The second annual Picklepalooza took place Saturday at Slack Plaza. Presented by Arts Amplified at City Center at Slack Plaza, the free family-friendly celebration was packed with pickles, music, games, activities and more. There were free pickle samples from 7 vendors, plus art, food & jewelry for sale. Other vendors include The Pickle Guy, Elk City Popcorn, Ellen’s Ice Cream & Charleston Taco. Ursus Brew Works - Old Bay Pickle Mea Cuppa Coffee - Red Hot Pickles (tangy, garlicky, spicy) with Hungarian Red, Red Jalapeno and Red Moruga Scorpion Fife Street Brewing - Habanero Pickle & pickle lemomade Gritt's Farm - Classic Pickle & Pickle Donut Bullock Distillery - Savory Dill Pickle 1010 Bridge - Pickled Quail Egg Fazio's - Wise-Guy Pickles with cucumber pickles, garlic brine, cherry pepper, red peppers, dill and calabrian chili

The Hideaway is Charleston's first year-round, ever-changing pop-up restaurant & bar. Hostes by MMDI, where good ideas don't stay quiet. Coinciding with Charleston's second annual Picklepalooza, The Hideaway launched "The Tipsy Pickle." The Tipsy Pickle features all things pickle -- from the decor, to the food, to the drinks. The grand opening was today, and they will feature a sing-a-long, all-you-can-eat brunch tomorrow. Here are the dill-icious dishes we tried: 🥓 BACON WRAPPED STUFFED PICKLES + HOMEMADE PICKLE RANCH 🥔 PICKLE CHEESE FRIES + HOMEMADE PICKLE RANCH 🧀 CHEESEBALL FLIGHT- CLASSIC | PICKLE BACON RANCH | SWEET HEAT 🥗 PICKLE PASTA SALAD 🍗 PICKLE CHICKEN SALAD 🍪 SUGAR & BRINE COOKIE

And for the drinks:
🍸 PICKLE MARTINI - VODKA, PICKLE BRINE, PICKLE & DILL GARNISH 🍋‍🟩 SPICY PICKLE MARGARITA - TEQUILA, LIME, ORANGE LIQUEUR, PICKLE BRINE, JALAPENO 🍋 DILL-ICIOUS LEMONADE - VODKA, PICKLE JUICE, LEMONADE THE BRINY BREW - Beer + Pickle

Elk City Pizza is the new NEW pizza place on the West Side. Formerly (and briefly) Larobi's, the pizza restaurant moved away from the local franchise and embraced its neighborhood location. And with that, the removal of the Big O pizza. The menu features simple pizzas, wings, sandwiches and salads. I tried a cheese pizza and pepperoni roll. The pizza wasn't crispy enough on the bottom for me. I think the pizza oven needs to be hotter. The pepperoni roll was decent; I'd love some more garlic, butter, herbs, spices. All those things that could give it some oomph. Grade: B

Larobi's, the St. Albans pizza place, has expanded to the West Side of Charleston. But then shortly thereafter left the franchise and renamed to "Elk City Pizza."

"We’re excited to share that we are now serving you as ELK CITY PIZZA! You’ll find us at the same location, reach us at the same phone number and see the same familiar faces ready to serve you with great food. We’re incredibly proud to be part of the Elk City community and look forward to continuing to serve the Charleston area as Elk City Pizza."

The one thing I ordered bedore the transition was "The Big O," which has pepperoni, salami, ham, sausage, mushrooms, green olives, green pepper, onion and hot banana peppers. It's what Larobi's is known for, so it's the one item Elk City Pizza can no longer offer.

Which is a shame because it is excellent. I don't usually order a "supreme" type of pizza, because all of those individual ingredients are not my absolute favorites. But, when they are put together, they are more than the sum of their parts. You don't necessarily taste each individual ingredient, but you do taste an overall salty, spicy, crunchy flavor that is delish. Grade: A

Captain Holstein’s Family Entertainment Center is a the pirate-themed indoor playground and family entertainment center located in Kanawha City. It bills itself as West Virginia’s largest indoor playground, with ball pits, trampolines, spiral slides, air cannons, arcade games, a toddler area and treasure digging. It also has a full café and a surprisingly substantial milkshake/ice cream operation. I ordered a Caramel Cowabunga Milkshake (made with Salted Caramel Swirl and Caramel Drizzle), Pepperoni Roll Bites & Mini Corn Dogs. The milkshake was delish, and they even make them "over the top" with tons of toppings -- like candies or pretzels or cotton candy -- if you order them in person. The other two apps were decent; the corn dogs get a little soft and transport. The pepperoni bites were different, though I'd love more of a crunch on the outside, as well. Grade: B

Whimsy is a small, local catering business operating out of one woman's West Side home. She posts a menu on Facebook, accepts orders and then schedules a pick-up window. The menu for the week I ordered included:

32oz Ginger Roasted Butternut Squah & Heirloom Carrot Soup w/toasted Pumpkin seeds on side.

32oz Wild rice pilaf w/Peas & Crispy Beets.

1dz Almond, Raisin Cinnamon sugar Pastry swirls.

Individual “Reese” Madness w/Crushed peanut butter Oreos, chocolate fudge,and Peanut butter mousse. Have you tried anything?

The 36th Multifest returns to downtown Charleston this weekend, bringing four days of music, food, culture and plenty of people to Haddad Riverfront Park. Multifest started in 1989 as a one-day event on the State Capitol grounds and has grown into one of West Virginia’s largest multicultural festivals. The festival celebrates Black culture along with a wide range of cultural and ethnic traditions through live entertainment, dancing, art and, of course, food. The Wheelhouse - Dippin’ Dots Baskin-Robbins Kona Ice Uncle Cecil's Carol's Soul 2 Soul Bayou Classics Scooby's Icy Treats Rumtastic Gourmet Rum Cakes Taste of International
Shrimp Wrap - this was just pita with a pile of shrimp on top. No other toppings. And it's impossible to eat as a wrap because all the tails are still on. At least they did have some bottled sauces on the table to use. Shotgun's Smokehouse BBQ
Half Slab Ribs with Mac & Cheese - the BBQ sauce on these was tasty, but the ribs were bits and pieces of different sizes and a bit too fatty for my preference. MK’s International African Food
Mixed Plate - curry chicken & shrimp over jollof rice was good. Some homemade yum yum sauce on top was key. Sorbet Social
Peach Sorbet Push-Pop - absolute perfection in 90° weather. Errythang Fruit
Tropical Cool Aid - fruit infused drink with real fruit pieces Rio Cuisine
Hot Cheeto Cheese Ball - served with cheese syringes. My absolute favorite bite at the festival. Crunchy and spicy and gooey. Must-try. Plus their loaded tea for hydration was pretty good. Rooted Lemonade
Cherry-Mango Lemonade - not overly sweet like many of the others. Polo’s Homemade Italian Water Ice
Rainbow Water Ice - I just love the texture. It's a cool treat that's visually stunning. Le’Cool Concessions
Crab Cakes - these were a bit disappointing for $25. No sauce, not a ton of flavor or crab. Hollywood Sips
Lemonade - they have plenty of more exciting options, but a regular lemonade hit the spot.

Additional food & drink vendors include:
Mountain Juice
Shake Your Boba
Auntie Pearl’s Honey Pot
A Family Affair Two fundraisers that had served food to raise funds for a cause. Two large concessionaires that serve basically the same things - but I did try the garbage fries. Most of it ended up in the garbage.