The Barge is a classic Charleston restaurant that was gone before I had the chance to check it out.

Luckily, it has made a triumphant return so I was happy to experience dining on the Kanawha.

Offering traditional bar & grille fare, the real draw for The Barge is being able to dine on the dock.

After fumbling a bit to figure out how to get to it from the road, I pulled into the parking lot my GPS directed me to, and I saw the sign on the gate.

They had carts shuttling people up and down the hill, but I took the stairs down and onto the boat.

A dock surrounds the boat, and there are a bunch of umbrella-ed tables for which to sit. On this day, though, it was at least 4000 degrees so I asked to sit inside. I think that caught them by surprise, and I was seated downstairs.

This space is essentially used for the wait staff prep, as they were folding silverware on the tables and hanging out. I definitely felt a bit out of place and like I was in their private space.

The menu has a huge "build your own" sandwich option, so I figured that could be a pretty solid way to go. I ordered a burger, on brioche, with bleu cheese, crispy onions and a sweet and spicy glaze. I also got a side of fries.

The burger was pretty good - I wish more of that glaze had been on it, but not bad.

The fries were good - and a pretty hefty portion at that.



There are still some kinks they're working out, as they just reopened. But, I like this unique option in town, and on a (slightly cooler) nice day, this could be a great spot.

Kudos to Seattle for being weird and capitalizing on it.


Have you ever heard of ginger beer? Me neither, but Rachel's Ginger Beer makes it, and it's a pretty simple combination:

great root handcrafted in seattle, wa

rachels ginger beer is made in seattle using fresh water, lemons, organic sugar and ginger. we believe in this brew, and we're pretty sure that you will too. simple ingredients are key. Fresh lemons, strong roots, organic cane sugar and good water made intimate with one another and brewed to taste here in seattle. partnering with several local farms we’ve befriended through seattle farmers markets, we brew with care and attention to detail, offering our original recipe and several seasonal flavors.



So, it's not beer, but it's a soda.

while living and working for several years in Europe, we were introduced to proper ginger beer. brewed in many neighborhood pubs and served on tap, the british ginger beers we fell in love with represent a level of quality and craftsmanship we felt was absent in mass-produced american sodas. so, after returning home to the PNW, we set ourselves to the task of mastering what we believe is the best ginger beer in the world; fresh fragrant and not too sweet.

However, it goes perfectly with alcohol, and the shop has a number of cocktails on tap. I ordered the frozen pink guava mule, with pink guava ginger beer, vodka and lime. This was so bright and refreshing on a day spent walking from one end of town to the other.

It's light, it's cool and it's just a bit sweet without being overwhelmingly so. So, grab one (or two!), and enjoy the people watching at Pike Place Market!

Grade: A

Red Fire Asian BBQ & Japanese Steak House brings to mind one word: "extra."

From the inflatable dragons outside, to the automatic "welcome" voice when you open the door to the flashing colors, Red Fire Asian BBQ is a little taste of Vegas right in Charleston, West Virginia.

Under the same direction of Su-Tei, Red Fire Asian BBQ has a swanky vibe and a similar menu.

Service was prompt and friendly, and I was seated in my own little rounded booth with a full people-watching view.

The menu has some interesting rolls with everything you could think of - certainly not traditional, but fun nonetheless.

One in particular that caught my eye was a roll that was on fire - that's right. Literally on fire.

It's called "Moon Fire," and it has shrimp tempura, spicy tuna, avocado, topped with three pieces of shrimp, sriracha sauce, eel sauce, mayonnaise sauce, "served with fire." So, obviously I needed to see what this was about.

The roll came wrapped in foil, with a mini fire underneath. The waitress simply swirled the foiled roll to put out the flames.

And voila, there was my roll. I unwrapped it, and the first thing I noticed was the mass of sauce on top of this roll. Not complaining - it's tasty - but it's a new sort of fusion I've not seen before.

The roll was decent - a little warm, as you might expect. But lots of creamy, sweet and sour sauces that aren't traditional. Tasty, though? Yes.

This small Italian restaurant doesn't capitalize on traditional, old-school fare - it emphasizes the simplicity in flavors with a modern touch.

Italian Restaurant Il Corvo has a line out the door before it even opens, and that line runs constantly throughout lunchtime.

This restaurant is only open for lunch, only during weekdays, and only serves three dishes that change each day. On this day, they had a pappardelle alla bolognese, a fusilli with nettle and hazlenut pesto, and a baked mafalda. They also have some standard items on the menu - their housemade focaccia, for instance.

After you make your way to the front of the line and pay (just $10 for your dish), then you're assigned a table and your food is brought out shortly thereafter.

First, though, I had ordered some of their housemade foccaccia, which was handed to me, and I took that back to my table and began nibbling bits while waiting on my papardelle.

At Il Corvo we rely on years of experience and knowledge in order to create the perfect noodle. We work with traditional bronze dies and handmade tools as well as high quality organic ingredients to develop pasta with a proper al dente mouth feel that is both delicious and firm. 

People sometimes mistake over or under cooking the noodle to directly affect the al dente texture of pasta. In fact, a proper al dente noodle is primarily the result of using high quality ingredients – semolina flour, wheat flour and fresh eggs. The protein in these ingredients are what creates the ‘tooth’ in the noodle – that’s what gives it it’s texture. 

We focus on formulating the right blend of flours, eggs and water for each pasta shape so that it has the right texture and tooth. By using organic flours, as well as local organic eggs which have a much higher protein content and better quality overall, we are able to produce a much higher quality pasta that cooks well, holds sauce perfectly and is delectable (OUR PASTA).

The bread is simple, but good. A nice complement to my pasta, which was ...

Delicious! I really like the slightly chewy, toothsome pasta. It makes it very substantial and delectable. This place is simple, but great. You bus your own table and fill your own water, so service here is nearly nonexistent, which goes along with the simple theme. It really is a great little place.

Grade: A

One of my absolute favorite stops in Seattle was Mee Sum Pastry.

This Chinese bakery in Pike Place Market makes these lovely savory buns fresh - plus a wide assortment of other goodies.

Seattle’s central market has long welcomed locals, tourists, and immigrants alike, and the result is this slightly bastardized version of the kind of bao that you’d find in China, in which sweet dough wraps around a savory curry. Much like the market itself, the bun is inspired by a diverse population -- and tastes great (Thrillist).

So, I ordered the BBQ pork hum bow, which was soft, pillowy sweet dough encasing perfectly minced bites of BBQ pork. Just wow. I also got a crab rangoon which is heavy on the crab, less on the cream cheese. Both so simple but so phenomenal. A must stop.

Grade: A