ABDO Market is a grocery store in Morgantown featuring halal meat, products & even a restaurant in the back, Mountain Halal. Mountain Halal is open during the evenings and features gyros, grape leaves, falafel and shawarma. I just wanted a quick snack, so I opted for a four-piece vegetable samboosa and strawberry juice. Samboosa is a crispy, triangular pastry filled with spiced vegetables (or meat or cheese) and is either fried or baked. These were a little flaky and fairly flavorful. I would have loved a dipping sauce to bring some punchy flavor. The drink was lovely – fresh and just a bit sweet. Grade: B

Playa Bowls is a beach-themed restaurant chain known for its colorful and fruit-focused menu, featuring a variety of açai, pitaya, coconut, and green bowls topped with fresh fruits, granola, nut butters, and superfoods. Founded by surfers in New Jersey, the fast-casual restaurant channels a laid-back coastal vibe, offering smoothies, juices, and cold brew in addition to its signature bowls. It focuses on fresh ingredients that make up nutritious meals. While there are more than 300 locations, West Virginia just opened its first in Morgantown. And I, somehow, ended up there on opening day. I joined the long line, which gave me ample time to peruse the menu. There are a bunch of different options depending on what fruits you like, how healthy you wanna be and how much energy you're looking for. I ordered the Goldie Mango Bowl topped with blueberry flax granola, strawberry, banana and Nutella. This was delicious. I've never had puréed mango as the basis for a bowl before. There was enough texture, though, to make it not like a soup texture. Plus all of the fruit on top made it seem like I was eating a fruit salad. and the granola added much needed texture. I couldn't afford to make these a regular habit, but I sure would love to. Grade: A

Second Street Restaurant is a modern American bistro with rich and vibrant decor, al fresco dining on the patio with a fire pit and Koi pond. It gives upscale yet casual vibes.



Kayla and I were ready to chow down after a busy day. So, up first: an appetizer, followed by an entree. I was more excited by the descriptions, as the execution was more middling.



Fried Duck Rangoons: Duck Bacon, Cream Cheese & Corn inside a Crispy Wonton with Sweet Chili Sauce




Crab Piles: Duo of Jumbo Lump Blue Crab Piles/Smoked Gouda Grit Cake, Vegetable du Jour/Remoulade

Grade: B

The 2nd Annual Grafton Monster Festival was held this weekend to celebrate all things Grafton Monster, featuring movies, music, speakers, vendors, and more. I spent some time perusing trinkets and knickknacks before finding some tasty bites. Buds Freeze Dried Candy has "Candy, Snacks, Vegetable and Proteins for every customers needs." I took home some freeze-dried gummy bears, but I was intrigued by the vegetables, and they even have meat on their website. Sugar Wave Bakery brought some cookies, and I opted for a lemon one. Did anyone else attend? What did you think?

The Almost Heaven BBQ Bash cekebrates its 10th anniversary this weekend in Buckhannon. And I was lucky enough to judge. Judging is pretty secret - but I can tell you I had 5 tasty pieces of chicken, ribs, pork, brisket and the ancillary veal category. There were more than 30 competitors from the region. I don't know whose food was whose because it's a blind judging. But I feel pretty confident in saying they were all impressive:

3 Eyz Pigs
Almost Heaven Smokehouse
Beer Time BBQ
Big Dog BBQ
BigFoot Mountain BBQ
Buckeye Flavor
Chucky's Barbecue
Chunky BBQ
Circle L Barbeque
Convicted Pigs BBQ
Dog Bite Barbecue
Dogpatch Que
Elite BBQ Smokers
Fred Vegas Smokers
Gold-N-Blue Barbecue
Hold Your Horses BBQ
Holt Brothers BBQ
Hoos Smokin
House of Que
Meat Monarchy
Menke Boys BBQ
Philly Blind Pig
Pinky Out BBQ
Poor Boys BBQ
Professor Smoke
Sailor Nick's BBQ
Shiggin Ain't Easy
Susquehana Smokers
Uncle Pig's BBQ Pit
Wild & Wonderful BBQ
Wolf's Revenge BBQ
So, most of the competitive teams do it as a hobby and do not sell to the public. They're interested in making the most delicious food possible and winning awards from the certified judges. But then, there are BBQ vendors who run a business to sell to the public. So while the public doesn't see the competitive side, they can still get their BBQ fix. Those commercial BBQ vendors include:

Almost Heaven Smokehouse (Marlinton, WV)
Big Girls BBQ (Elmire, PA)
Jaws BBQ (Buckhannon, WV)
Off the Bone BBQ (Columbus, OH)
South Texas Barbecue Company (Weston, WV)
Personally, I didn't need anymore BBQ but I did scope out some of the other vendors. Gibson's Goodies I got some Dubai chocolate pistachio fudge I can't wait to try. Samples Pantry I snagged the strawberries with chocolate. Mountain State Sweets I love this nostalgic strawberry shortcake ice cream bar. Traveling Dawgz I ordered a hot dog with chili, slaw, mustard & onions. It was compact and pretty good.

Grade: A