Later Alligator

Food was amazing! Fresh and unique. I got the special of the day which was a tomato, basil, cheese & avocado panini on yummy bread. So fresh and delicious! My husband got a chicken curry wrap w mango salsa that was out of this world! My son picked pb&j, cucumber slices & ice cream from kids menu. Service was terrific and place has a fun ambiance. And the town itself is so cute, lots of small local shops. And I loved the painted parking meters! Definitely stop here if you get the chance!

I stopped in for a quick lunch one afternoon and got pretty quick service from ordering to dinning. Was a bit small up front but seemed to have more room in the back. The menu looked like it has several good dishes on it but I went with the pulled pork sandwich. Everything tasted good and priced reasonably.

My 4 star rating is based upon the quality of food and wait staff that I have experienced ever since this place opened. This is one of the top local restaurants and continues to be so, in spite of the ownership and management. It succeeds because of employees that care.
Later Alligator is a great idea with it’s specialty menu and Wheeling Steel local history theme.
Here is the problem, I rarely ever saw the owner jump in and help during busy times. Just cleaning the tables and bring water to the guests is not too much to ask, is it? When I go into a business and see an owner that takes an active role in making sure everything is running smoothly, I am impressed. That’s the way a locally owned business should be run, in my opinion.
Believe it or not, the current manager, who is the owners son, is even worse. I won’t go into details on situations that I have observed or heard about from friends. I rarely see the owner any longer. I can’t believe that I can actually say that I wish she was back!!!
The best thing that could happen for the long term future of this restaurant is to be sold to new owners who actually care and show that they care. Wheeling, WV needs specialty restaurants like this one, but Wheeling also needs owners and managers who know and show the importance of a good quality business.
Later Alligator continues to have great food and I continue to go there often… SO FAR!!!

We stopped by for lunch while driving through on our way to Pittsburgh. It is a small restaurant in the downtown area with a few shops etc around. I ordered the «American in Paris» crêpe. Turkey, Brie and tomato. I enjoyed it a lot and it was a nice size for lunch. I would, however, liked it to have something else on the plate. For $ 10.00, I don’t think that it is too much to ask. My husband had the Seven Star /​basically a French dip. It had a good portion of meat and the roll was delicious. The waiter did seem a little ditsy, causing us both to have a silent smile at each other a few times. All in all, it was a pleasant lunch and if in town again, we will definitely stop by.

The atmosphere here is great! I had the turkey sandwich with apple butter. Loved it! The potato salad tastes really yummy too! I will stop by here the next time I am in town! The service is fast and friendly.

I was quite disappointed by the lack of options, they are always out of stock (even at lunch). Service is super slow, it can take 20+ minutes to get a drink after being seated. The wait staff are not familiar with the menu. Also, so loud and cramped that it is impossible to have a conversation.

Food was delicious, service was great and ambiance was fantastic!
We had the hula hoop, pesto change o and the Sam and Ella. Each dish was delicious. We started with Brie with walnuts and honey. We are from out of town and found this place on Unilocal and boy are we glad we did! If you are traveling through Wheeling we recommend you stop!

I went to college in Wheeling a few years ago and Later Alligator quickly became one of the go to spots for my friends and myself. It was always a go to for celebrations, birthdays, valentine dates, and eventually Tuesday ½ priced wine, and everything in between. So, that being said this small restaurant holds a lot of great memories to me. A few years since my college days in Wheeling and Later Alligator still seems spunky and fun.
Later Gator really got the atmosphere right here! I love, love, love the location! It is located in downtown Wheeling, right by Centre Market. Once inside all of the décor is gators in every shape and form and retro Wheeling items that give off a local and spunky vibe that anyone could appreciate.
My favorite thing on the menu is the BVD — a grilled spinach wrap with hummus, spinach, roasted peppers, black beans, fontina, tomatoes, dressing (and now apparently they add rice as well). It’s super tasty and there isn’t really anything like this plate that I was able to find in the Wheeling area. Dessert crepes are also a great option, but I learned from experience with my friends that the flavored teas and the butterscotch hug (my fave!) are also tasty ways to satisfy that sweet tooth alongside a savory main course.
I recommend Later Alligator as a must try to anyone visiting or living in Wheeling!

The atmosphere at Later Gator is great. Everything is cozy and local. I got the Belt Buster: juicy, tender pulled pork barbecue. They cook it in apple butter and it is delicious. However the menu stated that it was supposed to come in a baguette, and mine just came on a roll, just was sort of disappointing. I was pretty stressed out about the service as well. For starters, none of our table could get any refills. And I had inquired about the ingredients in the Belt Buster and initially, the waitress was just guessing, which is not acceptable for food allergies. It took a lot of badgering to get her to finally ask the kitchen. It would be really beneficial for them to give the staff some training on how to handle guests with food allergies.

This was the worst place I have ever been in a very very long time. I was so disappointed in the service, food and just plane discuss with every part of the time I was hear. I was not waited on for about 40min and by that time I had lost the time and was literally falling asleep. I was so hungry I was eating sa k the out of the shakers. It was horrific.

Adorable restaurant with really great wait staff, so friendly. Crepes are delicious and so are sandwiches. Try the frozen hot chocolate! Would come back if ever in the area again.

The crepes especially at Later Alligator are fantastic, albeit a bit overpriced. All food is served fresh and the beer and wine selection is great! If you’re in Centre Market, go and enjoy a casual, fun lunch or dinner here!

First time I have been. The waitress was very helpful in explaining the menu and the items. They are very flexible in substituted items or deletions.
Everything we had was delicious. I got one of the crepes as a sandwich and as a dessert.
We will definitely come back and try other items.

High-​five to Later Alligator for offering a vegan option! The sign advertising vegan black bean soup was welcomed and effective at roping me into the restaurant. Overall the restaurant is cute and laid back and the menu items had cute names. My bf (not vegan) thought his «kickin’ chickin’» was average and that it could have been kickin’ some more. My greek salad (made vegan) was average and the black bean soup could have used some more spice. But to be honest, most of the food I had in WV was bland, so this wasn’t a huge surprise for me. If this restaurant were in Chicago, I’d rate it lower than a 4, but given the geographic location and the fact that they had vegan options, they get a bonus star.

One thing I didn’t think to include before, but that I find important to mention after 6 trips here, is that although the food has truly been fantastic every time, the service is very, very slow. I’ve been in twice when it was packed and the other times it was either half filled or almost empty. No mater the speed of business, each trip has been about two hours. 20+ minute just to get drinks, servers don’t tend to revisit often. No one has been rude, just not very attentive.

I just got a Steak Salad from Later Alligator. This is by far the worst salad I have ever seen. I paid $ 13.81 for this horrible salad! I waited for 25 minutes and had to ask the waitress TWO times for someone to check on it to see how much longer it would be. When I got back to work and opened the take out container, the first thing I saw was old brown romaine lettuce. By the time I picked out all the old lettuce it was about half the size it started out as. In addition the menu says it comes with ‘roasted’ tomatoes (they weren’t — in fact they weren’t even fresh), marinated portabella mushrooms (there weren’t any) and Rib Eye Steak. REALLY? The steak is over cooked and not even close to a Rib Eye.
I won’t be going back to this restaurant!

We came in on a Friday night around 7pm. We were worried it might be busy, but luckily it was mostly empty. We were seated fairly quickly in the back section where just one other table was occupied. The waitress was at the table, so she had to see that we sat down in her section.
We looked at our menus and decided on our food & drink orders. This usually takes me a long time, so it seemed weird no one had come to our table by the time I made up my mind. Then we realized that no one was coming. We waited approximately fifteen minutes for someone to come and take our drink orders. Or to explain a reason for the delay. But nothing happened. We finally gave up and left without eating or drinking anything.
I looked for someone to talk to on our way out, but I couldn’t spot anyone who seemed to work there. Not sure where they all disappeared to. Only giving two stars instead of one because the menu sounded good and I liked the interior. No idea how the food is and I am certain the service is lacking. Will not be back.

Oh so good. The food is simple and fresh and sublime. I had pulled pork and mac and cheese… on a sandwich! Genius. The BF had the Deja Vu, Willy Style. He loved it! The place is just adorable and the help is just that… so helpful and nice. Oh, did I mention my coconut iced tea? It was out of this world! I can’t wait to visit Wheeling again and check out the crepes. I bet they’re great too. I highly reccomend.

New in town and I stopped to ask someone walking by if they’d point me to a good burger place in town. They didn’t, instead they sent me for crepes at later gator.
I’ve had them before and let’s just say they definitely have some other places a run for their money.
The service 5 stars
The crepes 4 stars
Drinks 3 stars
Dessert 4 stars
Décor 3 stars
I will go back for more

Their slogan is simple — Eat or We Both Starve
Who would have thought that in this tired, rust-​belt town there would be a restaurant comparable to a place you might find in Greenwich Village or the center of LA’s arts district? There it is… right downtown on the edge of Ohio in Wheeling, West Virginia. Later Alligator is eclectic, inspired and undeniably tasty.
Unilocal’s phone app. comes through again.
I recommend the Strawberry Brie-​Zze which is what drove us here from the highway during our road trip (excellent without the meat), or the Mac West. Even the Caprese salad is jazzed up with their special oven roasted tomato recipe.
Usually when a restaurant labels their menu items with cutesy names, I start knocking stars off of my reviews, but it actually fits here. It’s a bit like walking into a mix between a carnival and an antique store. If it’s nice outside, ask for outdoor seating which is not obvious when you enter. Ironically, they’re serious with their multiple signs all around about no outside food or drink being permitted other than in the gated patio area. Is this a problem in WV? — maybe so.
Be sure to have a look at the bizarre (but cool) bathroom décor — in both of them,