BUCKHANNON – The Upshur County Convention and Visitors Bureau will start offering seasonal walking dinner tours.

Executive director of the Upshur County Convention and Visitors Bureau Laura Meadows said the two the bureau has arranged for Fall Fest have been so successful, they wanted to expand to every season.

“For the past two years, we have hosted and organized a walking dinner tour in conjunction with Fall Fest and with the City of Buckhannon, and it’s always super popular,” Meadows said. “We decided, ‘Why not do it quarterly and just do seasonal ones?’ This will be our first winter walking dinner tour.”

The first Winter Walking Dinner Tour will take place Friday, Feb. 7 from 5:30 p.m. to around 8 p.m. at the ¾ Café. A ticket is required to attend the and can be purchased at the Upshur County Convention and Visitor Bureau on Main Street or online here or by calling 304-473-1400. The tickets cost $35 and there are only 30 tickets available.

“We’ve sold six tickets and it usually freaks me out because I think they should all be sold immediately, but last time we did this, it was that last week and everybody finally like had their plan set and was able to buy their tickets,” Meadows said.

The tour starts at ¾ Café with four different options for an appetizer. The first option is an artisan plate with artisan bread slices with olives and sweet habanero cream cheese, and the second is strawberry toast that consists of focaccia with cream cheese and sliced strawberries.

The third option? None other than bruschetta with fresh tomatoes, garlic, basil and parsley marinated in olive oil on artisan bread, dressed with balsamic reduction and served with fresh mozzarella pearls. The last option will be a cheese plate with an international cheese paired with salami, dried fruits, West Virginia honey and artisan bread mini bites.

The second stop on the tour is the 88 Restaurant & Lounge for an entrée of bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin with goat cheese polenta, grilled mushrooms and cherry bourbon gastrique.
The third stop for dessert will be at Sweet-A-Licious, which will be serving hot fudge brownie sundaes or a trubochki, cream-filled pizzelles.

The last stop will be at Stone Tower Brews where they will be able to choose a pint of beer or a specialty latte.

“People love the idea, and I think it’s so fun because I think, at least for me, I get in a routine of whenever I eat out, I tend to go to the routine places,” Meadows said. “I think this is such a cool way for people to try out a restaurant that they haven’t necessarily gone to before.”