The Davis-Thomas area has always been attractive to me. It's been out of the way from my main paths of travel, it's near Blackwater Falls, and it plays host to a a number of really cool local restaurants. It's one of those pockets in West Virginia that just has a really cool local culture - like Fayetteville or Lewisburg.

One restaurant I've been wanting to try is Hellbender Burritos. The name just sounds really cool - like they're super spicy or something. But, nope, they're actually named after a kind of salamander - also known as a snot otter -  I learned about at work. But they're native to the Davis area.

They opened at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, and my interview for a story was at noon. So, we were there right at 11:30. We parked right along the main road (for free) and walked to the restaurant. It was the first time I saw snow this season, so I was super happen to see a nice fireplace in the front room. We walked down the steps into the next area where there was a man at the bar (and some folks at another table). He told us we could sit anywhere, so we chose the room closer to the fire to warm up.

The inside is cute and cozy. A server brought us menus fairly quickly. They have specialty burritos, including items named "Gendarme," "Treehugger" and "HooDoo VooDoo." I gravitated toward "The Hellbender," which is shrimp or chicken in a spicy garlic buffalo sauce, with rice and homemade bleu cheese dressing. I got the shrimp.

I think it was something about the homemade bleu cheese that did me in. That just sounded amazing. So when it came out, I instantly knew I would need a to-go box. They are giant burritos, served with a side of chips and slaw. Instead of using a fork, which I assumed would lead to a mess, I picked it up and dug in.

Full of rice and a creamy bleu cheese sauce, it packed just a slight heat and some fresh shrimp. Incredible. Flavors of garlic and smokiness are made all the better with the rich creaminess of the bleu cheese dressing and light shrimp. Even though chicken goes well with this flavor combo, the shrimp gave me something different. I dug it.

Chips and slaw were fine. That burrito, though, delicious.

Grade: A

I've heard for quite some time that Rocco's Ristorante is the Muriale's of southern West Virginia. When I interviewed Rocco Muriale, of Muriale's, in Fairmont, he mentioned his cousin's restaurant and how it does well in the southern part of the state. So what is often considered as some of the best Italian food in West Virginia runs in the family.

Bffl Tom Bragg and I went to Rocco's after a fun day of checking out Blenko and the Pumpkin House. The main Rocco's location is located outside of Huntington in Ceredo. Inside, it's low lighting, maroon tablecloths, and lovely placesettings with gold napkins.

The menu is filled with all the Italian staples like rigatoni, lasagna and chicken parmesan. They also kick it up a few notches with dishes like Lobster Langostino, which is made with angel hair pasta, cream and cheeses of the house. And there are daily specials.

Bread and butter is served first. Breadsticks in packages are on the table. Then was my house salad with house dressing - a giant heap of lettuce, a few cucumbers, tomatoes and a sliver of red onion.

I ordered a special that night, which was fettuccine alfredo with mushrooms and crab meat. SO. G.O.O.D. It was creamy and with fresh chunks of crab. It was a huge serving that was incredibly rich and delicious. The ingredients were high-quality, and the flavors were awesome. Love this place.

Grade: A

Restaurants are starting to trickle into place at Beech View Place on Beechurst. First, The Greeks opened, and within the past couple days, Frank Anthony's Original Pizza has opened.

Parking: You can enter the garage beneath the building from the Fourth Street entrance. When you visit the restaurant, they will give you a token you use as payment. Simple.

The inside is a good size, with a counter space showcasing a handful of pizzas you can purchase by the slice. Only cheese/pepperoni pizzas were out when we were there, but they said they'd make anything. And as we were leaving, there were a few specialty ones available by the slice.

You can order small, medium and large regular pizzas with a number of toppings. Or special pizzas, including a breakfast pizza, a buffalo chicken pizza, a meat lovers and a margarita pizza. Plus pepperoni rolls, strombolis and garlic knots.


Tony, Jake and I kind of decided to do one of everything. We each had a single slice from the pizzas. I had a slice of cheese, while the boys got pieces of their Sicilian. We also ordered a meatball stromboli. Plus drinks. For a grand total of around $24, so $8 each. That's not bad at all.

Through chatting with the man working, we learned the owner is from Ohio and decided to open up this pizza place because he was friends with the folks who own the building. It's the only Frank Anthony's location and is named after the owner's two sons: Frank and Anthony.

First, our slices were delivered. I had already decided Tony was giving me half of his Sicilian, and I'd give him half of my cheese in return. The regular cheese: very flat, really tasty sauce (hint of spice that I love) and lots of melted cheese. The only thing was that the pizza should have been taken out like a minute earlier - a little too dark on the bottom for my liking. But, flavors on point.

The Sicilian was also good - same great flavors. Just lots more breading if you dig that. Also, a little too dark - but that's new restaurant stuff they'll work out. The point is that the main components here are all tasty - dough, sauce and cheese.


The stromboli, though, was super, super good. It's the only thing we had made-to-order, so we waited a little longer on it -- but not long, at all, really, just had finished our slices. It was cooked to perfection. Nice brown around the edges and bottom. Flaky, crisp dough. You could tell they were being careful and checking it and adjusting to make sure they're getting the right color.

Flavorful meatballs, perfect ratio of sauce and lots of stringy cheese. So good. And they're like a foot long for $8. Pretty good deal in my world.

The gentleman working was very kind, knowledgeable and wanted to make sure we enjoyed our food. The flavors are great. Little things like taking the pizza out just a hair earlier is easy to fix. And they're doing cubside pickup along Fourth Street. Very cool. PLUS you get to draw on the tabls with chalk. If you post your piece of art to their Facebook, you could win a pizza. Hoping this one sticks around.

Grade: A

Central City Cafe was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Guy Fieri visited this small restaurant for some "real deal comfort food." Granted, he opted for meatloaf, though the beans and cornbread are hometown favorites.

There's a few things I love about Huntington - I love the giant park, I love that the parking isn't terrifying and costly, and I love their plethora of restaurants (especially since there are so many I haven't tried).

Central City Cafe is in the Old Central City part of town. Easy to find, easy to park and FREE on weekends (ahem, Morgantown...).  When we went, it was pretty empty, but they luckily had the game on so we picked a table near the TV and settled in out of the cold for a few.

I went with the white bean chili because I read it was a hometown favorite. Plus a side of mashed potatoes because yum.

The white bean chili came out as a bowl of beans with a side of raw onions and cornbread. I think most West Virginians would tell you this is a very West Virginia-esque meal. And it is.

I think I was expecting an actual chili. Probably the fault lies on my side, because this is a common meal - a bunch of beans in broth. And now that I think of it, it may have just said "white bean." But I was thinking there may be some veggies and be thicker and maybe some cheese and greens. So, I was a little disappointed. BUT, this is fine for what it is. Just not really my cup of tea.

However, the mashed potatoes were so good. I said they reminded me of my high school's mashed potatoes - which might sound like a dig, but it's not. I loved my high school's mashed potatoes.

Overall, it seems very run-of-the-mill food. Nothing especially outstanding, but it's average and homey. I think this would suit a lot of folks just fine. If you're looking for something exciting, not so much. But looking for some nostalgic home meals? Sure.

Grade: C

After dinner in Bridgeport one night, I scoped out a nearby place to have dessert. Toni's Ice Cream came up a few times. It's located in Clarksburg and is open late. T

On this night, it was raining like crazy, so I was super thankful for their drive-thru.

I got a regular ice cream cone with black raspberry. That seems to be a special house flavor, since there was chocolate, vanilla, twist and black raspberry.

I also got it with scooter crunchies, because what the hell are those.

Well, it turns out scooter crunchies are the best things ever. I remember getting ice cream at the convenient store near my house growing up that was strawberry and had those things on it. I just never knew they were called scooter crunchies.

Anyway.

Raspberry ice cream with scooter crunchies. Yes, just yes. Delicious.

Grade: A

I joined a four-week long fall CSA. A CSA is "community supported agriculture" and it's a great way to get fresh, local veggies directly from a farmer.

Morgantown has a few different CSAs from which to choose, but the premise is basically the same - a farmer offers "shares" to the public. The public can buy "shares," which gives them a box of vegetables weekly through the season.

So, you pay a certain amount and, in turn, receive fresh, oftentimes new-to-you foods while developing a relationship with the farmer. The farmer has a steady steam of income up front to help with cost while also getting to know the consumer. The "shares" come with risk, though, as members pay up front, creating a safety net for farmers if the season is poor. So if the weather does not cooperate that particular season, it will reflect in the vegetables. But farmers do the best they can to provide as many fresh fruit and vegetables to consumers.

There is a good bit of variation in what kinds of vegetables you get. Many folks are worried they might receive 100 zucchinis in their CSA box or that there will be too many veggies for them. I chose Round Right Farm, which is great for me. I chose a Fall share because it's only four weeks long so I could get a feel for how much produce. Since it's just me, I didn't want anything going to waste.

They also allow for a lot of flexibility. They generate a box each week, and I could see the contents, but then I could also swap items out if I so chose. Each vegetable had an assigned value so I could mix and match, with each box totaling in around $20ish. So, if they gave me Swiss Chard, Arugula and Collard Greens one week and I decided that was way too many greens, I could swap out two of them for carrots or potatoes, if they are around the same price. If they are not around the same price, I was allowed a rollover amount to the next week or I could pay the extra at the end of the season if I went over. The rollover is particularly nice. If you need less veggies one week but know you will need more the next, you can only choose a few and save that amount for the next week. Or cancel one whole box and double-up the next week. If my entire box was worth about $25 this week, I could swap everything around and mix and match items until I got back to around that same amount. Or not.

Round Right also offers the option to add on bread from New Day Bakery or cheese from a few different cheese places: Firefly Farms, Goot Essa and Spring Gap.

Before fall started, they also let me order a la carte during summer - which is great since I couldn't do a full box each week. But I could get things here and there as I needed them.

Each week, at a designated drop-off point, you can pick up your veggies and have half your grocery shopping done for that week. And you've already paid for it up front. So, each week I would fetch my bin, pack up my veggies and head home. Here's what I received during my four weeks.

Week 1 - Arugula, radishes, Napa cabbage, small butternut squash, small pie pumpkin, potatoes and garlic. I mostly got the arugula for Franklin, my turtle. I made cabbage and potatoes with kielbasa (and garlic). A delicious butternut squash, parmesan cheese dip, a radish dip with cream cheese and the tops were used in a tomato tortellini soup.

Week 2 - Hakurei turnips, celeriac, garlic, delicata squash, carrots, small butternut squash, collard greens, beets and potatoes. Collard Greens went to Franklin (though he wasn't crazy about them). I developed a love for Hakurei turnips! I just roasted them with the garlic and went to town. The carrots and beets were shredded for a beet salad with gorgonzola (whew, beets are a pain). And the potatoes went to mashed potatoes. The squash? Squash fries! Yum.

Week 3 - baby bok choi, swiss chard, garlic, French breakfast radishes, hakurei turnips, leeks and potatoes. I gave one bok choy away and made a stir fry with some leeks with the turnips. I ate the radishes as a snack because yum! And the potatoes were baked.

Week 4 - green cabbage, lots of garlic, hakurei turnips and radishes. I just got this one, so I'm still working on it! But I did roast some of the turnips and snacked on a few radishes so far.

So, this is a great thing for me. I learned how to cook with a few new foods and discovered ones I like. I did customize my box every week because I was over squash (and am now over turnips). But you can never have too much garlic. I love roasting garlic and using it in everything. But it's also great to know this is all local, I'm helping a local farmer (instead of spending this money in Kroger), and it's already done for me - I just had to pick it up. However, I don't think I could use this much produce every week during the summer - those CSAs are a lot longer. If I had someone to split it with, then it might be do-able. Also, I am kind of tired of fall veggies at this point. But, still, super cool and a great option - especially for families.

Tin 202 has finally opened.

We first heard from Tin 202 back in January, when they began restoring the tin ceilings and renovating the space. Each month, we'd see a few updates on Facebook. By March, the interior looked beautiful and new chandeliers were installed. By May, they had taps. Beer was imminent. We had updates; communication was impeccable through May. At the end of the month, they showed finished chairs in a gorgeous dining room and said that soon, happy people would be in them. It was projected to open summer 2014. It looked ready to go.

Then three months passed. Not a single update.


In August, they posted a photo from Sysco that said "Welcome Tin 202," whatever that is supposed to mean. A few people commented "when are you opening?" since it seemed like they were so close months ago, then this random photo. No response.

Another three months go by.

And today, a staff of shiny happy people are smiling, welcoming visitors to their soft opening 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. for lunch for the next two weeks.

Tin 202 became a running joke. Whenever people would mention if it would open, I would scowl, angry that their customers have been left in the cold with no updates. Communication is so key to any operation. And instead of falling off the earth, why would they not let us know what was going on? Instead, they let people wonder if it would ever open and lose faith in the operation, rather than building excitement.

But today, they're open - soft open, at least. They are a real place. And after all those months of build-up, I'm not so sure it was worth it.

The building is beautiful. The tin ceilings, the dark wood, the white buttoned servers. It's like a speakeasy, and I dig the vibe. It's a little small, with just about five or so four-tops and four two-tops.

Our server was a bit nervous, but he was just fine. We ordered an appetizer of prosciutto wraps. While I thought this might be a little fancy, it instead looks like something someone would serve at a luncheon. I assumed with the toothpicks that I could pick it up and eat it. Nope. The prosciutto is thick, making it chewy and hard to bite through. So I mangled it with my fork and butterknife instead. The mozzarella inside? Small cubes. I assumed it would be fresh - not necessarily made in house, but fresh at least. Suggestion: Thinner prosciutto - so it's like a delicacy - and fresh mozzarella.

For my entree, I went with a filet sandwich, which had filet medallions, caramelized onions and horseradish cream on a toasted kaiser bun.

What I was expecting, I'm not quite sure. But it is kind of odd to eat like a steak on bread. The meat, underseasoned. And overcooked. If I ask for medium, I want to see a pink center. It was a little chewy. And the sauce - almost none to speak of. So, no, it wasn't bad. But there just isn't much flavor. Also, the concept is a little weird.

One friend had the Chicken Chesapeake (chicken, house crab mixture, bacon and cheddar cheese on ciabatta), which he noted was kind of dry, with overcooked chicken and a lack of sauce.

Another had the pulled pork sandwich and found the sauce not great with an underseasoned, overcooked meat.

Another had the chicken gyro and liked it, though the tzatsiki sauce was on it, despite her asking for no dairy.

As we received our checks, I was a little unhappy with a $17 bill ($13 for the sandwich and $2 for my part of the appetizer) .... plus $1.25 for water. Tap water. What? WHAT? A soda is $1.99, and tap water is $1.25. Sigh. I just spent $20 for a mediocre lunch.

The charging for water just rubs me the wrong way - like they're trying to get every last dime out of you. And I'm kind of over mediocre restaurants serving mediocre food. Give me something different. Or, if you're doing things I've seen before - at least make them good. More seasoning, more attention to cooking detail, better ingredients and more thought into items.

EDIT: The owner has reached out and said the charging for water was a glitch and was resolved that first day. They do NOT charge for water anymore. Expect Tin 202 to be next on my Restaurant Redemption list =] Looking forward to trying their dinner.

Grade: C

A small pocket of Bridgeport hides a taste of France. Provence, to be exact.

The Provence Market Cafe is located in an unassuming strip at 603 S Virginia Ave. It's a small space, so reservations are probably a good idea on the weekend.

As soon as we stepped inside, the lady who was carrying trays in front set them down and asked if we had a reservation. When I replied that I did with my last name, she recognized the name immediately and ushered me and my friend to a table. I was a little surprised at the quick, attentive service. She literally stopped what she was doing as we entered (I feel most would continue carrying their tray and come back) and knew who was on the reservation list that night. As the night progressed, this woman wove in and out of the dining room as needed - serving, bussing, greeting folks. It was clear this woman was in charge and really cared about this restaurant.

The inside is a little fancy. Not too fancy. But it's pretty. Some kind of funky art with refined touches.

We were served some bread with sides of butter and tapenade. Love the tapenade. The menu has a bevy of French-inspired dishes like pate, carpaccio and brulee. For an appetizer, I ordered their soup du jour - which was roasted red pepper. At first, I was disappointed that it was barely filled halfway.

But then I took a sip of the soup.

Super creamy and flavorful. A nice peppery taste. I ate every last drop and then used some bread to finish it off. Delicious.

A small house salad preceded my main entree. Some greens, with a mushroom or two and some carrots in their house dressing. Light, but good.

For my main entree, I ordered Timothe's Seafood Pappardelle (and I learned how to pronounce pappardelle) with shrimp, scallops, mussels, white wine, garlic butter and pappardelle noodles. Light, but filling.

It was a nice change of pace from the otherwise heavy, thick cream sauces dumped on noodles. Not that I don't like that - but this was refreshing. The garlic and butter were perfect for the seafood. I was even a huge fan of the mussels. Great flavor, great quality, plus a little fresh tomato touch.

Though I was already stuffed, I wanted to try the dessert since the meal had been stellar thus far. I went for their sweet potato cheesecake, which had a layer of cheesecake, a layer of sweet potato, a brown sugar crunch and a maple topping with nuts. If you want to know what autumn embodied tastes like, eat this.

A fine restaurant not too far from Morgantown, Provence Market shines.

Grade: A

I have a friend - we won't mention her name (but if you read my blog often you'll probably know) - who tends to get on food kicks. Right now, she's really into pho.

There's a pho place in Pittsburgh named "Pho Kim 88," which we have laughed about when we've driven past. Especially funny considering "pho" is more pronounced like "fuh." So "fuh" "kim." Get it? Get it?

Anyway, we began to take this place more seriously when trying to figure out where to get pho nearby. Something possessed us on a Monday night to drive up to Pittsburgh for dinner. I mean, yolo, I guess that's what you can do when you're 25 and have no significant other responsibilities.

I ordered a Royce Roll, which has shrimp tempura, crabmeat, avocado, cucumber and baked salmon and spicy sauce on the outside. This was pretty good. I didn't realize the salmon was baked when I ordered it, so my roll was warm. I think I would've preferred raw salmon, but overall, tasty.

For an appetizer, we ordered the crispy cheese wontons, because I'm obsessed. These were OK. Extra crispy - like brittle/fall apart as soon as you bite crispy. No dipping sauce, so I missed the sweet part of it. But not bad.

For my mail meal (which, btw, I was already stuffed at this point ugh), I got a vermicelli noodles bowl with pork. It came out as a gigantic bowl full of lettuce, beansprouts, onion/fried onion, cilantro, basil, cucumber, carrot, a spring roll, peanut, sesame seed and fish sauce. I could add sauce as I liked, and it turned into a giant salad with noodles and it was amazing. The sauce was a sweet sauce, plus I added some soy sauce. Delicious and tons to take home for leftovers.

OH, and the bubble tea. I haven't had bubble tea where it's actually like a tea. Usually it's like a smoothie with tapioca balls. This is a tea with ice and these little bubbles that burst. I ordered a strawberry one, and it was delicious.

A little ways away from us, but if you're really wanting Vietnamese, I think it's worth it.

Grade: A