Best Chef: Midwest (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD, WI)
Karen Bell (Bavette La Boucherie, Milwaukee)
Steven Brown (Tilia, Minneapolis)
Justin Carlisle (Ardent, Milwaukee)
Gavin Kaysen (Spoon and Stable, Minneapolis) WON
Ann Kim (Young Joni, Minneapolis)
2018 James Beard Award Finalist restaurants in Minneapolis and Milwaukee to try.
Filed under DINING, Milwaukee, Minneapolis
Wheat fields/Lawrence, Guymon Petro and Cowtown steak house/Kansas
Wichita Water Meter Covers As stepping stones in the garden of our Lawrence airbnb
We are on our long drive home from Dodge City (and even passed some cotton fields near Culliston, KS). We stayed for two nights at the Comfort Suites, which seemed very new and was very comfortable, despite the usual sterile chain feel. Our room was enormous. The Best Western seemed pleasant enough too.
In Lawrence, we stopped briefly at Wheatfields for morning pastries (and a killer coconut macaroon that ended up being our lunch in Lucas when we discovered the meat market was closed.)
In Dodge, we gathered with family at a new (to us) bar and grill called Guymon Petro Mercantile (the original name of the brick warehouse that was converted into a restaurant) that had good quesadillas and then dinner at Casey’s Cowtown Steak House. (Note to self: Next time order the Dodge City Strip, not the filet.)
In Wichita, we ate at our old favorite, Saigon Market for Vietnamese. Still going strong.
Filed under Dodge City, Kansas
garden of Eden and grassroots art everywhere in Lucas,Ks
Grassroots art – eccentric work by self-taught, prolific everyday folks (ranchers, farmers, welders, homemakers) – is everywhere in the out-of–the-way northwestern Kansas town of Lucas. it is actually fitting that art that is so “out there” should be way out here, far from the mainstream of most things, including the art world.
bathroom mosaic
This was probably my 5th trip to Lucas in over 30 years and there is more to see each visit. The main draw is the remarkable Garden of Eden, a bizarre sculpture garden with giant concrete representations of populis themes — my favorite is one of a farmer being crucified by the banker, lawyer and doctor. And then there’s the giant limestone and concrete ziggurat looking mausoleum where you can peer into the coffin of the civil war veteran S.P. Dinsmoor who built the garden. (He is looking moldy these days, which our guide explained was due to a crack in the sheet of glass in front of the coffin, which let air in. it has been fixed but not before substantial damage.)
grassroots art
The garden and house — also a work of oddness, made of limestone logs — sits on an otherwise normal Kansas small town street, which is part of the charm and shock effect. But the garden and its sculptures in particular have never looked better after a recent massive multi-million dollar restoration funded by the Kohler Foundation ( from the Bath works company in Wisconsin).
And even more so, the two block downtown has more to see, including the Grassroots Art Center in an old limestone masons building,where we went on a very informative tour of several rooms and an outdoor courtyard showcasing the odd work of artists primarily from Kansas. ( “Grassroots art” was likened to “outsider art” but not “folk art.”)
There is also a phenomenal new public bathroom full of bizarre mosaics and the otherwise ordinary wood street lights are art installations. (One has various colorful belts strapped around it. Another has glass sculptures and two legs sticking up from the ground. Could it be the wicked witch of the west?)
We also found artworks in fields on Highway 14 heading to Lincoln and along Highway 18 to Lucas and Highway 232 back to Wilson and the interstate.
One disappointment: Brant’s meat market, which has sold homemade bologna for 90-some years in downtown Lucas, closed in January but the word on the street (literally from two townies sitting on a bench outside the market) is that it will reopen this summer, thanks to a new buyer.
I was glad to see “the Garden View Airbnb” now operating across the street from the Garden of Eden (run by our tour guide, who is also a cousin of Dinsmoor ) and the old hotel in Wilson (where the Movie “Paper Moon” was filmed) is still up and running. It also has a restaurant that serves dinner. Otherwise dining options are limited. We ended up about an hour west in Hays at Al’s Chickenette, which has been around since 1947 (and also has a new owner) where we had, yes, fried chicken. Very different than the upscale version we had in KC the night before but good in its own way (except for the mashed potatoes and gravy which were grey and gooey. get the fries. Much better.)
Filed under grassroots art, Kansas
Black Dirt in KC and Casita Airbnb in Lawrence
We are staying in a sweet little room off the garage in an old house on an old street in Lawrence. It’s described as a casita and it is sort of. Not freestanding like casitas I’ve stayed at in New Mexico but small, cheerful and well appointed so suits us just fine (and very reasonably priced. About $50 As I recall.) Sure beats a bland motel (we will have that tomorrow in Dodge City).
As we were barreling down Interstate 35 from Des Moines and getting hungry, we remembered a great little restaurant we’d gone to in a former drugstore in Smithville, Mo., just north of Kansas City. but when I looked it up, I discovered it had closed. Then I discovered the owner had just opened a restaurant in Kansas City, just south of the plaza, about two blocks from where we lived very briefly almost 30 years ago. The restaurant, Black Dirt, was very good. We had the much-lauded fried chicken which was as good as advertised. Somehow, the chicken breast meat was moist, the skin crispy but light, the sage gravy and potatoes creamy and flavorful and the stalks of broccoli rabe were bright green but well cooked and again, full of flavor (butter?cumin seeds). We also had a Missouri Caesar with tender chunks of fried catfish instead of croutons. The salty part was smoked trout rather than anchovies. Clever and good. Also enjoyed the duck confit fritters and the homemade bread with butter was worth the $5 Extra, Our waitress was a Drake U. Grad and big fan of DSM so that was fun. We will be back!
Filed under Kansas City
Peterson Garden project /community cooking school in Chicago
Playing catch up here.
During a recent trip to Chicago, I made an interesting visit to the community cooking school run by the nonprofit Peterson Garden Project in the massive former armory on Broadway in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood (where my stepdaughter and her husband happen to live).
For visitors to Chicago, The Peterson Garden Project offers cooking classes, usually accompanied by a meal, (including “Top Chef-style classes” and pop-up dining events. For more information click here.
For Chicago residents, The Peterson Garden Project is a great option for learnig how to grow your own food. The project operates seven community gardens on Chicago’s north side that get a mix of people. (Membership is a reasonable $85 and includes in-garden classes, other support, some supplies, shared tools and a small plot to garden — a 4×8 raised bed filled with organic soil.) The goal is to teach people how to grow and cook their own food — and to build community in the process. There are garden socials, all-garden work days, classes (cooking and gardening) and a cool volunteer option — the Give2Grow program, which donates produce from the garden plots to food pantries.
Filed under Chicago
High Trestle Trail with Dog/Madrid (Iowa); Picket Fence Creamery/Woodward (Iowa); Hotel Pattee/Perry (Iowa)
Selfie overlooking the High Trestle Bridge
For my sister’s final day in Des Moines, we finally got half way decent weather (high 40s!, some sun!) so we took a day trip with our sweet Lab mix rescue dog Millie northwest about 40 miles to the High Trestle Trail. What a treat to have the entire bridge to ourselves on an early spring day — and always a spectacular view and surprising structure to find in the middle of Iowa. (It was recently dubbed by the BBC as one of the world’s eight spectacular foot bridges.)
The good news is that it’s now easier to walk to the bridge quickly along the trail, thanks to a handy sign along highway 210 just west of Madrid, Iowa that helps you clearly find the dirt road (QF Road) that leads to the trailside parking, which is about a ten-minute walk to the bridge.
We stopped at Picket Fence Creamery in nearby Woodward,Iowa and tried a little tub of ice cream and some chocolate milk (that we earlier saw being bottled in the little shop beside the dairy that is on a largely unpopulated dirt road in the country). From there we drove ten minutes further west to the Hotel Pattee which is still hanging in there (last I heard it was for sale again) and is still incredibly impressive, with one-of-a-kind rooms, each decorated with art and artifacts to honor a specific aspect of small town Iowa life. The desk clerk gave us the key to the 1913 farmhouse room but several other rooms were also open so we wandered in them as well (the southeast Asia room, the Irish room, the Russian room…unfortunately the RAGBRAI room wasn’t open)…
Anyway, the three stops made for a perfect half-day road trip from Des Moines, perfect for visitors.
Filed under Agritourism, bike trails, DINING, Iowa, LODGING
Provisions – great new place to eat in Ames, albeit in odd location
I didn’t doubt for a moment that Provisions would be a good place to eat in Ames because it came recommended by my friend Veronica, a longtime resident, superb cook and discerning diner. But without Veronica’s recommendation, I might have dismissed Provisions out of hand because of its unpromising location in a nondescript land of bland office parks, on the side of Loop Road, no less.
But the food was fabulous — and I am already longing to return for the salmon sandwich I had on a dark brown brioche roll. The salmon was lightly grilled but moist, full of flavor, on that gorgeous slightly sweet roll with slices of cucumber and a light dill sour cream sauce. The hamburger (which the two Iowa State University students we were visiting ordered) also looked superb and the Cuban sandwich was also good. My sister was very happy with her grilled salmon atop greens – which is a go to entree for her but still managed to be special. My only regret is that I could not take home one of the homemade breads (especially cranberry pecan) from the to-go counter which was closed by the time we left. We’ll be back! Thank you Veronica!
Convivium, Four Mounds, Millwork District, L. May – Dubuque
Impressed, as always, with developments in Dubuque. At the recommendation of our host at Four Mounds, we drove to nearby Convivium a cafe/event space/urban farm headquarters in a somewhat gentrifying north Dubuque neighborhood. Impressive place that opened recently, with a light airy dining area including a coop with fresh chicks, a mural from a world-class artist (part of a broader mural project of murals scattered throughout Dubuque) and artwork by locals on the walls. Convivium, as I understand it, is the headquarters of an urban farm project with an interesting model — the gardens are in borrowed space in the backyards of people living houses neighboring the cafe.
We also stopped at a bakery and shops in wide open space in the Millwork District, a gentrifying warehouse district near the River. Dinner the night before was good at L.May downtown. (Excellent pork shanks).
The weather was gloomy when we woke up at Four Mounds but we had an excellent breakfast and chat with the caretaker (who sent us to Convivium) and I got a chance to walk around the grounds and wander around the other lovely house on the property (the White House…we stayed in the Grey House.) I learned that Four Mounds was part of the “gentleman farmer movement” (1880s to 1930s). The owners were a wealthy Chicago couple who also lived part of the year in California. I’ve heard about gentlemen farmers but not of an actual movement. (And why no mention of gentlewoman farmers?)
On Highway 151 and then 1 to Iowa City (a rare diagonal route!) we stopped briefly in Anamosa to see the famous reformatory there (a prison that was intentionally designed to be attractive with the idea of providing an environment conducive to reforming criminals. Sadly, I don’t believe it worked.) and then drove through Stone City, a tiny hamlet where Grant Wood lived and through pretty Mount Vernon (Home of Cornell College, which is older than my alma mater Cornell U.).
Filed under Iowa
Antique Archeology/LeClaire, Way of the Cross/St. Donatus, Fenelon Place Elevator, Four Mounds, L. May/Dubuque
Laurie arrives!
As I suspected we are the sole occupants of this arts and crafts mansion on a bluff in the wood high above the Mississippi on the outskirts of Dubuque, which is a little spooky but also kind of fun because we wandered through all the bedrooms, admiring the heavy wood craftsman furniture, the pretty bedspreads and elegant rugs, the little window seats and well-appointed living spaces. I can add the Four Mounds estate in Dubuque to my list of sort of creepy inns where we have been the sole occupants. Others include a b&b in Mendocino with Dirck and an inn in Eureka Springs with Francine. My sister Laurie is being the good sport tonight.
I picked her up at the Quad Cities airport where the Megabus/Windstar from Chicago dropped off and we drove up the Great River Road along the Mississippi, which I haven’t traveled in years.
Dubuque view
Fenelon Place Elevator, Dubuque
It was grey, chilly and still brown on the ground but there were sights worth seeing including huge barges and riverboats on the river, the hipster Antique Archaeology store in LeClaire (owned by the folks who have the popular American Pickers show on the History Channel); the view of the lock and dam from on high at Bellevue State Park, the old stone church and cemetery and Way of the Cross in the tiny Luxembourger village of St. Donatus and the one of a kind Fenelon Place Elevator in Dubuque.
Filed under Iowa
Bartlett’s and Beverly Shores — The Indiana Dunes
I’ve passed through the Indiana Dunes many times while driving between Iowa and parts east including my home state of Michigan and beloved East Coast spots (Ithaca, NY; Easton PA etc.) and stopped briefly a time or two but never really explored. Michigan City struck me as fading. But I gather the place to eat is Bartlett’s and an interesting place to explore is the community of Beverly Shores. So duly noted here, for future reference. I’ve also heard, unfortunately, that the dunes have potentially deadly sinkholes – including at the main state park Mount Baldy, where the beach but not the massive dune (that I remember running up and down with our kids), recently reopened after a sinkhole situation that gobbled up a young boy (he survived…) More here.
Filed under Indiana
TakeBetsywithyou 