Food for Thought: Baristas Cafe and Pub - WTRF 7 News Sports Weather - Wheeling Steubenville

It's a large house with even bigger charm, Baristas Café and Pub in New Martinsville is the place to go for fresh coffee, a dynamite sandwich and an experience you won't find anywhere else in the Ohio Valley when it comes to dining.

Baristas Cafe and Pub has been serving up an eclectic cup of coffee and homemade deli soups and sandwiches for over 13 years now.  They thrive on unique ingredients.

"You know, when we first started business, no one know what an artichoke was, or feta cheese, or a bagel even, or those kind of things. So that's just stuff we've served for a while now and I guess that's what makes us unusual," said Jill Shade, one of six partners who own the business.

Cooking up sandwiches with fresh tomatoes, artichokes, spinach and basil, or their signature burger featured in a New York Times article, is only part of the job. The other half? Coffee, and lots of it.

"Definitely for the coffee drinks, the mocha crush is heads and tails above everything else, it's number one. Most people would probably know it by a Frappucino because they know Starbucks, so it's done in the blender, it's like a milkshake, coffee kind of drink. But we do ours all from scratch. Most people use mixes and throw them in the blender and they're ready to go, but ours is all from scratch," Jill said.

If the smell of coffee doesn't overtake you when you walk in, maybe the décor will. Painted tables, unique plaques, and card displays adorn the first floor cafe. When you step outside, it's a whole other world.

There are fences lined with old license plates and craft beer signs, trees, gardens, a view of the river, and plenty of seating.

The pub features exposed, original rock walls with wooden beams across the ceiling gives it a cave-like feel, but the place is anything but cold.

"You can't out-chain-restaurant the chains, so, we didn't want to do that, it's evolved, you can see the kind of knick knacks, everyone has a story. We've had a lot of musicians down here, we have live music almost every Friday. Sometimes we have live music outside, it's just a comfortable place to be," said John Yevuta, another partner who manages the bar portion.

They feature a list of craft beers, good wines and their famous wood-fired pizzas, only made on Thursday through Saturday.

"It has spoiled me for other pizzas, it's fresh, it's healthy, across the board it's just a heck of a product," he said.

Even after being recognized nationally, Baristas still has a unique, hometown feeling.

"Yes, we've got, to use an over-used word, an eclectic, it's quite a mix. Doctors, lawyers, electricians, retirees, some professional people, we have an epic bicycling group, card players," John told said.

Jill laughed, "We always joke around that it's like Cheers, because we know everybody's name and we know everybody's business!"

Baristas has been featured twice on the list of 101 Most Unique Places to Dine in West Virginia, and were featured in a New York Times article comparing them with a chain restaurant.

Jill said business has boomed ever since. Baristas Café and Pub is located at 326 N. Main Street in New Martinsville. They are closed on Sunday and Monday and they fire up the wood-fire pizzas Thursday through Saturday.