The Capitol Market is one of my happy places. It's a bustling, lively market full of people, amazing products and fresh food. It has a number of hot food vendors to provide a bite to eat while shopping. And, Sushi Garden is the latest addition to the offerings.

Sushi Garden, located between The Purple Onion and The Wine & Cheese Shop, has hand-rolled sushi rolls prepared daily. There are some rolls pre-made in the case out front for real grab & go options, or you can order off the menu.

I ordered the popular Sushi Garden roll, which has crab, cream cheese, and avocado inside with diced shrimp and imitation crab salad, spicy sauce, sweet sauce, and mayonnaise on top. If you want a flavor explosion in your mouth, get this. Such a lovely combination of textures and flavors to really make this roll shine. It's loaded with all my favorite ingredients in life (and, yes, I'm sure your hipster friend who pouts about cream cheese will say it's not authentic. Point them here.). Delicious, fresh, and quick. Check it out.

Grade: A
 

I've heard good things about Fusion Teriyaki Grille ever since it opened in Charleston. And, while the name suggests the restaurant would be another addition to the Asian food scene in Kanawha City, it really focuses on a fresh, lighter menu as opposed to deep-fried everything.

Fusion Teriyaki Grille is located in a small plaza that used to be the home of Penn Station Subs during my time in Charleston. The restaurant is counter-service, and the menu features steak, shrimp, chicken, pork, Korean short ribs (Kalbi) and salmon in the form of plated meals (with a side fruit salad), salads and bowls (with a side of veggies). Asian food that is healthy and fast? Sign me up.

I ordered a pork plate - spicy pork bulgogi - which comes with white rice, a small salad and fresh fruit. Wow. Not only is it kinda rare to get bulgogi in West Virginia, it's rare to fine it this good. It is fresh and flavorful and just the perfect amount of spice. This dish was really, really good. I love having these deep, rich flavors with light melon and salad to help offset those flavors. Go. Order this. You won't regret it.

Teriyaki Fusion Grille is located at 4002 MacCorkle Ave. SE. It's open 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 8 p.m. on Saunday.

Grade: A
 

The hotdog stand with the yellow slaw calls Marmet home, but its reputation has stretched far beyond the Charleston area.

When I had some free time in Charleston, I headed out Chum's to get my hands on one of those yellow slawdogs. Walk up to the right window. Order a hotdog with everything. The man behind the counter really, really struggled with my name before finally just asking my last name. I waited for the left window to open and call my name.

Then, time to dive in. The slaw is a good bit sweet (honey?), the sauce was just a perfect amount of savory hidden under the slaw, and onions were plentiful enough to add a nice crunch to most bites. This is a solid contributor to the hot dog culture in West Virginia - and a different one, at that.

Grade: A

Another day, another new bar in Morgantown. Playoffs Sports Bar has been open for a little while now, replacing what was once Brick Yard Pub on Spruce Street. I visited for dinner recently.

In typical downtown Morgantown fashion, you're on your own for parking. The dining space is open with lots of tables that definitely cater to the bar scene more than the dining scene. Tables, floors and menus were a bit sticky. Our waitress quickly warned us they have no pizzas. Bummer.

Instead, I went for a burger. The Freshman Fifteen has fresh ground chuck stuffed with cheese, plus all the fixins for me - lettuce, tomato, red onion.

The burger itself was average. Most of the cheese had melted out, so there wasn't this creamy, cheesy center. The burger was a bit dwarfed by the gigantic bun and toppings. A tad more seasoning could've helped too. Overall, though, not bad. Not great. Just fairly average.

Grade: C
 

Oh, Addison Cafe, you slippery devil you.

It wasn't until my third attempt was I actually able to dine at this restaurant. The first, I made a trip to Webster Springs for the Custard Stand and casually tried to stop by Addison Cafe place before realizing they were only open during dinner hours on Saturday. The second: I had called in advance to confirm they would be open, made the long haul down and discovered they closed the dining room for a private event. Fuming, I made the two hour drive back to Morgantown (in the snow!) without being able to cross this one off my 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in WV list. But, the third time's a charm.

I, again, called to make sure they'd be open. Just more adamant this time. And, it was successful. I walked into this oddly shaped building. It has a rectangle (which is a bar area) attached to an odd circular dining room piece, and I was relieved to see people dining inside. Woo! Made it!

The special for the day was baby back ribs, which came with cole slaw and baked beans. I nixed the sides in favor of sweet potato fries and macaroni salad. The macaroni salad came out first as a sort of appetizer, and it was decent. It was a substantial portion and definitely on the sweeter side.

The sweet potato fries were pleasantly surprising. Nice thick, crisp fries with a delicious cinnamon butter for dipping. And the RIBS. Wow. I don't order ribs often because they're a pain in the ass; they make a huge mess, and they are usually not up to my standards. These, though, were amazing.

They were fall-off-the-bone tender, with a thick, sweet BBQ sauce and little to no fatty pieces. I ate every last bit. So good. If you come here, and the ribs are on special ... don't even think about it. Just order them. You're welcome.

Grade: A

I have a sort of strange little attachment to Marlinton. In my undergraduate studies, I spent a weekend in this town for a journalism project where we were "immersed" in the community and produced a video, print story and photo package by the end of the weekend.

I recently visited Marlinton again to check out the Locust Hill Inn, an inn, pub, cabin and restaurant combo located just a little further out from the downtown area. It found itself on the 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in WV list, which means it found itself on my to-go list, too.

The restaurant doesn't open until 5 p.m., and I arrived just a bit after. I found a seat looking out into the dining area, which was homey and still. The restaurant has this comfy country feel.

The menu is small with a cheese platter appetizer, a salad with choice of protein and dressing, and a handful of entrees: pork chop, steak, salmon or crab cakes. It was getting late, and I still had to make the trek back to Morgantown, so I based my decision on what could be easier to eat on the go. That would have to be the crab cakes. After putting in my order and waiting for about 15 minutes, I was told that they do not have any made. And, to make them would take another hour or so. Sigh.

So, I was left to peruse the menu, and this time, I also looked at the daily specials. Chicken marinara sauce over spaghetti seemed like the better of the two. Why not? I wasn't expecting much, as this isn't particularly exciting, but it'll do.

The most endearing part of this entire experience was when I asked if they had plastic cutlery to go, they replied that they didn't. But. They handed me a set of silverware and just told me to return when I can. This was super heartfelt for a few reasons - they had no idea how far I had driven for this meal, and not having that silverware would have made me unable to actually eat this meal on the go (unless I found a store somewhere to purchase some). That, and seriously, only a hometown, local place would ever do something like this.

I took a quick bite of the bread - average. Nothing too stellar. I took another quick bite of the salad - pretty damn good. Fresh, shaved hunks of parmesan, giant croutons and a creamy garlicky house dressing made this salad better than just "good."

The pasta smelled so good, I pulled over for a few minutes to get a sampling. First of all, it's linguini and not spaghetti. Second of all, those sad three mini asparagus are sad. And there was a small black clothing fiber in that empty pocket.

But the pasta... this wasn't just an average pasta dish. It was incredible. It has this deep, sweet tomato flavor. It had to have been slow cooked and babied, because it kind of blew my mind. I was expecting a very average dish, and this had really, really good flavors. I ate every last bite. The fresh shaved parmesan on top was the cherry on top. I can only hope this makes a permanent appearance on their regular menu, because I would be back for it.

Grade: B
 

Snowshoe has some tasty restaurants, but if you wander off the mountain in search of some variety in your dining options, it's likely you'll end up at a small restaurant in Slatyfork. Slatyfork doesn't have a ton of options, but it does have The Fiddlehead, which was recently named to the 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in WV list.

I arrived at The Fiddlehead as soon as it opened (4 p.m. on Saturdays) ... and realized pretty quickly that I probably should have given them some more time to actually open. It was like I walked in and interrupted a get-together amongst the workers. There was a server's coat and purse just hanging out on one of the tables in the middle of the dining room, and pop music was crackling across a radio from the kitchen as people working had more interest in singing along with it than tending to customers. After I ordered and was receiving change back, the folks behind the counter were talking to each other during this transaction, rather than me. It was also very, very clear - via the aroma in the air - that there had been some extracurricular activities happening before my arrival. I mean, whatever. Sigh.

I ordered their fresh cut fries to go, which come with beer cheese, Fiddlehead "fry sauce" and mango habanero ketchup. A lot of other things on the menu actually look appealing - pimento bacon cheeseburger, crab & shrimp jambalaya, and a fig, rosemary and prosciutto pizza all caught my eye. But, fries are supposedly what they are known for.

As soon as the fries were ready, I left and opened them up in my car to snack along my drive. The ketchup was not unlike a regular ketchup - it just had a bit of a sweet flavor. The "fry sauce" is much like a cream "yum yum" sauce from a hibachi restaurant, and the beer cheese - as much as I wanted this one the most - had some interesting textural issues, like something had separated and I couldn't quite get it back together. It was the only sauce served warm, and I just played it safe and avoided that one. Fresh-cut crisp fries? Yes. Pretty decent sauces? Yes. Would I even want to try some of those other tasty items? Definitely. But a good environment? Meh.

Grade: C

To get fueled for a long day of driving ahead of me, I did a quick search for coffee shops while in Hinton. The first place that popped up was Chestnut Revival, a quaint coffee shop on Summers Street.

The shop occupies the bottom floor of this house, and the seating area spreads across the hallway and sprawls into different spaces with eclectic seating and decoration. It's all quite sweet actually.

They do have some lunch items. And, lots of tasty coffee drinks are available: chai latte, pumpkin spice, dirty chocolate, bravado (espresso, half and half, honey), and one called the Tall, Dark & Handsome. When DON'T I want something tall, dark and handsome? It's hot coco, espresso and whipped cream.

After putting in my order, I wandered around the place. I really, really love it here. It's so friendly and cozy and quiet and warm and large windows allow for lots of light. I could spend a whole day here just taking it in.

But when my drink was ready, the woman behind the counter wanted to show me how cute it looked like before she put the lid on. I wanted to grab a photo then, but before I knew it, she warned me to step back because she filled the coffee so far to the top (as she always does), that it will make a mess when she puts the cap on. And, boy did it. She said you'd think she'd just not fill it up all the way, but she doesn't want to short people. I just found that so endearing. She cleaned it up for me, and I was on my way.

And, it was the best damn coffee I've had. It's coffee and hot coco, so it tastes good, and it gives me a nice jolt. I mean, what more could you ask for? I just need to find a local place that will do this for me every day. Because I'm totally obsessed now.

Grade: A
 

Just a handful of places left on my 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in WV list, and Hinton was next up. The Market on Courthouse Square was listed for its "Main Line" - a reuben. So, I didn't need much time to peruse the menu here.

I went up to the counter and ordered this reuben before finding a nice window seat to enjoy my meal.


The reuben is pretty standard. Two pieces of marble rye bread hold a pile of corned beef, swiss cheese, sauerkraut and a house-made Russian dressing.




This sandwich was good - very similar to every other reuben I've ever had. It certainly had a ton of corned beef and a generous serving of the sauerkraut. I love when the swiss gets melty so it adds that creamy element to the sandwich, but this sandwich didn't see that. So, overall, good. Anything super special? Not sure. Might have to try another item to see what stands out!

Grade: B