Have you heard of the "one chip challenge"?

The Vagabond Kitchen in Wheeling hosts the challenge where they have participants eat one single chip from Grown at Home in WV.

This chip is coated in a powder that uses some of the hottest peppers that Grown at Home in WV has, include the Carolina Reaper, Ghost Pepper and Scorpion Pepper! Yikes.

My friend Sam LOVES spicy stuff, so she was all in. Me? I ordered adult mac & cheese and watched.

Have you ever had a formal tea?

I mean, like a full on tea party?

I have had tea in Morgantown, but the Eckhart House Tea Room in Wheeling is a full-on experience.

You get to choose what kind of tea you want.

We went with a traditional afternoon sweet tea.

That means it came with scones with sweet cream and jam, assorted confections and a pot of gourmet tea.

While sipping tea, we were regaled with the history of Wheeling.

And there's a really cute little gift shop.

We went upstairs to see the remainder of the house, which is styled in a historic theme.

This is a really unique experience, and a fun way to spend time with your friends.

And a great way to learn about the city.

Have you been?

Thaibilly Kitchen is a local food service and catering business that held a pop-up shop at Mea Cuppa this past weekend.

It doesn't take much to convince me to dive into some Thai food, so I made plans to grab dinner here. They started at 2 p.m., I got there at about 5 p.m., and I was one of the last few to get food. Word to the wise: These folks are in high demand so go early.

So I put in my order and hung around for just under two hours before it was ready.

I ordered crispy spring rolls - a Pongsugree Family recipe made with a blend of vegetable and spices handrolled and golden fried with sweet sauce made in house.

And, pad thai - flat ride noodles in a sweet, tangy tamarind sauce with cabbage, carrots, and egg topped with fresh bean sprouts, and crushed peanuts.

And we also got pad kee mow - which is aromatic garlic and basil stir fry made with wide rice noodles, locally grown spring veggies and egg in a savory sauce.

What did you try?

While at an event in Fayetteville, I stumbled upon Honey Blossom Bake Shop.

This small bakery had an assortment of all sorts of goodies - brownies and tarts and all sorts.

I ended up going with two things:

This tasty brownie.

And this rice krispie treat.

My work buddies Alex and Sam - and their respective significant others - and I checked out Taste of Parkersburg this year.

These events are always so much fun for me because you get to sample bites from all kinds of restaurants. It's even more fun in the Parkersburg area - because there are still so many restaurants on my to-try list from there.

Taste of Parkersburg works a little differently than some of the other dine-around events I've attended. You pay at the gate ($20), which gets you a wine or beer glass, a tray, and access to the music and food. Then, you also purchase taste tickets. One ticket is approximately one dollar, and they sell in sheets of $10 or $20.

I ended up with a sheet of $20. Most of the items I wanted were around $4, so I got 5 things total.

First up was Brunello Restaurant and Bar, which is newly in the Blennerhassett Hotel. I tried their short rib and polenta.

Then, I went for a teriyaki chicken burrito with a spicy sweet chili sauce from Philippines Best Food.



Then, I discovered they had a secret menu item (one that wasn't listed in the pamphlet) - siopao. Siopao is a hot bun, which was filled with a sweet pork, and is like a steamed bun I've previously had elsewhere. It was my favorite thing of the evening.

After those, I braved some long lines.

Belair's Bistro and Catering had a few menu items that sounded delish to me, but I went with the jumbo lump crab cake with red pepper remoulade.

This restaurant is located across the river in Belpre, but drew a big crowd - including me.

I would say it's worth it.

The final tickets were used at Hot Dog Willy's - one of the Parkersburg restaurants I have yet to visit. I got a hot dog with chili and macaroni and cheese on top.

After this, I struggled to move.

But I did manage to fit in one glass of Chestnut Ridge's peach chardonnay. Perfect way to end the evening.

I went to Melange Cafe when it first opened because I was dying to check it out.

At this point, they had a limited menu, and they have since expanded a bit.

The space is convenient for me - it's nearby and right along Quarrier Street.

There are a variety of drinks - teas, coffees, etc.

I ended up with a hot chocolate with espresso - here, called a Dirty Abuelita.

Yum.

They served tacos, and on this day they had two pork tacos with Spanish rice.

Have you been here?