Seriously, how can I not use this blog to talk about a place with that sign. I’ve been interested in stopping by for years, as I drive past the Kac-ka-pon whenever I use Corridor H to head east. The Kac-ka-pon is located on the east side of Wardensville, which is either just after the Corridor ends or just before it begins, depending on which direction you were driving. It’s been right there off Rte. 55 for nearly half a century.
The interior is kind of generic, but quite clean. Moorefield is about 25 miles away; in the days before the Corridor that was probably close to an hour drive depending on the weather. So, the Kac-ka-pon has a little conference room in the back for groups that need to meet on this side of Hardy County. That room was being used on the night of my visit and meant that the one server they had working was struggling to keep up.
Specials were listed on a white board as you walked in and I noticed something called “taco soup.” I asked my server — the one server — what taco soup was and she really struggled in explaining it. It was allegedly a soup with Mexican vegetables. That intrigued me enough to give it a try:
Hmm, let’s see. Tomato base, ground beef, beans (white and pinto), seved with cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips….I might be willing to go out on a limb and call it chili. That may just be me. Whatever they called it, it was pretty good. It wasn’t hot, but there was enough chili powder and cumin to keep it from being bland. I’d definitely order it again. I would, however, know this was a lot more filling than most soups. You know, because it was actually chili.
I ordered the special, which was a fried chicken breast with mashed potatoes and green beans (thankfully, just one breast):
This was just okay, but I may have been full. The fried chicken breast tasted like a frozen breast that they merely deep fried there. To their credit, they did it right as the chicken wasn’t overcooked. It was good, but not great. The gravy was standard country gravy; not bad but not memorable. The mashed potatoes were a bit of a disappointment because they didn’t taste homemade. I should have heeded the menu’s hints and ordered the “real” potato salad. I will next time. The green beans were canned with some pork to spice them up.
Dessert (I stopped eating the potatoes to save room) was a homemade peach cobbler:
Skipped the ice cream, which is always a nice touch, but this tasted like a homemade crumb recipie. Not too sweet, which was nice.
Service was a bit slow because they only had one server working the entire place, including the party in the back room, but she was extremely friendly and apologetic about it. My meal cost me $20, but that did include a drink, “soup” and dessert. The entree special was only $7. And it was more food than I could finish.
In all, I liked this place and would stop again and try something else. As more and more city travelers come into WV for a weekend getaway, the Kac-ka-pon is clearly marketing itself as a “welcome to the state country cooking” kind of place based on their website: http://www.kackaponrestaurant.com/index.html. I did prefer O’Neills in Moorefield, which is pushing the cooking envelope a bit more. Still, if you are hungry and in the area, or just want to spend your money at a WV restaurant rather than a VA place (or chain), I’d recommend the Kac-ka-pon without reservation.
wvmagellan
Wild and Wonderful Magellan 