Small WV towns take top culinary honors
- Steven Keith
- 59 minutes ago
- 5 min read
Plus, more new restaurants on the way, Angela's building for sale
If you made it down to this past Saturday’s Lewisburg Chocolate Festival, you may have run into some of the locals celebrating this sweet news: That Greenbrier County city was just selected as having America’s Best Small-Town Food Scene by USA Today.
For the fourth consecutive year.
“The idea that small towns lack standout food scenes couldn’t be further from the truth,” the national media outlet said in sharing the news.
“Nominated by an expert panel and voted as the best by readers, these 10 small towns with populations of 25,000 or less showcase remarkable culinary talent.
Although mini-cities from coast to coast were singled out, topping the list at #1 was our tasty town, which was also recently named USA Today’s #3 Best Small Town in the South.
“There’s a lot to eat in downtown Lewisburg morning, noon and night,” the article said.
“Grab a sweet treat from Amy’s Market, pick up some baked goods and soups from Corn + Flour, tuck into a steak at Food & Friends or enjoy brick-oven pizza in a relaxed atmosphere at Hill & Holler.”
And that’s not even including other standouts like Stardust Cafe, The Humble Tomato, Briergarten, The General Lewis Inn, The Asylum and Jim’s Drive-In.
It’s not the only Southern West Virginia locale to receive some culinary love recently, either. Fayetteville also made another “best of” list, this time as one of the Top 20 Culinary Towns in the South according to The Local Palate magazine.
Featuring heavy-hitter food cities like Savannah, Durham, Knoxville, Baton Rouge and Bardstown, the article gives some love to Fayetteville hot spots like Secret Sandwich Society, Cathedral Café, Wanderlust Creative Foods, Pies & Pints, Bridge Brew Works and Charlie’s Pub.
It also suggests a stay at the Morris Harvey House Inn and gives a nice shout-out to Bridge Day!
Angela’s on the River building for sale
Despite an initial scare, fans of Angela’s on the River at 2 Sixth Ave. in St. Albans will be excited that the restaurant isn’t closing, at least for now, after the owner posted on Facebook that the historic Chilton House building it is located in is for sale.
“This makes me and a lot of people very sad,” reader Leslie White said. “I know it’s not always the best food, but we’ve never had a bad meal. It’s worth it to me just to sit in the beautiful dining room.”
To combat rumors swirling about its demise, owner Angela Samples responded with a post on the restaurant’s Facebook page assuring customers that they are still fully open.
“Yes, the building is for sale. It took Fazio’s two or more years to sell and I just had to get this wonderful historical building on the market! We have put a lot of love into this building,” she said, adding that Angela on the River’s 16-year anniversary was this past Friday.
“I am still desperately hiring for the kitchen and servers, still booking banquets and I am still cooking,” the post continued.
“It is up to me, if or when there is a buyer, when they can get the building. I am obligated to my customers when they book. My employees and I truly appreciate everyone.”
The restaurant is currently open from 4-9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information or to make reservations, call 304-722-2244 or visit www.angelasontheriver.com.
More new restaurants on the way
When I teased a handful of restaurant openings last week, I thought I wouldn’t have any similar announcements for a while. Au contraire.
Local foodies were all abuzz when large signage went up in downtown Charleston a few days ago, heralding the upcoming arrival of Sultan Shawarma & Cafe between Taylor Books and Pies & Pints on Capitol Street. For those who are unfamiliar, shawarma is a popular Middle Eastern dish featuring meat that is roasted on a vertical spit and then thinly shaved off to enjoy, often inside pillowy pita bread. I received a tip on who the owners are (which is super exciting, if true) so I’ll report back with more details ASAP.
A sign also teases that a new coffee shop is coming to South Hills in Charleston, right next door to James Beard-winning 1010 Bridge Restaurant. Located inside what was most recently the Liberty Roe children’s boutique at 1012 Bridge Rd., the sign for La Montana Coffee Co. says it will offer “coffee, vintage clothing and culture” in that space.
Speaking of a cup o’ joe, a new drive-through-only coffee shop is apparently on the way at the foot of the South Side Bridge on the MacCorkle Avenue side. I spoke to a local baker who’s in talks to provide pastries and such for the new spot, and that person told me it will be located in the old auto/tire shop on Ferry Street not far from previously James Beard-nominated Laury’s Restaurant.
Ursus Brew Works has also been open just over a month at 207 Hale St. in downtown Charleston, although the new veteran-owned brewpub restaurant is still gradually ramping up its own beer production. In the meantime, a few Ursus brews join a collection of other West Virginia craft beers on tap, along with a menu of soups, salads, sandwiches, shareables and more. Can’t wait to check it out!
Still love coffee, hate April Fool’s
If you read the print edition of last week’s column, you may have noticed a little line at the end announcing that Coal River Coffee Company at 64 Olde Main Plaza in St. Albans was now open 24/7 to fuel your caffeine fix around the clock.
It’s not. I can’t believe I was fooled by this, but the restaurant made that announcement on – you guessed it – April 1. And despite my laughing at dozens of fake restaurant “news” that day, this one initially slipped by me.
But let me explain why.
I didn’t share last week’s glowing review of Coal River Coffee because of that announcement. I had actually already written that review several weeks ago and noticed the post (which made no mention of April Fools) right before sending it for publication.
So I just added that nugget at the end and went on about my day.
When I tagged the coffee shop on my socials last Wednesday morning, THAT’S when I saw their post had been updated to share the joke. My heart sank. We quickly removed that reference in the digital edition, but my apologies to anyone who read it in print and was planning a middle-of-the-night espresso excursion.
Steven Keith is a food writer and restaurant critic known as “The Food Guy” who writes a weekly column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail and has appeared in several state, regional and national publications. Follow him online at www.wvfoodguy.com or on Facebook, X, Instagram and Pinterest as “WV Food Guy.” He can be reached at wvfoodguy@aol.com.