In my never-ending quest to find the best downtown dining option at lunch, I stopped at Diana's Downtown Cafe. I believe it used to be on Capitol Street but moved to its Summer Street location last year.

I felt as if I was missing out on some secret club when I tried to order. They have a basic lunch menu on a board above the counter, but there was something else on the countertop, and then people were ordering OTHER things that I couldn't find listed anywhere.

What gives? I want one solid location to check out all my options. I totally understand if there's one board that gives the day's specials, since they may rotate, but I don't want to search 5,000 places for options and then not even have all of them!

Anyway, I heard some guy order a chicken quesadilla. I asked the woman behind the counter if they were any good, and she said they were the best in town. Well, then.

After a bit, our food came out. My friend, Karie, had hers without sour cream. Mine came out with (yes!). But that inconsistency isn't cool.

Was it good? Yeah, it wasn't bad. It's your average quesadilla. Nothing special here. Tortilla, cheddar cheese, chicken.

Then Karie found a hair in hers.

Aaaand, I was done.

Grade: C

As far as I know, there are two main Indian places in Charleston, and they're right down the street from each other. There is Little India, which I have raved about on the regular. And there is Sitar of India, which I just visited recently.

Sitar is located on Lee Street and isn't quite as opulent from the outside as Little India. But the inside is definitely bigger than I thought it would be. Lots of light brown/red wood, glasses, chandelier and dark red napkins about.

I really didn't need much time to look over the menu because I wanted to compare my classic, typical, favorite - chicken tikka masala. And an order of vegetable pakoras, for good measure.

The pakoras came out first and were fairly average. Some sauce was at the table that I used, but I really don't trust things that just sit at the table. I've seen what children do with salt shakers; I can't imagine what they do with something they can actually get into. Plus the sauce was goopy and kind of gross looking.

The tikka masala came out not too long afterward. It was pretty good, but it was just missing that certain depth that I found at Little India. It was tangy, slightly spicy and had a beautiful blend of spices, and I would certainly recommend it. But knowing that Little India has all that plus that little extra something, it was hard for me to commit fully.

Grade: B

So, when you want a late-ish dinner in Wellsburg, you really don't have too many options. A friend and I narrowed it down to, well, one: Station Grille.

I don't think Station Grille was around when I was growing up. If it was, it just wasn't on my radar. I was visiting recently and decided to check it out.

The Station Grille is right downtown in Wellsburg, and parking really isn't an issue in town. The dining portion was closing, so we went upstairs to the more bar area.


It was a weekend night, so I expected it to be full, but there were a handful of people upstairs plus the bartender.

We ordered a few beers and got something off the menu before the kitchen closed. I went for the pulled pork sandwich.


It had an impressive presence, stacked high with two crispy onion rings drizzled in BBQ sauce. The flavor was solid, with a slight tang, but the meat could've been of better quality. I had a few grissley/tough pieces, which can kind of ruin the experience. So, it was alright overall.


Surprisingly, for me at least, the chips were damn good. They were garlicy and just slightly thicker than typical ones, so you got more of a bite.

There are better options in Wellsburg, I think. But this one isn't bad.

Grade: B

Grade: C

Hole in the wall sushi shop, that's what Sushi Atlantic is. Located near the hospital downtown, Sushi Atlantic would be easily missed if you weren't paying attention. I've passed it numerous times going to Capitol Market, but I never noticed it was there. 

My friend Karie and I walked inside to an empty restaurant. It was just us and a single, older gentleman who asked us what we'd like to drink.

He came back with a few mismatched glasses and some menus.

Looking around, it looks like the restaurant could handle a good scrubbing. It just looks as though it's old and has accumulated dust and other things.

I looked through the roll sushi, and I decided on the classic philadelphia roll, with smoked salmon, and I tried their West Virginia Roll, which has sour seaweed, cucumber, crab stick, smelt roe and shrimp.

The older man was the only person in the restaurant, and he handmade our rolls, too. So, it did take some time, and I imagine if others were here, it would take even longer.

Eventually, he brought our rolls out. He was really sweet, and he clearly has been doing this for a while. Because they were great.

The Philly roll - salmon tasted fresh. So important. Simple flavors, but fresh and tasty.

The WV roll - little bit more complex here. If the sour seaweed scares you, don't let it. The slight, slight tart flavor really made the flavors shine here. It's like a california roll, but with shrimp on top and the slight tart taste. Really good.

The local sushi place that's down-to-earth, find sushi. A lot of classic rolls here with some fancier ones, too. I can see how others would say it takes a long time, but I guess I lucked out.

They DO accept Mastercard and Via. Minimum charge of $6. Their hours are a bit tough: 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday for lunch. 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday for dinner. They're closed Sunday and every third Wednesday.

Grade: A