Morgantown is not lacking in exciting, new restaurants. They come in all kinds and flavors - pizza and Asian and milkshakes and Mexican. While in town a bit ago, I stopped at Rio Jalisco.



The restaurant, located at the University Town Centre, is very similar to the other Mexican restaurants in town. There are a zillion menu options that are various combinations of tacos, burritos, fajitas, etc. You get complimentary chips & salsa. Add margaritas, and you have a solid college kid audience.



That said, nothing was bad. The chips were crisp. The salsa had just a touch of heat and was super thin.



Instead of arroz con pollo, I went with steak: rice, steak and cheese dip. I usually scan the menu for anything doused in cheese dip. But even cheese dip in this case couldn't save the chewy, gristly steak. Now, I don't expect super high end quality meal for the price, but I ended up with chewed up and spit out steak more often than not. 



Grade: C

Burgers & Bites in Morgantown is a restaurant that focuses on - you guessed it - burgers and bites. I went to a location in downtown Morgantown previously, which was OK. But I discovered this new location at the mall. I thought that I would check it out. I kept it simple with just some chicken tenders. They were dressed in a barbecue, which was pretty average. I was surprised that it did not come with a dipping sauce. But, these were just fine overall. I don't know that I would make a special trip out to try these, but they are just fine in a pinch.



Grade: C

Riverside Cafe is a bar and grill in Winfield that I think most. would consider a dive. Kinda dark, kinda loud, filled with locals. 



I went with my friends Liz and Dwight; we pulled up these like Adirondack chairs that were more fun to lounge in than try to sit and eat. We were off in the newer section of the building, which was nicer, but loud and hard to get the attention of someone to serve us.



But when we did, I ordered the Riverside Sampler with hot pepper cheeseballs, pretzels with beer cheese, and bang bang shrimp - which were really just breaded cocktail shrimp.



I typically enjoy all these things individually, but they were pretty average individually. The shrimp were a bummer, and I typically like the cheese balls with a bit more heat. And the pretzels were fine - the beer cheese was average too. In general, I think the flavor could've been bumped up on all of these. But, not bad.
  
Grade: C

Bodegas are a thing in larger cities; they're small grocery stores and often in Spanish-speaking communities.



So my interest was piqued to find East Beckley Bodega in Beckley - even more so to find out they operate a small kitchen called Kiayla's Grandma's Kitchen.  



I thank Door Dash for this discovery. The store itself had some empty shelves but did have some more unique snack items that aren't always easy to find.



The store did have a few pastry goods like slices of cake available for sale, but I was there a bit later in the day so not sure how well they would have held up at that hour. Regardless, I put in an order for a cheeseburger and mac & cheese. 



So, overall, it was decent. I was kinda like a backyard bbq burger, which is totally fine, just a bit unwieldy. The bun was a bit too soft to handle this monster of a burger, super thick cut tomatoes and onions made it a bit difficult to eat. The burger itself could have benefited from some more seasoning, but I was happy they were generous with the portions.



The mac & cheese was clearly homemade with some baked cheese pieces in there and the pasta was broken down a good bit from the cooking. But with a ton of cheese, how could I not enjoy it? Not bad.



Grade: C

A soul food restaurant opened up on High Street called Lin San Soul Food. 



Soul food is special, and I certainly think Morgantown - and West Virginia as a whole - would benefit from having more of this homestyle, homemade cooking that often incorporates family favorite recipes. 



I struggled a little bit to catch them open and then when I caught them open, they weren't actually ready to serve yet. So the timing was a bit chaotic. But once I passed that hurdle, I was excited to see what they were offering.



On this day, it was only mac & cheese and oxtails while I was there. That was OK, because it was what I wanted anyway. The mac & cheese was OK, but not fully warmed up all the way through. That would've helped because the flavor wasn't bad. And the oxtails lacked a little bit of that deep, rich flavor that melts in your mouth. They were still good, but a little tougher than I've had elsewhere. Again, not bad but a little room for improvement. I'm happy to see them there and think some of these kinks can be worked out. 



Grade: C

Have you heard of Sali's Market & Deli?



The West Side shop has some fried foods made to order, plus lots of little snacks like drinks and candies.



I visited not too long ago with a coworker to check it out.



I found some unique candy that I hadn't seen elsewhere, so I snatched those up - like the Reese Snack Cakes (which are just ehhh). 



I also ordered a cheeseburger with ketchup, mayo and onion on a grilled bun. The burger was a bit dwarfed by the bun and could use a generous helping of salt. It was just too dry and under-seasoned for my taste. 



The fries did have some seasoning, but they could've gone a few minutes longer in the fryer. I like mine on the crisp side, though.



As always, it could vary by who is cooking that day and other variables like that.



Have you been?



Grade: C

Spaghetti. It's in the name of Gino's Spaghetti & Pizza House, but it's not one that I typically order. In fact, spaghetti is probably my least favorite pasta because I like more pasta to sauce ratio. BUT, sometimes it hits the spot.



When at the Logan Gino's location, I went for spaghetti with meat sauce. I was happy to see mushrooms, but was surprised to see ... meatballs cut in half as the "meat" sauce. I ended up moving those to the side, and the marinara was decent on its own. 



Very decent meal that was tasty, if not a bit odd.

Grade: C

Summersville is home to a restaurant called The Local.



With a name like that, I'm expecting local beer, local music and local food. 



The space gives more of a country bar and grill vibe, and it seems like it's more popular in the evening than during lunch time.



The menu features burgers, fried apps, hot dogs, a couple salads, and two chicken sandwiches. 



To start with, we decided to try some pretzel bites that were topped with salt and had a cheese dipping sauce. I liked that they were cut on the diagonal so it made it a lot easier to eat the individual pieces - which were almost toasted. Cheese was fine. 



Friends opted for a hot dog and different burger, which they both enjoyed. And I may have sampled. 



It's tough for me to ever pass up macaroni and cheese so when I saw macaroni and cheese placed on top of a burger, I knew I needed to try that. First - that bacon blue cheese. I love blue cheese on a burger - I just don't love floppy bacon. It was OK.



For the mac burger, I always appreciate the cheese, but it really needs something to make it pop so I can appreciate that creamy dairy. Like a sriracha or honey or something that helps punch it up. Overall, it was fine - a little cold... but I do enjoy a crispy fry with garlic.

Grade: C

Jerry's Restaurant & Lounge is a mainstay in Grafton with its homestyle food. They have a parking lot out front, a pick-up window and plenty of indoor dining.



Their menu features items like fried appetizers, salads, soups, sandwiches, hoagiess, burgers, pasta and other plated entrees.



When I was visiting, it was a busy day in town, and they were only serving a limited menu. That nixed most of the entrees and many of the sandwiches. 



I placed an order to pick up and drove up to the curbside window. I went with their meatball and cheese hoagie. While you can opt to add in peppers and onions, I went with just the classic mozzarella topping. 



The sandwich was OK. The meatballs I think needed some more seasoning, as did the sauce. It wasn't bad; it just could use a bit more love. It's probably a good middle-of-the-road sandwich for folks who don't want it too sweet or too spicy or too acidic. I just want more. 



Grade: C

Based in Vienna, West Virginia, this Napoli's is one of the last locations in the area that hadn't I visited.



The menu features pizza, burgers, pasta, and more.



I put in an order in advance, but it was not ready when I arrived, unfortunately. So I ended up waiting for quite a while before my meal was finished.  



I went with a simple spaghetti - not usually my go-to, but sometimes a super simple meal is what hits the spot. 



It also came with breadsticks. Overall, this was an average meal. The service was below average; the spaghetti was a lackluster pile of noodles and mildly flavorful tomato sauce. Not bad, but not notable. Average all in all. 

Grade: C