Morgantown is not lacking in exciting, new restaurants. They come in all kinds and flavors - pizza and Asian and milkshakes and Mexican. While in town a bit ago, I stopped at Rio Jalisco.



The restaurant, located at the University Town Centre, is very similar to the other Mexican restaurants in town. There are a zillion menu options that are various combinations of tacos, burritos, fajitas, etc. You get complimentary chips & salsa. Add margaritas, and you have a solid college kid audience.



That said, nothing was bad. The chips were crisp. The salsa had just a touch of heat and was super thin.



Instead of arroz con pollo, I went with steak: rice, steak and cheese dip. I usually scan the menu for anything doused in cheese dip. But even cheese dip in this case couldn't save the chewy, gristly steak. Now, I don't expect super high end quality meal for the price, but I ended up with chewed up and spit out steak more often than not. 



Grade: C

Chin's was a beloved restaurant in Charleston that was known for its eggrolls. It closed to allow the owners to retire.



But, they made a return for one night as part of a fundraiser for United Way Dancing with the Stars - Gina & Gordon. 



I was more than happy to get a taste of this classic Charleston food that you can no longer get - and to learn from the master herself! 



"What a great way to ring in Chinese New Year 2023 - the Year of the Rabbit! Egg roll making at Kita Modern Japanese with wonderful friends and supporters of Couple 3 (aka Team G-squared, Gina Marini and Gordon Chin, and choreography team of MaryLouise King and Jim Wallace of Charleston WV Dance). We are so humbled by the turn-out and support for us and United Way of Central WV's Dancing with the Stars!



"This event was also made possible by use of the kitchen and woks at Rice Bowl Chinese Restaurant (in Cross Lanes) to make the egg roll filling — it takes a large wok to cook up the filling (consisting of 12 stalks of celery) for 450+ egg rolls -- thank you, Andy and Fannie Gao!"



The filling is made with celery, mushrooms, shrimp, ground pork, along with seasoning (salt, white pepper, sugar, sesame oil, and a cornstarch mixture with water) -- the cornstarch needs to be dissolved in water and then the liquid added to the rest of the ingredients. Do not add cornstarch directly into the ingredients.



Despite a lengthy wait to get the ones I made fried, I thought these were really tasty and a fun way to spend an evening - all for a good cause!

My boyfriend brought me lunch from The Grind in Ripley today.



It's a cute, trendy spot that  has had a bit of a journey - from Spencer to a coffee. truck to a brick-and-mortar in Ripley.



They offer a variety of coffee drinks - hot, iced, frozen, plus smoothies, and even virgin daiquiris. 



They also have bagel sandwiches, flatbreads on cauliflower crust, donuts, pastries and pepperoni rolls. We got a small smorgasboard. 



White hot chocolate - so comforting. RL went with an iced coffee that he really enjoyed. Very easy, smooth, not so bitter. 



The donuts were fine; I was not enamored. But donuts do not tend to be my main thing anyway.



The spinach artichoke bagel on an everything bagel was tasty - essentially the sinful, creamy dip on carbs. You can't really go wrong there. The red velvet cookies were good - I liked the white chocolate chips and generally avoided the chocolate chips.



Finally, a pretty decent pepperoni roll. It was more like a pocket, being kinda rectangle shaped. The breading was a little sweet, but not chewy. Maybe a bit crumbly. But packed with cheese and pepperoni.

Grade: A

As a landlocked state, West Virginia is not necessarily known for its seafood. But, there are a few purveyors I am aware of who do offer some excellent options.



A new place that I discovered in Bridgeport is Shrimpy and Snappy's Seafood Market. They offer a lot of fresh seafood options. I wasn't in the position to be able to tote home seafood, but I did take a look inside and check out their offerings. They had tuna, shrimp, crab legs, scallops, etc.



"Fresh seafood market right here in North Central WV! We drive and FLY in fresh, quality seafood from up and down the East coast. Our mission is to provide our fellow Mountaineers with the freshest seafood available in our landlocked Mountain State."



How have you been? What's the best item to purchase here? 

The Gino's in Elkins has eluded me for some time because whenever I go to this area, I have a huge list of locally owned restaurants I want to check out first. But I made time for Gino’s on a recent visit, and I’m glad I did.



I’ve mentioned before how many locations that have different owner/operators may have differences in what they offer. In this location, for example, they offer pepperoni bites, which instantly caught my eye.



But they also have baked manicotti, Italian sausage, ravioli, alfredo, jalapeno poppers and "deep dish" pizza - which I've never seen at other locations. I wish I could've tried everything on the menu that I hadn't seen before. 



But I went with these pepperoni bites - pepperoni rolled in small, bite-sized pinwheels, covered in garlic butter and parmesan. Dunk them in marinara sauce, and you have a really delicious bite. It's crispy, it's soft, it's cheesy, buttery, and a pop of brightness with the marinara. Poppable and so good.



Grade: A