I don't typically peruse smoke shops - but when there are fun snacks and food? Count me in! King's is primarily known for vape & other smoke products, but this shop has a whole section on international snacks and an adjoining kitchen. Let's start with the snacks. Rap snacks. Milka Oreo. A variety of Lays flavors from Asia. Anything I had never tried before, I picked it up. On the restaurant side, I got a small order of boneless wings, which were just chopped chicken tenders. They were just OK. A bit dry inside and also not enough sauce outside to compensate for it. The sauce I had was just sweet without much depth. Next time, I'll try the bone-in wings. Grade: B

When you arrive to a restaurant to see a window boarded up, you know you're in for an adventure. Apparently, a car drove into the window of The Zone Bar & Grill, but that didn't stop them from operating. So, inside we went.



The sports bar was empty during the day for lunch, but the pool tables and dart boards give me the impression that the nightlife is more robust here. Things were also a bit sticky and the air a bit stale.



The menu was a bit more expansive than standard bar fare: appetizers, wings, sandwiches, burgers, wings, pasta, salads, etc. Not a bad assortment.



I ordered the mushroom, onion, Swiss burger. I was hoping for this extremely melty umami-packed mixture that would have added a lot of moisture, but it fell a little short. There was a bit of melted cheese, but it stopped there. I want the spices and seasonings to be kicked up several notches.



Grade: C

My quest to try all of the different Sam's Hot Dogs locations takes me to some interesting places – namely gas stations. To be fair, there are some gas stations that indeed have great food. So, off to Cross lanes, I ventured.



I ordered a hotdog with mild chili, mustard, onions and slaw on an English-style bun. A traditional West Virginia-style hotdog is not on an English style bun, but I find them to be one of life's little delights. how did this one stack up? I like onions, but this one had way too much. The chili and slaw are both fine, and the English bun may have been a bit too toasted. But all in all, a decent dog.



Grade: B

Cross Lanes is home to a Husson's Pizza location, and I stopped by recently to see how it stacks up to the other locations. I placed my order online, as per usual, and it was ready as soon as I arrived. But they do have some seating if you choose to dine in. I took mine to go and opened up my box as soon as I got in the car.



I actually went for a pizza with all the toppings this time. Olives, mushrooms, banana, peppers, pepperoni, sausage, onions, and green peppers. The works. There really is something delicious with all these toppings combined. I can see why my parents ordered pizzas like this for so many years. I like changing it up and enjoying new flavors. It's fresh, but hearty and crunchy but gooey. My biggest qualm is that the pizza was not cut well, so sometimes the pieces would drag off toppings of other slices, and it became quite a chore to eat without utensils. and, of course, when some slices have toppings, and some don't, it changes the flavor.



Grade:B

I've kinda lost track of which Mexican restaurants in the area have the same owners and which are local chains, but for the most part, there isn't a ton of variation between the menus.



I visited Los Amigos Mexican Restaurant in Cross Lanes and basically ordered a mini buffet to take home, which included: Queso, Mexican Street Corn, "Pork Daddy," and Ensenada fish tacos.



So let's take a look at this spread, starting with queso. This never photographs well, but it's a crucial part of any Mexican meal for me, unless I'm trying to save a couple bucks. Cheesy and thick and delicious.



The Mexican street corn - yessss - can we have this standard on every Mexican menu? Sweet, popping, creamy, acidic, just yes. 



Moving right along! The Pork Daddy is a jumbo burrito stuffed with carnitas, cilantro lime rice and black beans. Topped with cheese dip and salsa verde. Somehow, this was a bit on the dry side for me. Despite. having a pool of sauce around it, the interior was lacking a bit. 



The fish tacos had lettuce, pico, cheese, purple cabbage and chipotle sauce. These weren't bad, but I've been chasing the high of a delicious, crispy. fish taco that I had in Morgantown - and this didn't live up to that level, but it was still decent. A nice texture variation would've made the difference here for me. 

Grade: B

I think Sushi Garden is a hidden gem in the area. 



The popular Capitol Market vendor also has a stand-alone location in Cross Lanes, where they serve their delicious sushi, as well as ramen, teriyaki and more. 



The restaurant itself is small, intimate. There is only room for a few tables. A large sushi menu adorns two dry-erase boards and includes inventive rolls with tasty combinations.



I went all out and ordered shoyu seafood ramen first. A huge contributing factor in this choice was the fish cake - that beautiful little pink swirled guy. I don't know why, but I just love them. It also had shrimp, bamboo shoots, green onion, seaweed and chashu - or Japanese braised pork belly. I didn't love the broth - a bit fishy (duh) - but I loved every single ingredient.



On the sushi side, I went for a roll with crab, cream cheese, tempura batter, masago, and scallions - just a few of my favorite things. Lots of different fresh flavors and textures - no simple, straightforward roll this visit.



What's your favorite order here?

Grade: A

My friend Sara posted a cupcake fundraiser that was happening, and I am always down to support a good cause - especially when food is involved.



Sugar Shenanigans was offering a variety of different cupcakes, so I wanted to try one of each: chocolate peanut butter (chocolate cake, peanut butter filling, chocolate peanut butter frosting), red velvet (red velvet cake, cream cheese filling, cream cheese), pumpkin (pumpkin cake, cream cheese filling, cream cheese frosting), French vanilla (french vanilla cake, rich vanilla buttercream frosting), apple spice (apple spice cake, vanilla buttercream frosting, topped with apple pie filling) and cookies & cream (white cake with crushed Oreos, cookies and buttercream frosting). 



My favorites were the French vanilla and cookies and cream. Which ones would you choose?

This trip to Gino's in Cross Lanes was quick and simple. All I wanted was some cheesy breadsticks.



This can sometimes be a tall task depending on where you're going - they can be too dry, not enough cheese, or worse yet, forget the marinara sauce. 



I'm happy to report none of those were the case in Cross Lanes. It was a perfectly satisfactory batch of cheesy breadsticks. There is even a nice layer of buttery garlic that keeps things moist and cheesy. An overall decent batch

Grade: B

So, I recently made a list of all the remaining Tudor's Biscuit World locations in West Virginia that I have not yet been to. And, I plan to knock them all out ... eventually. And, while doing this, I figure it would be the perfect time to try each of the biscuits to be able to rank them.



Here's my first foray - the Cross Lanes Tudor's. I went through the drive thru and started at the top of the menu: The Ron.



So, the Ron has sausage, egg and cheese. The sausage always tends to be on the overly done side. But I realized the biscuits at this location are huge compared to the ones in downtown Charleston. So far, I like the Ron - I usually prefer sausage over bacon. But it's a large and in-charge sandwich.

Mama Rosa's is a convenience store-restaurants that serves up pizza, Mediterranean dishes and other odds and ends.

This business had a location on the West Side but relocated to Cross Lanes years ago.

So I made my way over to this spot to check it out.

They have a menu behind the calendar, a cooler with a few prepared foods, and sporadic goods spread throughout the store.

After looking over the menu, I went with an order of cheese ravioli and a side of hummus and pita. Why not try the best of both worlds?

First, I tried the small salad that came with the meal. Plus some garlic bread.

The ravioli was fine - nothing too exciting.

The hummus was also pretty standard.



What's your favorite thing here?

Prime Station is a bar and grill in Cross Lanes that features appetizers, sandwiches and a few pasta dishes on their menu.


I called in an order for a sampler platter so I could try a few different things.



I went for bang bang shrimp, honey bbq boneless wings, and loaded fries - which were substituted because of a few other items being out of stock.


What's your favorite item here?