Four days and 1835 miles in Montana

I spent several days driving around Montana to teach little (and some not so little) fluties of all ages, and while I definitely spent more time in the car than I did eating and drinking, I can tell you about a coupla good places...

BOZEMAN seems nice, but I only stopped for coffee at Cold Smoke, and it was amazing. It was also very necessary at that point in the day.

MISSOULA
The campus is sweet, and historic downtown is beyond charming.  Had an espresso and nabbed some free WiFi at ZooTown Brew and a super delish pear and bleu cheese monte cristo at Plonk.

GREAT FALLS 

Jakers had great waffle fries with gorgonzola sauce, and they bring pico and chopped bacon to pour over the whole mess. They're also open late(ish) and the bartenders will cater to your every need. 

MALTA 

OK, you're probably never going to go here, but there was a randomly amazing Southern-style BBQ place that I cannot stop thinking about. It's called Ray J's, it's beautiful inside, and it is the real deal. The service was also very fast, which is handy, because you might be trying to get out of Malta quickly (I'm teasing, you guys were great...) Here is my weird but perfect pulled pork salad:

BILLINGS

I did not have nearly enough time in this quaint little city, but I did enjoy a caprese panini at Bistecca, authentic Hungarian goulash and a tasty Red Lodge Oktoberfest at, of all things, Oktoberfest, and HOMEMADE STROOPWAFELS and coffee at Caramel Cookie Waffle. OK, I needed a lot of coffee on this trip 

The best meals, of course, were spent with kind people and their snuggly dogs all across the state, including the juiciest burger I have ever had (stuffed with gorgonzola, mayo, and chives), and the last of the summer's corn on the cob right off the grill.  Thank you, Montana, for a great stay!

   

A quick stop in Utah

I went to the Moab area and up to SLC this week.  It was pleasant, though I cant say they have anything on Colorado in terms of food or beer.  In Moab, I hiked in Arches (best) and Canyonlands (also nice) National Parks, and stayed in nearby Green River, which was a sad little town but way cheaper.  There was a darling taco stand set up at a brokedown gas station, and the barbacoa was delish.

In Moab, both the food and beer disappointed at Moab Brewery, but Sabaku Sushi was great, and the garden veggie roll was probably the best vegetarian sushi I have ever had. The poke was good, too.

Here's some of what I saw in Arches:

                                                          

And Canyonland:

In Salt Lake City, which I had visited briefly before, I hung out mostly in the Capitol (downtown) district, where I had great coffee at a little neighborhood cafe called Alchemy, OK beer and a funny pizza thing with corn and shrimp at Red Rock, and took a pleasant walk on the Capitol Building grounds, which are lovely.

The Great Salt Lake is indeed greatly salty, though there's really no place to walk unless you go to Antelope Island (Utah Lake in Provo is kind of a better park, though smaller and not tasty).

         

On the way out of town I hit the university neighborhood for some tasty Vietnamese rice noodle salad at Indochine (the chicken curry was nice, too).

Duluth in two days

I was touring Minnesota last week (yes, it was cold), and I visited several towns.  Yes, Minneapolis is a cool city, and I've already talked about what I like in the Fargo/Moorhead area, but today I want to tell you about an oft-overlooked little city called Duluth.  I think this place will probably suck in the winter, because the fog and icy wind coming off Lake Superior was already getting a little old after two days, but it's a lovely lakeside town with a charming downtown area and a friendly population. If you go,...

7 West Taphouse

We went here for lunch, and then came back for the huge beer list at night! Fried cheese curds, onion rings, creative burgers, and lots of local brews make this really worth visiting.

Lake Superior Bakehouse

This place was our savior on a cold, gray morning before teaching at 9am (and after post-concert drinks at 7 West). Great breakfast sandwiches, baked goods, coffee, and tea.









Tweed Museum, UMD  

Bent Paddle taproom

Right across the hall from where I was teaching flute class and performing a recital, there was a great little museum with modern pieces and classical European art, all presented in an educational, interactive setting.  What an inspiring setting in which to learn!




Beer

I was not in town long enough to enjoy some of Duluth's delicious local beer in their original homes, but there are a ton of breweries in the area: Bent Paddle (which is on tap all over the city, and it is delicious), Fitgers, Black List, Canal Park, and Lake Superior are all in Duluth, and surrounding towns have a few to contribute, as well.  Beer is so appropriately loved here that there is a "Beer Trail" that serves as a directory to them all.

Even with an extra hour of sleep, I could use some coffee

We always complain when the time changes, don't we?  Sunday we got an extra hour, but it's not good enough, because now it's too dark in the morning.  In the spring, we get more light at night, but we lost a whole hour!  Damn it, life is hard. Whatever your current whining session, coffee will fix it.  I'll help you out,if you happen to be in any of the following select cities: 

Great American Coffee Houses

 Houndstooth Coffee, Austin. TX

Happy Coffee Co. , Denver, CO

Ipsento , Chicago, IL

Boxcar Coffee,  Boulder and Denver, CO

Joe Bean . Rochestrer, NY

 Café D’Bolla, Salt Lake City, UT

Cognoscenti . Los Angeles, CA

Render Coffee, Boston, MA

Gimme Coffee, New York, NY

Sqirl, Los Angeles, CA

Bad Wolf Coffee. Chicago, IL

Kaffe 1668, New York, NY

Daylight Mind, Kona, HI

Coava  Coffee, Portland, OR

Jubala, Raleigh, NC

Barista Parlor, Nashville, TN

Fourbarrel, San Francisco, CA

Commonplace Coffee Roasters. Pittsburgh, PA

Barista, Portland, OR

Volta Coffee, Gainseville, FL

Spyhouse Coffee, Minneapolis, MN

Pavement, Boston, MA

Colectivo  Coffee, Milwaukee, WI

Sunergos, Louisville, KY

Heart Roasters, Portland, OR

Anodyne Coffee Roasters, Milwaukee, WI

Artifact Coffee, Baltimore, MD

Panther Coffee, Miami, FL

Milstead & Co., Seattle, WA

Peregrine Espresso, Washington, D.C.

Ultimo Coffee, Philadelphia, PA

 Go Get Em Tiger, Los Angeles, LA

Exploring SoBo in Denver

SoBo, or South Broadway, is the home of Antique Row just South of the capitol area in downtown Denver. (Psst--if you've got some semi-precious heirlooms to unload, as I did, Antique Exchange is the most efficient way to peddle your wares to multiple dealers at once, and they'll even show you funny You Tube videos on their phones while you're waiting for them to look up prices).  If you're not into Hummel figurines, you'll also find funky boutiques and coffee shops, nouveau cuisine, and FREE on-street PARKING (whaaa?!) for two hours in all locations.  It's the city, but kinder and gentler.

As you can imagine, I wasn't going to drive all the way down from Northern Colorado just to sell some glass and then hop back in the car and go home.  Here's what I tried:

Uno Mas Taqueria Y Cantina, 1585 S Pearl Street, Denver

Order tacos ala carte on a menu reminiscent of ordering sushi (see below),

and enjoy delicious cocktails that are a modern twist on classics like the margarita, paloma, and michelada. They boast local ingredients, and the meats for the tacos are perfectly marinated, seasoned, and grilled.  I had smoked chicken, pineapple-marinated pork, and the zestiest, most surprisingly delicious mushrooms I've ever eaten.

Strange Grounds, 1417 S Broadway, Denver

This coffee shop is famed for their homemade chai, and it really is fantastic.  Coming from a non-chai drinker, that's something.  Order it sweet, spicy, or dirty (my choice), and get ready to sift through the heavy bits of grit at the bottom, 'cuz it's loaded with fresh ginger chunks and a big old cinnamon stick.  This place also hosts lots of local live music at night, and with parking being so cheap and easy, it'd probably be worth the stop down in the evening sometime. 

Capital Tea, 1450 s Broadway, Denver

I was too stuffed after my tacos to try the lapsang souchong egg salad sandwich with smoked salmon, but it looked amazing (and popular).  The tea varieties will make your head spin, and you can order from afar through their website, too. 

Road (and food) trip across Georgia

After a whirlwind 10 days through Georgia (with, impossibly, four stops in Milledgeville, home of "Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo"-?!?) and into South Carolina, I think I could go at least 48 hours without eating or feeling hungry!  But despite the bloat, I wouldn't have skipped any one of the amazing meals I ate on the road:

Strong coffee and a homemade giant cookie, to keep me awake until Athens at Blackbird Coffee, 114 W Hancock St, Milledgeville GA











A veggie and hummus sandwich on homemade marble rye and Louisiana voodoo chips tucked away in an industrial park at Southern Sweets Bakery, 186 Rio Circle, Decatur GA

Poached salmon with pesto and an appetizer of the tenderest escargot on the planet at Circa 1875 Gastro Pub, 48 Whitaker Street, Savannah GA





Penne pasta in red pepper and goat cheese sauce and fried green tomatoes drizzled with Vidalia onion-bacon buttermilk dressing at Last Resort Grill, 184 West Clayton St, Athens GA

Pulled and ground pork sliders and a delicious Moo-Hoo draft brewed locally at Trappeze, 269 North Hull St, Athens GA






Spicy peel-and-eat shrimp and mussels with fennel at Pearlz Oyster Bar, 936 Gervais St, Columbia SC

A pork chop the size of my torso and a mini shepherd's pie made with pulled pork at Manchester Arms Pub, 1705 Virginia Ave, Atlanta GA (College Park neighborhood)








The only delicious banh mi I have every eaten, made with ground pork and served with a side of fish sauce for dipping at Immaculate Consumption, 933 Main St, Columbia SC

True soul food served on the line: fried chicken, butter beans, collared greens, a biscuit, and of course, sweet tea that hurt my teeth at The Bears Den Dine In, 1191 Oglethorpe St, Macon GA









Virginia oysters served with a housemade cucumber dressing, light-as-air gnocchi with octopus and lobster, and fizzy vinho verde at Seven Lamps, 3400 Lenox Rd, Atlanta GA (Buckhead)

A giant tamale made with pork shoulder and served with green chile-mole sauce and inventive bourbon cocktails at Alma Cochina, 191 Peachtree St, Atlanta GA (downtown)