I am excited to announce my very first meme tagging. Thanks Katrina! And what could be better to talk about than eating out at my favorite restaurants? That's on my top 10 list of favorite things to do. Maybe top 5. (Mostly because there are no dishes to do afterwards!) :) Since I live kind of out in the boonies, we tend to have a little larger range so my restaurants are all over North Idaho, USA. Some are favorites because of the food. Some because of the atmosphere. And some because of the memories they hold. So here goes.
1. Toro Viejo. Toro serves my favorite Mexican food in town. And I've tried a lot! They have the best chips and salsa, the best lunch specials, and the best appetizer platter. I've gone there with my family, my extended family, my friends, and by myself. And it never fails to please.
2. The Rib Ranch. The Rib Ranch has good...wait for it...ribs! I love the small family atmosphere and the way it feels like a good country restaurant. We took Josh there for his first birthday. He had grilled cheese and vegetable soup. The receipt is in the scrapbook and the memory in my heart.
3. Wolf Lodge Steak House. I have been to Wolf Lodge only a handful of times in my 27 years as an Idaho resident, but I've loved every time. I love steak. What can I say? And at Wolf Lodge, that's truly their specialty. Our 15th anniversary is coming up in a few weeks. That sounds like a Wolf Lodge worthy event!
4. Canton. The Canton, in downtown Coeur d' Alene, has the best egg flower soup in town. Not to mention yummy lemon chicken, egg rolls, and special chow mein. That's where Arrty and I went before my senior prom in 1990. And I can't count how many other times we have enjoyed great Chinese food at Canton. We recently took the boys there for the first time and they loved it. Especially the cool soup spoons! :)
5. Ground Round...I mean Nosworthy's Hall of Fame. I haven't had a Hudson's burger in well over 20 years, so I can't really compare the two, but come on. What's a burger without all the stuff on top including bacon and ham and pretty much whatever else you want? And they have fries. Lots and lots of fries to go along with a huge and delicious burger.
Honorable Mention: Mr. Steak. I can't list my favorite local restaurants without mentioning Mr. Steak. From the time I was 16, I went to Mr. Steak for my birthday for the free meal. But even when it wasn't free, I loved it. Arrty and I especially have good memories from our dating days to the night after we got married and beyond. We were so sad to see it go and still, when he asks me where I want to go for dinner, I occasionally say, "Mr. Steak." To which he responds, "Mmmm, Mr. Steak." Then we go to Outback.
So there it is. My favorite local restaurants. Now I'm hungry and have to go get breakfast that will unfortunately not include nachos or ribs or steak or lemon chicken or fries. Oh, well. There's always lunch.
(I'm tagging non-bloggers Kathy, Ada, and Marci to tell us their favorite local restaurants. Use my comment section.)
8 comments:
We haven't been to any of those restaurants. Where is the Rib Ranch? These will be fun to try out over the summer.
We like Chulo Cafe for quick Mexican food. That and Schlotzsky's are the only two places we return to regularly for lunch. We don't eat out for dinner as often.
Okay, now that I nourished myself with some Mexican food I had in th fridge, I'll try to do my part for the meme. Thanks for the tag, Jen. You know I'm a comment blogger, so thanks for the excuse to go on and on. and to make a list. and to avoid cleaning my house, doing homework, or prepping for craft night. At the risk of repeating what others have said, these are some of my favorites:
1. Dockside- This is probably my favorite place to go. I love the view, the food is good and if you go at lunch, not too expensive. It's a regular for Thomas' birthday dinner because we get to see all the Christmas lights and he loves the birthday sundae. Their desserts are anything to sneeze at, either.
B. Tomato Street- I've never had anything bad there. It's fun, the kids get to draw on the table and play with playdough, I almost always leave with a new pasta necklace, and the huckleberry lemonade is fabulous. They do great field trips, too!
3. Toro Viejo- Great food and lunch specials, but mostly I like the company I keep there.
4. Rustler's Roost- Now here's the thing about the Roost. It's kinda tough to figure out when they're open. Sunday afternoon they are packed and it doesn't seem that they are open for dinner anymore. However, the smoked meats are wonderful, the sauce delicious and the baby back ribs, well let's just say I like them. A lot.
Finally- Like Ricky Bobby, I love my Applebee's. They have half price appetizers from 3-6 and 9-close that are great to share with a bunch of good friends. Conversations are, well, interesting to say the least. Oh yeah, the food's not bad either.
So there they are. My five top choices of restaurants, some for the food, some for the atmosphere, and always for the company.
Phil, the Rib Ranch is on HWY 95 in Athol.
Thanks, sis for tagging me too. Here are my faves...
1. La Cabana in Post Falls. they know us and know where we sit and bring us coke when we sit down. We eat there weekly, which could explain why. They also let Aidan play with the maracas and let him where the hat. But the real reason we go is for the food...it is delicious. They have the best chips and salsa ever (and I am a world taste tester). And the flautas...try the flautas, yum.
2. The Porch in Hayden. I have tried almost all the menu items in the 4 years we have been going there. And all of them were delectable. I especially love the french dip and the sante fe chicken sandwiches. This choice has a lot to do w/the company. The girls and I went at least once a week and would have dinner and play cards, sometimes we would even have the manager play between customers. Great memories, great food.
3. Tomato Street. Baked Chicken Mostacalli. Need I say more? Oh yes...and the garlic bread. Mmmm, my mouth is watering right now. (I do have to mention it is fun to check out the hats too.)
4. BeachHouse...last time I went there I could not stop eating. We had bread and crabcakes, steak and crab legs, potatoes, corn on the cob. It was incredible. We left stuffed and with lunch for the next day. I can't wait to go back.
5. HayJ's in Liberty Lake. This is our date place. It is sweet, dark, away and the food is amazing. We have never had a bad meal and last time we had a sampler of 3 of their meals. I chose the salmon, halibut (my fave) and ribs. They were all mouth-watering and they are served by the sweetest girls ever. You have to try this!!
My only side not is Qdoba...it is the best quick place for healthy fresh mex. Burrios, nachos, even a mexican gumbo. I like them so much they are doing my wedding reception. :) Bring on the Mexican food.
The Ground Round! We had a restaurant in Louisville by that name...I wonder if it's the same. They had cartoons in one room for kids, and they were like many a steak place and let you put peanut shells on the floor...
Oh, how could I have forgotten Wolf Lodge? Yum! I'm noticing a common denominator on all the Coeur d'Alene lists--maybe next time we're trying to come up with someplace to eat, we should do Tomato Street!
Thanks for participating, Jen! :D
Thank you for inviting meme. I did not realize that you needed an invitation to write a blog sized comment on someone else's blog! I love to eat out. It is not just the fact that cooking is one of my least favorite things to do. I think that it has a lot to do with breaking bread with your loved ones without anyone having to plan or prepare the meal or worry about jumping up and getting something or cleaning up afterwards--pure unadulterated fellowship with food. (Not that you are fellowshipping with the food, mind you.) Having stated my position, any of you that know of my life probably know that John hates to eat out. Oh, he doesn't mind going through the drive through and bringing food home and eating while watching a good action movie; however, I do not classify that as eating out. He cannot truly understand why anyone would pay a bunch of extra money to eat in a room full of complete strangers. He is not tight. In fact, when we do eat out, he always tips the waitress much more than I would. It is the close proximity of unknown people sharing the intimacy of the dining experience that bothers him. (I guess--truth be told that is just the beginning of my psychoanalysis of his preferences.) The purpose of this soul purging is just to explain why I don't really have a favorite restaurant that we frequent regularly that does not have a drive through! So for those with drive throughs, my favorites are Schlotzky's, Arby's, and Wendy's. (What does it mean that they all end in "'s"?)
Now for my favorite restaurant without a drive through: When I was a small child, I remember visiting my grandma and going out to a restaurant called
"The Boat". The Boat was shaped like an old boat. Over the years, The Boat was remodeled and lost much of its boatlike appearance. For a pretty long period of time it was renamed Snip and Dale's after the owners. (Notice how it went from not having an "'s" to having an "'s". What is the significance?) My grandma, in her life that did not include me, (interesting to realize that grandmas do have those), would frequent Snip and Dale's regularly and would also take us out to eat there when we were visiting. About the same time that my grandma passed away, Snip and Dale's was sold. I was so pleased to learn that The Boat would once again be The Boat. It is decorated in a nautical theme, and the menus show a picture of its original appearance. I love the small town family owned atmosphere, and John doesn't mind it either! I only worry about The Boat because it is off the beaten track. If you would like to go to The Boat, I would love to take you there. However, if you would rather go with someone else, here is how you get there: From Coeur d' Alene head east on I-90 about 35 miles, take the Pinehurst Exit off I-90, turn left off of the exit which will put you on the old highway, this will curve around and under the interstate, stay on this road, and The Boat is about half way between Pinehurst and Smelterville on the right.(If you do not like my directions, invite me or use mapquest.) See what happens when you actually invite me to respond on your blog! Don't forget to try the Huckleberry Cream Pie!
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