One of my absolute favorite restaurants in West Virginia, Cafe Cimino, shuttered when the owners retired. The location, though, has a new start as Elk River Hotel & Cafe.



The historic home that now houses Elk River Hotel & Cafe remains stunning - stately, beautifully manicured, yet cozy. They have added a modern twist: geodesic domes.



"Transport yourself in our fully restored historic mansion built-in 1898. All 3 stories in the main house and the carriage house, 12 guest rooms, 4 Glamping Domes (Coming Soon) 3 dining rooms, Cafe (Open Tuesday through Saturday 4PM to 9PM), Bar service in the Café, natural gas fireplaces, outside kitchen, carriage home, outdoor covered patio, and bar are here to offer you a memory-filled vacation," according to the website.



I visited one evening while they had dinner service in one of the domes. I was very excited to check it out. I've never been in one of these domes - let alone eaten in one. It was the perfect time of day – still light out, but approaching dusk. So, it was a bit cool, which was nice, because I can see it getting quite warm in the warmer months.



Inside, it was almost set up like an event space. There were plastic folding chairs, but lovely white tablecloths. There was a really cool modern light fixture dangling from the ceiling.



The menu offers, pizza, calzones, salads, sandwiches, pasta and dinner entrées. I immediately was drawn to the pastas, because it's one of my favorite foods. Though, the bison burger and the rainbow trout were tempting.



The winner for me was the creamy portobello pasta with linguine. They do have a lot of portobello mushrooms in their menu, but that is good news for me. I added some shrimp for some protein, but you can also opt for salmon, meatballs or chicken.



This was a pretty tasty dinner in a really cool setting overlooking the Elk River. it was thick and creamy and comforting. I do wish I would have thought to add something acidic to kind of cut through all of the fattiness but, it was delicious in small doses, and I took the remainder home.



There aren't many opportunities to dine in a setting like this, so it is certainly one of the most unique places to eat in West Virginia.



Have you been?



Grade: A

When asked what my favorite West Virginia restaurant is, I would always reply: Cafe Cimino. However, the owners have now retired, with just occasional special events scheduled at the restaurant.



But Tim and Melody don't really slow down. While they're not operating the restaurant daily, they do still hawk some delicious baked goods at local farmers markets under the moniker Bop & Nana's Bakery.



I planned a trip recently to the Sutton Farmers Market to get my hands on some. Melody set aside one of their delicious pepperoni rolls, a muffin and a scone so I could get a little sampler pack.



The pepperoni roll is pretty traditional, but every element is executed perfectly. The bread is delicious, but not too thick. The pepperoni is perfectly rolled up, and those spices soak throughout the whole roll. Delish.



The muffin and scone were both also tasty! 



I need to make sure I grab a loaf of their focaccia next time. 



If you haven't been, you should totally check it out.



There are other vendors, as well, including a stand that serves up hot dogs and coffee! 

For me, Sutton is rarely a destination but rather a drive-through location. But when I found myself driving through and starving - but wanting to find a local restaurant - I made a stop at Luzaders 3 Girls Diner. 



This diner - named after the husband, wife and two daughters - is located right off the exit in a mixed-use building. Simply go to the last door on the right side of the building and you'll enter the ground-level restaurant.



Inside, it kind of looks like an old-school banquet hall. It's one large room with a bunch of tables, and there were three older couples eating silently. The entire restaurant was very, very quiet. 



I had found a menu online and put in a pick-up order to be ready by the time I arrived. The menu features breakfast all day and homestyle dishes. I ordered the hot turkey dinner with sides of potato salad and macaroni & cheese. 



The turkey was tender, with a few fatty pieces, but it was more dark meat and saturated in gravy. The mac & cheese was my favorite part of the meal - it had some extra ooey gooey cheese that kicked it up a notch. The potato salad had some good flavor, though it was bit more watery than I love. 



The mashed potatoes were homemade with a dark gravy - I would've loved a lighter gravy, but not bad nonetheless.



And, finally, the whole meal came with rolls and butter. Overall, it was a decent meal to fill your belly.

Grade: C

On one of my many adventures to the southern part of the state, I began to get hungry (hangry) at the midpoint: Braxton County. Luckily for me, PJ Berry's, located in Sutton, made its way onto the 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in WV list - making it a priority for me to try.

I called in an order of their crab cakes. The lunch portion is truly an appetizer, but the lady asked if I wanted a dinner-size portion, and I said ... well heck yes! I walked in to pick up my order, and the place is quite cute. I liked the low lighting and open feel.

The crab cakes were pretty good. After being spoiled with some good crab cakes lately, I was searching for that bit of golden brown crust on the outside to give it a crisp. Instead, the texture was a bit more mushy - but that didn't inhibit the big hunks of tender crab meat and the incredible flavor. Pretty good.

Grade: B

Cafe Cimino is a real hidden gem.

It's a little out of the way. I don't usually have a reason to stop in the Sutton area; I'm often only passing through. But, Sutton was a destination recently, as Vicki and I attended the Fiesta tent sale. And, of course, we decided to treat ourselves to a great dinner. Lots of big life changes - in the best possible way - deserve to be celebrated.

And celebrate, we did.

The GPS took me through town, and at the end of the street just stood this massive house with a wraparound porch. We arrived a little early and toured the property. A few helpful staff members were more than happy to take us around and give us some history of the bed and breakfast.

I had made reservations the week prior, and when we went inside, a small placecard with my name sat atop our table. It was already exciting - a warm, but elegant dining room with fresh flowers, white linens and hardwood floors right in the front of the building made for a welcoming feel.

We started out with some wine. I had an Albarino, which was excellent. Shortly after our waters and wines, we received an aperitif made of club soda, bitters and apple cider. It was so cool and refreshing. I was thinking cider would be heavy, warm and fall-like. But this was crisp and a little zesty with the orange. Awesome.

We were first started off with a little gift from the chef. It was an endive heart with local heirloom tomatoes, some cheese shavings in a light reduction. Crunchy, light and cool.

Our waitress was incredibly knowledgeable and rattled off an amazing list of special appetizers for the day. One that caught our attention was their antipasto platter. It had just about all of the listed appetizers in one dish, so we went with that.

Dear god, this set the bar real, real high. Just look at that photo.

Toasted bread, grapes, two kinds of olives, roasted red pepper, gouda, goat cheese, roasted eggplant, caprese salad (with green, red and yellow tomato and fresh mozzarella), pickled carrots, pickled fennel, hard-boiled egg and shrimp. And this was a huge platter. We devoured the entire thing. Everything was incredible - even the fennel, which I tend to not gravitate toward in the dried format, was awesome. It was pleasant. More like an artichoke, more mild in flavor.

Then, we moved on to our next course of the night - salad. I have low expectation when it comes to salads, because most places throw a bad of shredded iceberg and two cherry tomatoes together and call it a meal. Not the case here. Not at all.

Nice quarters of local red, yellow and green striped tomatoes topped with kalamata olives, crumbles of feta and some balsamic vinaigrette. My mouth is watering reliving this moment. It was so good. So fresh. So perfect.

Then, a palate cleanser before our main meals: cucumber, mascarpone and strawberry. Simple, but refreshing.

My main entree was one of their specials - mushroom gnocchi. The flavors were not as vibrant as the previous dishes, so maybe my palate was a bit off. But it was definitely more understated. Gnocchi was getting a little mushy, but maybe I'm splitting hairs at this point because the appetizer and salad were amazing. Just more mild in flavor.






Vicki had the shrimp and grits, which she loved.






Oh, and there was bread and olive oil with our main courses!





For dessert, I ordered this toffee spice cake with vanilla ice cream. It was to die for. The cake had absorbed this toffee, so it was super moist and just full of sweet deliciousness. And it was just swimming in this pool of caramel, while my ice cream sat off to the side. I mean, I'm not sure I could've created a better dessert if I wanted.



On top of all of that amazing food, we were sent out a petit four of homemade dark chocolate.


I couldn't have asked for better service - from them showing us around the property when we first arrived, to the duration of our dinner with a super accommodating server, to meeting the owner. Everyone truly worked hard to make an incredible dining experience. And they really did. Plus the food - local, so fresh and creative. And the just overall genuine attention to how a meal progresses. One of the best meals in West Virginia I've ever had.

Grade: A