West Virginia is lacking when it comes to good delis. But with the new Stelli Delicatessen, Huntington is looking to change that. 



The turquoise blue storefront has pops of dark blue and gold, which give it this almost Gatsby-esque vibe. 



The interior is simple, but clean and comfortable. There are a handful of tables for dine in, but lots of folks seem to get carry out, as well.



The menu changes regularly and is displayed on a large chalkboard behind the counter. Some standards have been the turkey panini with gouda and turmeric chicken salad. I went for the Club, which was a special at the time but is now on the main menu: turkey, ham, bacon, sharp cheddar, lettuce, tomato, mayo on wheat. 



You may not be able to tell from the photo, but this is a large sandwich filled to the brim with ingredients - all fresh. I love a good club sandwich, and this fell into that category. Straightforward, but executed perfectly in the simplicity of the ingredients. 



I had about half, then dove into my warm potato salad with dijon bacon dressing. If you're not a big mayo potato salad person, this is a perfect option because it's tangier, has more texture and is delicious.



I also ordered a side of orzo salad, which had kalamata olives, feta, red onion and greens. I saved this one for later, but it's the perfect filling-but-light side. So good.



And, I cannot go without mentioning the house onion dip. I tell you what - I didn't know how MUCH better house onion dip is than regular ol' onion dip from the grocery store. But, it's much, much better. I was obsessed and actually ate all my house chips, too. 

The menu has expanded to include a corn salad, small plates, hot dogs and more. I can't wait to go back.

Grade: A

Truckin' Cheesy has a concept that's close to my heart: Eat. All. The. Cheese.



They started out as a food truck, and I visited them a couple years ago. But, they recently opened a brick-and-mortar location in Huntington that I was excited to try.  



When I went, they were still observing some social distancing measures and doing mostly takeout. But the interior is cool with cheesy graphics making it look like cheese is dripping down the walls. I ordered the Super Cheesy Sampler, which comes with a cheese quesadilla, grilled cheese sandwich, cheese nachos and cheese fries. I mean, talk about a cheesy heaven. I should have stopped here, but I didn't.



I also ordered the Kujo Tacos, because I can't get over using the grilled cheese sandwiches as a vessel for more food, not just as a meal on its own. This has two grilled cheese sandwiches folder in half and loaded with taco beef, lettuce, tomato, onion and sour cream. This can get soggy and unwieldy - but undeniably tasty.

Grade: A

Heiner's Bakery is a Huntington favorite.



The commercial bakery distributes baked goods within about 200 miles of Huntington.



As per Wikipedia, "the bakery was privately owned by the Heiner family, and marketed exclusively under the "Heiner's" label until it was acquired by the Earthgrains division of Anheuser-Busch in 1994. Six months later, A-B spun off its bread business as the stand-alone Earthgrains Corporation. In 2000, Earthgrains merged with the Sara Lee Corporation. In 2011, Sara Lee sold its bread business, including the trademark Sara Lee, to the worldwide Grupo Bimbo, which is based in Mexico City. Today the bakery markets under the "Heiner's", "Earthgrains", "Sara Lee" and "Bimbo" brands."



They have a surplus store, where you can get some products for half or more off, so I wanted to check it out. I remember going to a "bread store" growing up. I think it was likely an outlet store - and I know of others that exist around the state. Outlet bakery stores are kind of their own little category of the market.



"A bakery outlet is a shop where regional bakeries (the ones bake the name-brand goods for grocery stores, not the mom-and-pop spots) take their nearly-expired foods and offer them at a greatly reduced price. There's not a lot of information about these stores and how they work available online; most are truly bare bones operations with wire shelving, a cash register, and a sign on the door.

Bakery outlets, or bakery thrift stores, are the last stop for baked goods before they hit the dumpster. Employees that stock shelves at the grocery stores will remove items that are nearing their best-by code, and they'll bring them to these stores.

The markdowns range by company and by product, but average savings fall between 25 and 50 percent of retail price. Serious markdowns can be 75 percent or more. (SOURCE)"



The Heiner's surplus store had tons of bread, some muffin packages and even some chips. What do you like to get here?

Can a college town ever have enough pizza places? I'm not sure they can. Huntington added one more to its list with the addition of Pizza 314 on Camden Road. One major plus in the time of COVID-19 is having a pick-up window. So not only could I just swing through to pick up a pizza on my way back to Charleston - but I could do so with the least amount of human contact (tbh this would be my preference always).



I called in an order for a personal pizza with mushrooms and cheesesticks. The pizza was pretty standard. The sauce was a little on the sweeter side, and they got a nice golden brown on the crust. The same can't be said for the cheesesticks though - they could definitely use some more color to get that toasty flavor. 



Overall, not bad but nothing to write home about. But maybe another visit is in order.

Grade: C

A meal with a view - that's the idea behind a new Huntington restaurant that's on the river, literally.



Pier One Landing has opened in the former "Schooners" location at the Guyandotte Marina. The barge had been unused for about 8 years before the owner of Fly In Cafe wanted to add another unique eatery to his repertoire. 



The floating restaurant has parking right near the walkway, which brings you down to sea level. Dawn and I went during opening weekend, and they were staffed to the max in anticipation of a big crowd. We were seated quickly and took to looking out on the river. It was a drizzly, misty day, but it was still fun to watch the river and occasional boat. 



The interior boasts an upscale sea theme, and the food isn't far off from that, too. The menu isn't huge, but it has a few standards - fish sandwich, fried oysters, mahi mahi tacos. I am intrigued by the lobster roll - but sans slaw. And the lobster mac will definitely be on my to-try list. 



For this first visit, though, I wanted to try the signature favorite: Pier One Big Fish - fried fish sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cheese and tartar sauce on a bun. I really love a good, fresh fish sandwich. But, they're not easy to come by. I've found that many restaurants in the area will serve those frozen, minced fish pieces if it's not their specialty. So, I was very excited about this.



The sandwich is large and in charge. The fried piece of fish was hanging off the edges of the bun. It was beautifully crispy golden that gave way to flaky white fish. Not too oily, not too crusted - a very nice cook on the fish. I took away half the lettuce and added more tartar sauce and *chef's kiss* I had a solid fish sandwich. A side of onion rings paired well - though I wish they had hushpuppies with honey butter. MMMmmm. Tell me what you're going to try!



Grade: A 

So, here's something different: A restaurant focused on baked potatoes and the toppings that can go on them. But we're not just talking butter, chives and sour cream. We're talking macaroni & cheese, pizza toppings or even seafood.



Spudz Potatoes, located in downtown Huntington, offers about 20 different types of baked potatoes - from the standard to the extraordinary. There are a couple salads, a soup and a dip. But the main attraction is the baked potato.



I went for the Lil Lemont - which I learned is the owner's son's rap name - it comes with mac & cheese, extra cheddar, bacon and sour cream. Let's start with the good: The folks here are really kind, they're just getting started, and this is the biggest baked potato I've ever seen. It may be two together. And, I love the fun concept. 



Aside from the standard new-restaurant-opening-kinks, there is some room for improvement. My meal was cold.And to be honest, this isn't a total negative for me most of the time, but when it's macaroni and cheese, the texture affects the flavor and it just doesn't end well. The mac & cheese was also just kinda plopped on top, so it didn't really intermingle with the potato. It was of course made separately, but I was hoping that cheese would soak into the potato, creating a cheesy, buttery interior. Instead, it was actually kinda dry. I think with some tweaks, these two could sing in harmony as one cohesive dish. 

Grade: B

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

Scootin Noodles is a new food truck in the Huntington area that features bowls and burritos: glazed chicken; cheese, sausage and egg; breakfast; teriyaki chicken; and teriyaki beef.  The menu is fairly small, but I like the concept of noodles and burritos. What about combining them??



I went with the teriyaki chicken, and it was good. I thought maybe it would have this nice teriyaki glaze on top, but it was more like a melted cheese. A sauce would have really brought the dish together. Otherwise, I appreciated the different textures and colors with the peppers. 

Grade: B

There are two No. 1 Kitchens in the Huntington area serving Chinese food, which can make it a little confusing. I've been to the one along Route 60, so now we're trying the one along Washington Avenue. 



I had called in an order at this location and went to pick it up. I've been trying a lot of different Chinese restaurants during the pandemic because many were designed with takeout in mind, so it simplifies the whole process.  



They were really busy on this day, and I had to wait in line for a little while to make it to the counter. After a little bit of a wait, I took my order back to my car and made my way home. 



First up: I had a pint of sweet & sour chicken. It stood up fairly well for my drive, but it did get a touch soggy. Otherwise, standard breaded white chicken meat and a tub of red sweet and sour sauce. Does anyone local serve a different kind of sweet & sour sauce??



Next up was fried dumplings. I love these with a dumpling sauce, and I think mine was left out this visit, but they had a tasty, well-seasoned filling.



Shrimp fried rice can be hit or miss with me - and this was somewhere in the middle. It thankfully wasn't dry and overly saturated with oil... but it also didn't have much flavor at all? So, it was OK. 



And, one of my favorites: crab rangoons. I don't think I can order Chinese food without getting an order of crab cheese rangoons. Generously filled with a cream cheese mixture enveloped in a crispy wonton wrapper, it can't be bad. These were decent. A little too greasy, but thankful for a hefty amount of filling.


 
Grade: B