It's been years since I first saw a sign for Karubees coming soon to downtown Charleston. After a brief stint in Dunbar, the restaurant has officially opened on Lee Street.



Karubees is a Jamaican restaurant that features menu items like jerk chicken & shrimp, curry chicken & shrimp, goat, oxtail, brown stew, red snapper, salmon, veggies and more. 



"Kerry G. Martin is the owner and founder of Karubees. Kerry's passion for cooking stemmed from his granny where he was basically the assistant in her kitchen. The first job he learned was how to properly clean meat. Since he was raised by his grandparents, he was taught to sew clothes, grow crops, clean, garden, mix cement, gravel, and cook. Ultimately, the goal was to provide the people in the area of Charleston, WV Jamaican food from his new restaurant in town. Kerry was born on the island of Jamaica on the 28th day of June in 1977. When Kerry was 10 years old he left Jamaica and landed in the Bronx, New York, where he grew up from ten until he was twenty-three years old. Kerry's first child was born in 2000 and he left New York in 2001 to move to Charleston, WV. where Kerry later attended West Virginia Junior College. After several years Kerry realized that Charleston, WV was not the city he wanted to live in with his family. Therefore, he decided to move to Columbus, Ohio in 2005. Later attended DeVry University in the Columbus Campus, where he later obtained his Bachelor of Science in Network and Communication Management with a 3.62/4.00. Kerry is a proud father of six wonderful children, whom he adores, and he works hard to take care of."



They offer a variety of combo plates, but I wasn't keen on the cooked cabbage or rice - I wanted to try the meat so I ordered three different sides: jerk shrimp, curry chicken and oxtails. It came out to about $40, which I think was a bit high for three small styrofoam containers. But let's get to the flavor. The jerk shrimp has some HEAT. I thought this would be my favorite, but the spice had my lips tingling. 



Instead, I loved the curry chicken way more than I anticipated. It didn't have the same kind of heat - just a little kick - and the chicken was so tender, it quite literally fell off the bone. Any fat or cartilaginous pieces just melded with the meat to make it moist and flavorful. There were also some veggies mixed in, with a tough of sweetness - so tasty.



Finally, the oxtails. These are the tails of cattle and can have a deep rich flavor - almost like short ribs. The flavorful sauce was my favorite part of my meal. There is a good bit of fat around the oxtails - when I got a bit of meat, it was delicious. Overall, all three of these dishes had some great flavor, and you should see which ones you like best.

Grade: B

When I travel, I like to plan things out. Not just for my sanity, but because it's a way I show love to my friends and family. I like help make things easy and pick things I think people would like. When I planned a trip to Farm Up Table, I was sure it was going to be a crowd-pleaser.



I had tried their food truck in the past, and I enjoyed it. But I had done my research on the place to make sure they had a menu with a variety of things for everyone to enjoy: fried rice balls, crab dip, salads, sandwiches, shrimp & grits, and more. 



After a long day, I was starving, so I started with Nona's Fried Rice Balls, which are parmesan risotto with baby peas surrounding fresh mozzarella rolled in breadcrumbs and fried crunchy. They were served with fresh tomato sauce. 



These were pretty dense - I wouldn't have minded some more creaminess inside. It was a pretty thick bite. But the flavor was there, and those peas were crucial. It was salty and unctuous in the best way.



For my main entree, I went with a muffuletta. It's not an option you see often in West Virginia, so I was super excited to try it. 



It may be an unfair benchmark that the only other traditional one I've had was at the original in New Orleans. First of all, this sandwich was huuuge. And it had the standard components - all of which were tasty! I just think the bread needed a little work; it felt apart and struggled to stand up to the pile of ingredients. I couldn't finish it in one sitting, but I definitely enjoyed leftovers.



Friends enjoy some other offerings - like these fries topped in cheese and a cuban sandwich. Which they enjoyed. 



I finished the meal with banana dessert that was delish.



Have you been?

Grade: B

I've eaten more Gino's Pizza in the last year than I have in my entire life. As I work my way through the various locations, I discovered there is some slight variation - but not a ton, really.  



In Point Pleasant, I placed an order for a small pizza loaded with toppings. If you've read any of my blog posts about pizza, you likely know I'm a mushroom topping-only person. But a friend recently shared a supreme-topping pizza, and it hit my adult tastebuds differently. 



So I ordered a pizza with mushrooms, black olives, onions, banana peppers and sausage. I gotta say - those toppings with a bit sweeter sauce than usual - was a good combo.

Grade: B

There are so many incredible businesses in West Virginia - especially in the food arena. I love going to The Wild Ramp in Huntington to not only check out the outdoor farmers, but also see the vendor goods inside (and each some goodies from the kitchen!). 



There are so many good products out there, I wanted to share some of my recent haul, including these hot sauces from Native Eats.



Holy Cross Monastery is a traditional, English-speaking men's monastic community of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, located in Wayne, WV. They make soaps and other products for sale! I also got some of this Panforte to try, which is like a spice cake with fruit. 



It was interesting.



Ooh and Appalachian Botanical Co. has lovely lavender that you can put in a dresser drawer to keep all your clothes smelling fresh.



They also have their own honey and salt. 



Sneak peek of some of the delicious things that come out of Harvest Kitchen.



This kitchen inside The Wild Ramp uses food from local vendors to create some delicious meals. 



Scragglepop is a kettlecorn business that can be seen at events, stores and elsewhere in the area. They have a bunch of different flavors, but the traditional was available at the Wild Ramp, and I was excited to bring some home. 



Wired Possum Coffee is a new coffee roaster in Hurricane, and I always like to collect some beans from local roasters. They roast in small batches and create interesting flavors.



Meet the Roaster: Our roaster, Daniel Schumacher, discovered his love of coffee while working the graveyard shift in 2006. Going to his favorite coffee shop in the evening before work helped put him in the right mindset for getting his job done well. Over time he’s visited shops and roasteries around the country, appreciating the craftsmanship and attention to detail they each bring from the bean to the cup. Upon moving to Hurricane in early 2020, Daniel decided to take his passion to the next level by opening Wired Possum Coffee.



Just a few more odds and ends - Toms Creek Smoked Chipotle Maple Syrup. This Wayne family farm grows produce in the summer and makes maple syrup in the winter.



Cedar Run Farm Maple Syrup is really popular in the area; In addition to their syrup, they also grow Christmas trees! Finally, Sugar Bottom Farm produces honey - plus other home and body products. 

What are your favorite finds?

You may have seen the Twisted Grille food truck around the area, but did you know they now have a physical location in Barboursville? It's not huge, but there are a handful of tables for indoor dining, as well as TVs if you want to watch the game.



Specializing in breakfast, Mexican dishes, sandwiches, hot dogs, and burgers, the restaurant has a little bit of everything. But I thought it would be fun to be able to try a couple of their specialties in a breakfast burrito - a 10" tortilla stuffed with eggs, cheddar jack cheese and a meat of your choice. I went with the specialty pipeliner, which had sausage, hash browns and country sausage gravy added.



After a little bit of a wait, my burrito was steaming hot and ready to go. It was large and in charge and stuffed full of egg and other tasty bits. This was definitely heavier on the egg that the other components, which was especially evident in the edges where I tended to get a bit bite of tortilla only. Still, lots of melty cheese to bring it all together. Not bad.

Grade: B