
Donatos is a Columbus-based pizza chain that boats a thin, crispy crust, with edge-to-edge toppings.
"When Jim Grote was 13, he took a job at a Columbus pizza shop. By his sophomore year at The Ohio State University, the pizza business had him hooked for life. Jim bought the shop in 1963 for $1,300. He kept the name, derived from the Latin for "to give a good thing"-the perfect way to describe the Donatos' promise: "To serve the best pizza and make your day a little better."

The chain has over 375 locations in 22 states, including Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Florida and now West Virginia with a location in Parkersburg. I placed an order online and went to the pick up window to retrieve my pizza and meatball sub.

The mini pizza was made with the works: green peppers, onions, pepperoni, mushroom, sausage, smoked romano and provolone. There may have been too many ingredients for this small size, but that's on me. I do wish some of the ingredients, like the peppers, were cut a bit smaller so the flavors of the other ingredients had a chance to shine. The meatball sub was fairly average - a healthy dose of some bold marinara would be my request.

Grade: B

New China in Parkersburg is a Chinese-American restaurant serving up many of the classics: General Tso's chicken, pork fried rice, and the like.

For their crab cheese wontons, they use the folded-over method, which I like. It seems to have more cream cheese inside. I didn't notice much - if any - crab, but I do not mind. I like the fried cream cheese with sweet-and-sour sauce.

The egg roll was pretty run-of-the-mill. It seemed to have a lot of cabbage, and not much else. But that seems to be the norm locally.

For my entrée, I ordered sesame chicken but with white meat chicken. this is my favorite hack when it's available. All the delicious flavor of the sweet and tangy sauce, but over top of white meat chicken. No stringy or gristley pieces. Just fresh, tasty bites of chicken with some zing.

Do you have a favorite Chinese-American menu hack?

Grade: B

Napoli's is a local chain in the Mid-Ohio Valley area serving up pizza, pasta, sandwiches, subs and salads.

I've visited most of these locations - except the South Parkersburg one. It's a fairly large space with wooden floors, tables, chairs. Traditional, but not old-fashioned.

Pasta was on my mind on this particular day - but when is it not. First, though, more carbs. Basic breadsticks. Not real flavoring here, but even boring bread is still bread.

Six-cheese lasagna was calling to me. I have a soft spot for lasagna because it's one of my favorite dishes that my mom makes. As I get older, lasagna isn't as friendly to my tummy. But, sometimes I decide to brave it. Today was the day. I think it was oversauced, overcooked and still, satisfying. There are a lot of little things I would've liked to make this better, but I'm still always going to enjoy sauce, noodles, and cheese. So, was it unique or really delicious? No. Was it still kinda comforting and scratch that itch? Yes.

Grade: B

Wine Down on Market is a wine bar in downtown Parkersburg, which also serves shareable plates, flatbreads, sandwiches and entrees.

I, however, happened to visit when they were serving brunch. It was one of their first ones, and it was honestly a bit chaotic. Despite being the first person in the restaurant, they didn't know if they could seat me without a reservation. But once I was seated at the bar, I had a first-hand view of the stresses of the staff.

Beyond that, though, the space is lovely, sleek and refined. The menu featured challah french toast, lox bagels, avocado toast, eggs benedict, and my choice: the shrimp and grits with bell peppers, andouille sausage, and cajun veloute. The shrimp was a bit on the salty side for me, but I enjoyed the cheesy grits and delicious sauce.

I also ordered a side of candied chocolate bacon, which was not whatI was expecting. It was more like bacon that with haphazard chocolate, but you can't really go wrong with the sweet and salty combo.

Grade: B
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