Sip Downtown Brasserie has existed in a few different incarnations, and the most recent location change I hope is the final version because this place has nailed it. 



The wine and whiskey bar has expanded from a small space to a large, gorgeous restaurant with an inventive menu and an impeccable whiskey and wine list. 



To start off my evening, I ordered a sweet white wine flight. 



The Sweet Tooth consists of Bornos - Frizzante Verdejo (Rueda, Spain), Fritz Zimmer - Riesling (Mosel, Germany), Vietti - Moscato D'Asti (Piedmont, Italy). 



They are light and sweet and floral and very fruity. If you want your wine to be nearly as sweet as your apple juice, this is the one for you. I like sweet, so this was perfect. But depending on my mood - and meal - I go for a more dry white or red. 



First up was a cheese board. Dawn and I both got one with all the different cheeses so we could try it all (or maybe because I really wanted to try it all and Dawn is a good sport). Along with a selection of crackers, nuts, cornichons, toast and dried fruit, we sampled these cheeses:



- Mahon Reserva (Spain) Firm & slightly sharp with a paprika and oil flavored rind, made from cow's milk
- Manchego (La Mancha, Spain) A popular Spanish cheese, made from sheep's milk with a firm texture
- Beemster Extra Aged Gouda (Northern Holland) Cow's milk cheese, aged 18 months
- Whiskey Cheddar (Ireland) Kerrygold aged cheddar with Irish whiskey, made from cow's milk
- Dorothea (Holland) A unique and creamy goat gouda with basil oil and potato skins Mountain
- Gorgonzola (Italy) Delightful cow's milk blue cheese with a gentle sharpness



I could seriously live on plates like this. If I stopped here, I would've been in heaven still. But, it did get better. I ordered the housemade crab cakes (two 4 oz) with blanched asparagus and creamy sriracha remoulade sauce. 



It's a smaller portion, but it's worth it to me. Better quality ingredients and higher-end dishes with attention to flavor and detail are far more attractive to me than a giant portion of something that's just OK. This was great.



And to finish off the meal, I ordered a caramel popcorn cotton candy. How often do you get to have cotton candy?! And at a restaurant? Never. What a lovely, novel treat. 

If you're looking for a good whiskey and wine list, an upscale environment and delish food, you've come to the right place.

Grade: A

Forgive me for not getting a photo of the outside of the building - because it's one of those places that you've probably driven by in Parkersburg but may have not set food inside. George's Place is located near the mall in Parkersburg and is a family-friendly bar that features some Mediterranean dishes. 



The interior looked pretty standard for a bar & grill, though I was only inside for a few minutes to pick up my to-go order. Let's dive in, shall we? We are starting with grape leaves stuffed with rice and ground beef and served with a side of yogurt. Grape leaves definitely have a bit of a sour flavor that I have come to love - but paired with that yogurt? Delish.



Then, I went to another extreme for dinner - stuffed shells. But first, a quick salad with fresh spring greens, cut tomatoes and red onion. Solid for a complimentary salad.



And then there is some garlic bread that was a bit sad, but it tasted fine nonetheless. 



Now, the entree. This was a bit different from what I am used to. The shells were stuffed with chicken, veggies, tomatoes, onion, mozzarella and marinara. I typically have some sort of ricotta and mozzarella mixture inside, but this was okay. I would've loved some more punches of flavor - maybe something like fresh herbs and getting that creaminess from the cheese. Still a decent dish for a bit different take on it.

Grade: B

Located in Sissonville, Backwoods Bar & Grill is a restaurant that has been struggling a bit during the quarantine, so I made a visit to check them out.



After placing an order over the phone, I arrived, gave them a call, and they brought out my food. First up is a monte cristo. It's not an open that you see often in restaurants locally, so it's a different option. The deep-fried ham and cheese has crusted powdered sugar and a very thick breading - a bit too much.



It came with fries, but those were a bit soggy by the time I got home. Not their fault, but maybe poking a few holes in the styrofoam would help.



Next up on the deep-fried menu was deviled eggs. I've never seen them prepared like this before, so that was neat. I like mine a good bit tangier though.



And my absolute favorite part was their take on a buffalo chicken dip. Just a little bit of heat - but creamy and cheesy and really great.

Grade: B

Davis' Place is more of a bar than grill, in my opinion, but nonetheless, I've heard good things about the food so when I found myself in Huntington recently, I put in a to-go order.



The menu has fried appetizers, soups, salads, burgers, sandwiches and wraps.



Because it's a bar, I figured wings would be a great way to go. So I ordered boneless BBQ, as well as an order of "fried cheese" - but that has now been replaced with regular mozzarella sticks.



The wings were okay. The sauce didn't have enough flavor for my liking - but not bad. The mozzarella sticks were okay, too. Package marinara and standard taste.


Grade: C

The Cold Spot is a wing & beer spot with three locations in West Virginia.

There's one in Charleston, one in Glen Jean and one in Nitro. The last is the only one I hadn't been to, so I gathered up some of my friends to go check it out.


It's a bit rough around the edges - with some awkward parking and a convenience store looking as though it's the entrance - but once inside, it's like any other bar and grill.

They are known for their wings, so my eyes went directly to that section.

Of course, there are spicy sauces like "toxic." But I went with 6 boneless "BBQ gold" and six boneless "Sweet BBQ."

Now, usually a "sweet BBQ" is a safe choice. But this one was just OK - their sweet bbq sauce doesn't have a ton of flavor to me.

But the BBQ gold was fantastic.

It had some sweetness and some tang. Definitely a keeper.

Oh, and the giant beers don't hurt. What's your favorite wing flavor here?
 

The Pallet Bar is a craft beer bar in Scott Depot.

With a huge variety of beer on draft, this bar also has a great selection of cans and bottles, too.

My friend Kinsey and I tried the seasonal pumpkin beer - Saranac - and then I got the very last of a tasty blueberry beer from Sea Dog Brewing Company.

And there are "pallet" cleansers. How cute is that?

I had little pakoras (with blue cheese because they were out of tamarind) and pierogies.

So tasty. Have you been?

Pastimes is a bar on the West Side that recently had their menu redone by Kayleigh Philips.

The fun doodles caught my attention so I headed over there to check it out.

The menu is small but has classic bar fare. On this day, the fryer was down so were limited on availability. 

I went with two hot dogs with chili, slaw, mustard and onions.

This was definitely a unique take on a hot dog. Have you been?

Beanders is a well-known bar and grill in Elkins.

I was excited to finally make my way here.

I seated myself and looked over the menu. 

Burgers, sandwiches, salads, steaks, pasta - even Mexican!




I settled on something simple: BUFFALO CRACK ~ HOT BUFFALO RANCH CHICKEN DIP. It's served with Chips, Carrots & Celery. I love the "Caution: This stuff is addictive."

What's your favorite item here?