A few weeks back a college friend threw a big party/pig roast for his 50th birthday (he's
much older than me
) so Mrs. Chicken and I trekked out to Des Moines, but stretched it into a 3-day trip instead of doing the standard Saturday-Sunday bit.
Friday afternoon, January 11 We left Madison about 11am and headed southwest on US-151, which is now 4 lanes all the way to Cedar Rapids. We reached the historic town of
Mineral Point at lunchtime and decided to stop for a bite at the
Red Rooster Cafe.
The cafe was originally a bank and the building was built back in the 1880s.
Our lunch started with the typical offerings and Mrs. Chicken chose coleslaw while I opted for cottage cheese. The slaw was mayo-based and she thought it was OK, but generally she prefers the vinegary version.
Red Rooster's house specialty is the pasty and it's served 2 ways: in wedges like we ordered and as individual pies. The crust was nice and flaky and the filling had plenty of potato, onion, and rutabaga.
Since it was Friday I selected fried cod and hash browns and was very happy with both, especially the potatoes (the best I would have over the weekend).
After lunch we walked around a bit even though it was a damp, dreary, foggy day. The streets were pretty quiet but during the summer Mineral Point does a brisk tourist trade, especially on weekends.
Guess which beer is no longer available? Hint: the tiny PBC shield stands for Potosi Brewing Company, which reopened as the
National Brewery Museum a few years ago.
The requisite historical marker.
We didn't get
Travelin Manned, we got
Mother Natured! As you might expect, Betty's is a seasonal operation.
From Mineral Point it was on the road to our next destination...
