sell bottles of wine and we are doing so at competitive retail pricing. Receive a 10% discount on pre-ordered cases of 12 bottles or more. Cases can be mixed.

Reservations

Due to a limited number of tables inside and on our patio, reservations are recommended. We will be taking credit card numbers with your reservation. We have a 24-hour cancellation policy, after that time you will be charged $25 per person if we cannot fill your reservation. Reservations can be made by calling the restaurant at 540-253-5501.

We encourage you to look over our menus on our website to familiarize yourself before you arrive. Please remember that the Commonwealth of Virginia now requires that people wear cloth face coverings when spending time in indoor public settings. If you are seated on our patio, you must wear a mask to enter the restaurant for any reason, this includes using the restroom and visiting the host stand when you arrive. No one with a fever or symptoms of COVID-19, or known exposure to a COVID-19 case in the prior 14 days, is permitted on the patio or in the restaurant.

Dining with Us

We take the laws, regulations, and recommendations set forth by the CDC and governor of Virginia very seriously. This means that we will be implementing several new policies in order to serve you safely and confidently. Please respect the guidelines set in place so we can continue to serve you.

  • Guests are required by the Commonwealth of Virginia to wear masks when spending time in indoor public spaces. Masks may be removed indoors “while eating or drinking”. If you do not have a mask when you arrive, we have sunflower masks for purchase for $10.
  • All our staff will be wearing masks at all times, practicing physical distancing, and washing their hands as much as possible.
  • Hand sanitation stations will be setup near the entrance/exits of the restaurant and near the restrooms for your convenience.
  • All tables are spaced out in accordance with physical distance mandates on our patio and indoors. Please do not move the tables. We will try to accommodate any table requests as best we can, but not all requests can be met.
  • Table settings will no longer have wine glasses on them. Glasses will be brought once wine has been ordered.
  • We will no longer be offering refillable water from a pitcher. Still and sparkling water can be purchased by the bottle.
  • Grated parmigiano will no longer be offered tableside. We will bring to the table your own individual bowl from which to serve yourself.

We will be following policies that we set in place right before the shutdown. Tables, booths, chairs, salt and pepper shakers, bread baskets, check books, and anything else that we and you come into contact with will be disinfected thoroughly and often. We only ask your patience, as all these steps will take longer, but we believe they are necessary in maintaining the health of our customers, staff, and their families.

How to Place an Order for Curbside Pick Up

Please call to place an order at 540-253-5501. Have your credit card number ready when you call. When you arrive to pick up your order, park you car in the front of the restaurant (along Loudoun Avenue) and call us to let us know you have arrived and we will bring it out to you. If you are picking up to take your meal home, please have your window down or your trunk open and we will place the order in your car.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, and for choosing to dine with us whether it be on our patio, in our dining room, or in your own home. Our aim is to provide as much of the familiarity and comfort of dining with us, while keeping our customers, staff, and their families healthy.

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Oct 20

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A belated happy anniversary to these two! 

Lou and Lydia met at the culinary institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, which they both attended, and married shortly after graduating. They then pursued careers as professional chefs in Pennsylvania, Iowa, and eventually Washington DC where Lydia moved to front of house management and Lou remained in the kitchen. Their first restaurant, Panino, located in Manassas, opened its doors in 1991, with Girasole to follow in 2004. Which by the way also celebrates its 22nd anniversary later this month!
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Oct 1

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Just one of the inspired dishes that will be served Sunday, October 11 at our @venica.venica Friuli Wine Dinner! Hosted by visionary winemaker and fourth generation of Venica & Venica, @giampaolovenica. Call to reserve, 540-253-5501. Find out more at the link in our bio. 
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📸 Polpette di Coda alla Vaccinara: braised oxtail lightly fried, served with a salsa verde. A dish prepared by Chef Lou not to reflect the traditional food of the region but rather to complement and celebrate Friulian winemaking at its finest. Paired with Venica & Venica's Malvasia 'Petris', a grape grown by the Greeks that can be dated back in the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia to the 13th century Venetian Republic. Venica's Malvasia is a wine of strong mineral character and long aromatic persistence, and a wonderful introduction of the whites of Venica and the terroir of Collio. Now being served by the glass leading up to the dinner.
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Sep 27

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On Sunday, October 11th, join us for an extraordinary evening with visionary Friulian winemaker and fourth generation of Venica & Venica, Giampaolo Venica. Each course has been thoughtfully created by Chef Lou to compliment and celebrate Friulian winemaking at its finest, and to transport you to the hills of Collio in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, where Venica & Venica is nestled between the city of Udine and Slovenia. Giampaolo will be our host for this intimate gathering, as he shares his family’s story through each glass, one of biodynamic principles and minimal intervention, allowing the unique terroir of Collio to shine with vibrant honesty and purity, and resulting in some of Italy’s most unforgettable wines!
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Sunday, October 11th at 6:30pm
Venica & Venica Friulian wine dinner, hosted by @giampaolovenica of @venica.venica. Call to reserve, 540-253-5501. Discover more at the link in our bio.
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Sep 2

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As big, juicy heirloom tomato season is winding down, the cherry tomatoes are still abundant in Chef Lou's garden in very back of our parking area! 

📸Tomatoes from our garden tossed with a shallot vinaigrette, with Cetara anchovy and local micro greens. Simple, beautiful, and most importantly, delicious. On our featured specials tonight. We can't wait to see you.
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Aug 26

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Inspired dishes prepared by Chef Lou to be enjoyed amidst Lydia's gorgeous garden on the most beautiful day!

Black sea bass pan sautéed with chanterelle mushrooms, on our featured specials tonight.
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Aug 12

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All of these things are great on their own, but become quite exceptional when paired together! And somehow, they get even better when enjoyed on our patio! We open at 4:30, we hope to see you. 
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📸 Heirloom tomatoes from Chef Lou's garden, with an olive caponata

📸 Lydia's favorite Summer rosés, currently offered by the glass. @gdvajra_barolo 'Rosabella' from Piedmont, Italy, @dalmasovini Tai Rosso from Veneto, Italy, and @rsvnapa Vin Gris of Pinot Noir from Los Carneros, California
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Aug 6

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Sun dried Calabrian figs, Sicilian brandied orange, and Pecorino Fiore Sardo, an ancient Sardinian sheep’s milk cheese lightly smoked with the bark of the cork tree. Intense, rich and complex, with a slight sharpness, and available on our featured specials tonight💫
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Jul 30

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Chef Lou's bread, constantly changing, constantly evolving. A recipe developed over 30 years ago at his and Lydia's first restaurant, Panino in Manassas, with some recipe tinkering and adjustments along the way, and more recently some experimentation with locally milled flours. A labor of love for Chef Lou, and a visit to Girasole would not be complete without a warm basket of his freshly made bread on the table.
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Jul 16

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BIG things have arrived at Girasole! #bisteccafiorentina 

An approximately 2 lb grass fed porterhouse steak from @longstonefarm pan seared with herbs, salt, and pepper until medium rare, finished with La Lupinella extra virgin olive oil, on our featured specials tonight!
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Jul 2

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Cool thoughts and cool dishes on these blazing hot days leading us into the holiday weekend! 

We will be CLOSED Saturday and Sunday, July 4 and 5, but you can join us this evening or tomorrow, Friday, July 3 for dinner in our beautifully air conditioned dining room!
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📸 Radicchio tossed with a passion fruit vinaigrette, hazelnuts

📸 Fennel sliced thinly with melon tossed with a citrus vinaigrette, roasted pistachios, and basil

📸 Squash blossoms from our garden stuffed with ricotta and sun-dried tomato, lightly fried tempura
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Jun 10

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Just a few of the regionally inspired dishes that will be served this Friday, June 12 at our Veneto and Le Marche Wine Dinner! Hosted by the wonderful @diletta_tonello, owner and winemaker at @tonellowines in the Veneto, and Riccardo Baldi, owner and winemaker at @lastaffaofficial in Le Marche. Call to reserve, 540-253-5501. Find out more under at the link in our bio. 
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📸 Olive all'Ascolane, olives stuffed with meat and lightly fried. A dish found in only two places in the world, in the city of Ascoli Piceno in Le Marche where it originated, and at Girasole in The Plains, VA😂 Due to Lydia's family's origins in Le Marche, we cherish this dish and take great pride in sharing a bit of our family history with you. 

📸 Bruschetta with seared Cotechino, a pork sausage from Modena, with salsa verde, drizzled with aged balsamic

📸 Diver scallops pan seared served with a pistachio and parsley salad, beurre blanc
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Jun 3

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Verdicchio from the sun-kissed, wind-swept hills of Castelli di Jesi isn’t just a white wine—it’s a shape-shifter with serious staying power. And one of the winemakers at the helm, stretching the boundaries of what we once knew as Verdicchio, is also one of its youngest, Riccardo Baldi of La Staffa. In all of its forms, sparkling, still, and aged, Baldi has revitalized Verdicchio in the region of Le Marche, the only land where it can always give its best, to reveal a wine with many faces.

Join us Friday, June 12 to discover Riccardo's dedication and youthful enthusiasm for his region's native Verdicchio, and our love for the beautiful but lesser travelled region where it grows, Le Marche. Lydia's grandparents emigrated from a town only a few hilltops from La Staffa, and we are excited to share with you Verdicchio, known to wine critics and winemakers as 'arguably Italy's greatest white grape variety' and 'the king of white wine', and the cuisine that compliments it. The dinner will also be hosted by and feature the wines of Diletta Tonello of Cantina Tonello in the Veneto.

In anticipation of the dinner, you can taste Riccardo's Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore by the glass. Showing zippy flavors of green apple, almond skin, and a light herbaceousness, this is a true beauty and a lovely introduction to Verdicchio. You can also enjoy a bottle of old vine Verdicchio with Riccardo's Riserva 'Rincrocca', aged a minimum of 3 years in cement and in bottle.
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Friday, June 12th at 6:30pm
Veneto and Le Marche wine dinner, hosted by @_maisentito_ of @lastaffaofficial, and @diletta_tonello of @tonellowines. Call to reserve, 540-253-5501. Discover more at the link in our bio.
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Girasole Italian Cuisine - The Plains, VA

(540) 253-5501
4244 Loudoun Avenue
The Plains, VA 20198
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Hours

Monday & Tuesday: Closed

Wednesday – Sunday: 4:30pm with the last seating at 8:30pm

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