"Y’allternative cuisine. Like momaw made it, but she has tattoos and drinks her whiskey straight," reads Black Circle Bistro's bio on Facebook. Honestly, that is enough to make me a fan of this Beckley restaurant.
But, I should also try the food. So while in the area, I placed a to go order and picked up a few items off the menu. A few notes: They don't do ice. They don't do lemon. Their specialty is burgers, but they also have other sandwiches, salads and sides.
I went with the Granny, which has cheddar cheese, pimento cheese, bacon and pepper jelly. I picked this one primarily because I love cheese and that salty sweet combo. But every burger was tempting – from adding fried bologna to blue cheese pimento to dippy eggs. I didn't do this burger justice because I didn't get a chance to eat it immediately. I had it later on that evening, and while it was good, I know it would be better hot and fresh.
What I did get to enjoy immediately was the deviled egg potato salad, which is perfect Appalachian twist on potato salad. A little kick, which I love. I also tried the pickled eggs, which I know can be divisive, but I love that zippy tang.
Finally, I need to give a shoutout to their sauces. I didn't even have fries, but I needed to try the Appalachian Goddess, Jana's Garlic & Onion, Pimento and Hillbilly Holy Trinity. Yes, yes and more yes.
Grade: A
