SUPERPOWER: Contagious enthusiasm
Owner and Chef, Lucky Rivers Cafe and Catering
In September of this year, Lucky Rivers Cafe and Catering—and Gleason’s home above the beloved Hinton eatery—were lost in a structure fire. Despite the tragedy, the spirit of community and determination woven into the fabric of Lucky Rivers, now closed indefinitely, remains strong as a new future begins to unfold.
As a well-traveled southern California native, Sarah Gleason believes in the power to learn and grow from food—literally and metaphorically. She grew up watching shows on Food Network, but she didn’t initially see it as a career for herself. Instead, she followed in her grandparents’ footsteps and attended West Virginia University. While studying English, Gleason worked at Mario’s Fishbowl and found a love for the restaurant industry.
Gleason and her partner moved to Hinton, where she worked as a teacher in neighboring towns, but the universe began steering her toward culinary pursuits. One particular instance she recalls is finding the book Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain in a restroom while on vacation. The next day, she learned he had committed suicide that night. She knew then that she had to pursue this calling.
She first started working at a restaurant in Hinton, and then opened a catering business out of her house, delivering to nearby residents. She also worked at Glade Springs and other area kitchens to gain experience and confidence to one day open her own restaurant. She became discouraged for a while, but a customer renewed her determination by saying, “Hinton needs you to stay here and do this.” Just two weeks later, she was offered a downtown space, now home to Lucky Rivers Cafe and Catering.
Five years later, Gleason finds the menu difficult to properly describe, but it is essentially an anthology of the culinary experiences of her life. “It’s ‘Sarah food.’ It’s dishes that I really tried to figure out, things I’ve loved throughout my life”—like a life-changing turkey sandwich she ate while hiking in Washington with her cousin or a ham and cheese sandwich she recalls vividly from her childhood.
Gleason also finds passion in empowering her employees. “I believe in my mission, and I want them to start having a mission for themselves,” she says. “I hope this place can help them feel the confidence to do that, and hopefully see that West Virginia can give them what they want out of life.”
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