West Virginia is slowly welcoming more local breweries and craft beer within the state borders. And Morgantown is home to a few shops that offer these new, tasty craft beers.

While walking downtown the other day, I realized I had never stopped in All U Need, even though they have an array of craft beer and home brewing supplies to purchase.

So, they have some beer that's hard to find elsewhere! Check it out.

After my trip to New York City last fall, I've been on a serious bagel & lox (or, more accurately, smoked salmon usually) kick. Lox is thinly sliced salmon belly that has been salt-cured or brined, while smoked salmon is a more general term and can be made from any part of the salmon. Bagel & lox is generally the go-to term for a bagel with cream cheese, lox, capers and red onions -- even though smoked salmon is often used.

Morgantown has just a handful of establishments that offer a bagel & lox - most often at brunch - so I decided I need to try all of them to find my favorite.

Blue Moose Cafe has the closest to original lox bagel: smoked salmon, caper cream cheese, lettuce, tomato and red onion, plus a small side of fresh fruit. I'm a big fan of Blue Moose's cream cheeses (mm scallion cream cheese), so the caper cream cheese is perfect for this meal. Tomato is a common addition to this sandwich. The bagel was nicely toasted, and I was happy to have enough onion to get pieces in each bite.

Terra Cafe also has a very good bagel & lox. They have your smoked salmon on a darkly toasted, made-from-scratch bagel, topped with cream cheese, smoked salmon, capers and pickled red onions. They also serve a side of fresh fruit - pineapple, melon, blueberries. If you like your bagel & lox on the crispier side, definitely check out Terra. I like picked onions, but the raw onions add a crunch. But, since the bagel is crispier, it remedies itself.

Tin 202 puts a different spin on the lox bagel by adding mascarpone cheese, cucumbers and capers. Think of it as a bagel & lox kicked up a few notches. The cucumbers keep it a bit lighter tasting, and the mascarpone still gives that creaminess you want from this sandwich.





Real Juice Bar & Cafe features a wild, Alaskan, cold-smoked salmon with cream cheese, onion, tomato, & capers on a bagel. This bagel was very bready, making this more like a real sandwich. The salmon here is a bit thicker, so if that's your thing, you'd be all about this one. A tasty cup of pineapple on the side gave some nice acid to the meal.

Have you had any? Or all? What's your fav!

Cottrell's Country Store is located on the outskirts of Morgantown, right before you cross into Pennsylvania. I didn't really think much of this small store, but a few friends who have lived in this area have noted they have some pretty good food. That, of course, prompted a visit from me.


After work, I called ahead and put in an order for a stromboli with spinach and mushrooms. They called back a while later and said they were running out of spinach, so I just said not to worry about that one.

Once I arrived, I was a little surprised at the store part. Lots of random stuff. It looks a little (lot) neglected. Refrigerators with no doors on, boxes standing up along the wall, a bag of chicken nuggets in with the ice cream freezer. Just, weird.

But. The stromboli they cooked for me looked pretty baller. Take a look.

And once I got home and dug in, it was really quite good.

The dough is homemade, and the sauce and cheese were very good. It was huge, not pricey, and I was very impressed. My only qualm is, really, the appearance of this place. Made me question the cleanliness or freshness, but those weren't concerns once I tasted it.







Grade: B
 

A good friend of mine mentioned Argo Tea when he knew I was heading to Chicago. I didn't happen to see any Argo Tea locations during my time in the city, but when we were heading back home, it appeared. After getting through (kinda tedious) security, this Argo Tea stand was like this sparkling beacon of happy that was calling my name.


I really don't drink much tea, so I stood in front of the menu for a bit trying to get my bearings. I ultimately setting on a Hibiscus Tea Sangria, which is a sparkling tea with hibiscus flowers and medley of fruits. I can easily say this is the tastiest tea I've ever had, and now I may be a tea convert. Sweet - but not too sweet - and floral and just crazy refreshing. Perfect for the long day of traveling that was ahead of me.

Grade: A

I think we saved the best meal for last in Chicago - unintentionally.

Bon Appetit named Au Cheval the best burger in America, sooooo, of course I'm going here. Check out that write-up here:

There’s no shortage of burgers in this country. As a result of The Great Gourmet Burger Boom of 2011, nearly every burger we come across has some sort of pedigree (how many Trotter/Boulud/Keller alum-created burgers do we need?). Can’t a burger just be a burger? Yes, and we’ve found one in the perfect griddle burger at Chicago’s Au Cheval. 

Sure, Au Cheval chef-owner Brendan Sodikoff has cooked in some top-notch kitchens under guys like Keller and Ducasse, but there’s zero pretension at Au Cheval when it comes to the restaurant’s burger. What are we working with, here? The first thing you’ll notice is the soft, lightly toasted bun from Chicago’s Z Baking. And the all-important bun-to-burger ratio is spot on–none of that brioche bun nonsense. 

Next: Your single burger is actually packing two patties. If you’re brave enough to order a double, you’ll have to fight your way through three patties. According to the burger obsessives over at A Hamburger Today, Au Cheval’s burger is comprised of four ounce, pre-formed (gasp!) prime beef patties. Nope–no chuck/shortrib/bone marrow custom patty blend happening here. 

We liked this burger so much that we dropped by the restaurant two nights in a row post-dinner with our very own Foodist Andrew Knowlton (at his insistence) to sample it. For the money ($9.95 for a single, $11.95 for a double), Au Cheval’s burger might be our favorite in the country.

We arrived right at Au Cheval at 11 a.m., when it opens. What I didn't realize is how long the line would be before it even opened. They must have opened a few minutes early, because the entire restaurant had been full, and there was a line cycling through for the waitlist. All at 11 a.m. So, long story short, we arrived at 11 a.m., and we weren't seated until about 12:30 p.m. That's how insanely busy this place gets. Fortunately, they text you when your table is ready, so we went across the way to have a beer while we waited.

I impatiently checked what place we were in line, and finally breathed a sigh of relief when it trickled down really quickly. We ran over, and told them we were called. There was a bit of confusion, and I guess their system went down. But, after some brief back-and-forth, we were seated at the bar. This place is quite small, so I can see why there's such a wait.

We were placed right next to the guy who was expediting, since it's an open kitchen, and it was kind of cool. He was a total boss, and I decided that if I were to work in the restaurant industry, I want to be him.

I ordered a "cheeseburger a cheval," which is two pre-formed medium-cooked patties with a slice of Kraft cheese in between. The patties are topped with dijonnaise (lemon juice, mayo, Dijon mustard) and housemade pickles. I opted to add thick-cut peppered bacon (a fried egg or three-ounce slab of foie gras are also available). All of this is plated on a toasted bun from a local bakery.

It is large, towering, a little messy and very, very good. The drooping mayo mixes with cheese and that thick-cut bacon was to-die-for. Together, it combines for this incredibly rich, tasty burger. Simple, but done well.

We also ordered a side of the crispy potato hash with duck heart gravy. I was so stuffed with the burger, I could barely shovel any of this down. But, it was really good, too. It was a bit salty, but I was all about it. The potato hash was perfectly crispy, and if you want the perfect savory combination of everything in life? Get this.

Grade: A