The collective heart of Morgantown broke when Lefty's Place was forced to close after the building flooded and left the dynamite pizza spot homeless.



Lefty's Place, which serves up Detroit-style pizza, became a quick favorite of mine with its caramelized crust and cheesy perfection - despite my initial hesitation at yet another pizza joint in a college town. But this never was - and isn't - a typical pizza joint.



That's right. Lefty's Place is back. It's now located in Burroughs Place and has used the quarantine time as a soft rollout. I may or may not have planned a trip to Morgantown based solely on picking up a pizza here. As with all things Lefty's does, their ordering process was seamless. They open up ordering a day or two ahead of time. You place your order online for a specific time. You pull up to the shop. They have a rack outside where they will put your pizza with your name on it. No contact. No exchange of money. Perfect.



Oh, and that pizza? Perfection. You all know my love for DiCarlo's... but this may just be the second best in the state.



Grade: A+
(psst yes that's the first ever A+ on my blog - why not try something new?)

How is everyone doing? Trying to stay busy? Same. I worked with fellow Appalachian creator Sean McNamara over the past month or so to make this super nifty poster. I love it, and I hope you do, too! You can purchase on his website:
https://www.seanrobertmcnamara.com/pepperoni-roll-poster/west-virginia-pepperoni-roll-poster


WEST VIRGINIA PEPPERONI ROLL POSTER
25.00

A collaboration with Sean McNamara

18”x12” hand signed poster

Text on bottom of poster: “The pepperoni roll, a soft bread roll with pepperoni baked in the middle, originated in North Central West Virginia sometime between 1927 and 1938. It was likely first crafted by the wives of coal miners, who immigrated to the area from Italy to work in the mines and could enjoy the shelf-stable, portable snack underground. Bakeries soon began offering the iconic pepperoni roll all across the state and in various iterations - like with cheese, red sauce or peppers.”

Here's my latest Appalachian Mercantile Box from JQ Dickinson, complete with delicious and lovely goods from Appalachia! Have you tried any of these yet?

 

There's a bit of a Jamaican trend happening in West Virginia right now. It started with Karubees in Dunbar, then I quickly learned of two restaurants that opened in Morgantown (more on those later), and then Island Rhythm Jamaican Cuisine & Catering here in Charleston.



Located in Kanawha City, Island Rhythm Jamaican Cuisine & Catering has taken over a former bakery space and is serving carryout during the quarantine. So, I absolutely needed to take advantage of that. I ordered the jerk chicken, mixed vegetables, mac & cheese and a beef patty.



The flavor of the jerk chicken was good, though I found many wayward bones and pieces of cartilage that had me stopping every other bite. I get that this is a standard preparation, just a warning :) The mixed vegetables were tasty - but I do love me some cooked cabbage. Again, be on the lookout for spices and herbs that have leaves and stems you may not want to bite into. The mac & cheese used like a tricolor rotini, which I thought was interesting. Small piece, but it had that comforting flavor I love. The beef patty was totally my favorite part of the meal. Crispy and a little spicy and savory.

Grade: B

Chinese food has been relatively hard to come by during the quarantine (why do I feel like I'm writing in a diary). But, Elkview Chinese Restaurant reopened recently, and it was swarmed with locals who needed their fix.



I called in an order and was told it would be about 15 minutes. So I waited for a bit and got there at about 30 minutes after the time it should've been ready (I just had a feeling it would take longer). And still had to wait another 20 or so minutes inside (this part was less fun - not a lot of social distancing or masks). The inside had a handful of tables and chairs, so I gather most of their business is takeout, anyway.



BUT, soon enough, I was home, digging in. The crab cheese rangoons have an interesting texture inside - almost like crumbly. It was sweeter. Not bad. The steamed dumplings were tasty, but needed to be a bit warmer. The honey chicken was good (not on their menu, but it is on a sign in the lobby). It doesn't have the top tier white meat chicken breast, but it was close. And the regular eggroll was decent. Overall, not bad.

Grade: B