One of my favorite local bakeries in recent memory has closed.



I visited Busy Bee Bakery in Beckley a few months ago and was greeted with happy customers wrapped around the building and a long wait to order.



And that's part of what led to their decision to close. In a Facebook post, the owners noted how all-consuming the bakery became. And that, coupled with some loss and health issues, have led to the end of this chapter.



The bakery itself had beautiful floor to ceiling windows, and the farmhouse chic interior gave way to a bright pastry case full of cupcakes, donuts, cheesecakes and bagels, too.



The creative flavors and attention to detail are really what made me light up at Busy Bee Bakery.



The cupcakes included flavors like "Death By Chocolate with Ferraro Rocher" and "Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla."



Then there was also "Chocolate Caramel with Mini Milky Ways" and Key Lime Pie.



There was cotton candy and blueberry coconut cream and the list goes on and on and on.



I went with Banana Nut Crunch, Strawberry Crunch Bar Ice Cream and Honeycomb Lavender. I thought these were unique flavors that you don't see everywhere, so I was excited to try them.



They each had a good cake base and tons of frosting, and my favorite part was the lovely toppers - a dried banana chip, honeycomb and scooter crunchies. Fun and full of sugar.



I also took a piece of turtle cheesecake home. You wanna talk about indulgent? My gooooodness. Creamy and silky and unreal.



But, wait, there's more: bagels! I didn't eat this on the spot. Instead, I took it home for breakfast the next morning.



But, it's like a feast for the eyes - how fun to see this brightly colored bagel in all shades of the rainbow.



If you had a chance to check it out while they were open, let me know your favorites!



Grade: A

These home-based charcuterie businesses are popping up around the state - and I am so happy about it. We've tried one in Morgantown and one in Charleston, and now, there's Gourmet Grazing in Beckley.



There are a variety of different kinds of charcuterie boards you can order, depending on how many folks you plan to feed. For a small portion, I ordered a 6x6 and when asked if there were any specifications, I just asked for no dark chocolate (bleh) - which is so nice! Since she prompted me, I felt like I wasn't being a pain. 



Typically, they deliver, but since I was just driving through town, I picked it up. I also believe they may be in the process of getting their own location - which is so exciting! 



The box was full of cheese, fruit, salami, chocolate and more. 



And I absolutely loved the cute little wooden utensils, like this absolutely adorable honey dipper. I just can't with how cute it is. I think that's part of this whole like experience - the picking and choosing and abundance of goodies and it's all presented in this lovely little package. Are you a fan?

First of all, I'm not quite sure why 90% of my photos of the outside of restaurants are messed up. I think I take the photo so quickly, my phone doesn't have time to really capture the whole thing. I swear this is not user error.

Secondly, I love Asian food. All kinds, really. Sushi. Ramen. Americanized Chinese. AND, I have many more restaurants to explore in Beckley. So when Yummi Japan popped up on my radar, it was a no-brainer to go check it out. 



The Philly Roll - crabmeat and cream cheese - is everything my basic heart loves. Guilty pleasure - but very tasty. 



Then, I did a shrimp teriyaki, which was just OK. It was really salty for my taste, and not a ton of sauce/flavor outside of that.



Crab cheese rangoons - always a treat. Maybe this means I should just stick to my guilty pleasures since they're my favorite?

Grade: B

Sweetz Da Snackery is a Beckley restaurant that specializes in soul food. They've been helping the local community during the COVID-19 pandemic and is a Black-owned business. Just a couple reasons I wanted to support them as soon as possible.



The building is bright - yellow and red - so it's definitely eye-catching! When you walk inside, there's a small shop to the right where you can get candies, snacks and drinks. Ahead, there are the main offerings of the day.



On this day, I went for the fried chicken and macaroni & cheese. Plus a Grape Crush. I mean, does it get any better?



The chicken had a nice crisp breading. Usually I'd choose a drumstick, but these were tasty. But let's talk about the macaroni and cheese. This is literally one of my favorite foods - whether it's blue box Kraft or a homemade style. But this, this was a different level. A heaping portion of baked sweet and creamy mac & cheese. The kind that I beg for here in Charleston. It's just... so good. Do yourself a favor and get some ASAP.



Grade: A

Wasabi Fusion is a Chinese, Japanese and Thai fusion restaurant in Beckley. So, think Chinese classics with sushi and a few noodle dishes, too.



Recently, I ordered takeout here: crab rangoons and a sushi roll. The crab rangoons - this was a very small order. I think there were three. They were the fold-over kind, which I tend to like because they have more filling. These were average.



I underestimated the amount of "crunchies" this would have, but I was not mad about it. It's a little deep-fried log of goodness. All of my guilty pleasures wrapped up in one.

Grade: B

Sam's Hot Dog Stand is a well-known hot dog joint in southern West Virginia. And me, being me, decided to try all of them so I can complete the list. Well, friends, this is one of the last ones.



We're at a gas station on Robert C. Byrd Drive in Beckley. The Sam's has a whole separate section with an awning, and those are my favorite. It looks like a true little shop of its own. 



And on this day, I somehow got lucky! They were giving out a coupon for two free hot dogs with any purchase. So I purchased a pepperoni roll and a drink and got two hot dogs - with ketchup and onion on this day.



I'm always a fan of the English bun, so that was perfect. Nice little hot dog overall.



The pepperoni roll, though, was definitely homemade and really tasty. Just a touch over the "well done" side, but good nonetheless.


Grade: B

Do you know one of my biggest cravings during quarantine? Sushi. It's fresh, something I can't really make at home on my own, and comforting. So when I was taking a long road trip and started to get a rumbling in my tummy, I looked up nearby sushi places I hadn't been to. And, that brought me to Fujiyama Japanese Steak House in Beckley.

Fujiyama is a common name for restaurants in West Virginia with hibachi, but I swear this one in Beckley is new to me. I looked at their menu online, called in an order for crab cheese wontons and a sushi roll, and pulled up where they met me with curbside service.



The crab cheese wontons did not come with their own sauce - rather packaged Duck sauce - so that was a little disappointing, but I did enjoy the wontons. They were crisp, but not too crisp, and had a good creamy mixture inside.



The sushi roll was a "Mountaineer Roll," which had Shrimp Tempura, Cream Cheese Topped with Avocado, Eel Sauce, Spicy Crab, Scallion and Tobiko. It's hard to go wrong with these ingredients. Creamy, crunchy, umami, sweet. The toppings were a bit haphazard and messy overall, but the flavors were there.


Grade: B

Another Tudor's update? Yes, I have like 20 more to visit. I can say, though, that the Beckley Tudor's on Eisenhower Drive is unique. It's not a standalone location, rather it's part of a plaza. And the drive-thru is located to the right of the building.



Why does my photo look like this? No clue, sometimes my phone decides to take the photo .2 seconds AFTER I hit the button. Who knows. OK, the next biscuit on my list was the Rocket, which is steak, egg, cheese and hash brown on a biscuit. 



To be honest, I wasn't super excited about this. I've already determined I prefer my hash brown on the side. BUT, I'm glad I tried this because it has shot up to one of my favorites. First of all, the steak is more like a chicken-fried steak, so that was delicious. And the hashbrown stayed crispy here! I'm a big fan. V tasty.

The Omelet Shoppe is a classic diner that serves breakfast all day.


Located in Beckley, the Omelet Shoppe also has a few other locations: Parkersburg, two in Virginia, and a former one in Princeton.


So I walked in, seated myself and looked over the menu that was supplied to me.


The dish that popped out to me was the "smothered chicken," which was mashed potatoes, topped with a fried chicken fillet and chicken gravy, cheddar and bacon.


But first, some chocolate milk (what can I say, it's a treat).


Then, a robust house salad with tomatoes, cheddar and my choice of French dressing.


The entree was big and filling and tasty. Nothing like a homestyle dish to warm you up on a cool day.