If you didn't go to last year's Taste of Morgantown, you once again missed out.

But you have another chance. The seventh annual Taste of Morgantown is scheduled for June 8 at the Erickson Alumni Center. The fundraiser, which benefits the American Red Cross, showcases Morgantown restaurants through delicious, innovative dishes. More than 25 restaurants and vendors will be in attendance.

The event takes place on June 8th at the Erickson Alumni Center at WVU from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Tickets for the event cost $40 per person or $75 for couples. Tickets can be purchased at the American Red Cross office in Morgantown, online at www.RedCross.org/TasteOfMorgantown or at the door the evening of the event.

At the end of the evening an esteemed panel of judges (including yours truly) will present awards for the best dishes in several categories. Among this year’s participants are Sargasso, Iron Horse Tavern, Table 9, Wine Bar at Vintner Valley, Morgantown Brewing Company, Tin 202, Tutto Gelato Café, Mountain State Brewing Company, and Tailpipes.

Morgantown’s Northeast WV Chapter of The American Red Cross has aided local residents who were severely impacted by extreme weather, house fires, and other disasters in the past year. By attending Taste of Morgantown you will be contributing to the American Red Cross and supporting their invaluable emergency assistance and disaster relief efforts.

Doors open at 5 p.m., and the food tasting begins at 5:30 p.m. For more information, contact The Red Cross at 304-598-9500 or visit the event website at www.RedCross.org/TasteOfMorgantown.

We've made it, you guys. The very LAST restaurant on the 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in WV list. The VERY LAST one! It's hard to really guess how long it took me to knock off this list, because I had about half of them already complete when the list came out, and then I was just casually knocking them off as I could. Within the past 6 months or so, I've really focused on completing those ones that are out along unbeaten paths in the state. Like the Holly River State Park Restaurant in Hacker Valley.

Fun story: I actually tried to visit this place earlier this year while knocking off a few other restaurants in the area. Then, MUCH to my dismay, I discovered it is seasonal. It is closed during the winter and opens back up in April. It's only open Saturdays and Sundays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. until Memorial Day. Then, it should be open daily until Labor Day, then it goes back to weekends only. BUT, you'd be safe to just give them a call if you are planning a visit (304-493-9493).

After the 2.5 hour drive south, I arrived at the cabin that houses the restaurant. And - with a sigh of relief - I saw other vehicles parked out front. Yes! Open! This time, when I turned the door knob to the screen door, it opened and revealed this rustic, wood-paneled dining room. There was one table enjoying a meal, and I found a table toward the back.

After a few minutes, I received the menu. They were no longer serving breakfast, but everything else was up for grabs. I had read the meatloaf was great, and the homemade pies and cakes were divine. So, I ordered up the meatloaf dinner with mashed potatoes (and gravy) and corn. I also ordered a slice of hot cherry pie.

The restaurant is operated by Debby Schoolcraft Catering, who I can only assume was the woman who waited on me because she apologized profusely for my initial wait. And, she took care of me for the whole meal - always tending to my refills and asking if the food is good.

The meatloaf, while good flavoring, was a bit dry. I remedied that by sharing the giant helping of mashed potatoes and gravy with each bite of meatloaf. The mashed potatoes are very thin and reminded me of school cafeteria food - but not in a bad way. I actually liked them. Also, a big fan of the roll served with dinner.

Dessert, though, was so good. This pie was piping hot and perfect. The crumbly crust and sweet cherries were a special treat that I don't get often. If you're in the area, stop by and get yourself a nice heaping helping of pie.

Grade: B

The Boston Beanery is a casual American restaurant that has a few locations in the Morgantown area (i.e. Evansdale and Downtown). Apparently a few of the locations have branched off under a new rebranded "Beanery American Grill," including a new location right off of I68, Exit 1 near the "other" Walmart.

I remember this building, which is right next to a Quality Inn, previously being a diner. I hadn't gone, but I remember it existing. So, this is the first time I've been in this new building - and I do mean new. There was this almost overwhelming smell of sawdust. It was suffocating at first, but it subsided after a few minutes. This was just their opening week, so everything was brand new.

The inside has dark hardwood, some cool dangling jar lighting and a fairly large dining space. Here's Maggie doing her best to be in public on a Sunday :)

The menu features the same items as other Beanery locations - a variety of fried appetizers, sandwiches, wraps, salads, burgers, pizzas, entrees and "homestyle" sides. I ordered honey BBQ boneless wings with a side of macaroni & cheese.

The "wings," aka adult chicken nuggets, are good. A nice crisp outside, white meat inside and a sweet and tangy sauce - what more could you ask for? Piled atop a bed of curly fries and a side of ranch made it a good, easy meal.

The mac & cheese was more cheese sauce and overcooked noodle, but, again, you can't really go wrong with mac & cheese. Still decent.

For dessert, we ordered a piece of peanut butter pie. This thing was tiny. Think 5 conservative bites - for around $6. It wasn't bad, but it's definitely not what I was envisioning. It was more like a liquid peanut butter fudge, as opposed to a more crumbly Reese's filling. Not bad, but definitely too small for that price.

The Beanery is this overall crowd-pleaser because it has a little of everything. That cousin who only eats pizza? Got it. The vegetarian? Yep. Homestyle favorites for dad? Sure. It's an easy, local place to take family. It's comfortable and familiar. And, there's always a time and place for that.


Grade: B

Charleston had its first major beer festival recently (ahem, Morgantown). Foam at the Dome was held at Laidley Field under stormy skies (only raining a bit, though!), with hundreds turning out for a cold one. Or two.

There were definitely some organizational hiccups - like waiting in line for 30 minutes before we even got into the event. But, it's great to see a huge turnout (smart hosting it the same day as the East End Yard Sale). They had more than 40 breweries, 150 beers, 10 restaurant vendors and 20 artisans.

Those breweries included: Country Boy Brewing, Charleston Brewing Company, Berkeley Springs Brewing Company, Greenbrier Valley Brewing Company, Screech Owl Brewing, Saranac, Morgantown Brewing Company, New Belgium Brewing, Bridge Brew Works, Chestnut Brew Works, Terrapin Beer Company, Big Timber Brewing Company, Blue Mountain Brewery, Dobra Zupas, Lagunitas Brewing Company, Breckenridge Brewery, Flying Dog Brewery, Mountain State Brewing Company, Duvel Moortgat Brewery, Samuel Adams, Sierra Nevada, Shipyard Brewing Company, Green Flash Brewing Company, Rogue Ales & Spirits, Harpoon Brewery, Leinenkugel Brewing Company, Sunken City Brewing Company, Ommegang Brewery, Devil’s Backbone Brewing Company, Sea Dog Brewing Company, DuClaw Brewing Company, Finch’s Beer Company, Goose Island Beer Company, Kona Brewing Company, Oskar Blues Brewery, Redhook Brewery, Southern Tier Brewing Company, Widmer Brothers, Yuengling, Lost River Brewing Company, Magic Hat Brewing Company, and Weihenstephan.

After devouring beef sandwiches, deep dish pizzas, and tons of hotdogs that have been dragged through the garden, my sweet tooth was feeling neglected. Time to fix that.

A quick google search for sweets near my current location brought up Vosges Haut-Chocolat, which are luxury chocolates in a strange, sort-of enchanted setting. Think dark purple, bright green grass/vines and black everything. These dark chocolates take on interesting spices, flowers, herbs and more in flavor.

We decided to try a few different treats. I bought a chocolate caramel marshmallow, which was quite good. The dark chocolate is not my favorite, but the caramel and marshmallow made up for it.

And I also got a packet of petits chocolats, which had caramel filled pink himalayan, smoke & stout, blood orange and black salt flavors. My overall thoughts? These are OK. I like the caramel, but the percentage of cacao is not what my tastebuds are used to. But, definitely very cool to combine neat flavors and do it in this strange, fantastic world.