Casa Pulido Mexican food is best when prepared by people who know the food and love their customers...not the chain restaurants! Casa Pulido has been a Redondo Beach standout for years. We must warn you; the hand made salsa and chips are so good you might not be able to eat a bite of your main dish. The margaritas are superb. Try the carne asada Mega Burrito with green chile salsa. This place is worth the drive directly from LAX airport. Fortunately they have to go containers, because the servings are huge and the salsa & chips are absolutely the best in Southern California. The Long Beach Cafe For almost 20 years The Long Beach Cafe has been a favorite for downtown Long Beach patrons. For nearly the same time it has been our favorite breakfast in Long Beach. We have been skipping our free hotel breakfasts...thats right...we skip free breakfast to enjoy the breakfasts of The Long Beach Cafe. The menu is like a diner from back east. Every possible breakfast item you could ever want is prepared to perfection. In the spirit of Southern California try either the Huevos Ranchero or the enormous Breakfast Burrito with authentic spicy Chroizo topped with green chile salsa. The large selection of omelets are all great. You will not be eating lunch after these portions are eaten. Camacho’s Cantina Rarely if ever is airport food edible and as an added bonus is always over priced. Camacho’s Cantina is open from 5AM until 11PM for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It is good value, with fast service and good Mexican food. There is a nice Mexican themed bar that shares seating with Camacho’s just in case you are flight delayed and need a good margarita. If you recognize the name it is because they are owned by the same people that run Camacho’s at City Walk in Universal & Camacho’s Cantina at Aliante Station Casino in Las Vegas. Demos’ Restaurant There are several Demos’ Restaurants in the Nashville area, but this one is situated right downtown blocks from Music Row and the Titans Stadium. Open for lunch or dinner this travelers gem is good old home cookin’ at prices from the 70’s. You must try the cheese toast appetizer. Demos’ is known for steaks with a side of spaghetti. Doesn’t sound special, well how about a large Filet for $10.95? And, side of spaghetti with a choice of 7 different sauces, each one as better than the other. You must be thinking how do we know what all seven taste like. Well our server, Michelle, gave us a tasters serving of each with our bread (an appetizer in itself)! There might be fancier and pricier in Nashville, but there is none better in taste and value. Olneyville New York System Several others in the Providence area Essl’s Dugout Sometimes a place just has a special feel and charm. It isn’t always only about the food. Sometimes the stars align. This family run restaurant has been run in the same location for nearly 37 years serving breakfast and lunch 7 days a week. The breakfasts are hand crafted by wonderful people trying to serve a great meal to all of their guests. We enjoyed the Messl which is a show stopping breakfast sandwich. The local crowd is just as entertaining as any show the Atlantic City. The Esssl family is wonderful. Off the Hook Sushi And you thought we just ate steak or Italian...shame on you! We love good fresh sushi, too. This is a quiet place where the locals eat in South Lake Tahoe. The menu has all the usual menu items that every sushi joint has plus many very inventive rolls made with the freshest fish you can get anywhere. Try the Ahi tuna poke salad for a starter. This is a nice spin on an Hawaiian staple, served over a bed of greens and seaweed salad. We highly recommend two house specialties. First, the Hula Girl roll made with tuna, avocado and crushed Macadamia nuts, and second was a nightly special that paired smoked salmon and fresh basil in a roll. Why has no one ever paired these two great flavors before? We had lots more and ate here twice in less than a week...don’t miss this gem of Lake Tahoe. When you are finished step across the parking lot for some local music and a cold one at Whiskey Dick’s. Topper’s Restaurant & Bar This tiny little spot is mostly a Tiki Bar with great homemade food and you should not miss it for a drink, or the best down home food on the island. You will have the best slow cooked pot roast or leg of lamb you could image! This is the standout food spot on the entire island. Whether you select the comfort food or Caribbean style dishes, you can’t go wrong at Topper’s. Don’t forget to try one of the homemade pies, either. Most nights there is Island style Karaoke or live music. You will have a great time! The staff is friendly and the prices are very reasonable...even a drinks. The Country Inn There is no better place for fresh seafood in the Providence area than The Country Inn. It is just 15 minutes from downtown Providence, and the drive is well worth it. Try the house specialty of squid rings sauteed with peppers for an appetizer. The menu is huge, the portions are huge, but the prices are vintage 1970’s. The bay scallops are true tiny bay scallops and just great! The staff are a crew of friendly seasoned people who really enjoy what they do. The lobster dishes are all superb. They have great comfort dishes like pot roast and leg of lamb, too. If you love a lobster roll, this is the place for the best anywhere. The lobster salad is almost entirely chunk lobster. You might have to eat here more than once before you will be able to pick your favorite dish. Call for a reservation because the place is packed almost every night. Mike’s Kitchen This is one is whacky even for us. Mike’s Kitchen is located in a VFW hall with no sign outside other than the VFW Post Number (2396). This is truly word of mouth and when you eat here you too will know why Mike’s doesn’t need to advertise. The locals get great Italian food at low prices, but only on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. What? Tuesday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, Mike’s is closed to the public; that’s when the VFW meet. Come early, seating is first come first served. The menu is mostly Italian, with a little Portuguese, but very Rhode Island. As a starter try a stuffie (a stuffed quohog clam) as big as your fist or the unique Rhode Island appetizer known as snail salad (not real snails….just try it if you like conch salad. Pasta specials change frequently but if the cavatelli with marinara sauce is available….don’t skip it. Veal dishes are great too. Most nights they have sautéed broccoli rabe. On the side, order polenta available with fennel-spiked sausage, meatballs, or a blanket of thick marinara sauce. This is truly a ‘Two Guys’ restaurant gem, not to be missed. J Alexander's We travel to umpteen states to....well way too many shows. Road food is everywhere, but occasionally, only occasionally, the food is right, the price is right, and the service is perfect. That occasion for us was in Orlando at J. Alexanders. It is a chain, but not on the scale of Ruby Tuesday, and we had a memorable evening. Our show friends, Dane & Joe joined us, for the fun. We had a starter of thick cut onion rings that was superb. We value shopped an outstanding Pinot Noir called Angeline, which was a great wine at any price, but was a true value. The table had two specials cajun style ‘big boy’ sized rib eyes perfectly cooked as ordered, baked chicken, and a classic French Dip sandwich. None of the entré items were ‘bank breakers’ but were fantastic. Order the side dish of mac & cheese. It smooth and creamy and worthy of any main course, simply fantastic. We finished with some expresso and a chocolate cake to die for. To be fair we also had a killer carrot cake. We were served by the devine Ms. M (Melissa). She was a great sport and our meals were served with precision timing without rushing us to turn the table. She is super! Because our table was a little on the raucous side and we were visited by Margaret the manager, and she too was a great sport and has a great food and service staff. We will be back next time for sure.....don’t miss this place! Dreamland Bar-B-Que Ribs The proposition here is simple. Put your big boy bib on and saddle up to the best ribs anywhere...that’s right anywhere! They have been hickory firing ribs for the famous and rib lovers since 1959. Its ribs, ribs, and more ribs. No chopped, no pulled, no chicken, just ribs....the best you will ever have. The program is simple three different sized rib plates with bread and great sauce on the side. They do have barbecued link sausage in case you have a non-rib person with you. We had the sausage as a warm-up and it too was great. Top off the carnage with lightest, creamiest banana pudding anywhere. They have few locations around metro Atlanta and Alabama, but try the original location....you will feel like Bear Bryant walking through the door! There is a reason Dreamland ships ribs all over the country and CBS Sports shoots on location at the restaurant when in town for a big game. Domenico’s Italian Restaurant You must know by now that we love pizza and pasta when we are traveling. This is not always a good thing. Even we have standards, and those standards are even higher when it comes to Italian food. After the PrintWear Long Beach show one evening we took a short drive to Belmont Shores. Second Street a six block area is a slice of commerce from the 60’s and a great stroll loaded with shops and restaurants. We had no recommendations, and just looking for the next wonderful dining adventure. We saw an old neon sign that said Domenico’s Since 1954. Why not? We entered a place that was starting to get busy at 6PM. So far, so good. The manager comes over and introduces himself. We ask him what’s good here? He didn’t blink and said 90% of the people are regulars and the majority order a ground pepperoni pizza. He then pointed to one at the next table. It looked like no other pizza we had ever seen. It was covered in what looked like brown carpet. Well, we tried it. With our next frequent flyer tickets we are going to fly out and have another! The pepperoni pizza was slightly spicy and had absolutely no grease. It was magnificent. Truly one of a kind, and a ‘DO-OVER.’ Iaria’s Italian Restaurant When in Indy you can’t miss this institution. An Indy favorite for over 75 years! We started with a pizza appetizer…yes that’s right, no meatballs! The ‘Around the World’ pizza was a salami, sausage, pepperoni, & mushroom colossus made with meats made by hand right there. There was not a drop of grease, just pleasure for two hungry road warriors. We moved to a plate of Ravioli with Bolognese sauce. The homemade ravi’s were large and fresh, but the sauce was a show stealer. The Bolognese is made with a sweet and savory red sauce with rib meat simmered right in the sauce. Wonderful! There is also a large Italian restaurant a block away….don’t be fooled, Iaria’s is the real deal, and a definite do-over. Weber Grill Restaurant What a concept! Classic charcoal grilling on Weber grills, just like your own backyard. Why didn’t someone think of this sooner? Folks who like grilling & barbecue will love the grilled appetizers, burgers, veggies, & steaks. The unique open kitchen lets you watch the chefs preparing great burgers & steaks over an open flame on authentic Weber Grills...indoors! Don’t forget to try the thin cut fries, too! This is the remedy for stale tired chain food....except we hope it becomes a chain so we can enjoy a Weber burger more often. Rosebud Old World Italian WOW, were we lucky when we exhibited at the ISS show in Shaumburg! Rosebud is a restaurant that is among a group of restaurants operating in the Chicagoland area. Classic southern italian with an extensive lunch and dinner menu. It advertises generous portions, but that is simply not true. They are gi-normous and loaded with flavor just like my grandmother would make, if only she were Italian. We ordered some meatballs as an appetizer (as we normally warm-up with) and we nearly died at the sight of meatballs the size of softballs floating in a great red sauce. By the time we had eaten them and several baskets of home-made bread we were toast! So sad, because the portions of lasagna and Sicilian style ‘Grandma’s Gravy’ (beef pot roast in red sauce over wheel pasta) we equally as large and just great tasting. Enough for sharing actually. Every classic Italian dish is on this menu. Not expensive but superb up-scale interior and service. This is a definite ‘DO-OVER’ for the travelin’ boys of Ideal Image Systems. Oklahoma Joe’s This is a great place for ribs! Oklahoma Joe’s is the best kept secret in Kansas City. Arthur Bryant’s might be the favorite of presidential candidates, but this’ jumpin’ litlle rib joint’ is the people's choice! Located in a gas station with a dozen tables it is a must visit when in KC! A slab of these babies will easily feed two! Sauce is out of this world, too! Not that you need more food, but the fries are thick fresh-cut wonders. Take a cooler to bring home the left-overs. Imo’s Pizza Who knew there was a St. Louis style pizza? Come on really? Well we certainly didn’t know. What a little treasure these pizzas are. Imo makes an ultra thin crispy crust, uses a special ‘Provell’ cheese (blended Provolone and Mozzarella), and cut into bite size squares. Topping are the same as anyone else, but the combination is special. Try one next time you are in St. Louis! Edie Mae’s Eatery If you are ever in the Minneapolis area make the drive to this gem. Forget the menu. Forget the specials of the day. Order the largest vessel you can of the made from scratch chicken noodle soup! This is better than you remember your Mothers! Homemade noodles with tons of chicken....this is the best you will ever find! It is no surprise they have been feeding the good folks of Delano for over 30 years! We have heard that breakfast is even better. We will be back to test breakfast and stay for a lunch of chicken noodle soup. This again confirms why we look for local restaurants when we can. Manny’s Steakhouse What a joy to dine in a classic steak house in a light and airy atmosphere, rather that a darkly lit, dark paneled, dimly-lit cigar chamber! We were expertly served by a waiter, who has mastered the perfect balance of good service, light conversation without ever interrupting our conversation or meal, while always delivering every dish at the perfect moment. Axel’s Bonfire What is the oldest and truest adage of a traveler???? Food is bad and expensive in an airport. Well this is not true at Axel’s in the Minneapolis Airport. Minnesotans are proud and passionate about their Walleye. Honestly we have tried it several times and until now we just didn’t get the all the buzz about the Walleye. We had a very long wait in the airport and the waiter convinced us that Axel’s Walleye would change our opinion. Because we had a long wait we broke the cardinal rule of traveling and tried for a good meal in an airport. The walleye was a large portion and prepared to perfection. The accompanying cheese has browns were excellent as well. We are Walleye converts and will tell everyone that the ‘Minnesota walleye experience’ is best experienced at Axel’s Bonfire (even at the airport). Malaga Diner Next time you are in Atlantic City take a 30 minute drive west on Route 40. This south Jersey Diner is a classic diner in the truest sense. The menu has breakfast all day, Philly style cheese steaks, subs, Italian dishes, steaks, seafood, hot open faced sandwiches, and the truly ‘specials of the day’. Try the veal cutlet. Real pounded veal with Italian herb breading cooked perfectly. Be hungry, it is the size of the place mat! Served with classic red sauce or brown gravy, and of course two sides. Dessert is included, and they are all made in the diner. This is a real gem! You can bet the next time we go to the Atlantic City ISS Show we will visit coming into and out of AC! Carmine’s Italian in the classic southern style. This is the Atlantic City outfit of the NYC classic, Carmine’s. The portions are huge and are easily shared and is plenty for 2-3 people per dish. Perfect for large groups. Try the Thursday special, osso buco over polenta. One of the better restaurants in a city that is not blessed great food. Great food...great value! Chef Vola It was quite an effort just to find the phone number, it is not listed. Reservations are required, and when you do call, you leave a message and they call you back! It was more than worth it. Chef Vola is located in a house, there is no sign, and you walk to the alley to a door leading to the basement. Once you are seated in this tiny family owned and operated Italian restaurant. You can just imagine Frank Sinatra walking in any moment. All antipastos and pastas are homemade and the portion sizes are gigantic (our code for sharing). The veal dishes are hard beat anywhere in the world. All desserts are made on premises. No wine or beer service, but you can bring your own. Cash only. The White House Sub Shop 2301 Arctic Avenue (at Mississippi Avenue) Atlantic City, NJ 08401 (609) 345-1564 Map: CLICK HERE This is truly a landmark, open since 1946. You can smell fresh subs as soon as you open your car door. The 24” sub rolls are fresh baked a block away. The meats and cheeses are the finest quality and sliced fresh for your sub. Make sure you have a refrigerator in your hotel room, because you will have left-overs. They also make a great Philly-style cheese steak. When you pay, get a Tastykake Chocolate Junior for the true South Jersey-Philly experience! Strossner's Bakery Strossner’s has been a tradition in Greenville for over 60 years. If you are on I-85 take the 3 minutes detour for a bakery like no other in a 200 mile radius. Fresh and delicious cakes, pies, strudels, danishes, and cookies. Simply the best macaroons we have had. Cakes that will impress any party. This is a place you will return over and over again once you have tried Strossner’s, it is addiction. They are open from 7 until 7 Monday thru Saturday. The Butcher Shop (901) 757-4244 This is a small regional chain that does it right. No ala carte at this gem of a steak house. Very reasonably priced. The steaks have a remarkable flavor from the hickory charcoaled grills. The twice baked potato is good enough for dessert....and we did! This place is worth a try! Aventenio’s This quiet Italian gem has been tucked away in this strip center for over 22 years. Everything is old world classic and cooked to order. When you want a break from the Mexican, Steakhouses, and chains of the metroplex, try this place first. The red sauce is worth the drive from anywhere in the metroplex. Try the Veal Milanese. You couldn’t find better in Italy. All pasta (except long pastas) and desserts are made from scratch. Most nights you will need reservations and it is more than worth the effort. Cattlemen’s Steak House This is the true Texas Steak House experience, and has been since 1947. You get none of the ala carte run-around here. Order your style of steak prepared how you like it (you know the the big one likes his porterhouse medium & charred on the outside!) and you get dinner salad and potato, with fresh bacon bits and chives with all the butter and sour cream you need. The potato fixins don’t leave with the waiter. Try the fresh cut onion rings as an appetizer. If you really want the Texas round-up experience try the lamb fries (only if you know what they are). Cattlemen’s will be half the price of the big national wanna be steak house chains. It is good that we have two shows a year in Fort Worth! Weenie Stand Number 1 Who would have thought that in a town of 65,000 residents they would have a hot dog place that stays open 24 hours a day? The Weenie stand makes you dream of hot dogs. They are great and beyond affordable. A hot dog loaded with home made chili, onions, & mustard for $1.69. Tremendous fries for the same price. If you want a challenge all you can eat for $8.99. The old style counter filled most of the time with happy and loyal hot dog-eaters. Breakfast is served from 3AM and is supposed to be a hit too. The Weenie Stand has been known as the World’s Best Hot Dogs since 1970. Yes there is more than one Weenie Stand in Lynchburg, but this is the only one that is 24 hours! New York Deli & Pizza 6546 Richmond Road Williamsburg, VA (757) 564-9258 Map: CLICK HERE A real NY deli in historic Williamsburg, VA. They prpare all the usual suspects....Reubens, Corn Beef, Pastrami, plus hot subs, and pamigiana subs with really great red sauce. Try the Sailor Treat on Rye. It is a dream team of Pastrami, Swetzer & Knockwurst piled high on toasted rye with mustard. This is clearly the best lunch in the Williamsburg area, and so good we went to dinner there too! |
We are just two guys who travel to shows and demonstrations visiting with people about digital printers and new technologies for garments and promotional imprinting. We have decided to share our food experiences with you. For those who have met us, you know we love a good meal. It is our hope you will enjoy our observations.