Dining Out: Best of 2006

Consider this post the sequel to last year's Best of 2005 list.

It seems like I traveled more this year than in years past. Unfortunately, a lot of it was to the same places I have been in the last couple of years. That's not really such a bad thing - I don't suppose that I would have wanted to return to the same places if I didn't like it there - but, since fellow ROGUEfooder "wanderingjew" laid down the challenge of only using places that are new this year, I thought I would have a tough time coming up with a Top 10 of just new places. As it turns out, I had to whittle down a list from about twenty. I will deviate from my past rule of only including restaurants recommended by the Sterns. Still, I think that the quality of the following 10 destinations would prove worthy. To rank one ahead of another would be a grave injustice (but, #1 will be considered #1 for those who feel that there should be a definitive "winner."

10) Smitty's; Lockhart, TX

Central Texas is my absolute favorite place for BBQ in the whole country. The picture of my own meal, however, does not nearly sum up the quality of Smitty's the way this picture of one of their smokers in action does. In addition to serving this wonderful food, the staff here was very freindly and cordial - allowing me to take a number of photos, with full run of the place. I enjoyed a plate that consisted of two healthy slices of beef shoulder (brisket) and two pork ribs. I was trying to eat light so that I might also get to Kreuz's Market (and compare the two!), but alas, my eyes were bigger than my stomach, once again. My plan is to make it back to Lockhart sometime in February. The thought of getting my hands on some of that beef is probably what gets me through the next few days!

208 S Commerce St.
Lockhart, TX

9) Tony's Restaurant; Bridgeton, MO (RIP, as of 12/06)

I am glad to say that I made it to this hidden treasure before it's untimely demise in late 2006. This picture doesn't do the size of this omelette justice. If I was told that there were a half-dozen eggs in there, I wouldn't blink. The menu did not mention that this was an item to be served family style, but it fed three healthy adult males with no problem at all. The pancakes, wonderful as they were, had no business being on the table. These two plates made for too much food for three adults. The best part of the whole meal - that cost of that omelette was around five bucks.

8) Grimaldi's Pizza; Brooklyn, NY

This is the scene outside Grimaldi's most of the time that they are open for business. New Yorkers, impatient bunch that we can be, will wait - for something worth waiting for. Grimadli's pizza is one of the things worth waiting for. In my case, excellent company made the wait for a table and the food seem all too short. Don't poke in expecting to grab a slice to go - there are no slices at Grimaldi's. Even calling and ordering in advance may not get you a pie any quicker. Everyone is queued up together, egalitarianism at it's best. Upon completion of your pie, bang a right out the front door and walk a block or two down to the water and grab a fine dessert at Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory.

19 Old Fulton St.
Brooklyn, NY

7) Dinic's; Philadelphia, PA

Located inside the Reading Terminal Market, Dinic's is destination food in Philly. Pictured above is the roast pork, served "wet," which is just as it sounds - drenched in it's own juices. A side of locally produced Herr's chips is the accompaniment. It would take you weeks to eat your way around RTM without duplicating any single establishment, but Dinic's is on my list of places to hit whenever I am in town. Everyone may tell you that the touristy thing to do in Philadelphia is to get a cheesesteak from Pat's or Geno's. Let the tourists head there while you get a better meal at Dinic's. Everything pictured above was less than $7 (including the fountain drink).

Reading Terminal Market
51 N 12th St.
Philadelphia, PA

6) Pho Van; Portland, OR

This was my first experience with Vietnamese food. I am sure that part of what made this meal exceptional was the company - fellow ROGUEfooder Mr. Chips, and his family - Trudy and Sam. I will be darned if I could remember the name, but the bowl pictured above was my entree, which included BBQ pork, large shrimp, ground pork and veggies in a chicken broth with vermicelli noodles. This bowl followed some excellent spring roll appetizers (well, the bite or two that I managed to sneak in before Sam torched the rest!), and was more than I could finish. What you see pictured above was about $7. I only hope that I didn't set the bar too high with my first Vietnamese experience. The odds of me being able to walk into any other local restaurant expecting to get this same quality is are probably not that high.

1919 SE 82nd Ave.
Portland, OR

5) Puerto Sagua; Miami, FL


The aforementioned "wanderingjew" traveled down to my home state for some baseball and eating, and I met up with him and a friend of his down in Miami. After a sunny afternoon of Marlins baseball, we drove down to Miami Beach to eat some of the best Cuban food served outside of Havana. This picture isn't even my own meal, but upon being served, I immediately regretted not ordering the seafood enchilada.

700 Collins Ave.
Miami Beach, FL

4) Avalon Diner; Houston, TX

Sitting at the counter at the Avalon Diner is like taking a step back in time to the 1950's. I suppose that the 1950's wouldn't have seen the Avalon in as strange a place as a strip mall, but sometimes you just have to roll with the times. A burger, fries, and a shake - All-American comfort food, if ever there was such a designation. In addition to the hand-dipped shakes, the Avalon still squeezes the lemons and limes fresh for their homemade lemonade and limeade, respectively. Seems like every town used to have at least one of these places. Now, they are stretched far and wide.

2417 Westheimer Rd.
Houston, TX

3) Primanti Brothers, Pittsburgh, PA

When I mentioned to friends that I was heading to Pittsburgh, every single person told me that if I only had time for one meal, that meal should be the sandwich made famous in Pittsburgh - the Primanti Brothers. I will admit to being skpetical - a sandwich with bread, french fries, and cole slaw all slathered on a sandwich together did not really appeal to me. I am a basic fellow - I want to taste the meat in a sandwich, and am usually resistant to any and all condiments. Still, I was told, this slaw is different...the fries add a unique texture....it's an experience. I figued that the worst case scenario would be that I would never have to eat another - and I could claim the experience as done. Instead, the sandwich, and the experience was unforgettable. I was seated at the counter in the original Strip District location, next to two college buddies, in town on summer break. One lived in Pittsburgh his whole life, the other was visiting from NY. For the NYer, this was his "must" experience in Pittsburgh, too.

46 18th St.
Pittsburgh, PA

2) Round Rock Donuts; Round Rock, TX

It is almost hard for me to justify a "Top 10" spot on donuts - but, these donuts are THAT good. I made two visits to the Austin area in 2006. In March, I stayed in Round Rock, and Roadfooder "Bushie" sent me to these fried doughy delights. When I booked my hotel for my October trip, I clearly wasn't thinking about donuts, and booked a hotel on the south side of Austin, near the airport. Waking up and needing a donut fix, I drove about 1/2 hour, in driving rain, to Round Rock to get my hands on these treats. They raised the price from my first visit to my second - up a nickel now, to FIFTY cents a piece. On a recent road trip, I stopped at a roadside Dunkin' Donuts and found donuts had risen in price to 84 cents. I know that it is only 34 cents per donut, but a difference of about 40% in price, for quality that is not anywhere close is a complete injustice. Round Rock Donuts is just one more reason to look forward to that February trip.

106 W Liberty St.
Round Rock, TX

1) Ess-a-Bagel, New York, NY

I try not to throw around the label of "best ever" too often, or it loses its impact. Unfortunately, I don't know any other way to say it - these are the best bagels I have ever eaten. Period. The cinammon raisin that you see right in the middle are fresh and warm out of the oven. I ordered a half-dozen, and walked out towards my hotel. As I was walking, the heat from the bagels permeated the bag and began toasting my hands. Between the physical signs of the warm bagels, and the aroma coming out of the bag, I couldn't resist reaching into the bag and tearing off a hunk of fresh bagel as I walked. The crusty exterior texture blended with the chewy interior to make bagel bliss. My boss often asks me to bring back "real" New York bagels whenever I travel to the Motherland. If she only knew, she would think that anything else I had brought back to this point was absolutely inferior!

831 3rd Avenue
New York, NY 10022

As I look back at the remaining restaurants on my 2006 list that didn't make the cut, I could easily make ANOTHER Top 10 list that would rival most anybody's travels. It really was a good year. In the next couple of days, I will try to highlight some of the honorable mentions, some of the places that would have made a Top 10 if there was no "first visit" rule, and feature my biggest disappointment of 2006.

I wish you all good eats and safe travels in 2007!

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RIP: Tony's Restaurant; Bridgetown, MO

I hate for this news tidbit to get buried in the comments section of a months-old post, but a commenter posted today that Tony's Restaurant, which lured me in with their "Missouri's Largest Omelet" sign is no more.

I have not been able to find a news article that substantiates the post (not that I am doubting, but I do like accountable sources). In the meantime, I am going to assume that the story is true and I will mourn this omelet (a true bargain at around 5 bucks!) and the pancakes, too.


UPDATE: I have been contacted by the owner of Tony's Restaurant's granddaughter, and she tells me that the fire was attributed to an electrical fault in the kitchen, not a grease fire as the original poster had mentioned. She also tells me that the restaurant will not reopen in its previous location, but that her father is planning on opening a place nearby sometime soon. So long as that omelette makes the transition to the new place, I am there.

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Trip Log, Day 4; St. Louis to Kansas City to Omaha

Note: This is one of a series. You can find the complete series index here.

Day 4 (Sunday) was a travel day, which in this case means -- awake at the butt crack of dawn. When you see the title "St. Louis to Kansas City," a reasonable person would assume that we would be driving. Not exactly. We are flying -- first class! But, American doesn't fly from STL-MCI (yes, Kansas City is MCI...why? I don't know). We have to fly STL-DFW-MCI, because when American fliers die, they connect to heaven through DFW. Two shorthop flights (read: nothing to eat!) and a short connection.

On the other hand, upon landing in Kansas City, I was starved. We had planned on only one meal in KCMO, and it was set up to be a good one. We were going to one of the nation's barbecue treasures -- the legendary Arthur Bryant's. Some will say that Arthur Bryant's has slipped over the years, but I am not one of them. While there are some folks who think that Arthur Bryant's isn't even the best BBQ in Kansas City, others will argue that there is a very good chance that Arthur Bryant's BBQ is the BEST in the country.

This is my second visit to Arthur Bryant's, so I have a pretty good idea as to what I want to eat. AB's is known for a few things, including the KC specialty, burnt ends (the crispy, flavorful end pieces that some places actually discard), but I know that these are some of the finest ribs in the land. The beef brisket is also very good -- which leads me to wonder how similar KC BBQ is to that which you find in central Texas? The two of us decided to split a rack of ribs, a beef sandwich, and an order of homemade, hand-cut fries. I have eaten some pretty good barbecue this year (just checkout the sidebar to the right for some examples), but this may well have been tops.

The ribs were tender, but required just the right amount of "pull" to get the meat off of the bones. Anyone who tells you that their ribs are "fall off the bone tender" is selling you crappy ribs! They should require a little bit of a fight. These do. Compliment the smoky flavor from the meat with some of AB's tangy sauce. There is no need to overpower the flavor of the meat with the sauce, but just a touch makes for the perfect addition. Dipping your fries in a pool of sauce is another time honored Arthur Bryant's tradition. In short time, we had demolished an absolute orgy of food.

Debate the best BBQ for as long as you like, but I would gladly stand in the corner with some Arthur Bryant's as my nominee. I hope to get to KC sometime when I can spend more time in the area and sample some of the other renowned locales (and grab some Stroud's fried chicken, too), but so far my travels to KC have all been one shot deals.

Full and nearly comatose, we pointed the rental car north on I-29 for the nearly three hour trek to our final destination, Omaha, NE. This was one boring drive, and with as much food as I had in my belly, it was all I could do to stay awake the whole drive. Fortunately, my driving responsibilities ended when we dropped off the car in STL, but I didn't want to nap all the way to Omaha, either.

The goal was to make it to Omaha in time for the 6 pm game. My beloved Tar Heels were playing the winner's bracket game against Clemson. This was a BIG game, as whoever emerged victorious would have a serious edge to get to the championship series. In the past, when we have gone to the College World Series, we have never really had any intended rooting interest, so this was a little weird. Usually, we would go and pick which teams we liked or who had the best personalities and we would root for them. This time, I really wanted to see Carolina. Unfortunately, our flight was delayed slightly out of DFW and we were running just a touch late to make the 6 o'clock game. With the foot on the gas, we might make it, but it wasn't a lock.

We approached the exit for the stadium (which was also the exit for the hotel) at about 10 minutes to 6. Upon exiting the highway, it was immediately apparent, based on our past experiences, that we would have a difficult time finding a nearby parking space and a further difficult time navigating the general admission line. The line was already snaked around the stadium, and it appeared that we would not see the inside of the stadium until about the third inning. Since I wanted to actually SEE the game, and we were going to be around for the next few days, we agreed that it made more sense to check into the hotel and watch this game on TV.

We stayed at the Sheraton Omaha Hotel, which is an historic hotel near downtown and the Old Market area. This was one of the oddest hotel rooms in which I have ever stayed. As a Starwood Platinum member, I was upgraded to a full "Club Suite," which was actually a two-story room, with an enormous living area, full kitchen, and separate upstairs bedroom. The room, though, was decorated as though all the furnishings had been acquired at a yard sale. For the right stay, I would recommend this hotel, but in a lot of instances, and depending on what amenities are important to you, this hotel may not work for every traveler. I am also not sure why they are called "Club Suites," as there is no "club" or concierge lounge.

Obviously, my Heels won...and we're off to see Rosenblatt tomorrow!

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Trip Log, Day 3; St. Louis

Note: This is one of a series. You can find the complete series index here.

Day 3 in St. Louis was Saturday, and I was already a little worn out. Sleeping in until the mid-morning (not all that usual for me on vacation) was a nice little treat. Once we finally got dragging out of the hotel, it was time for lunch.

First stop was O'Connell's Pub (Kingshighway in The Hill section). O'Connell's has made a few lists for best burgers. I have been there once before, and on that trip, I was encouraged to order the roast beef sandwich. The argument was made that a good burger could be had in any number of places, but it was much harder to cross paths with a good roast beef sandwich. The roast beef was excellent, but I also saw a burger head out from the kitchen to a table and it looked really good. I was certain that if I were to ever come back to O'Connell's, I would have to order one of those burgers. As we drove down, I mentioned my plan to my fellow travelers, who immediately scoffed at my suggestion. The same argument was thrown at me -- why get a burger here (especially after eating at Blueberry Hill a few days prior), when the roast beef was unique to this particular place? I was hearing nothing of it. I wanted a burger -- and, by god, I was going to order one.

When we arrived, I kept telling myself to order the burger and not be swayed. In my head, I was replaying "order the burger...order the burger...order the burger..." The server came by and asked what we would like. Around the table, my travel companions, one after the other, repeated "roast beef...medium rare...fries." Same thing at the next stop. OK...my turn, and I am still thinking "order the burger...order the burger..." when I can only assume the film director in my head said "stop...cue the roast beef sandwich!" Because, right at that very moment, about five gorgeous roast beef sandwiches were carried right past my snout and on to their awaiting patrons. "I'll have the roast beef," I muttered, immediately taking on a heap of grief from the rest of my table. Heck, I even sprung for the extra 25 cents to get a ramiken of au jus.

I remembered the roast beef as being very good. I don't know how it happened, but in two years, it has somehow improved to be the best roast beef sandwich I have ever eaten. The au jus was a little bland, but it made for an excellent texture. I was just a little surprised, because this meat is well seasoned. I am really disappointed that I didn't get any pictures, because you can actually see the difference in the color of the meat from medium-rare to medium -- each of which was perfect for my tastes. The french fries were superb, but I was again told that onion rings should be the compliment to most sandwiches. Also, while toasted ravioli gets the press as the local appetizer native to St. Louis, it also seems that many places have excellent stuffed mushroom caps.

My friend who had lived in St. Louis previously said that he understood what I was going through with the hamburger choice. When he lived there, he would go to O'Connell's for lunch, have the roast beef, and then try to come back for dinner, thinking he would order the hamburger. He would sit down, see a roast beef go by, and order the roast beef.

After a filling and very fulfilling lunch, we needed an activity to burn off some of these needless calories. My choice was a visit to Grant's Farm. I admit...I only wanted to go to Grant's Farm to see the cabin in which the worst president in the history of the United States once lived (present company excluded, of course!). This is another free attraction in St. Louis, which I now believe to be a very affordable vacation option for many Americans (I read somewhere that St. Louis is within one day's drive to more than 1/3 of the US population). Since there is virtually no mention of President Grant, except for a brief pass in a guided tram, I guess I was a little disappointed. But, without the whole lack of Grant thing, this place is a hit. The Farm is now run by Anheuser-Busch, and is home to one of the full Budweiser Clydesdale teams. The Clydesdales are truly majestic animals, and you just don't get the opportunity to see them every day. A few other positives -- free beer in the hospitality area (gotta love that!) and a great wildlife preserve and petting zoo for kids. Rain dampened the day a little, but there are enough dry attractions there to keep you busy even in the rain.

On the way towards downtown, we stopped in for another visit to Ted Drewes. I know that Ted Drewe's a St. Louis institution, but I had no idea that it was so ingrained into a native St. Louisan that it would be a necessary stop for a wedding party. While we were there, in early afternoon, TWO wedding parties drove up in full coach buses. I overheard a conversation between two of the counter girls. They didn't seem the least bit phased by the wedding parties, but were a little surprised at the SIZE of the wedding parties, and the necessity for coach buses. I have to admit, I am not too inclined to think about marriage again, but if I find the woman who insists on including Ted Drewe's as part of our wedding party, I may know that I have found a keeper! Check these fine ladies out....


After the stop for concrete (mine was chocolate chip cookie dough), we made off for a stop at Union Station. If you are a fan of Roman architecture, this is a must-stop. If you want to find a serious shopping tourist trap in the middle of downtown, this is also a must-stop. Fortunately, I was able to accomplish much of (A) with little interference from (B). History and train buffs are also sure to already know that this was the hub of train service between the east and the west for many, many years. One of the stained glass windows celebrates this:

You can also see that one of the more bizarre feats of architectural accident - the whisper arch (scroll down). One can stand and face the wall into the inside arch, speak at a normal tone of voice and be heard by someone else at the other end of the arch. It was discovered purely by chance during construction, and has since been used by proposing grooms to pop the question, as well as practical jokes on unsuspecting noobs.

For dinner, we sought out a sports bar to watch the College World Series (Miami vs. Oregon State), Game 6 of the NHL Finals (yeah, right), and just soak up some sports environment. Frankly, the food was secondary, but cold beer was a must. We ended up at a place called the Locker Room in Florissant. The locals at the table next to us raved about the wings, so we grabbed some of those. We also added an appetizer sampler - your basic bar food. The wings were heavily breaded (kind of like Hooter's wings, but with a little more taste), but the hot sauce had a little tang. Overall, the food was average, but reasonably priced. The beer was cold, and they had some good local and national selections. The service was exceptional -- the owner was around and visible, keeping control and tabs on all of the televisions set to the proper mix of sporting events. We must have been the only folks in the bar watching the CWS, and he went to change TVs on us, but upon brief discussion, he reaccommodated us to the perfect viewing scenario. Really, in a sports bar setting, can you ask for more? Adequate food, cold beer, and the availability of all the sporting events you want!

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Trip Log, Day 2; St. Louis (continued)

Note: This is one of a series. You can find the complete series index here.

We decided to grab a late afternoon meal (only in Florida would a meal this time of day be considered dinner) before heading out to the ballpark to limit the intake of lips and snouts. Our first choice was Connelly's Goody Goody Diner, but they were closed by the time we arrived. Before we spent our entire time trying to figure out what would be the best substitute, we quickly decided on using some serious "foodie nose" to get the job done. Sometimes, you just have a feel -- with no guide book or anything.

Located right in front of the Bel-Nor City Hall, we found The Breakaway Cafe (8418 Natural Bridge Road). Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of this place, but you can trust me, the food was tasty. Breakaway Cafe serves a number of pasta dishes and other varieties of comfort food. This was my first experience trying toasted ravioli, and they did not disappoint. I don't know how much better they could have been at the more well-known Italian institutions on "The Hill," but these served this novice pretty well -- a crusty exterior, and a well-seasoned filling, all dipped in homemade marinara. Appetizers were generally under $6 and entrees could be had in the neighborhood of $10.

For us, one of the most important reasons for choosing The Breakaway Cafe was the proximity to the MetroLink station at University of Missouri-St. Louis. Taking the MetroLink downtown the ballpark was very inexpensive ($1.75/each way), but very crowded. I have taken the subway to Shea and the El to Wrigley, so I know crowds, but this was pretty crowded (the reverse trip was even worse!).

We arrived early at Busch. There were three of us, and we only had two tickets. Needing one, we set out around the stadium trying to find a scalper with singles. Funniest thing, though -- there were hardly any scalpers. I knew that the games were sold out -- St. Louis fans are rabid for baseball, and they finally have a new stadium to enjoy. Still, the freakin' Rockies were in town, not the Cubs. As we dragged past the box office, I stopped to see if they still had an standing room tickets -- they told us THOSE were sold out, too! The clerk told me that they did have some single tickets, but that was all. Single tickets? Why, we NEED a single ticket...what have you got? $34 later, I was on my way into the stadium.

There are a couple of quirky things about this ballpark. For one thing, there doesn't seem to be much of a "front." Supposedly, this is the front of stadium, with the statue of Stan Musial moved, by crane, over from the old ballpark. People have a convenient place to "meet at Stan," but it surely appears that one of the corners would have made a better front of the stadium. The area is still under a lot of reconstruction, so maybe as time passes, and more peripheral businesses develop, it will become more evident that this is, in fact, the front.

In the past, I have had decent $34 seats, and I had some really bad $34 seats (Dodger Stadium comes to mind). These were not good $34 seats. They were located in the outfield, in the second deck, all the way in fair territory in left field. They called it Big Mac Land, named after the juiced (errr...allegedly juiced) slugger, and sponsored by the place that serves crappy hamburgers. My understanding is that if someone hits a home run up there, everyone in those seats gets a crappy hamburger named after said juiced slugger. My guess is that second prize is TWO hamburgers named after said juiced slugger, but that may just be the cynic in me. These seats were a kind of limited view seat -- nothing too pretty for that kind of money. I didn't even take a picture from my seats...they were THAT bad.

My buddies 2/$11 deal ended up netting them standing room access. Anyone with any kind of sports acumen knows, though, so long as the ushers are not overly vigilant, after a few innings, you can scout out where there are available seats, and plant yourself until someone asks you to move. By the fourth inning, we were sitting in seats about 12 rows up off the field right behind the visitor's dugout. My opinion of the stadium changed immediately with the better seats. The key to this place is definitely the view -- and these seats had THE view. The photo is the standard panoramic behind home plate shot, but you can see what we saw -- beyond the left field fence, is a great view of downtown St. Louis. The Arch is visible from almost every seat in the stadium -- a big plus, because the Arch gives you a unique view from almost every different angle.

Overall, though, I didn't find the major's newest stadium all that remarkable. There are a ton of ads EVERYWHERE. Seating sections, as mentioned above, are sponsored, as are the scoreboard, outfield walls, and just about any place else they could plaster a placard. I know that all stadiums have advertising, but some have more obnoxious advertising than others - and this stuff is pretty obnoxious. One of my favorite things about the "old" Busch stadium was the unique way the retired jersey numbers were memorialized. Here, they are just plastered on the outfield wall....boring. I may want to revisit this park in a few years, but for now, this place would probably end up somewhere in the middle of the pack, in terms of favorite stadiums. One serious plus for the stadium is the enthusiasm of the St. Louis fans. They did have this in the old ballpark, too, though...so, it only goes so far. There is a nice Cardinals history done on the outside promenade in brick. If so many of the Cardinals highlights hadn't come against the Mets, I might have enjoyed that a little more.

Cards won big...and we can check this new stadium off the list! Day 2 complete.

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Trip Log, Day 2; St. Louis

Note: This is one of a series. You can find the complete series index here.

Waking up to go stand in line is not usually the first step to a happy day for me. But, it is the day we are headed to the new Busch Stadium, and tickets are tough to come by. Our best chance for tickets was what they call "First Pitch" tickets. Considering that all tickets have been sold for the whole season at the new Busch, this is a really good deal -- two tickets, randomly selected anywhere in the ballpark (including SRO) for just $11 - and an hour or so wait in line. The time passed along quickly enough, and we exchanged our $11 for a voucher, which we would later need to bring to the gate, where we will pick up our tickets. On the surface, it seems like a convoluted way to distribute tickets, but the locals tell me that the series of events are in place to ensure that these tickets are not purchased by those looking to scalp them for a profit.

After securing our tickets, three of us adjourned for breakfast at Tony's Restaurant (12246 Natural Bridge Rd, Bridgeton, MO), which proudly advertises themselves as the "Home of Missouri's Largest Omelet." I think I have mentioned before that I am a sucker for this type of marketing. I always want to see "the biggest," "the best," "the tallest," etc.

Tony's did not disappoint. The restaurant is not large, and well off any kind of beaten path that anyone but the locals would find. It is, however, near the airport, so it is an easy stop on your way in or out of town. Specials were listed on a board near the kitchen, and a sizeable menu exists, but when a place advertises that they are "Home of Missouri's Largest Omelet," why would you order anything else?

The three of us -- all healthy adult males -- split two dishes. One bacon and cheese omelet and a stack of apple pancakes.



I can only tell you that this picture doesn't do this omelet justice. Realize that the omelet is the same size as those pancakes, and about as thick as a stack of five! Maybe this close-up does it better...


Not only was the omelet ENORMOUS, but it was also delicious. It fed THREE of us, and we couldn't finish the whole thing. I can only imagine how many eggs it took to make this -- my guess is 6 or more. There may have also been about 1/3 of a pound of bacon in there. To top it all off, the omelet runs about five bucks. As a matter of fact, the whole check for the three of us was about $15, including tip. If you are looking for a place to grab a good, filling, hearty, inexpensive breakfast, Tony's shouldn't be missed. Bring a defribulator, though, it may come in handy.

Afternoon activities included a trip to the Missouri Botanical Garden, specifically to see the Glass in the Garden exhibit by Dale Chihuly. I had previously seen a similar exhibit in Chicago a few years ago, and subsequently became a Chihuly fan. For one thing, the guy wears an eye patch, which is kind of pirate-ish. Extra points, for sure. On top of that, he has figured out a way to earn worldwide renown and make a ton of money, as an artist, while alive. Imagine how many folks aspire to any part of that! I won't bore you with a ton of Chihuly photos here, but I will add some below the fold for anyone who wants to catch a peek.

The Gardens were cool, but I think I liked the Chicago exhibit a little better. It seemed that these sculptures were a little more random, whereas at the Chicago exhibit, the sculptures took on more of the personality of the gardens. Either way, it was good to add a little culture to the baseball and red meat trip!

After Chihuly, we needed a little time to regroup before heading out to the ballpark. I will continue there in the next post, and, as promised, throw a few glass pictures up below the fold. For full visual effect, you should probably click on the pics to see the larger and more detailed versions.

This was probably my favorite piece. The illusion of flamingos in the garden is what appealed to me.

Many of the glass sculptures interact with the light in beautiful ways.







OK...I suppose you have had more than enough by now. Neat stuff, though, and if you get the chance to see a Chihuly exhibit in your neck of the woods, you should try to check it out.

Edit: Tony's Restaurant was featured in the Dining Out: Best of 2006 post.

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Trip Log, Day 1; St. Louis

Note: This is this first post in a series. You can find the complete series index here.

Travel days on vacation always seem like such a waste to me. I travel for a living, so I usually get PAID to fly. Burning a vacation day to fly seems proposterous to me. My preference would have been to fly out after work and arrive in the late evening at my destination. Since I take two summer trips with one buddy of mine, we are each responsible for travel arrangements for one trip. I had no say in this one, so we flew out in the morning! Fortunately, it was a first-class flight into STL, which arrived around 1 pm.

Vacation meal #1 was burned on airline food. I had a lovely, overly salted, turkey sandwich on a croissant. Accompanying the sandwich was a salad with not-quite-wilted lettuce, and a bag of walnut cookies. I am glad that I don't ever see those cookies in the supermarket, because I like them a lot. Most of the products from Old Colony are pretty good (on the return flight, I had one variety that I had never seen -- Chocolate Mint), and if they were readily available locally, I am afraid I would buy a bag every trip to the grocery store. And, even though they are very reasonably priced online, I don't think that I need 100 bags of cookies lying around the house.

Rental car pickup and hotel check-in were quick and smooth. I used Hotwire for this trip, as opposed to my favored Hertz because the Hotwire cost was almost 1/3 the charge for the Hertz rental. Now, I love Hertz, but not that much.

After a quick change at the hotel, we drove off to check out the world famous St. Louis Zoo. The St. Louis Zoo flourished under the care of Marlin Perkins, of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom fame. The St. Louis Zoo was one of the first zoos to eliminate the old-style cage system, and provide more of a free-roaming environment for it's animals. Best of all, for all you penny pinchers out there, the place is absolutely free. They do charge $9 to park a car there, but you can load up as many as you like in the ol' family truckster and head out for a good day at the zoo.

I have become a fan of good zoos over the years. As much as I love to travel, I haven't been outside North America since a trip to Europe in the eighth grade. For me, zoos are a way to see some of nature that I would not otherwise be able to inside this region of the world.

Every time I go to the zoo, I never fail to see something that I had not ever seen before. This trip was no exception. I happen to think that lemurs are among the coolest of the mammals, and so I always make it a point to check out the monkeys, orangutans, and other primates, which are housed together at most zoos. The St. Louis zoo recently added a new species of lemur, which may well be one of the coolest animals I have ever seen, the sifaka. Native to Madagascar, it was only recently discovered how to care for these animals in captivity.

I also want to check out how they have my favorite animals cared for -- the penguins. The St. Louis Zoo had an excellent penguin and puffin exhibit, and on the day we went, many different species were roaming about and making quite a bit of noise.

Due to the layout of the exhibits, you do quite a bit of walking at this zoo. It makes for a decent bump in the heart rate (for a while, it seems like everything is uphill). Needless to say, after about three hours, I was exhausted.

Dinner on the first night was burgers at Blueberry Hill. Traveling with someone who has lived in STL previously, I got quite a bit of historical background on this area...unfortunately, not many pictures! While the burger was fabulous, what I was most pleased with was the Shiner Bock on draft. Whenever I travel to Texas, Shiner is THE beer of choice, and I can even get in bottles from the local Publix. My understanding, though, was that Shiner beer is only available on draft in Texas. A pleasant surprise, to say the least.

The specialty burger here is the Cheddar Burger. It is 7 oz. of beef slathered with spreadable cheddar cheese. I am not usually a big fan of any kind of cheese spread, but this gooey cheese added a unique flavor to the burger. At our table, one burger was ordered medium and one medium rare -- and there was a discernable difference in the two. The fries were tasty, but I was subsequently told to order the onion rings instead. If you are in the STL area for the first time, I would add this place to my musts. They have live music (Chuck Berry still plays here once a month!), dart room, pinball, displays of toy and sports memorabilia, and GREAT food. You can find them in the Loop on Delmar.

The last stop of the day was the ultimate St. Louis institution -- Ted Drewes for frozen custard. I read in one of those cheesy tourist books how St. Louis is famous for two things -- one made of steel (The Arch) and the other made of concrete (the name for Ted Drewe's blended custard concoction). This was my second visit to Ted Drewe's, and I recalled that during my last visit I had an apple pie concrete. For the uninitiated, this is vanilla custard blended with a hunk of fresh apple pie -- similar to a DQ Blizzard, but with quality ingredients! The server turns the dish upside down to show just how thick (kind of like....concrete!) this treat is. For some reason, they serve your custard with a spoon AND a straw -- but, I have never seen anyone eat their concrete with a straw.

However, after perusing the menu thoroughly, I did not see apple pie on the menu. I understand that the menu rotates somewhat periodically, but I was bummed. One of the folks I was with suggested that I ask for it, as they sometimes have stuff that is not on the menu. Good call...and moments later, I was chowing down on my apple pie concrete!

An exhausting first day of vacation done. Good sleep was the next order of business.

For anyone interested, I will post a few more pictures from the zoo below the fold.

My favorite bad ass lookin' penguin!

We caught this polar bear at feeding time. Here he is mauling a fish!

The insectarium at the St. Louis Zoo is wonderful, including a large collection of butterflies.

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