North Carolina Roadtrip, May 2009

GO FOR IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ann, I really appreciate your support and enthusiasm. However, you should be careful what you wish for; in this case what you might get is a thirteen or fourteen page trip report ( ten day trip x three meals or more a day = book-length novel! )

Bob, the longer your reports are the better!  They're informative and entertaining.  So go for it!

nocarolina


Thanks, MiamiDon. Next week I'm making a three-day roadtrip to Minneapolis ( there's a light rail line there that I haven't ridden yet ), and you can expect a trip report on that.

Park at the Mall of America and catch the light rail there. It will take you through the two airport terminals and then downtown. If you time it right you could catch a Twins game as it stops at the Metrodome. It then goes over to First Avenue, a culinary delight, and you can can observe the construction that will finish off at the new Twins ballpark that opens next spring. It is best viewed from the skyway link between Target Center Arena and the 5th Street parking ramp.

At the Mall I recommend the Twin Cities Grill for their Walleye sandwich. On and near First Avenue I recommend Cafe Brenda but it may not be your cup of tea since it is fish, organic and vegetarian, and the 112 Eatery on 3rd Street off First Avenue is top rated in the Twin Cities. The rail goes down 5th Street. For bar food, Rosen's or the Loon Cafe on First Avenue.

One block over downtown off Nicollet Mall on 6th are three places, Lyon's Pub on 6th, Ike's or Murray's. Murray's is a steakhouse that hasn't changed since ca. 1945 with a butterknife steak and garlic toast like you've never experienced. Ike's has a monster hamburger that puts those others mentioned often in the Twin Cities look like fast food. If you hit Lyon's Pub which has two bars, go to the bar nearest Nicollet Mall. If Steve is tending the bar, sit at the bar and mention me. I used to the be "Norm" there in my working days and like to think they put the BPT on their permanent menu because of me. Soft drinks, btw, are free if you sit at the bar for lunch.

Since you are a rail fan you could get off about 36th Street I think and go to the Rail Station, a bar grill that has meat raffles and a decent pork tenderloin sandwich. Meat raffles are such a Minnesota thing I think wanderingjew would get his rocks off on that.

I don't know if I will be in town next week. I just came down from the Gunflint Trail and would have stayed up there if I didn't have to come home and feed the cat. This month I want to get up to Voyageurs National Park and Itasca State Park and am meeting a friend on a lake over in Spooner, WI. Also, I have aims on two BPTs in Wausau and New Glarus, WI. I have all that on my menu while my wife is away in Bolivia this month.

Davydd, thanks so much for the recommendations. I'd already decided to board the light rail at the southern terminal and ride downtown, which is the same thing that I did with the Charlotte line. I haven't been to the Mall of America either, so I'll be able to accomplish two things that afternoon. Seafood and vegetarian food aren't my thing, but the steak and the monster burger you mentioned definitely get my attention. Breakfast before departing Minneapolis will probably be at Stabby's, the new place at 42nd and Cedar; their biscuits n' gravy come highly recommended.

 Oh come on Bob, not liking vegetarian... should I remind you that you turned up your nose at the BBQ at Lexington # 1 that day and only had slaw and hushpuppies...LOL.

Just kiddin' Bob......



Dennis in Cary

Yep, Dennis, you'll never catch me eating any of that vile animal flesh...just ain't a-gonna happen! Next time that I'm at Snappy Lunch, it's salad for me....

Since I had nothing else to do this evening, I thought that I'd post a few more of my favorite photos from the North Carolina trip. First up is the Ben Franklin III; this is a horse-drawn boat that carries tourists along a short restored stretch of the long-abandoned Whitewater Canal in Metamora, Indiana.

Crossing the Ohio River, from Maysville KY to Aberdeen OH, on the Simon Kenton Bridge. 

A view across the swinging footbridge south of Wayne, West Virginia.

This is the famous Blue Ridge Parkway, crossing over southbound US 52 at Fancy Gap, Virginia.

Decades ago, this was one of the most familiar sights along American highways.

You know that you're down south when you see roadside signs advertising fatback for sale.

A portrait of John B. White Sr., founder of the Beacon Drive-In in Spartanburg, SC. A true Roadfood legend! 

Great report, nocarolina. 

Thanks for taking the time to share this with us.

A beautiful mountain stream in Maggie Valley, NC.

Super report.

Thank you for sharing.

Buffalo Tarheel

DLnWPBrown


Ann, did you see my posting back at Christmas about how to cook a whole country ham so that you can slice it like a smoked ham? Only way we eat country ham now.


Dennis in Cary

Dennis,
 
I don't want to hijack Bob's outstanding trip report, but your note about how to cook a country ham intrigued me.  I have a country ham that my family gave me during our Christmas trip to Ahoskie, NC, and I have yet to cook it.  I am debating whether to bake it or boil it, the advantage of boiling it being able to use the pot liquor for vegetables.   I'd be interested to see your technique.  Is it possible to post a link to your posting?  I have trouble with the "search" function on the site.
 
Bob,
 
Great report.  I really have enjoyed seeing all the places you went to and can't wait for my next trip to NC.
 
Rob

Buffalo I have reposted my country ham recipe. Let me know how it works for you.



Dennis in Cary

This crumbling abandoned bridge at Cedar Grove IN used to carry US 52 over a tributary of the Whitewater River.

This colorful collection of old advertising signs is located in Cana VA, several miles north of Mount Airy.

Bob, have you ever been to the Bluegrass & mountain music ampitheater up in Virginia on the Parkway? I forget the name of it but Wendy and I stopped by there several years ago. It has live music on the weekends from Spring through late Fall. They have a seperate building where you can see a history of mountain music including donated musical instruments going back to the early 1900's. I think it is about an hour north of the crossover at Fancy Gap.


We really enjoy going up to that area in the Fall and hope we can get up there this year at least for a day.



Dennis in Cary

Great pictures and reports! Thanks for all the time you have taken putting this up.

The one with the Merita Bread ad made me think back to when I was a kid and we'd travel down to the Carolinas and one of my favorite treats was the Merita Sweet Sixteen donuts...especially the mini cruellers. Not sure if they were as good as I remember, but as a kid I really looked forward to them!

Tony you can still buy the Sweet Sixteen donuts here in Cary. My wife loves them and we pick up a bag of them from time to time. I used to love the bread when it was super fresh and put softened butter on it as a treat.... so good.



Dennis in Cary

I just finally got through the whole ten pages of this trip report.  I really loved it!!  Living in Cincinnati, some of the OH/IN Rt.52 pics are very familiar to me.  All of the pictures are beutiful!!

Thanks for sharing. nocarolina!!

Would that be Galax?  They are known for their Bluegrass there.  I never got there but used to do the festivals up in the Frederick, Md/No. Va area back in the late 70's early 80's.  I heard some of the best back then, including the "King" Bill Monroe. 

What a great report! Thank you for sharing.

Dennis, I've never even heard of that ampitheater before; I'll have to check it out someday. The only place of interest on the Parkway that I've been to is the Mabry Mill in Virginia. I hope to get back there, camera in hand, in September.

 You could make a book out of this! Really great report!

nocarolina


Here's my breakfast, which was simply wonderful. The Tennessee country ham, as it's listed on the menu, was just perfect - possibly the best I've ever had. In the past, breakfast in Nashville would definitely have been at the Loveless Cafe on the outskirts of town. After my extremely disappointing experience there back in early April, however, I wasn't about to make that mistake again. The current owners of the Loveless have ruined a beloved roadfood landmark. The building has been expanded so much that it's lost all of its charm, and worse, the once-great country ham and homemade blackberry preserves are now just shadows of their former selves. The biscuits are still great, but the management has gotten rather stingy with them; nowadays only two come with breakfast. For me, breakfast in Nashville from now on means a visit to the Pancake Pantry.

First off, Great report and great pictures. Wish I had the time to go on a Road Trip and well I have been on a local Donut binge lately hitting up all the shops I have been negligent on taking pictures. Maybe next time....
 
But really, you stopped at a place called the "Pancake Pantry" which is notoriously known for pancakes and didn't get any? For shame...I'm just jerking your chain because I would have gorged out on pancakes, but I am a big breakfast fan.