It was recently announced that West Virginia will play host for the second time in four years to the International Chili Society's annual word championship cookoff. In Charleston, 400 of the best chili makers in the world will compete Oct. 5-7 on Magic Island, a park on Charleston's west side along the Kanawha River.

The championship involves red and green chili categories and salsa. None of these ones have beans. But a new category this year will allow those who desire to include them.

1.  Traditional Red Chili is defined by the International Chili Society as any kind of meat or combination of meats, cooked with red chili peppers, various spices and other ingredients, with the exception of BEANS and PASTAwhich are strictly forbidden.

2. Chili Verde is defined by the International Chili Society as any kind of meat or combination of meats, cooked with green chili peppers, various spices and other ingredients, with the exception of BEANS and PASTA which are strictly forbidden.

3. Salsa must be homemade by the contestant whose name and ICS # appear on the Contestant Application. It may be brought to the site that day or it may be prepared at the Cookoff.

Charleston hosted the competition in 2009, and it was the first time that the San Juan Capistrano, Calif.-based nonprofit held the championship east of the Mississippi River. Competitors must have won a regional title in the United States or Canada before entering. However, a "last chance" cookoff will allow those who have not yet won a regional title to try to enter the event.

This year will include a special "homestyle" category where there are no restrictions on ingredients, where the cook is allowed to use their favorite ingredients, but it must be homemade and have a chili pepper flavor. And - of course - they can include beans!

The chilis are judged by the following:

TASTE Taste, above all else is the most important factor. The taste should consist of the combination of the meat, peppers, spices, etc, with no particular ingredient being dominant, but rather a blend of the flavors.

CONSISTENCY Chili must have a good ratio between sauce and meat. It should not be dry, watery, grainy, lumpy, or greasy.

AROMA Chili should smell good. This also indicates what is in store when you taste it.

COLOR Chili should look appetizing. Reddish brown is generally accepted as good. Chili is not yellow or green.

BITE Bite or after taste is the heat created by the various type of chili peppers and chili spices.

Anybody attending? And how do you like your chili - beans or bean-free?

Great Wall is one of the most popular delivery/take-out Chinese places in Morgantown. I think it's because of its convenient location on High Street, because the food isn't overwhelmingly great. It's not bad, but it's not enough for me to name it my favorite Chinese place.

I ordered from Great Wall not too long ago just because my go-to, China One, was closed this particular day. I was feeling some delivery, so I hopped on DubVmenus.com. I called three times before it finally got through. Since the phone was busy, I was expecting a long wait time. I was pleasantly surprised that my wait was only 45 minutes. A knock on my door, and a plastic bag with a smiley face enveloped a brown paper bag full of Chinese delights.

A large plastic container contained half breaded chicken pieces and half pork-fried rice. I prefer white rice, but pork-fried is the default and I forgot to mention otherwise. A small container filled with sweet and sour sauce and an eggroll accompanied the combination platter. I also ordered a side of crab cheese rangoons.

The breaded chicken breast wasn't bad, but it mostly tastes like the breading - grease. The sweet and sour sauce is fairly runny and not bursting with flavor. The pork-fried rice taste like the same greasy, fried batter. The same can go for the crab cheese rangoons. I could barely taste the cheese - I just tasted the greasy outer shell. My mouth was coated with this grease that made everything I ate from this place taste the same. It was heavy, but that's partly my fault. Next time I'll order a chicken and sauce entree or something with veggies. I thought the sweet and sour sauce would help offset all the breading, but it didn't have much flavor either.

The best part of my meal, though, was the eggroll. It was perfect. The outside was golden brown and crispy, and the inside was light with delicious veggies. I usually skip over eggrolls when given the option, but Great Wall's are the best.

The price was reasonable: $16 for everything, including delivery tip. And I'm sure a lot of college kids wouldn't have the aversion to grease that I've developed. In smaller amounts, it wouldn't be so bad. I definitely need to switch it up next time, though.

Grade: C

I'm just going to start off by saying that the Taj Mahal is the best Indian food I've ever had. Ever. It's located in Pittsburgh, so maybe that has something to do with the quality. But if you're ever in that area, this is a must-dine. When you come back to, say Morgantown, it's like a whole different world. Not that I don't enjoy the Indian cuisine in town, but this is just on a different level. In a good way. They claim their spices and fruit have something to do with it.


A few friends and I wanted to get some Indian food after Holi Hai, a fun Indian festival. The Taj Mahal was the only logical answer. This place has a huge, huge menu that you can order from. But we always get their buffet because it's amazing. Monday through Friday lunch buffet is only $9, and Saturday/Sunday is  $10. Dinner buffet is from 11-3, and it's only $12 on Monday and Thursday.


We seated ourselves at a table, and the waiter brought us over waters, then we were on our way! This place has it all: Chicken Tandoori, pakoras, samosas, naan, curry, tikka masala, korma, gulab jamun, etc. Usually when I go to Indian buffets, I try a little of everything that I think I'll like and narrow it down from here. Everything I tried here was AMAZING. I have been here one other time, and it was delicious, but I have tried so many other Indian places that simply haven't lived up to Taj Mahal yet.

The food is always cooked perfectly, tender, moist - no over-spiced, dry food here. It's all perfect. The tikka masala was creamy, the kheer was sweet and delicious, and the samosas were lightly crispy on the outside and tasty.

When I went to pay, I saw they have numerous awards hanging up on the wall, which only drives my point home that they're the best in the area. They even have a special dessert case that you can have wrapped up to go.

Grade: A

The other day, Chris and I were talking about the different tastes your mouth experiences. So, I wanted to check out exactly how we do taste food. Flavor perception comes through the mouth and nose. We have about 100,000 tastebuds located on our tongue, roof of our mouth, sides of our mouth, and throat. And, we can taste flavors all over our mouths - there aren't designated areas where we taste certain flavors, despite that lovely diagram we've all seen. These tastes include sweet, salty, bitter, sour and umami. We also uses things like smell, texture, temperature, etc.


But those five are:

1. Sweet - the most pleasurable sensation. It is made up of sugars. Examples: Bananas, honey, vanilla

2. Salty - It is made up of sodium. Flavors in a dish are heightened with the addition of salt, and the opposite of salt leads to diminished flavors. Sugar helps round out flavors and take off the edge of acidic, salty or bitter foods. Examples: Bacon, ham, oysters

3. Bitter - Alkaloid. the most sensitive of the tastes. It's described as being "unpleasant, sharp, or disagreeable." Bitterness helps balance out sweetness. Examples: Coffee, dark chocolate, marmalade, beer, olives

4. Sour - It detects acidity. Can brighten and clarify flavors. Acids help balance out foods that are very rich, heavy or fatty. Examples: Lemons, grapefruit

5. Umami (Japanese word for "meaty" or "savory") - the most recent discovery. Until the 21st century, it was mostly thought only four tastes existed. Examples: Parmesan cheese, soy sauce, mushrooms


I lied, there's another one:

6. Piquance - Sometimes considered a sixth taste. In many Asian countries, it is considered a basic taste. It deals with hotness, pungence, spiciness, etc. Examples: Chili, pepper, ginger



Other Sensations:

• Mouthfeel - affected by how long the flavor remains on our tongue. So, jellies or oily foods dissolve slowly and give a more prolonged flavor. Comfort foods often fall in this category.
• Astringency (Dry) - Makes the mouth feel dry and rough, like a strong tea or unripe banana.
• Temperature - Coldness suppresses sweetness. Warm foods taste sweeter and stronger.
• Coolness - Fresh or minty flavors like in spearmint, menthol, etc.
• Fattiness
• Heartiness
• Spiciness

Presence of Umami

If you're looking for some grub nearly any time of the day, you can find a restaurant to suit you in Morgantown. In fact, most restaurants  downtown are open nearly all night on the weekends. Notice that I said "nearly." Sometimes, for whatever reason, we find ourselves starving at around 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. or some random time like that. And, most restaurants have closed shop for the night and haven't opened back up for the day. Except your fast food joints, like McDonald's and Taco Bell.

Bless the hearts of those who are open all the time. We don't have many of them, but 2.5 has been enough for this town.

1. Eat'n Park
Opening nearly 50 years ago near Pittsburgh, Eat'n Park is now a tri-state area chain with more than 75 restaurants in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. It's the only sit-down restaurant in town that's guaranteed to be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.


I have fond memories of Eat'n Park through high school - when you first get your license, this means you can go to restaurants alone, and nothing is more fun than doing that at 2 a.m. when you're 16. I don't just go to Eat'n Park when it's the only place open - I actually like it. And, that could be due to my biases. But I think they're pretty good!


My favorites are: smiley face cookie, gourmet grilled cheese, buffalo chicken salad


2. Sheetz
Sheetz, which I've reviewed, was actually started in Pennsylvania. There was a Sheetz near my hometown, too, but I never paid much attention to it - it's a gas station. It wasn't built until I was a little bit older, and I was never that interested. Only recently did I realize it has an almost cult-like following, and their food isn't actually bad. Also, it is open 24 hours.

This place is no fine dining, but if you need grub, in a grab-and-go fashion, this is a good place. It's an alternative to sitting down at Eat'n Park, and a little different from the typical fast-food drive-thru.

My favorites are: chicken quesadilla, Mac 'N Cheese Bites


3. IHOP on weekends
Even though I feel like this place should be open 24 hours, it's only open constantly during the weekend. That's why it's only "half" open 24 hours. Isn't the best time to get a pancake when you aren't able to get a pancake? I'm sure that's some kind of law. Luckily, we do have this luxury on the weekends.

My favorites are: spinach and mushroom omelette,  New York cheesecake pancakes, stuffed french toast


Did I miss any places that are open 24 hours a day? What about any that come close?