I went to the Art is Food event a few years ago and had a great time. When I heard about this year's, I couldn't wait to sign up. A nice lineup of restaurants were in attendance: Mother India, Black Bear, The Cupcakerie, Garcia's Latin Market, Morgan's High St. Diner, Chaang Thai and the Lebanese Bistro.

First up - Mother India's channa masala, basmati rice, naan and a vegetable pakora. I appreciated they really made an entire dish. And it was vegetarian-friendly, so two birds with one stone. Good flavors all around.



The Lebanese Bistro had their baklava and another almond cake sort of dessert. The baklava is good. One of my favorite things from them. Flaky, moist, good. The Cupcakerie had a bunch of cupcakes: chocolate mousse, pumpkin spice, peanut butter, lemon blueberry, red velvet, apple pie. Red velvet is my go-to. Always good.



Black Bear was good, but I feel like it wasn't as inspired as in year's past. They had a pumpkin curry soup and an apple, bacon, chicken, lettuce wrap. I guess it's an overall crowd-pleaser, though.



Morgan's High St. Diner is really what I was most excited about since it hadn't opened yet. They had their meatloaf, mashed potatoes, chocolate cake and coconut. Everything was delicious and my favorite thing there. Meatloaf had just a little bit of tang, potatoes were nice and salty, the desserts were rich. Super excited for this place.






Chaang Thai is consistently one of my favorite restaurants. They brought their pad thai - one of my favs. He admitted it doesn't heat well in a buffet environment - it's meant to be served right away. Still delicious, though. Also loved the side of rice.




And Garcia's Latin Market is another one of my favorites. They had their tacos pre-made and you could choose which you wanted. I went with chipotle - the best one. Tasty, plus a side of salsa.



If you haven't been, it's definitely a great way to get a taste of local restaurants and meet the folks serving your food. Plus, we don't have a ton of community events like this (I wish we did), so the more support we throw toward them, the better chance we get more like this.

Morgantown has a few key restaurants missing: a good noodle shop, some homemade soul food, a nice deli and until recently - a diner.

Morgan's High St. Diner held a soft opening on Thursday and will continue until their grand opening next Thursday. Hours currently are Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday from 7 a.m. to midnight, Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. I do wish it was 24 hours because the only other 24-hour establishment is Eat'n Park. I imagine that would be difficult, though.

The diner's front is yellow and gray with corrugated metal behind the sign. Definitely a change from the former Fondue Factory space. The same owner of the Fondue Factory (and Coach's Crab Shack) opened this diner - different feel from the upscale fondue place and seafood restaurant.

The restaurant has a checkered ceiling, photos from the town's past and waiters in tuxedo T-shirts. There are old license plates and signs of street names in town. It's very Morgantown, and it's filling a void in town.

Menu items were crowdsourced from restaurants of the past. Check out their menu here and here. The whole front is breakfast - eggs, omelettes, breakfast sandwiches, combo plates, cereal, waffles and pancakes. The back is for the lunch and dinner crowd: chicken and waffle sandwich, meatloaf, deep-fried turkey, fish and chips, roast beef, chicken-fried steak, burgers and desserts - milkshakes, pies, banana split.

And their Morgan's Challenge: 15 scoops of chocolate, vanilla or strawberry ice cream, topped with chocolate, caramel and strawberry syrup, whipped cream, fruits and cherries for $16.50. If you finish in 15 minutes, you get to keep the bowl and it's free. But you might have a killer brain freeze.

I had a taste of their meatloaf and loved it, so I wanted a full bite. I ordered their meatloaf sandwich, which is topped with a slice of American cheese and sandwiched between two pieces of Texas toast. This just reminds me of growing up. I loved a meatloaf sandwich. And this meatloaf is so good. I like the smokey/tangy glaze. The toast is buttered and adds a nice crunch to the super moist and just a tad bit of heat meatloaf. Loved this.

It comes with a side of fries, but I opted out and went for a side of macaroni and cheese instead. My macaroni was a little bit cold, but it was OK overall.


Tony had the chicken and waffles sandwich, which comes with so much: fried chicken, waffles, cheese, bacon, sausage gravy and maple syrup. He was a fan, but it's definitely not something you can do often.

To top it off, I went with a milkshake. Tasty. I'm not sure you can mess up a milkshake too much. But it was not super thick, but that's okay. All around, I'm pretty impressed with the food.

Service was also great. Our waiter was accommodating and helpful. The manager was also walking around and asked how things were. And it wasn't the typical "Everything OK?" where they just want you to agree with them. She actually asked what they could improve upon - they genuinely want feedback on how to be better, and that's not something you see often. Simply phrasing it that way is welcoming feedback.

Grade: A

The final stop on my Fairmont Food Tour was "Att's Place." Truth be told, I was pretty full by this point and my mouth was still regaining feeling from Yann's, but I pressed on. I took a whole day off work for Fairmont food, and I wasn't going to go home until I tried as many places as I could.

Att's is bright green on the outside. I have no idea why. I thought it was some odd tech company at first or something. Nope, just green.

When we walked inside, there was just one person there. The owner or manager, maybe, was having some sort of disagreement with the person who ships their bread. I don't think it was up to the quality she had in mind.

But, it's a much larger space than the previous restaurant. There are stools at the front and some booths. They also serve a variety of sandwiches and sides - not just hotdogs. And - get this - they serve slaw. It's not a main staple like at some hotdog joints, but it is available.

I ordered one with chili, mustard and onions. "Sauce?" She questioned. Oh, yeah, sauce - not chili. Whoops. And moments later, I had a freshly sauced hotdog in my hand. (No TWSS jokes, plz).

Maybe it was just the refreshing change from the fire sauce at Yann's, but this one was much, much more palatable. The sauce (I ordered mild) had actual flavor, not just spice. It was good. Nice consistency and nice with the crunch of the onions.

Tasty, and in a much friendlier environment.



Grade: A

The infamous Yann's Hot Dogs has eluded me for oh so long. Yann, known as the hot dog nazi of the north, is only open when Yann feels like being open - thus, an impediment to my quest. He opens for lunch Tuesday through Friday and rarely on Saturdays. I called for about a month straight on Saturdays to no avail. I took a day off work mainly to come to Yann's, and other Fairmont restaurants fell into place. But this, folks, was the impetus for my Fairmont food tour day.

Yann's Hot Dogs are known for an incredibly spicy sauce (not chili) and for being served up by one cantankerous old man. Luckily, I had Joel with me to educate me on how to order.

After parking along the road at a meter, I recited my order as we walked up to the door. There's no slaw here. No ketchup. No relish. No cheese. No chili buns. You can't get extras. It's cash only. They reserve the right to refuse service to anyone. And they say not to be in a hurry.

Hotdogs come with mustard, onion and sauce. You also have an option of pepperoni roll with or without sauce. And there is white and chocolate milk. Get the chocolate milk for goodness sake.

So I say to myself, "one everything. with a chocolate. one everything. with a chocolate" as we walk up. Joel, who is a seasoned vet of the Fairmont delicacy (and a saint for showing me around all these places), says you can order sauce only, or sauce and mustard, or sauce and onion, but I figured the easiest is one with everything.

Yann's is tiny, and there's little signage. It's the small building across the bridge, and it has a steady flow of people. Inside, there are a few stools at the counter in front and to the left and at the back. But very small and very crowded.

Luckily, a nice lady was working the counter and as I raddled off my order, it seemed acceptable. I breathed a sigh of relief, paid and received my hotdog on a small paper plate. I braced for what I knew was going to be a painful spicy. One bite in and I got a nice crunch from fresh onions, a bready taste and then a hot, hot, hot sauce.

Like, HOT.

I mean, I'm kind of a wimp when it comes to spice. I admit it. But I don't think anybody can say that these aren't spicy. They are. I devoured my chocolate milk and wish I had gotten two. For my single hotdog.

As far as the flavor, it's a hotdog. It's a plain weenie on a white bread bun with a hot sauce. It's a local thing, and the atmosphere is part of the experience. It's something folks have been doing for their whole lives, they know and love the shortness of Russell, and it's the experience. As far as the hotdogs, they're OK. But I prefer less pain with my meals.

Locals love this place - maybe for nostalgia, or maybe because they like having their mouths burnt off, I'm not sure. As cranky as the owner may be at times, there's never a shortage of customers. I don't see that changing any time soon.

Grade: B