What a little gem this restaurant is! Taking place of the Magnolia Room at 315 Straley Ave. in Princeton, this new restaurant features Italian dishes and delicious desserts. I never had the opportunity to dine at the Magnolia Room, and I'm sad I won't get to, but Nonna's was a pleasant treat. In a sea of fast-food restaurants and chain dining, Nonna's is home-cooked goodness. I don't even know of an Italian chain restaurant in Princeton (no Olive Gardens), so maybe Pizza Hut or Gino's is as close as it gets after Nonna's. Nonna's is really taking advantage of the market here, and I'm happy to see it fill that niche of Italian-hungry Princetonians or Morgantonians transplanted in Princeton.


Chris and I had a date night, coupled with Nonna's Italian Kitchen and "Bad Teacher." He knew I was excited for this restaurant, maybe too excited. The sign outside had been teasing me with "opening soon," until a week or so ago, it said it was taking reservations from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.. It seems the restaurant is only open Friday through Sunday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. That's OK - perfect for me actually. I called up and made reservations for 5 p.m. on Saturday. I originally said 4 p.m., but the person on the other end of the phone said they'd rather do it later so they have time to prepare. Maybe their opening time should say 5 p.m. then.

On Friday, Chris and I dressed up. We weren't sure exactly what to expect, but I would rather be overdressed than underdressed, and yoga pants scream underdressed. We clean up nicely - I wore a black dress, and he had a polo and khaki shorts. We headed toward the restaurant and found a parking spot right in front. Parking lines the streets around the restaurant, so it's really not far of a walk from any area. Much different than Morgantown dining. The restaurant is in what looks like an old house. Actually, it may still be a house with the owners living there.

When we walked in, we saw a dozen circle tables with white tablecloths underneath a glass top. I'm glad we dressed up. The dining area looked very, very small, so my suspicions about the house being a home as well as a restaurant are probably true. It looks to be three stories, and the dining area occupied only half of the main floor. It's like walking into one of those small treasures - from the outside, it's plain and unsuspecting. Walking inside, seeing fancy tables, it's a treat.

Most tables had four chairs, some uncomfortably placed to conform to the tight space restrictions, and one table was placed near a large window - quite romantic. Too bad the only table occupied when we walked in was that one. The waitress told us we could sit wherever we liked. We chose the table closest and sat down. The waitress took our drink orders, though she was frazzled and didn't name all of the options (we heard her giving another table the drink options, some of which she neglected to tell us). I ordered a coke and a water. Chris ordered just a coke. He noted the drinks tasted like they were from a 2-liter, but I was happy with that. I think he would've preferred a fountain beverage. My water, however, wasn't served until halfway through the salad because the waitress forgot. She was a bit flighty.


Before that though, we were handed a thick piece of paper with their menu, which consisted of three options: spaghetti, chicken Alfredo or lasagna. Literally, three options. At the top, it said it was the early bird menu from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., so more options may be available after 6 p.m., but I'm not sure. The menu was a thick piece of paper, which really needs to be laminated. After the restaurant is open another week, I'm sure that menu will be crinkled and unappetizing. I ordered the lasagna, and Chris got the chicken Alfredo. While we waited, we were served a small basket of fresh-baked bread, with olive oil and basil. I wasn't impressed with the olive oil, but the bread was warm and moist.

Soon after, our salads arrived. Accompanied with a little salad dressing pitcher, the salad consisted of lettuce and tomato. I ordered the vinaigrette dressing, which went well. It was light and slightly tangy. Chris ordered ranch, which had a hard time coming out of the pitcher, but he was happy with it. I honestly was less than impressed with the salad. The lettuce wasn't very fresh or crisp, and the tomatoes left something to be desired. They weren't flavorful. In fact, Chris hates tomatoes so I always get his, so my salad had extra tomatoes, but it was still bland. I've done better with packaged salad from Kroger's. At this point, I was feeling let down.

That was until the chef sent out a complimentary Caprese salad because my lasagna dish takes a while. Though, it didn't seem to me like it was taking long at all. The Caprese salad was excellent! Slabs of fresh mozzarella sandwiched between large slices of fresh tomato sprinkled with herbs and olive oil garnished the plate, and bite-size pieces of bread. I quickly made a small sandwich and melted. I'm a sucker for fresh mozzarella, and tomatoes are my favorite, so I was sold. This simple dish knocked it out of the park. Chris was even impressed. I used some of the bread from our basket to use up the last of the tomato and mozzarella and was eager to see what was next.

Our dishes came out shortly after. My lasagna was served piping hot in an individual casserole dish, and Chris' came out on a plate. As soon as I could handle the temperature, I dug in. The lasagna was packed with layers of noodles and meat sauce and topped with a healthy serving of mozzarella. It was exactly what you'd expect for lasagna - heavy, garlic-y and tomato-y. I prefer my lasagna a little less on the meaty side, but I know this would appeal to most people. I also like more noodles - this is definitely heavy on the meat and tomato sauce.


Chris won this round. His dish was outstanding. I'm usually scared of Alfredo dishes because I like so few. I don't like the cheap Alfredo sauces that use a lot of flour or fake cheese. This chicken Alfredo was cheesy and thick. Topped with some pieces of chicken breast and combined with fettuccine, it was a homerun. I hinted a few times that I wanted his dish instead, but he wasn't trading. The Alfredo was so creamy, it was almost carbonara sauce. Try this.

For dessert, I ordered their Italian Cream Cake. And I am so, so glad I did. This is one of the best cakes I've EVER had. I suspect they have a bakery, not just a restaurant, because this cake was extraordinary. Moist layers with cream cheese icing and walnuts. Absolutely delicious. Very, very rich, but so very worth it.

For drinks, salad, bread, Caprese salad, entrees and dessert, we paid only $26.49. What a deal.

Grade: B

WV Tourism put together this cool list of the greatest places to dine in West Virginia. I would love to be able to try all of these some day.

1. 33 Country Club

   Wednesday-night specials. Enjoy mouth-watering steak sandwiches on homemade bread.
   
   City: Glenville

2. Alexander's On 7th

   Enjoy the beauty of Old World Craftsmanship as you visit Moundsville’s Newest Eatery-“Alexander’s on 7th,” A National Register property. ...
   
   City: Moundsville

3. Barb’s Diner

   Barb’s is proudest of its down-home atmosphere and friendly service. It is best known for its daily specials and all-day breakfast menu.
   
   City: Middlebourne
   

Colasessano's isn't a new name in these parts of West Virginia. However, it is a new name to Morgantown. Colasessano's is a staple in Fairmont and has been for some time, so much so that they have two locations. It's even on the list of "101 unique places to dine in WV." It wasn't until recently that Morgantown had a branch to call its own.

Located at the Pierpont Landing plaza, near Penny's Diner, Colasessano's features their "world famous" pizza and pepperoni buns. I was a little hesitant because 1) it's a little out of the way and 2) I tried their frozen variety before and wasn't a fan. When I was shopping in Kroger, I saw they sold these frozen pizzas based out of Farimont. I picked one up, but I hated it. I know frozen pizzas aren't the greatest indicator of quality, so we took a ride toward Cheat Lake to try this restaurant.


It has a large, open feel of a retro pizza parlor.Red and white speckle the interior, and '50s metal chairs and tables really give this an old-school pizza place feel. When you walk in, you walk up to a large counter. Behind the counter is a menu on the wall, but it's not any regular menu. It's on three large TVs, so it's slightly animated. We told the hostess we were dining in, and she escorted us to a booth. We put in our drink orders and perused the menu.

Colasessano's features typical pizza place food: salads, hoagies and pizza. In addition, Colasessano's offers their "pepperoni buns," which from what I could tell are basically pepperoni rolls with either sauce or other mixtures on them. Kristen and I ordered a large regular pizza, which came standard with cheese and pepperoni for $12.50. I also ordered a pasta salad.

My pasta salad came out first. I have high expectations for pasta salad, as my mother makes a killer one, and I've grown up with it. But this wasn't bad. The tri-color rotini noodles were soaked in a balsamic and Italian dressing. But they held firm, so as to have some bite to them, which I prefer. It also had tiny shopped green onions, cucumbers and tomatoes. The small chunks were almost too small, as they were hard to grab with my fork. I prefer meatier veggies (if that makes any sense). My mother also puts chunks of cheese and pepperoni in hers. I think that would've made this dish absolutely outstanding. But the dish held its own, and I was satisfied. For $4, it was a generous helping and tasted better than a Kroger deli helping.

Afterward, our pizza arrived on a wooden board with a spatula. It was slightly indented into 12 pieces. But the three on the end could hardly be called pieces. I was already a fan because it was square. My beloved DiCarlo's pizza is square, so it reminded me of home. But this pizza was quite poofy. The crust is pretty thick. It didn't lay flat, and instead reminded me of sourdough pizza. The sauce is slightly sweet tasting, and the cheese is oozing on top of the pepperonis. I actually like the concept of having the pepperoni under the cheese - it doesn't get crispy or fold up into those little grease cups. The pizza was very difficult to cut, though, considering we only had our spatula and basically had to stab at the pizza so we could remove a slice without tearing off the cheese from the rest of the pizza.

We basically had six small squares apiece, but I took half mine home in a to-go box, which our waitress so nicely boxed up for me. I am a fan of the taste - I like the sweeter sauce and the sourdough-tasting bread. And, I'm glad it's local and homemade, but it's not the best I've ever had. And it's probably not something I'd seek out. If I were over on that side of town and hungry, I wouldn't mind going there. But if I want pizza at home, I'm not going to venture to Colasessano's. As far as homestyle goes, it falls in the midrange.

For those who are crazy about it, though, it's cool they have the frozen option that you can buy in stores, at the locations, or online and have them shipped anywhere in the U.S. That's a really cool feature. They also have specials each day of the week, which look like they'd save a pretty good amount.

I asked about dessert, but apparently they only had one of their options: brownie bites. Before the waitress asked me if I'd like them, she rang up the order and handed us the receipt. Too bad, because I would've said yes. Our bill came to about $24 with tip.

Morgantown Hours:

• Monday -10 AM - 9 PM
• Tuesday -10 AM - 9 PM
• Wednesday -10 AM - 9 PM
• Thursday -10 AM - 9 PM
• Friday -10 AM - 10 PM
• Saturday -10 AM - 10 PM
• Sunday -CLOSED

Grade: B

This little hole in the wall is located between Princeton and Bluefield, in an area called Green Valley. Growing up, this was a favorite of Chris's, and reminded him of earlier times. No offense to Chris, but he loves places that are "comfortable," as opposed to "good." This place packs some childhood memories for him, so I'll try not to be too harsh.

The restaurant, from the outside, looks kind of like a trailer. I would've assumed so, had I not known better. The only entrance, as far as I know, is a wheelchair ramp. There are a few picnic bench-like tables outside with an awning covering. When we went to open the door, a sign caught my eye that said they open at 6:45 a.m. By this point, I was putting two and two together: "Country" restaurant, wheelchair ramp, open at 6:45 a.m. This was old people city. But ... I'm okay with that. Old people restaurants can boast some of the best homemade comfort foods.


When we walked in, the place was larger than I imagined. There were at least three dining areas that I could see. We seated ourselves in the second section while I took in the scenery. A large TV was placed on the wall, and the typical patron was about three times my age. The third dining area seemed to be a Dale Earnhardt, Jr.Sr.(thank you, Chris, for lending me your redneck trivia) memorabilia room. I opted not to go back there.

As we perused the menu, it seemed pretty run of the mill - breakfast, chicken strips, some plated dinners. On their special board, they had "Fish-N-Chips" which caught my attention. I looked through the menu to see they had a fish sandwich for only $3.50. Now, this is where I take the blame. Some homestyle restaurants have killer fish sandwiches. For instance, I got one of the best Coleman's fish sandwiches at a little mom and pop shop. It's definitely a risk ordering fish at a non-specialty store. It's really hit or miss. In this case, it was a miss. A big miss. The square, once-frozen, fish byproduct left something to be desired. You know the taste - slightly freezer-burnt, crispy enough to not taste any flavor and mush of some odd fish flavor. It was probably an off-brand frozen fish chunk deep-fried.

For my sides, I got macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes. Comfort food to the max, you can't really go too wrong. The macaroni and cheese had the pseudo-homemade look. Some of the noodles had cheese on them, while others were drenched in the oily butter sauce. The look threw me off a bit - I've made homemade mac & cheese before, but this worried me. The taste, however, was good. It doesn't have that powdered cheese like Kraft. There are some actual ingredients in there. The mashed potatoes were very good. Garlicy, creamy and delicious.

Chris chose a basket of shrimp. Typical, tiny popcorn shrimp breaded with tail still on. Not ideal for popcorn shrimp, since it makes it much more unpleasant to eat. He was pleased, though. He said he used to get chicken strips, which maybe I'll have to try for next time.

For dessert, I ordered a berry cobbler with ice cream. I'm not really sure what to say about this. At first, I was excited, but once I got down to the actual cobbler part, it was kind of a gelatinous texture that seemed very artificial. The edges were formed as if it had been in the corner piece of a pan and just molded there. The blueberries were a little not fresh, so it didn't leave the best aftertaste.

I think I need to try another dish - meatloaf or country chicken - to get the real feel for this restaurant. Because the fish sandwich just doesn't cut it.


Grade: D

Macado's is a southern WV favorite. I have never seen another or even heard of another Macado's besides the one in Bluefield, W.Va., but I am told they do exist. I hadn't heard of this Macado's until Chris mentioned it. I've found out that they exist in West Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. And people love them.

One of the main draws of this restaurant is the novelty. And, it's open late. With a bar. The thing about Macado's is that it has a long, long menu with tons of sandwich choices. To be honest, this annoys me. The menu has dozens of creative sandwich names: Johnny Dee, Chicken Cordon Boo, Buffalo Bill, etc. But there is nothing creative about the actual sandwiches, and they all vary by one or two ingredients.

They have a couple types of bread, a couple types of meats, a couple types of cheese, a couple types of sauces, add lettuce and tomato, and you have every sandwich they offer. I also hate looking at a sandwich and thinking, "Mm that would be good without X." Well, they probably offer that sandwich under a completely different name on the opposite side of the menu. It's a little overwhelming to look at the menu and find something you truly like. It's too difficult to navigate. But I think that adds to the novelty.

Regardless, Chris and I went on a Saturday evening. It was one of the few places open late, and there are enough options to satisfy both of us. They have a handful of appetizers, salads, and other dinners, which include lasagna, macaroni and cheese and chicken parmesan. But honestly, if you go to Macado's and don't order a sandwich, it's a little weird. At least, that's the vibe I've gotten.

On this particular day, I was feeling something different so I ordered a "Buffalo Boo," one of the few sandwiches that doesn't come stock with lunchmeat. Instead, it had pulled barbecue pork topped with cole slaw on a kaiser roll. I also put in an order for a house salad. The waitress promptly came back, telling me they were out of the pulled pork. She handed me a menu to re-select. Now I was upset that not only did I not get the sandwich I wanted, but now I had to deal with that menu again.


Lackadaisically, I chose the "Chicken Cordon Boo," which had chicken breast, ham, swiss, lettuce, tomato and mayo. Pretty basic and, well, boring. Chris chose the "Cowpoke," which had chicken breast, cheddar, bacon, lettuce tomato, barbecue sauce on an onion bagel. All the sandwiches come with a pickle spear and a bag of chips. But you can also get potato salad or cole slaw. Since the potato chips are standard, I asked for the potato salad to change things up a bit. The waitress actually forgot, so I got both chips and the potato salad.

Anyway, my salad came out first, and I was pleased. I was actually in more of a salad mood anyway, so I was happy with the lettuce, tomato, cucumber topped with French dressing. The menu didn't actually list a french dressing or similar equivalent, but when I talked to the waitress she said that was her favorite. Luckily I asked or I wouldn't have known. The salad had some crisp bacon on top, which I wasn't expecting from house. It went perfectly with the french dressing. Veggies were fresh, but I wish I had more tomatoes.

Shortly thereafter, our food came out. My sandwich was stacked pretty high, but after my salad, I wasn't super hungry. I ate most of it the next day for lunch. I also took my leftover french dressing home and dipped the sandwich in that to give it some more "oomph." It was tasty. I can't really say anything bad about it, other than it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. If you want a good chicken sandwich, this place is good for what it is. Don't expect some culinary masterpiece, but appreciate a fine sandwich, and you'll be pleased.

Chris's sandwich looked good as well, and he devoured it, so I know he was happy. We didn't do dessert, even though the peanut butter pie looked delicious. Maybe we'll get that next time, with a side of "Hindenberg."

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Grade: B