It's been years since I first saw a sign for Karubees coming soon to downtown Charleston. After a brief stint in Dunbar, the restaurant has officially opened on Lee Street.



Karubees is a Jamaican restaurant that features menu items like jerk chicken & shrimp, curry chicken & shrimp, goat, oxtail, brown stew, red snapper, salmon, veggies and more. 



"Kerry G. Martin is the owner and founder of Karubees. Kerry's passion for cooking stemmed from his granny where he was basically the assistant in her kitchen. The first job he learned was how to properly clean meat. Since he was raised by his grandparents, he was taught to sew clothes, grow crops, clean, garden, mix cement, gravel, and cook. Ultimately, the goal was to provide the people in the area of Charleston, WV Jamaican food from his new restaurant in town. Kerry was born on the island of Jamaica on the 28th day of June in 1977. When Kerry was 10 years old he left Jamaica and landed in the Bronx, New York, where he grew up from ten until he was twenty-three years old. Kerry's first child was born in 2000 and he left New York in 2001 to move to Charleston, WV. where Kerry later attended West Virginia Junior College. After several years Kerry realized that Charleston, WV was not the city he wanted to live in with his family. Therefore, he decided to move to Columbus, Ohio in 2005. Later attended DeVry University in the Columbus Campus, where he later obtained his Bachelor of Science in Network and Communication Management with a 3.62/4.00. Kerry is a proud father of six wonderful children, whom he adores, and he works hard to take care of."



They offer a variety of combo plates, but I wasn't keen on the cooked cabbage or rice - I wanted to try the meat so I ordered three different sides: jerk shrimp, curry chicken and oxtails. It came out to about $40, which I think was a bit high for three small styrofoam containers. But let's get to the flavor. The jerk shrimp has some HEAT. I thought this would be my favorite, but the spice had my lips tingling. 



Instead, I loved the curry chicken way more than I anticipated. It didn't have the same kind of heat - just a little kick - and the chicken was so tender, it quite literally fell off the bone. Any fat or cartilaginous pieces just melded with the meat to make it moist and flavorful. There were also some veggies mixed in, with a tough of sweetness - so tasty.



Finally, the oxtails. These are the tails of cattle and can have a deep rich flavor - almost like short ribs. The flavorful sauce was my favorite part of my meal. There is a good bit of fat around the oxtails - when I got a bit of meat, it was delicious. Overall, all three of these dishes had some great flavor, and you should see which ones you like best.

Grade: B

When I travel, I like to plan things out. Not just for my sanity, but because it's a way I show love to my friends and family. I like help make things easy and pick things I think people would like. When I planned a trip to Farm Up Table, I was sure it was going to be a crowd-pleaser.



I had tried their food truck in the past, and I enjoyed it. But I had done my research on the place to make sure they had a menu with a variety of things for everyone to enjoy: fried rice balls, crab dip, salads, sandwiches, shrimp & grits, and more. 



After a long day, I was starving, so I started with Nona's Fried Rice Balls, which are parmesan risotto with baby peas surrounding fresh mozzarella rolled in breadcrumbs and fried crunchy. They were served with fresh tomato sauce. 



These were pretty dense - I wouldn't have minded some more creaminess inside. It was a pretty thick bite. But the flavor was there, and those peas were crucial. It was salty and unctuous in the best way.



For my main entree, I went with a muffuletta. It's not an option you see often in West Virginia, so I was super excited to try it. 



It may be an unfair benchmark that the only other traditional one I've had was at the original in New Orleans. First of all, this sandwich was huuuge. And it had the standard components - all of which were tasty! I just think the bread needed a little work; it felt apart and struggled to stand up to the pile of ingredients. I couldn't finish it in one sitting, but I definitely enjoyed leftovers.



Friends enjoy some other offerings - like these fries topped in cheese and a cuban sandwich. Which they enjoyed. 



I finished the meal with banana dessert that was delish.



Have you been?

Grade: B

I've eaten more Gino's Pizza in the last year than I have in my entire life. As I work my way through the various locations, I discovered there is some slight variation - but not a ton, really.  



In Point Pleasant, I placed an order for a small pizza loaded with toppings. If you've read any of my blog posts about pizza, you likely know I'm a mushroom topping-only person. But a friend recently shared a supreme-topping pizza, and it hit my adult tastebuds differently. 



So I ordered a pizza with mushrooms, black olives, onions, banana peppers and sausage. I gotta say - those toppings with a bit sweeter sauce than usual - was a good combo.

Grade: B

You may have seen the Twisted Grille food truck around the area, but did you know they now have a physical location in Barboursville? It's not huge, but there are a handful of tables for indoor dining, as well as TVs if you want to watch the game.



Specializing in breakfast, Mexican dishes, sandwiches, hot dogs, and burgers, the restaurant has a little bit of everything. But I thought it would be fun to be able to try a couple of their specialties in a breakfast burrito - a 10" tortilla stuffed with eggs, cheddar jack cheese and a meat of your choice. I went with the specialty pipeliner, which had sausage, hash browns and country sausage gravy added.



After a little bit of a wait, my burrito was steaming hot and ready to go. It was large and in charge and stuffed full of egg and other tasty bits. This was definitely heavier on the egg that the other components, which was especially evident in the edges where I tended to get a bit bite of tortilla only. Still, lots of melty cheese to bring it all together. Not bad.

Grade: B

While passing through Ansted, I approached Dixie's Drive-In. This drive-in restaurant is named after the owners' late golden retriever. While the name "Dixie" is often associated with the Confederacy, I was happy to see cute drawings of the pup, rather than flags, adorning the building.



When I pulled into a parking space, it seemed like the restaurant was pretty busy - there were lines of people at the ordering and pick-up windows. It didn't appear they were offering carside service, which is a bummer because I think that's part of the charm of a "drive in" restaurant.



But as I approached the window to order, it was clear the restaurant is still "drive in" in concept - with milkshakes, sundaes, cones, and sandwiches, hot dogs, and burgers. I ordered a cookie dough sundae and after a bit of a wait, my number was called and the "Dixie Blast" (aka Blizzard) was in my hands.



They don't skimp, that's for sure. My cup was filled to the brim, and on this hot day, it hit the spot. It was melty before I left the lot, but you can't really go wrong with ice cream. Overall, a nice treat.

Grade: B

There are quite a few Sam's Hot Dog Stand locations in southern West Virginia that serve up steamed buns, all-beef hot dogs, chili and slaw to make the iconic West Virginia hot dog. The most recent Sam's location that I discovered is in Point Pleasant. It's located in a small strip with a few other businesses. I actually didn't go inside, but rather went through the drive through. It was odd, though, that there wasn't a menu posted outside to order from. 



I knew what I wanted anyway - the traditional WV slawdog. The bun was less steamed and more hard. Maybe stale? Maybe a previous toast? Either way, I like the steamed bun, and this one had a bit more slaw than I'd love. Overall, though, still a good version of a slawdog. Flavorful chili, good slaw consistency, not bad.

Grade: B

 
The Vault On Main in Summersville is a new-ish restaurant and wine bar located in a former bank: Nicholas County Bank.



My friend Sara and I went earlier this year to check it out. The building commands quite the presence standing in the middle of town with lovely stonework and giant windows.



The interior of the building is beautiful with iron details, wood accents and marble. They also have the bank vault available, but I did not see the inside, unfortunately. The tables and chairs are basic, but the bank itself is absolutely lovely.



The menu has bank-themed sections like "Stocks & Bonds," and "CEO's Choice." They have salads, a few entrees and sandwiches - depending on the day. 



We went on a weekend where there was a brunch option, but I wasn't to try something with a bit more substance. I was excited to see the special was a cheeseburger meatloaf with mashed potatoes and corn. 



I don't really know what cheeseburger meatloaf is, but I knew I wanted it. The meatloaf had some tasty herbs on top and I loved the onion inside. I would've preferred more seasoning in the meat itself (salt, please!), but the potatoes were well-seasoned, and the corn was fine, too. Overall, a solid meal, and I wouldn't mind trying some more options. What's your favorite thing here?



Grade: B

There's a brand new pizzeria in Kanawha City, and I ordered from them as soon as I saw the "open" light on.



Vinny's Pizzeria, located in MacCorkle Avenue, has pizza, calzones, pasta, subs, salads, wings and burgers. So, they offer a bit more than many other pizza joints in town. I placed an order through GrubHub (they're also on Door Dash and PostMates) for a calzone and spaghetti and meatballs. 



The calzone was pretty decent. It had a lot of filling - including ricotta, which is my favorite topping that not all places have. And plenty of mushrooms. AND, I loved that the ends were just kind of folded over instead of being all wrapped up and twisted, which leads to a large bunch of dough without filling.



The pasta was just okay - I wasn't a fan of the meatballs. I was searching for that homemade herb and spice flavor, which I did not find. But the noodles, sauce and cheese were fine on their own. Straightforward and standard. There was also a few small pieces of garlic bread, which helped soak up some of the sauce.



Grade: B

Burgers & Bites is a new downtown Morgantown restaurant serving standard burgers and some fried sides. 



Located on Walnut Street, Burgers & Bites is a straightforward burger joint without a lot of frills. The space has been a number of businesses in the past, and it's sandwiches among college bars and nightclubs so its hours into the late weekend nights reflect that. 



Inside, there's a counter area and a dozen or so tables with chairs. It's a bit haphazard, but fine. The menu has a "build your own" burger section that includes options for burger (beef, turkey, beyond), cheese (American, cheddar, pepper jack and swiss), and toppings (lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, jalapeno, ketchup, mustard, mayo, bbq, buffalo). Then, there are some extra like sauteed mushrooms or fried egg. 



The other menu items include fried appetizers, wings, tender and ice cream. 



I happened to win a "Free Burger Friday" so my basic burger was free - I added American, tomato, onion, ketchup and mayo to it. And a strawberry milkshake - really, this is a perfect lunch. 



The burger was good - more on the well-done side and a thinner patty. But good! I would love to see some "signature" burgers that the restaurant creates that are especially good combos. There are a lot of good places to get burgers in the area, so it's nice to have something that makes you stand out. 



My friend Lisa also ordered hot pepper cheese balls, and mmm they were good. Overall, a decent burger, a good shake and very tasty hot pepper cheese balls.

Grade: B

The Market Cafe in Wheeling is located downtown in the Centre Market area.



The building is cute, and the interior has some homey vibes with comfy chairs and chalkboard menus. 



The menu features breakfast, soups, salads, sandwiches and coffee drinks. 



On this day, I was looking for a little caffeine fix so I ordered a frappe. 



The one on the menu that captured my attention was the "cotton candy" frappe because while, yes, it does sound super sweet ... I don't think I have ever seen it on a drink menu before? So I wanted to try it. 



It was very cute - but indeed very sweet. And, not sure I got my caffeine fix because the drink was cream-based and I don't know that it actually had any espresso in it. It was more like a milkshake.



Overall, it definitely gave me a bit of a sugar rush, and I applaud the cafe for some unique offerings.

Grade: B