A few days in Arkansas

Awesome thread! I love all the pictures.

quote:

Originally posted by buffetbuster

MiamiDon-
Thanks for finding that out. If they aren't connected, I wonder why and how they can use the Whatta-burger name.

mr chips-
Thanks for the compliment! I am still planning on spending a week in Oregon in the near future. February or March are most likely. Very much looking forward to it.

Curbside Grill-
What do you think of the chocolate gravy? I imagine it isn't for everyone.

Ort-
Your knowledge of, well, just about everything, continues to amaze. I can't remember what that building is being used for. But, it was obvious that it has been recently been refurbished.

susanll-
I have already had my run-ins with the Memphis police department. Long story, but it involved an overly aggresiive squirrel!

Would love to hear the squirrel story!

susanll-
Do you remember there used to be a park in downtown Memphis that was overrun with squirrels? My friend Lisa took me there in 1997 and we fed them nuts and seeds we had bought in a convenience store. They would come right up to you and some would even run up your pants leg. Anyway, one was a little too happy to get fed and bit me pretty good.

After I got back to Pittsburgh, it occurred to me that I should get a rabies shot. So I went to a local hospital and told them what happened. Since it was an animal bite, they apparently had to report it. A few days later, the Memphis police called and I had to fill out a report. At least they didn't ask me to describe the squirrel!

On my next trip in 1999, we went back to the same park and all the squirrels were gone. I may singlehandedly be responsible for starving squirrels all over Memphis!

joerogo-
Unfortunately, I don't have an answer for you. I looked at their website and couldn't find out anything there, either. Anyone know?

buffetbuster, Being that the steaks are not called prime on the menu, I would say they probably were choice.

Just goes to show you how important the cooking technique is. I have had choice steaks that left me speechless and prime steaks that left me wanting.

I think your statement sums it all up, "this is the best steak I have ever had"

Based on your report, I would say "Doe's Knows Steaks"

Tuesday November 4, 2008 

Since I had a lot to do in a short amount of time, I was up and on the road just before 5:00AM. When I arrived at my breakfast destination, Little Chef

in Stuttgart, the place was already quite busy! Obviously, the above photo was taken on the way out, since it was still very dark when I got there. Odd shaped on the outside, it looks like any other restaurant inside. Most of the dining room is tables, where many of the locals were congregating. There is a small "L" shaped counter, so I sat there, facing the window into the kitchen.

When I saw a biscuit with ham go out to a customer, I decided to order a breakfast sandwich. But, mine came on regular bread.

[IMG]

I would have preferred the biscuit, but no big deal, because they used quality ham. Good sandwich. I liked my cheesey hash browns even better.


Since I was at the counter, I could see they had different desserts lined up on the opposite counter.

It was kind of fun trying to guess what was under the aluminum foil. They ended up having chocolate cobbler, chocolate cake, pecan pie and hummingbird cake. I ended up with the chocolate cake.

This was extremely dense and fudgy.

If I had to do it over again, I would have tried the chocolate cobbler. For some reason, I think cobblers should be limited to fruit flavors. But then, I was skeptical that I would like chocolate gravy, too.

http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Writeup.aspx?ReviewID=2132&RefID=2095

I got back in my car and headed to Memphis.

More to come.....

Yeah based on that plate and the cake I would have just moved into the Little Chef. :)

quote:

Originally posted by buffetbuster

susanll-
Do you remember there used to be a park in downtown Memphis that was overrun with squirrels? My friend Lisa took me there in 1997 and we fed them nuts and seeds we had bought in a convenience store. They would come right up to you and some would even run up your pants leg. Anyway, one was a little too happy to get fed and bit me pretty good.

After I got back to Pittsburgh, it occurred to me that I should get a rabies shot. So I went to a local hospital and told them what happened. Since it was an animal bite, they apparently had to report it. A few days later, the Memphis police called and I had to fill out a report. At least they didn't ask me to describe the squirrel!

On my next trip in 1999, we went back to the same park and all the squirrels were gone. I may singlehandedly be responsible for starving squirrels all over Memphis!

joerogo-
Unfortunately, I don't have an answer for you. I looked at their website and couldn't find out anything there, either. Anyone know?

Well, I wondered why the rogue squirrel department had disbanded.

Little Chef looks like a Quonset hut.

Tuesday November 4, 2008 cont.

While driving to Memphis, I realized there was a theme for today's business. I was determined to right some wrongs!

First stop in Memphis was back at the hotel I stayed at on Friday to return the tv remote control I unintentionally pilfered. The woman thanked me, while looking at me like I was an idiot.

Next, I wanted to get a milkshake at Wiles-Smith Drugs. When I was here about a month ago, an elderly couple informed me that "I ordered wrong", when I got a sundae rather than a shake. I showed up at their door at 9:05AM. Even though the sign on the front door says they open at 9:00AM, the door was locked and the lights were off.

Since there was no sign they were opening anytime soon, I drove the short distance down the street to The Cupboard. On my last visit here, I was too full from my meal to get dessert. What was I thinking?

I looked at the menu and saw they had plum cobbler (PLUM COBBLER!!!) on Mondays and I asked my waitress if they had any leftover. She informed me it was all gone, so I had to "settle" for a piece of lemon icebox pie.

WOW! This is the real thing. The lemon part was a pefect combination of sweet and tart. And the graham cracker crust was wonderful. This was a world class piece of pie! It may even better than the piece at had at Silver Skillet in Atlanta.

http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Writeup.aspx?ReviewID=1262&RefID=1262

Back to Wiles-Smith Drugs to see if they were open. It was 9:30AM and the doors were still locked. But the lights were now on, so I knocked. The pharmacist came to the door and I asked him if it was too early to get a milkshake. He said "We'll take care of you" and I ordered a cherry milkshake.

The silver beaker gives you almost three glasses full of thick, ice creamy goodness. This was a great milkshake.

http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Writeup.aspx?ReviewID=1264&RefID=1264

I drove around Memphis for a little bit, trying to make a decision on what to do for lunch. I ended up at The Little Tea Shop,


right in the middle of downtown. I like the woman in the insert who is saying, "I'm waiting for you!"

I have no idea if this place qualifies under the much discussed lately "Ladies Lunch". But, in the time I was there, the only other table being occupied was by five construction workers.

They give you the menu on a piece of paper and you mark with the pencil what you want.

I got the delicious pimiento salad sandwich,

along with a cup of the tomato rice soup.

If I had time, I would have ordered the fried chicken, but I had a flight to catch. Once again, I have to point out how good the iced tea is here in Memphis.


http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Writeup.aspx?ReviewID=67&RefID=67

Unfortunately, no time for dessert, since I had a flight to catch. When I landed at Pittsburgh, I headed straight to my local township building, so I could vote. I got home around 6:30PM.

Thanks again to everyone for reading my trip report!

quote:

Originally posted by NebGuy

Little Chef looks like a Quonset hut.

That is what Michael Stern calls it in his review. To be honest, I had never heard of that term before.

Quonset hut

Old military guys will sure remember quonset huts!!!!!

I lived in one for two years in Both SEA and Japan!! Life could have been much worse!

"Real Quonsets" at Chitose, Hokkaido, Nothern Japan 1961

BB - Fantastic! Loved all your stops! The cheesy hash browns, the great steak, the lemoney pie! i'm traveling with you! You need to get out more often....

Feltners Whatta-Burger; I spotted this when it was the restaurant of the day-NO DIET DRINKS!!!
I can't remember when this wasn't an option.
 

I'm confused about the sandwich,  it LOOKS like a yummy chicken salad ,so where are the PIMENTOS???

BB - as usual, your descriptions and pictures are mouth-watering! All these gorgeous Arkansas vittles have me very confused now. I had planned that, after leaving you folks in Memphis next month, I was going to take an out-of-the-way route home thru Owensboro KY. I had chopped mutton at George's BBQ several years ago ( good! ), and I want to visit them again. However, after seeing those ribs at McClard's, I'm not sure what to do anymore! Which route to take home, Arkansas or Kentucky... what's a poor hungry boy to do?I've got me a hard decision to make. Buffetbuster, it's all your fault!  lWhatever route I choose, though, I know there's a great meal waiting for me.

AHI MPLS


I'm confused about the sandwich,  it LOOKS like a yummy chicken salad ,so where are the PIMENTOS???

That *is* chicken salad....

Yeah belle, I didn't get the call for pimentos either.  Dawn, I don't think I've ever had chicken salad in Minnesota--do you put pimentos in it up there?

Great trip report!  All of those deserts looked amazing but for some reason that apricot fried pie really caught my attention.  Monday Night Football and fried pies are a match made in heaven.

Hmmmmm....  the caption  over the pic. sez... " pimiento sandwich"  {sic}  I'm  SO CONFUSED......... oh well,  THAT'S nothing new!!      my chicken salad sandwich go-to  place has always been Peter's Grill downtown. it's perfect, lightly toasted wheat, iceberg, and NO pimentos!!! 

Ohhhhh, okay, I get your confusion now.  I would imagine 'pimento salad' is what we normally call 'pimento cheese' which is pretty much a southern thing.  

Several years ago, we were at a Hutchinson Family reunion in Gravette and afterward a group of ten of us ate at Doe's Eat Place in Bentonville.  The facility was much nicer than the Little Rock looks to be or the Greenville sounds to be.  It was nothing grand, but certainly did not have a worn or tired look to it.  Everyone present agreed that Doe's was excellent.

My high school team was the Scorpions - Sting 'em Scorps!

We now have a great travel guide for our next journey through Arkansas.  Thank you!

Milt
  One of the HSchools in Hesperia CA where I worked for a number of years had the nick-name "Scorpions" We had a lot of the real thing in that area also, so the name was appropriate.

Ok now I am confused about the sandwich choice

if you look at the menu paper photo

it says

"Chicken, Tuna, Pimento Salad Sandwich" and the soup is marked

so is it all three as a salad? or what 

PAGING BB

Can you clear up the cornfusion??

There is no confusion. I live in Memphis and go the Little Tea Shop all the time. That is without a doubt chicken salad. If it was a pimento cheese sandwich it would've had grated cheese, pimentoes, and mayo. That is, it would've been yellow(the cheese) with flecks of red pimento.

I looked back through my notes and I wrote down that I had the pimento salad.  But there is no doubt that the sandwich in the pic is chicken salad.  I think what happened is that I wrote down pimento salad and never changed it, even after they told me they didn't have it that day.  Sorry for the confusion.   I even wrote in my notes how good the sandwich was and still didn't change it.  Maybe I am better off not taking notes.

I love The Little Tea Shop. It's one of the more unique places I've dined at. Mrs MFL ordered greens, greens and greens one visit.

Chuck's has great BBQ salads and potatoes. Stubby's is really good too. The pit in inside and the aroma is to die for. They cook baked potatoes in the pit. Many, many years ago in the original location, we were there when the pit caught fire - in a bad way! There were about 5 tables of people and no one moved, just kept eating until the fireman got there and made us leave. That's how good it was. That was before we discovered McClard's. It is everything BB said cranked up about 100%! They open at 11:00 but best to get there at 10:30 to get in line. The line is a free for all and can get crazy with the 2 different doors.  Can't wait for racing season to be over. We never go to HS during racing season.

Oh, about Hillary... Lots of pics of Bill but I never noticed any of her. McClard's ships to Bill where ever he is.

Ort. Carlton.


Dearfolk,
Strikes me that McClard's is only one of the famous-and-decent BBQ places in Hot Springs. Can anyone supply information on any of the others? I'm curiouser than curious.
Wondersomely, Ort. in 30601-Central.

%

Must be a Southern thing. We always have crackers with tamales!

porkbeaks

[id="quote"]quote: [id="quote"]Originally posted by Brad_Olson

I don't recall ever seeing tamales accompanied by saltines before. Is this something specific to McClard's or more of a southern regional thing?

Brad

[id="quote"]
McClard's tamale "spread" is a layered mountain of steamy corn tamales, spicy chili, crunchy Fritos, crisp raw onions, rich grated cheese, and hot barbecue sauce. I think you're supposed to eat the saltines with the upper layers, before you get to the tamale base. pb