WV Cooks, State Parks launching statewide culinary dinner series

WV Cooks is a collective of culinary experts united to elevate the state’s food scene and cachet by showcasing West Virginia’s agricultural products, small businesses and cooking traditions — and preparing plenty of sumptuous meals in the process.

Established in 2010 by the West Virginia Community Development Hub and based in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä, the West Virginia Food and Farm Coalition consists of more than two dozen food-related agencies and organizations building relationships and supplying leadership to the state’s local food and farm sector.

Each Cellar to Table dinner will feature a menu curated by a WV Cooks member who will prepare his or her creations using locally sourced ingredients and West Virginia-made products. Products include honey, handcrafted sauces, artisanal jams and jellies, and maple syrup, among others.

“Each event will be a celebration of the incredible talent and passion for food that exists right here in West Virginia,� Welsch said.

“I’m really living the best life in the world,� he added. “Not only do I have the Vagabond Kitchen in Wheeling, but having started working as the executive chef for West Virginia State Parks several years ago, I’ve met culinarians from all around the state, and we started calling ourselves WV Cooks. And a little over a year ago, I became involved with the West Virginia Food and Farm Coalition.

“So, the Cellar to Table program is an opportunity for me to bring all these awesome things we do into one thing. I’m really excited and love having the opportunity to bring a whole new dinner series around the state,� Welsch said.

“These parks are so beautiful, and bringing in industry professionals from WV Cooks will add a whole new layer of experience and finesse to the things the state parks are already doing. It gives us an opportunity to champion West Virginia and the things that make it great.

“Working with Value Added Products has also been amazing. They make shelf-stable products that can be shipped outside of the state, which gives us a much firmer platform to promote West Virginia, rather than farm-grown products, with more things to put in people’s mouths that come from West Virginia. That’s going to put West Virginia in their minds and maybe change the narrative. They’ll think, ‘Hey, maybe I have get over to West Virginia and see what it’s all about.’ I see this as a huge celebration and rally call for all of the things our state does.�

Pairing chefs and locales

Cellar to Table dinner guests will also have opportunities to interact with the chefs and restaurant staff members, the artisans behind the value-added products and their fellow foodies at each scenic venue, Welsch noted.

“I will be at each of the dinners,� he said, “but the WV Cooks representatives I’ve chosen to partner with each park will kind of take the reins. Having worked with these partners for almost two years in this capacity, I’ve gotten to know them well. I partnered people who would fit personality-wise — this guy works really well with this guest chef, these two women work well together in the kitchen. I wanted this to be a positive, enriching experience for everyone else, too.�

The Cellar to Table chefs will also bring their trademark talents to the table.

“All of the WV Cooks have been encouraged to do their food,� Welsch said. “Most all of us are doing Appalachian and heritage-influenced, ‘cellar’ cuisine, but we’ll all be putting our own special spin on it.

“Donnie Orr will be cooking at Pipestem, and he brings a lot of finesse to his meals. Marion Ohlinger from Morgantown — he’s like the Frank Zappa of the culinary world; he’ll be at Canaan Valley Resort in January. And Chef Tim Urbanic, formerly of the Café Cimino Country Inn — he’s probably the godfather of farm-to-table cooking in West Virginia; he and his wife, Melody, make comfort Sicilian food. They’re all known for bringing their own flavors to table.�

The parks’ sweeping vistas around the restaurants will enhance the atmosphere at each location, too, Welsch said.

“The settings of the parks are just jaw-droppingly beautiful. The first time I walked into the Center at Hawks Nest State Park, I thought, ‘I’ve got to work here.’ And about six months later, I did that.�

The menu of chefs

• Marion Ohlinger, who opens the dinner series next month, has been a chef for 30 years, traveling to more than 50 countries on five continents. During his peripatetic culinary career, the Morgantown resident has operated kitchens in Alaska, Seattle and the Southwest. In West Virginia, he and wife/business partner, Alegria, developed Solera Café in 2003, Richwood Grill in 2009 and Hill & Hollow Free-Range Kitchen and Catering in Morgantown.
• Tim and Melody Urbanic launched Café Cimino Country Inn in Sutton in early 1999. After more than nearly two decades accumulating acclaim, they began contemplating retirement, closing Café Cimino’s doors and reinventing themselves by opening Bop & Nana’s Bakery and Catering in Chloe in 2021.
• Donnie Orr is the chef, owner and dietary manager for NutriFit Foods WV in Fairmont, as well as being a UESCA Ultra Running coach.
• Known familiarly as Chef Ke, Keyarna Frederick started her own Kanawha Valley catering business, Keekreationzzz, in 2019. She is the Market and Deli Manager at the recently launched Miss Ruby’s Market on the West Side, as well.
• Anne Hart opened Hart Kitchen in Clarksburg in October 2020, a year to the day after shuttering the Provence Market Café her longtime Bridgeport restaurant. In her WV Cooks biography, Hart is recognized and regaled for her interpretation of new and classic dishes on a rotating regional and seasonal menu.
• Rocco Basil grew up in the Wheeling area. His culinary resume includes becoming the chef of the Diocese of Wheeling-ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic Church 20 years ago, a position he still holds. He is also the proprietor of Rocco Basil Catering in Wheeling.
• Libby Nolle, the first female awarded Best Chef in West Virginia by West Virginia Living in 2020, brings her heavily European-influenced creations to the table at The Vault on Main Restaurant and Wine Bar in Summersville. Nolle is also a Chef Ambassador for the state.
• Duane Legg is the executive chef and baker for the Legacy Foods Market and Bakery in Indore, Clay County.
• Buffalo, New York native Melissa Rebholz is the chef and owner at Midge’s Kitchen in Wheeling, as well as being a farmer and author.
• Damian Heath honed his culinary skills by traveling extensively throughout the United States and Europe. As a state Chef Ambassador, Heath represents the Eastern Panhandle Region at the Lot 12 Public House in his native Berkeley Springs. Ten years ago, he was West Virginia’s only semifinalist in the James Beard Foundation Awards.

For more information about the upcoming dinners and to make reservations, go to wvstateparks.com/calendar or follow West Virginia State Parks on social media.