After hearing some good reviews about Up Da Hollor Pizza in Cabin Creek,  Dawn and I made a special trip out this way just to check it out. 



They weren't doing inside dining at this point, so we were just there while waiting for our food. The restaurant has gray walls with galvanized metal and purple accents. Plus some homemade decorations.



I ordered small cheesy bread sticks and a personal sized pizza. They weren't joking about the sizes. The personal was about the size of my hand. And the small cheese sticks were about half the size I thought they'd be. So definitely something to think about when ordering!



They both, though, were pretty decent. The pizza, though small, was tasty. I liked the cheese blend and they weren't stingy with the amount. The cheese sticks, again, were small but covered in a nice thick layer of cheese. The sauce was average - not too remarkable. But with a lot of cheese, I'm happy. 

Grade: B

The 19th Street Meat Market in Parkersburg is quite the find. 



Let's hear a little bit about their story: 



"One thing we all know in this day and age is that fresh cut meat markets are very rare and hard to come by. The 19th Street Meat Market previously known as Paynes or A-1 Meat Market is locally owned and operated by Deborah Parton since 2002, who also resides in Parkersburg, WV. The meat market was established in the late 1930's. It is a family run business ran by Debbie's daughter's Mia McDaniel and Amy Nichols with her husband Gary, daughter Cidney and son Alec.



We have two fully trained meat cutters, Gary Nichols and Eddie Mason, both from Parkersburg .. They will be happy to cut any type of steaks or meat we carry to your satisfaction. If you don't see something you are looking for just ask us and we'll try our best to accommodate you! If we don't have it, we can usually get it.



I'm sure we all remember John Payne and his late wife, Jenny who were previous owners of the meat market for over 17 years and hold a lot of history to our community. John still likes to stop in from time to time to check in and make sure we are keeping up on the famous recipes that have made the store what it is today! We have not changed any of the traditional recipes that have become quite popular over the years, such as the "Chunky" or smooth chicken, ham, and cheese salads made daily.



On that note... To all of our dedicated customers whom we have come to call family over the years, we sincerely thank you and appreciate your loyalty and hope you continue to enjoy the unbeatable flavor of fresh cut meats and good ol' home cooked foods. For those of you that have never stopped in please feel welcome and enjoy our large variety of fresh meats and ready to cook meals."



This market swears by unbeatable flavor of fresh cut meats and good ol' homecooked foods. 



I really love delis. I love ham salads and pimento cheese and prepared mac & cheese - and, of course, fresh meat. Since I was just passing through, I didn't go for any of the fresh meat this time.



But, I did opt for a pepperoni roll and some pimento cheese dip.



I was tempted by the soups, enchiladas, shepherd's pie... everything really!



But my selections were good. The pepperoni wasn't as moist as I would like, but the pimento cheese... made for a perfect complement. Is there anybody making pepperoni rolls WITH pimento cheese? Because if not, they should.



Grade: A

There are about ... oh... three dozen or so Gino's locations that I haven't yet been to. So, when I'm in an area that has one I haven't been to, I'm trying to knock it off my list. 



In Hurricane, the Gino's is right off the exist, so it made the perfect pitstop for dinner while driving through the area. I put in an online order for a small pubwich - which they are known for - and went through the drive-thru. Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy. 



Once I was home, I dug in. I admit - my expectations weren't high. I thought there may be too much breading or too much iceberg lettuce. But, I was so super pleasantly surprised by this sandwich. The ham pubwich has ham, mozzarella cheese, mayo, lettuce, tomato and sweet onion. It was perfectly portioned. They were not skimpy on the melty mozzarella. But it was fresh and not too dense. I actually can't wait to try another one at a different location.

Grade: A

There's a brand new Thai restaurant in South Charleston named "Elephant Thai." I always get excited about new restaurants, but apparently a lot of folks were too about this this, as they've been pretty busy since they opened.



Thai is one of my favorite cuisines. I really fell in love with it through Chaang Thai and Ta-Khrai in Morgantown. I've discovered a love of noodles and curry through dishes at both of these places.



After convincing my friend Sara I think she'd like Thai food, we made our way to The Mound area and waited our turn for a table. 


  
Elephant Thai has a lunch menu, which is available every day they're open (they are closed on Sundays). 



That gave me even more options to try. In my dream, I could have like one bite of everything on the menu. Since that's not realistic in one visit, I came as close as I could by ordering a half-dozen dishes. 



So, I started with a "Thai Pink Milk" drink, which I didn't know what it was, but that was part of the excitement. I was hoping it was strawberry flavored, but I got more of a bubblegum flavor. For bubblegum, that's fine. But for a drink, that's not my favorite. 



Moving on to a few apps: Thai Eggrolls are first. These are smaller than, say, a Chinese eggroll. Served with a sweet plum sauce, these eggrolls have glass noodles which gives them some extra oomph. These were a bit too on the greasy side for me.



Next up were the chicken cakes. These were fried patties of ground chicken with red curry and kaffir lime leaf. It was served with cucumber sauce. I really enjoyed these because it was like a different twist on something so familiar - a chicken patty with some fresh seasonings fried and crisped up. The sauce was really thin but sweet with some tang.



Next is crab cheese rangoons. These were a decent rendition. They were pretty crisped up, but there was a nice pocket of smooth cream cheese. 



Finally - on to our entrees. I went with a pad thai - this is my standard benchmark measure for any Thai restaurant because I know it's going to be one of their most popular items. And, of course, it's one of my favorite dishes. I moved the bean sprouts to the side - not my fav - but the noodles were delicious. This dish had the sweet and sour flavor that I love - not too saccharine but with some depth. There's texture from the peanuts and some acid from the lime. This is my favorite rendition I've tried outside of Morgantown.



Sara went for the drunken noodles, which is another favorite of mine. It's less sweet, but has more of a soy base. It has more crunchy veggies, though, and I love the wide noodles. Overall, both of our entrees were delicious, and I will definitely be back to try some other options. 

Grade: A

It has got to be a really tough time to open a business. With restrictions on occupancy and high standards for sanitization, the hurdles that come along with opening a new business are now tenfold. 



When The Board Room in South Charleston opened up, I wanted to go check them out as soon as possible to give them some support - and see what they're all about!



First off, they don't really have food. They have a few pepperoni rolls (from Rogers & Mazza's), bags of chips and candy bars, but you're probably not going to cobble together a full dinner here.



What they do have, however, is an impressive beer list. Bottles, cans, draft, they have a nice assortment and local collection, too. 



In particular, I was so excited to see the Parkersburg Brewing Company's seltzer line. They have black cherry, blood orange, green apple and hibiscus punch. 



I went for the hibiscus punch, which was delish. It was refreshing but not overly sweet. I'm always seeking out fresh flavors during the winter.



So, The Board Room is a really fun concept. In addition to some great beer, they have a ton of games available to play. And, they have board games - as well as card and other fandom pieces - for purchase. 



We played a few different things - like Jenga of course. Do you have a rule about how far down the tower you can begin pulling pieces? 



I don't remember the name of this last game, but it was funny to try to get these little balls to go in the opponents' corner. 



I don't know that any of us were particularly good at it, but we definitely had fun. And, I think that's saying a lot because there aren't always a ton of places for young adults to go that aren't bars. "



Have you been?

Grade: A