A month or so ago, I traveled to Lost River to check off a few restaurants on the 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in WV list. Unfortunately, The Inn at Lost River's General Store was closed for the season. I was devastated, but resolved to come back as soon as they were open. 

Lost River is quite the trek from Morgantown, so I called a few times to confirm they would be open before making the drive. And, once I got there, I let out a huge sigh of relief to see the "open" sign hanging out front of the shop.


This beautiful shop features local products, wines, and other goods. Seriously, there are some great products here; I fell in love.

They also have their cafe! Some quick breakfast items like bagels or muffins are available, as well as sandwiches, salads, paninis and BBQ.

The BBQ is why they made the unique list, so that's what I went with - as well as the side of baked bbq lima beans and cole slaw.


I looked around the shop a bit more, before selecting a seat amongst the beautiful products to enjoy my meal. The BBQ is actually quite tasty and piled high on the bun with some extra sauce on the side. The BBQ lima beans, which I was super skeptical of, were crazy delicious. Did not taste like lima beans or baked beans (neither of which I like), but I liked these! The crisp chips and pickle were perfect complements.

If you have some time, check out this place. It's beautiful, supports local artisans and churns out some darn good food in the most pleasant setting. Just the way the line shined in on a cool day, showcasing these beautiful items up for purchase, while getting my fill of delicious food, made my day.

Grade: A

West Virginia is slowly welcoming more local breweries and craft beer within the state borders. And Morgantown is home to a few shops that offer these new, tasty craft beers.

While walking downtown the other day, I realized I had never stopped in All U Need, even though they have an array of craft beer and home brewing supplies to purchase.

So, they have some beer that's hard to find elsewhere! Check it out.

After my trip to New York City last fall, I've been on a serious bagel & lox (or, more accurately, smoked salmon usually) kick. Lox is thinly sliced salmon belly that has been salt-cured or brined, while smoked salmon is a more general term and can be made from any part of the salmon. Bagel & lox is generally the go-to term for a bagel with cream cheese, lox, capers and red onions -- even though smoked salmon is often used.

Morgantown has just a handful of establishments that offer a bagel & lox - most often at brunch - so I decided I need to try all of them to find my favorite.

Blue Moose Cafe has the closest to original lox bagel: smoked salmon, caper cream cheese, lettuce, tomato and red onion, plus a small side of fresh fruit. I'm a big fan of Blue Moose's cream cheeses (mm scallion cream cheese), so the caper cream cheese is perfect for this meal. Tomato is a common addition to this sandwich. The bagel was nicely toasted, and I was happy to have enough onion to get pieces in each bite.

Terra Cafe also has a very good bagel & lox. They have your smoked salmon on a darkly toasted, made-from-scratch bagel, topped with cream cheese, smoked salmon, capers and pickled red onions. They also serve a side of fresh fruit - pineapple, melon, blueberries. If you like your bagel & lox on the crispier side, definitely check out Terra. I like picked onions, but the raw onions add a crunch. But, since the bagel is crispier, it remedies itself.

Tin 202 puts a different spin on the lox bagel by adding mascarpone cheese, cucumbers and capers. Think of it as a bagel & lox kicked up a few notches. The cucumbers keep it a bit lighter tasting, and the mascarpone still gives that creaminess you want from this sandwich.





Real Juice Bar & Cafe features a wild, Alaskan, cold-smoked salmon with cream cheese, onion, tomato, & capers on a bagel. This bagel was very bready, making this more like a real sandwich. The salmon here is a bit thicker, so if that's your thing, you'd be all about this one. A tasty cup of pineapple on the side gave some nice acid to the meal.

Have you had any? Or all? What's your fav!

Cottrell's Country Store is located on the outskirts of Morgantown, right before you cross into Pennsylvania. I didn't really think much of this small store, but a few friends who have lived in this area have noted they have some pretty good food. That, of course, prompted a visit from me.


After work, I called ahead and put in an order for a stromboli with spinach and mushrooms. They called back a while later and said they were running out of spinach, so I just said not to worry about that one.

Once I arrived, I was a little surprised at the store part. Lots of random stuff. It looks a little (lot) neglected. Refrigerators with no doors on, boxes standing up along the wall, a bag of chicken nuggets in with the ice cream freezer. Just, weird.

But. The stromboli they cooked for me looked pretty baller. Take a look.

And once I got home and dug in, it was really quite good.

The dough is homemade, and the sauce and cheese were very good. It was huge, not pricey, and I was very impressed. My only qualm is, really, the appearance of this place. Made me question the cleanliness or freshness, but those weren't concerns once I tasted it.







Grade: B
 

A good friend of mine mentioned Argo Tea when he knew I was heading to Chicago. I didn't happen to see any Argo Tea locations during my time in the city, but when we were heading back home, it appeared. After getting through (kinda tedious) security, this Argo Tea stand was like this sparkling beacon of happy that was calling my name.


I really don't drink much tea, so I stood in front of the menu for a bit trying to get my bearings. I ultimately setting on a Hibiscus Tea Sangria, which is a sparkling tea with hibiscus flowers and medley of fruits. I can easily say this is the tastiest tea I've ever had, and now I may be a tea convert. Sweet - but not too sweet - and floral and just crazy refreshing. Perfect for the long day of traveling that was ahead of me.

Grade: A