Coach's takes out lots of ads on the local radio station, WVAQ, so I've heard about it fora while now. I just never had the chance to stop in here. It's located on Collins Ferry Road, so not too far a drive from my workplace for a quick lunch. I'm not familiar with that part of town, but it wasn't far at all. We just drove down Collins Ferry Road until I saw the "Coach's" sign. The parking was awkward - it looked to only be a handful of spots, but there could have been more that I didn't see. It looks to be part of an apartment complex, almost.


Anyway, when we walked inside, the first thing I noticed was how dark it was. Yes, I know it's a bar. But they offer lunch, so it's weird to have it so dark for a lunch place. But we had someone greet us, and we could choose where to sit. It was huge inside. There was another level down some stairs, but we didn't even venture that far. We stayed in the large front room and took the last booth, which was also huge. It wasn't just two benches across from one another, it was a semicircle, so we probably could have fit four or five more people in there. TVs were plastered everywhere, and it looked like there were pool tables. The bar was pretty big. Seems like a good place to watch the game.

Menus, condiments and paper towels were already on the table. I decided on a club sandwich because ... well, there weren't a ton of options that looked appealing - hot dogs, a few sandwiches and some appetizers. I also ordered a house salad. They didn't have french, so I opted for ranch.

A few minutes later, my salad came out. A chunk of lettuce, with some cheese and about two pieces of tomato - exactly what I hate. I love some veggies, so this just wasn't what I was hoping for. I went to pour my dressing on and realized it was chunky. Hmm, that's because it was bleu cheese. Since I had already poured it on the best part of the salad, I just decided to use it instead of ask for ranch. Luckily I'm okay with bleu cheese. A lot of other people wouldn't be.

My sandwich came out not too long after. It was huge. It was basically a giant wad of turkey and ham, with some soggy tomatoes, a couple pieces of bacon, lettuce and virtually no mayo. It's one of those sandwiches that is so tall, you have to basically unhinge your jaw to eat it, and then it's not even worth it. The ingredients weren't fresh, and there wasn't a good balance. It was basically just like eating a ham and turkey sandwich. The tomato was flavorless, and I had a few bits of bacon now and then. It was disappointing - no flavor, no creativity, no balance. But, I guess I got spoiled by some of the sports bars who can do lunch well. I'll stick to one of those next time.

Grade: C

Valentine's Day is one of the busiest days of the year for many restaurants. Some even have specials to entice customers who want to take a special someone out for a romantic dinner. I wanted to gather some of the specials from some local restaurants. Note that these may change!

Hibachi Japanese Steakhouse (University Avenue)
-Valentine’s Day Dinner for Two ($39.95); must have valid student ID; before 5 p.m. or after 8:30 p.m.; dine-in only. (http://www.morgantownhibachi.com/)

Sargasso
-"Chef Simon has put together a four-course menu for this evening. The price for the tasting menu is dependent upon your main course choice. Menu items can be ordered à la carte if preferred." Entrees include chicken marsala, scallops and salmon. (www.dinesargasso.com)

The Cupcakerie
-Mini cupcake special and regular cupcake specials. You can order cupcakes, with Hershey Kisses, in their pink boxes with a ribbon and rose on top. You can pre-order (304-212-5464), and they will have prepackaged cupcakes available on Valentine’s Day. (www.thecupcakerie.com)

Richwood Grill
-Richwood will be featuring their sixth annual aphrodisiac dinner on the 13th, 4th, and 15th, which will include a smaller version of their winter menu. They'll have Hibiscus flower infused cava appetizers. First Course: Broiled avocado filled with crab and artichoke hearts on spring greens with ginger passion fruit vinaigrette. Second Course: Double-cut free-range filet mignon and broiled petite lobster tails with grilled asparagus, rosemary black beans, saffron rice and citrus chili butter. Third Course: Single origin heirloom chocolate torte with lavender infused honey, apricot fig chutney and fresh berries in sweet cream . $90 per couple. Gratuity not included. No food substitutions available. Ask server about vegetarian options. (https://www.facebook.com/events/318253768226853/) (www.richwoodgrill.com/)

Lira
-Lira will feature a deconstructed spinach salad with housemade creamy horseradish Parmesan dressing, pickled beets, blood oranges and a garlic crostini. Also, their entree will be house prime Delmonico rubbed with rosemary in a wild mushroom demi-glaze, served with wild rice pilaf and broccoli tossed in a Mornay sauce. They will also have a homemade red velvet cake. (http://liralounge.com/wv/)

Golden Finch
-Golden Finch will have shrimp bisque, filet mignon topped with crabmeat and bernaise sauce (filet oscar), jumbo pan-seared scallops with risotto cakes. All starting on Feb. 10th! (https://www.facebook.com/events/346193925401836/) (http://www.goldenfinchrestaurant.com/)

Madeleine's
They will have Chilled Lobster Salad, Gardner Farms Rack of Lamb, Classic Pasta Carbonara, and Chocolates and Champagne for Two! (http://madeleinesonline.com/)

Yesterday's Restaurant, Bar & Grille
Their valentine's special runs Feb. 10-14, and the dinner for two includes an appetizer, two house salads, two entrees, two desserts and a bottle of champagne. (http://www.yesterdaysrestaurantbarandgrille.com/)

Ali Baba Restaurant
Their Valentine's Day Specials will include feature appetizers: smoked duck salad with cranberry nut vinaigrette and Siberian nachos. Their entree features include stuffed beef tenderloin, prime rib au jus, blue corn crusted crab cakes, and a Mediterranean combo for two (skewers, served over rice with four salads on the side). (http://alibabaexpress.com/)

I'm sure some others may have some specials, too, but these are the restaurants that got back to me! Hope you have a great Valentine's Day!

So I've shown love to the Asian market, the Latin Market, and now, finally, the Middle Eastern market. Located in Chelsea Square on Van Voorhis, Kassar Foods has a grocery area, fresh meat, a giftshop and a restaurant. This cool little market has tons of stuff, and contains some hard-to-find Middle East items.

The gift shop has everything from ornaments, solid perfumes, and oils to dresses and scarves. This is a go-to for those who want some traditional treasures.

The restaurant area, which I never went into, I believe has hot teas - regular, mint, indian, green, etc. The Shai House looks like a very welcoming, warm area that I'll need to check out next time I have some free time.

Speaking of the delicious food, they sell sweets like baklawa, mini rose, maamool and others.

They do prepare food right there, too, and their menu can be found online. While I didn't have time to order a meal, I was only browsing the store, I can't wait to give it ago. They have things like hummus & pita, gyros, falafel, kabobs, salads and various platters.

Has anybody tried out the food here? My friend and I bought a few odds and ends, but next time I definitely want to try their fresh food. Suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

It's funny how West Virginia is thought of as a "southern" state despite a portion of it being above the Mason-Dixon Line. Instead of only the geographic location, this is more characterized by the culture. The southern states have their own distinct history, customs, literature, music, and - yep- you guessed it, cuisine.

The cuisine for the southern United States is characteristic of comfort foods. While it gains influences from Scottish and German to Native-American and African-American, southern food varies greatly. In Southern Louisiana, there is Cajun and Creole cuisine. Rice was historically an important crop in the coastal areas of South Carolina. Barbecue has many regional variations in the South. Virginia produces Smithfield ham; Tennessee is known for its country ham. Oklahoma has grain- and bean-based dishes; Mississippi has catfish; Maryland is known for its crab; Georgia for its peaches.


Appalachian is one subcategory within the southern cuisine. Appalachian cuisine is characterized by pigs and chickens, locally caught fish, other wild game, buttermilk biscuit, ramps and berries. A few of these I plan to blog about individually because they're extra important to me. Generally speaking, many parts of the Upper South specialize more in pork, sorghum, and whiskey, while the low country coastal areas are known for seafood (shrimp and crabs), rice, and grits. The western parts of the South like Texas and Oklahoma are more into beef, and the eastern parts are more into pork.

Most of WV falls under the southern category, even if some parts go into the "northern" part of the United States. I go to, literally, southern WV every so often because my boyfriend, Chris, lives in Princeton. I never really noticed a distinct difference in cuisines, because, hey, it's only four hours south (three if you drive fast). But when I really took a deeper look recently, I noted some characteristics of a more southern cuisine, not only in that area but statewide.

Buttermilk biscuits & gravy? Chicken and dumplings? Fried Chicken? Cornbread, morel mushrooms (which I used to pick with my grandma), and soup beans are all here. I especially noticed that nearly every restaurant has a version of a pulled pork sandwich. And I realized I didn't "know" a southern cuisine because it's what I'm already used to. I just made myself more conscious of it and then it started to sink in. So, I wanted to list some of the foods that I, and many others, are used to around these parts. I picked and chose what I remember from my childhood from this Wikipedia list:

• Chicken and dumplings
• Fried chicken
• Fried fish and seafood
  • Catfish
• Corn 
• Beans - often cooked down with chunks of ham, bacon grease, or onions 
• Macaroni and cheese
• Mashed potatoes
• Peas
• Potato Salad
• Tomatoes
  • Fried green tomatoes
• Yams
• Biscuits
• Hush puppies
• Apple butter
• Cole slaw
• Deviled eggs
• Bread Pudding 

Any childhood favorites you'd add to your own list? It's hard for me to characterize something as "southern," when it just feels "normal" to me. But, hey, it is what it is. I know I only touched briefly on Appalachian food, but who really wants to read an incredibly long entry? I wanted to give some basics and set some groundwork for some future blogs I plan on doing, like about ramps and morels and maybe even pepperoni rolls.

I have some more information regarding the Ronald McDonald House Charities Chef Challenge. I've also attached the press release at the bottom of this for those of you who are interested.