Whenever I heard of "Cilantro Latin Grill," it was usually followed up with "it's a version of Chipotle." It's true there is no Chipotle in Wheeling and that there are striking similarities, but if I were a local restaurant, I would not compare myself to a fast casual food chain. Just, no.

Regardless, the idea here is good. Fresh ingredients assembled in the form of a tasty burrito, bowl, salad or arepas right in front of you. Choose your protein: Guadalajara steak, jerk chicken, chipotle & lime puerco, ground chorizo, cilantro shrimp, grilled fish, or grilled vegetables. Then, rice: Mexican or cilantro. Black beans or pinto beans? Queso or shredded cheese? Corn salsa, tomato salsa, tomatillo salsa, or jalapeno & garlic salsa? Lettuce? Sour cream?

I went for arepas (pita-like flatbread made from corn maize flour prominent in South American cuisine) with jerk chicken, cilantro rice, pinto beans, shredded cheese, corn salsa, lettuce and sour cream. The rice and beans served on the side.

I like that it's made to order and the ingredients tasted fresh. I do wish the salsa had a bit more flavor. I think I just needed a bit more of a punch. Or maybe a special touch. But, overall, easy, tasty and fresh. You can't really go too wrong there.

Grade: B

Vagabond Kitchen is an interesting restaurant. Chef Matt Welsh traveled the country on his motorcycle visiting restaurants and culinary communities and wrote about being a vagabond chef before he decided to come back home to West Virginia and open up a restaurant in the McLure Hotel. At the time of this writing, though, they are looking to relocate, and until the new flagship restaurant opens, they are serving lunch at the First State Capitol and dinner at Wheeling Brewing Company.

I was drawn to Vagabond Kitchen because I know they are dedicated to developing the food culture in West Virginia - specifically in Wheeling. Chef Welsh is an influential person in West Virginia's food scene. So, when I came up to Wheeling for the day to stop and get lunch with my mom, I wanted to check it out.

The space has less personality than I was expecting. I was thinking it'd be a bit more trendy, a bit more cohesive. I know in some sense it is probably bound by the confines of the hotel limitations, but generic table and chairs, very little art and a sparse open room left a bit to be desired.

Mom ordered the philly cheesesteak, but had a tough time eating the long cuts of peppers and missed the addition of some sort of sauce. I went with the Korean Pulled Pork Tacos, which is bulgogi marinated pork shoulder braised and pulled in-house with homemade kimchi on corn tortillas. This was good, but not amazing. I love that this item is an option because I think it's fun, but a touch of sweetness would have balanced out the sourness of the kimchi. Typically the bulgogi would have a bit more sweetness to it. I think just a small addition could take this plate to the next level.

I liked my meal, but I think I built up this "amazing" place in my mind. And it's very likely another dish could be super amazing. I think I need to come back and check it out another time.

Grade: B

Generations Restaurant & Pub, located in Wheeling, is your typical all-American casual bar & grill food. It made its way onto the WV's 101 Most Unique Places to Dine list. 

Don't try going around to the front of the building that faces the road - nope, those are the banquet halls. Instead, go around the side and there you'll find the entrance. On this day, I was early so there weren't many people having lunch yet. The interior is pretty spacious with bar seating, high-tops and tables all around the space.

They have a few decent beers on draft, and I went with a Great Lakes Brewing Company Christmas Ale. The menu gas wings, pizzas, salads and a bevy of fried appetizers, as well as sandwiches, wraps, burgers and plated entrees on the other side. I knew I had a day of munching ahead of me, so I opted for just a bite.

I ordered the buffalo pierogies, which are pierogies tossed in any of their wing sauces. Sounds a bit odd, right? Well, not if it's parmesan garlic, right? Mmm.

I asked for a side of marinara because I just felt like they needed something. Overall, these were just OK. The fried, greasy taste just kind of took over. I've had some pierogies that have had a super flavorful filling, while these just kinda fell flat. Bad? No. Great? Nah.

Grade: C

Mmm Popcorn is a new-ish gourmet popcorn shop in downtown Wheeling. Gourmet popcorn, you ask? Yes, and I'm a big fan.

When I first walked in, I guess I was a bit underwhelmed. I was thinking Pittsburgh Popcorn Company, and you kinda get the tamed down version of that. But, that's OK. There are a few plastic bins full of a few kinds of popcorn to the right, and a mirrored wall to the left has the handwritten variations available.

On this day, the "buckeye" is what sounded most exciting. Chocolate, caramel. Because yes.

Overall, it's pretty good. I was hoping for drizzled caramel on top of the popcorn instead of the all-over kind, but that's neither here nor there. I love the idea of fancy popcorn in Wheeling because I love fancy popcorn (salty + sweet is my jam).

A little bit more refinement and general ambiance inside the shop would do wonders. Until then, the popcorn will keep me coming back.

Grade: A
 

I've spent very little time at Oglebay, despite it being right in my backyard growing up. But the Ihlenfeld Dining Room wound up on the 101 Unique Places to Dine in WV list, and you know what that means.

It ended up on mine, too. I decided to head up "home" (aka Wellsburg) for the day. On the way up, I thought I could stop at Oglebay for a quick breakfast because 1 - it should be quick since it's buffet style and 2 - it's probably relatively inexpensive.

Sigh. There was a lengthy wait for breakfast. Maybe because it was near the holidays. I don't know. All I remember were lots of screaming children in Christmas colors and me wearing all black just trying to get my waffle on. It's a buffet, so I really didn't understand how it was taking so long.

I finally was seated and waited for a while before I realized that I wasn't going to receive a waiter ... I just wanted a water. But there was a carafe orange juice on the table that seemed to be my only option. K.

I got up from where I was seated (off in a room at the front) and went out to the front to peruse my options. There is an omelet station and a waffle station. I got a waffle made and picked up a few pieces of bacon. I wasn't overly impressed with the options. There were some plain grits, some picked over pieces of ham and other stuff I was mostly unenthused by.

My waffle was fine. My problem was that they had mostly run out of syrup, so I had only a tiny bit for my waffle. But, it's fine. It's decent.

After I flagged someone down and was able to pay - about $14 - I headed out. Quickly.


Grade: C