Category Archives: THE MIDWEST

restaurants to check out all over the Midwest

Found a copy of the  Jan/Feb 2011 issue of Midwest Living on the library’s sale rack – so scooped it up since there’s always good recommendations on things to do in this neck of the woods. Here’s some restaurant recommendations:

– In Indianapolis, Recess (soup!)

– In Chicago, Gilt Bar and Restaurant on Magnificent Mile.

–  Woodbury, Minnesota (where we have friends!), Apertif (rotisserie chicken) and in neighboring St. Paul, Heartland (clever meat and potatoes) and Clearwater, Minn., Nelson Bros. Restaurant (yes, at a restaurant on I-94; fritter french toast w/wild rice sausage)

– Omaha, Hiro 88 (sushi and more in the Old Market district)

– Madison, Wisc. L’Etoile (longstanding haute green cuisine in new location)

– Kansas City, Glace Artisan Ice Cream (peanut butter ice cream with swirl of strawberry jam…) and Succotash

–  Traverse City, MI, Soul Hole (southern food in Old Town)

– Iowa City, Blue Bird Diner (Sunday brunch)

 

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Filed under Chicago, DINING, Illinois, Indianapolis, Iowa, Iowa City, Kansas City, Michigan, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Omaha

Bike adventures near Iowa

It’s March first and even though it’s foolish to believe this suddenly warm Spring-like weather will last, it has got me daydreaming about spring – and even summer. With that in mind, here’s a few bike rides I hope to do when the weather warms – and maybe you will too:

– In Wisconsin: The Great River State Trail, the La Cross River State Trail,  the “400” State Trail and the most famous of them all, the Elroy-Sparta Trail (which reportedly includes long railroad tunnels that require travelers to use flashlights.)

– In Missouri: The 225-mile Katy Trail (good for inn-to-inn biking, which reminds me of my trips as a kid with my family with Vermont Bicycle Touring). It goes past bluffs and tourist-friendly towns (according to the DM Register) along the Missouri River between Clinton and St. Charles (near St. Louis.)

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Filed under bike trails, Missouri, Wisconsin

Romantic getaways in Iowa-area

The DMRegister today has some ideas for romantic get-aways in Iowa and beyond. Some I know about (Honey Creek Resort in Moravia, Ia. and Suites of 800 Locust in DM). Here are some I didn’t know much about for future reference.

Greenfield, Ia: The Brass lantern at Windcrest Farm. //mysite.verizon.net/res18ndl/ which has the added bonus of a heated indoor poor. (Things to do nearby: Henry A. Wallace Country LIfe Center and Prairie Preserve in Orient; ken Sidey  nature area, south of Greenfield; John Wayne Museum in Winterset – and the Bridges (of Madison County) of course.

Red Wing, Minn: The Golden Lantern Inn (things to do: get your fill of famous Red Wing Pottery at the museum and mall of th same name.

Kansas City, Mo.: Hotel Phillips

Galena, Ill: The Inn at Irish Hollow

 

 

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Filed under Illinois, Iowa, Kansas City, LODGING, Minnesota

From Wright,Ks. back to Des Moines

No weather problems this time – and smooth sailing the entire nine hours, for which we were grateful, especially given what friends and family are dealing with on the East Coast. We stopped in the slowly reviving town of Greensburg – which was devastated by a tornado several years ago – at a hip looking coffee shop, then onto Wichita where we opted for our favorite Vietnamese restaurant, Saigon, which was packed and has the world’s fastest service, and pleasant service, and mighty good Bun (all around us people seemed to be ordering what N and I ordered #45  Bun – noodles, shredded lettuce – with char-broiled pork and a fried spring roll. We stopped at N&J, our favorite middle eastern place, to pick up some humus and homemade chips and one, just one, piece of baklava, to bring home. In Kansas City, we dropped by Gates to pick up ribs to take home for dinner. Yes, it’s all about the food. Good to be back here, although it’s at least 20 degrees colder and a lot snowier than Kansas.

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Filed under DINING, Dodge City, Kansas City, Kansas misc, Wichita

Dodge City, day 3 (or 4)? I’ve lost track

Well, another day in Dodge City – and my question: Are there more liquor stores or nail salons in this town? Seems a draw to me – my son says liquor stores, I say nail salons. The most intriguing business award goes to a place just down the road from this nursing home called: Destructive Behavior Alternatives? Maybe the people who frequent the liquor stores are instructed to switch to nail salons. Or vice versa.

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Filed under Kansas misc

Christmas in Kansas

I’m typing from the “bird room” at  the  nursing home in Dodge City where my in-laws live. The birds are quiet today – as is the rest of this place. Outside, it’s sunny and windy. No snow. The ground is hard, dry, flat, shorn of wheat so stubbly and tan. The sky is mostly blue with a few clouds. It always takes me aback how stark and harsh this landscape is, beautiful in it’s own way – so vivid and plain. You can really see for miles with little to block your view but a white concrete grain elevator or some unknown industry, liquid something-or-other, billowing out smoke. The “overlook” at the edge of Wyatt Earp Blvd. looks out onto a sea of cattle in a feedlot. No need to put “scenic” in front of outlook.

Wright, the unincorporated town where my in-laws live, about ten miles east of Dodge, even quieter than usual today. The only signs of life we saw during a brief walk this morning were a few dogs roaming around like the owned the place.

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Filed under Dodge City, Kansas misc

Greetings from Dodge City

We had a bit of a scare outside of Wichita – when the weather suddenly took a turn for the worse and freezing rain caused several scary accidents that we passed by in the dark on two-lane Highway 54, with flashing lights from racing police cars interrupting the dark countryside. But other than that, our drive and the weather were fine. We stopped at what had been advertised in an Internet article as a “Shake Shack” in Overland Park, Ks. but it turned out to be the “Snak Shack” – same kind of food, quality burgers and homemade shakes and handcut fries, but not part of the New York City Shake Shack empire. (Why I thought there would be an offshoot in Kansas, I can’t tell you…) We stopped in Wichita at the N&J Middle Eastern restaurant and got take out gyros and falafal sandwiches which we ate en route in the car (beats stopping at Sonic for a hot dog and tater tots, although do always like a good limeade.)

It is windy but warm when the wind isn’t blowing out here in Dodge City. We had lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant Sabor Jaliscos – very good carne asada and flan. It’s very Hispanic out here – we actually listened to a radio station that had a Spanish song about Santa Claus. Ho ho ho.

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Filed under Kansas misc

Driving to kansas for xmas – part three

Exciting topic, I know but best I can do today. We’re leaving earlier than planned and driving straight thru (a nine-hour trip to dodge city) rather than stopping overnight in Topeka) thanks to forecasts of snow and freezing rain in Iowa and Kansas on Friday. Good news is once we get to Dodge City should be fairly pleasant weather – highs in upper 30s, lower 40s – and maybe no ferocious winds like last year or major snows like years past. Will be warmer than Des Moines too which will be in the teens over the xmas holiday.

Meanwhile, stumped on where to eat in Kansas City en route. We’d normally eat at Gates or Arthur Bryants but BBQ isn’t an option for our family vegetarian. Oddly, I know where to eat more in Wichita or Salina than in K.C.Oh well, I’ll have 3 hours in the car to think up something.

 

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Filed under Kansas misc

Driving to Kansas for Christmas part 2

What a difference a day and a few degrees can make – of course we still have a day left until we leave for our nine-hour drive to Dodge City for Christmas but as of a few hours ago, things looked better on our route at least – snow later than earlier forecast in Iowa and snow rather than the freezing rain earlier forecast for Kansas City and Topeka. But who really knows? Could have changed again in the few hours I’ve been out of my office. Anyway, on the road again. Happy holidays!

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Filed under interstates, Kansas misc

Driving to Kansas for Christmas

Every year this seems to happen on the cusp of our nine-hour drive to western Kansas for Christmas with my in-laws. The steady drumbeat of meteorologists’ reports about impending doom (in the form of snow and/or the dreaded freezing rain). This year is no different, so as usual we have a wait-and-see attitude that includes keeping an eye on various websites from weather.com to the Kansas Department of Transportation (for road conditions.) We’re supposed to leave on Thursday at around 2 p.m. but now we’re being warned to leave in the morning if possible – but then we may hit freezing rain in Kansas. So maybe we’ll drive through Nebraska instead. Always an adventure.

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Filed under interstates, Kansas misc