Have to have Combos and some local Jerky in the car. Culver's rules. Russ Kendall's Smoked fish and Pasties Plus Pasties when in Northern MN. Ellsworth cheese curds in WI. Any seafood by the seashore. Home made, gas station salt and vinegar chips in Canada. Green chili Stew/breakfast burrito from Frontier Restaurant in Albuquerque, walkin' Tacos from Bode's in Abiquiu NM.
Road Trips to me are for the sake of playing Nomad, exploring, discovery and sometimes rediscovery. It's nice to escape Milwaukee for a long weekend ... SOooo when it comes to "Road Trip" munchables, I'm a pack-a-cooler guy with my favorite noshes like artisan charcuterie cuts, a robust selection cheeses, a couple bottles of white & red wines; a 6-pack of iced Stella Artois. Assorted, veggies, fresh fruits & nuts, especially pistachios & smokehouse almonds; + a fresh loaf of country French or Italian bread...
Then the gang and I head-out to destination America... The serenity of nature, being in a secluded area, along a lake, river, coastal shoreline or the hills, mountains and canyons where nature has been undisturbed... they may be harder to find, yet they're out there, and that's the fun of road trip adventures... So this summer, let's everybody play Lewis & Clark.!!!
I don't live in Waffle House country, so when I see one, I have to stop, mostly because my Asian wife would beat me senseless if I didn't. She LOVES Waffle House. The first time we went to one, she quivered with excitement as she ate. I like it too.
Road trip Car stash; pretzels, licorice frozen snickers in cooler. Passing thru Wisc means a stop at Mars for fresh curds for the road. Gas station; going to be a questionable hot dog or corn dog maybe nachos with yellow runny cheese. If there’s a diner involves that’s a patty melt! Sonic means a corn dog. Do a lot of trips to Tenn, family right outside of Nashville…soon as we can start to smell it that means country ham at diner or hot chicken. Further south…hell ya to the Waffle House! Any seafood stand or place with “hideaway” in the name. Slushies!
Only pick 3 at Culver’s? Impossible. They just opened less than 1/2 mile from my house…try and not do fast foods unless road-trippin…but sometimes a girl needs Culver’s. In sort of a preference list…custard, Fish/walleye, pretzel bites, cheese curd, deluxe burger. Road-trips also require multiple ice-coffees.
I am a “never eat fast food” girl, but now I’m going to try Culver’s since it’s a half mile from me. The only thing I ever stop for is an In-N-Out Burger which is unfortunately nowhere near me 😭 if I’m on a road trip I have to get a Charleston chew for some reason.
- Trader Joe's chocolate-covered espresso beans have been a mainstay for me (just be sure to keep them in the cooler when you're not snacking, or else they melt into a primordial ooze of caffeinated goodness).
- Pejoy stick cookies are great, since you get the satisfaction of a Pocky, only you don't get your fingers messy since the chocolate is all on the inside!
- I live in Minnesota, so I only get to indulge when I visit family in the South, but I was floored when I went to a Buc-ee's for the first time and had a brisket breakfast burrito that made my eyes spin in two different directions.
Sadly, I have not been to the midwest and have missed these great suggestions. If you pass through the foothills of the Adirondacks, you should remember to pick up a Best Beef or sub from Mr. B's in Glens Falls. Thinly shaved beef on a sesame seed bun with natural juices. If you're feeling fabulous..throw on their horseradish sauce as well. If it is the summer, we always went to Zack's Drive In located in Hudson Falls for a Texas Hot. They would deliver it right to your car with those little trays that attach to the window. I'm purring now just thinking about it. PS..I would stop at ANY place that was selling hot dogs. I'm addicted to the tube steak...espec with good saurkraut.
When I used to drive from Boston to Ohio in a previous life, I always stopped at McDonald’s on the Mass Pike first and bought apple pies and hash browns (the only things I can eat there). Depending on which way I was going I would stop at Moe’s Southwest Grill in Wilkes-Barre, PA, the Angola rest area on the NY Thruway south of Buffalo, and the Krispy Kreme in Erie, PA which was the last stop to pick them up before the East Coast. So many stories, so many chains. I’m glad that part of my life is over but what an adventure.
So ... I try ... really hard ... to avoid fast food ... but if we are talking road trip food, I make a sincere effort to eat locally wherever we go. I do pack snacks for the car, mostly protein bars and VERB bars (which I adore and just got another "Bundle of Joy" pack with Double Chocolate bars, Salted Peanut Butter bars, and Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup bars), seltzer, and diet soda. But .... that said ... I cannot pass a Sonic on the road without stopping for a Diet Cherry Limeade and a Diet Coke. You start with the Limeade, then when it's getting low, you add the DC. Killer. I may or may not add a corn dog to that order ... or maybe tater tots. No Buc ees in our part of Georgia ... will have to look for that.
When my husband and I are hitting the road in the morning, we'll pull up at the Henny Penny around the corner (not the convenience store - this is a Savannah coffeeshop) and get their kolache. Baked on site and so many outstanding options!
Jun 3, 2022·edited Jun 3, 2022Liked by Andrew Zimmern
Culver's is awesome! There's a Chester's just over the overpass from where I work. (Yep a Nebraska girl permanently exiled to Iowa (married an Iowa boy) who just happens to work in South Dakota) their cheesy hash browns are pretty awesome. Road Trip food....I'm trying to be lower carb so it's the Wilde brand chicken chips and some homemade jerky.
Apologies if this isn't the right forum, AZ.... I'm currently experiencing more and more stress as my dollar gets less and less food. I don't really have a question for you as much as a broad request: would you mind giving us a couple of months of recipes for
your money-strapped, budget-minded patrons? Be our Frugal Gourmet for a few months, woncha?
Stop me anyplace where they stack burgers high and serve them for real hot. Onion rings. French toast sticks from Sonic at all hours. Jacksonville, FL Waffle Hut at five o five am.
We are your typical Midwesterners when we take a road trip: beef jerky, Twizzlers (cherry, not strawberry or there will be mutiny!), cashews, Pringles, generic Chips Ahoy and water. Keepin' it classy!! LOL!
My wife and I made 2 round trips a year from Pensacola Beach (FL) to Bar Harbor (ME). In the South, we favor Hardee's and up north a number of local lobster shacks! Charlotte's and Sawyer's are good providers - but Travelin Lobster is hard to beat!
I'm sort of a fan of the Regional stuff, sort of a reflection of the local culture in a way too. I was Duluth, MN in mid Feb, and had to get my 'Caribou-Coffee-On'! Some of the regional Gas Stations are cool too, at least to me, very big and spacious when driving. Down in the FL Panhandle (Pensacola, Panama City etc), I've seen Tom Thumb in many places. Another in the Northeast is Cumberland Farms, pretty popular in New England, as well as Quick Check in the Hudson Valley NY (Poughkeepsie area)...just fun for a literal quick bite...I have all the Apps downloaded when I return too....
Have to have Combos and some local Jerky in the car. Culver's rules. Russ Kendall's Smoked fish and Pasties Plus Pasties when in Northern MN. Ellsworth cheese curds in WI. Any seafood by the seashore. Home made, gas station salt and vinegar chips in Canada. Green chili Stew/breakfast burrito from Frontier Restaurant in Albuquerque, walkin' Tacos from Bode's in Abiquiu NM.
Road Trips to me are for the sake of playing Nomad, exploring, discovery and sometimes rediscovery. It's nice to escape Milwaukee for a long weekend ... SOooo when it comes to "Road Trip" munchables, I'm a pack-a-cooler guy with my favorite noshes like artisan charcuterie cuts, a robust selection cheeses, a couple bottles of white & red wines; a 6-pack of iced Stella Artois. Assorted, veggies, fresh fruits & nuts, especially pistachios & smokehouse almonds; + a fresh loaf of country French or Italian bread...
Then the gang and I head-out to destination America... The serenity of nature, being in a secluded area, along a lake, river, coastal shoreline or the hills, mountains and canyons where nature has been undisturbed... they may be harder to find, yet they're out there, and that's the fun of road trip adventures... So this summer, let's everybody play Lewis & Clark.!!!
I don't live in Waffle House country, so when I see one, I have to stop, mostly because my Asian wife would beat me senseless if I didn't. She LOVES Waffle House. The first time we went to one, she quivered with excitement as she ate. I like it too.
Road trip Car stash; pretzels, licorice frozen snickers in cooler. Passing thru Wisc means a stop at Mars for fresh curds for the road. Gas station; going to be a questionable hot dog or corn dog maybe nachos with yellow runny cheese. If there’s a diner involves that’s a patty melt! Sonic means a corn dog. Do a lot of trips to Tenn, family right outside of Nashville…soon as we can start to smell it that means country ham at diner or hot chicken. Further south…hell ya to the Waffle House! Any seafood stand or place with “hideaway” in the name. Slushies!
Only pick 3 at Culver’s? Impossible. They just opened less than 1/2 mile from my house…try and not do fast foods unless road-trippin…but sometimes a girl needs Culver’s. In sort of a preference list…custard, Fish/walleye, pretzel bites, cheese curd, deluxe burger. Road-trips also require multiple ice-coffees.
I am a “never eat fast food” girl, but now I’m going to try Culver’s since it’s a half mile from me. The only thing I ever stop for is an In-N-Out Burger which is unfortunately nowhere near me 😭 if I’m on a road trip I have to get a Charleston chew for some reason.
- Trader Joe's chocolate-covered espresso beans have been a mainstay for me (just be sure to keep them in the cooler when you're not snacking, or else they melt into a primordial ooze of caffeinated goodness).
- Pejoy stick cookies are great, since you get the satisfaction of a Pocky, only you don't get your fingers messy since the chocolate is all on the inside!
- I live in Minnesota, so I only get to indulge when I visit family in the South, but I was floored when I went to a Buc-ee's for the first time and had a brisket breakfast burrito that made my eyes spin in two different directions.
Sadly, I have not been to the midwest and have missed these great suggestions. If you pass through the foothills of the Adirondacks, you should remember to pick up a Best Beef or sub from Mr. B's in Glens Falls. Thinly shaved beef on a sesame seed bun with natural juices. If you're feeling fabulous..throw on their horseradish sauce as well. If it is the summer, we always went to Zack's Drive In located in Hudson Falls for a Texas Hot. They would deliver it right to your car with those little trays that attach to the window. I'm purring now just thinking about it. PS..I would stop at ANY place that was selling hot dogs. I'm addicted to the tube steak...espec with good saurkraut.
When I used to drive from Boston to Ohio in a previous life, I always stopped at McDonald’s on the Mass Pike first and bought apple pies and hash browns (the only things I can eat there). Depending on which way I was going I would stop at Moe’s Southwest Grill in Wilkes-Barre, PA, the Angola rest area on the NY Thruway south of Buffalo, and the Krispy Kreme in Erie, PA which was the last stop to pick them up before the East Coast. So many stories, so many chains. I’m glad that part of my life is over but what an adventure.
Zapps potatoe chips, red licorice and spicy peanuts.
So ... I try ... really hard ... to avoid fast food ... but if we are talking road trip food, I make a sincere effort to eat locally wherever we go. I do pack snacks for the car, mostly protein bars and VERB bars (which I adore and just got another "Bundle of Joy" pack with Double Chocolate bars, Salted Peanut Butter bars, and Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup bars), seltzer, and diet soda. But .... that said ... I cannot pass a Sonic on the road without stopping for a Diet Cherry Limeade and a Diet Coke. You start with the Limeade, then when it's getting low, you add the DC. Killer. I may or may not add a corn dog to that order ... or maybe tater tots. No Buc ees in our part of Georgia ... will have to look for that.
When my husband and I are hitting the road in the morning, we'll pull up at the Henny Penny around the corner (not the convenience store - this is a Savannah coffeeshop) and get their kolache. Baked on site and so many outstanding options!
Culver's is awesome! There's a Chester's just over the overpass from where I work. (Yep a Nebraska girl permanently exiled to Iowa (married an Iowa boy) who just happens to work in South Dakota) their cheesy hash browns are pretty awesome. Road Trip food....I'm trying to be lower carb so it's the Wilde brand chicken chips and some homemade jerky.
Apologies if this isn't the right forum, AZ.... I'm currently experiencing more and more stress as my dollar gets less and less food. I don't really have a question for you as much as a broad request: would you mind giving us a couple of months of recipes for
your money-strapped, budget-minded patrons? Be our Frugal Gourmet for a few months, woncha?
Stop me anyplace where they stack burgers high and serve them for real hot. Onion rings. French toast sticks from Sonic at all hours. Jacksonville, FL Waffle Hut at five o five am.
We are your typical Midwesterners when we take a road trip: beef jerky, Twizzlers (cherry, not strawberry or there will be mutiny!), cashews, Pringles, generic Chips Ahoy and water. Keepin' it classy!! LOL!
My wife and I made 2 round trips a year from Pensacola Beach (FL) to Bar Harbor (ME). In the South, we favor Hardee's and up north a number of local lobster shacks! Charlotte's and Sawyer's are good providers - but Travelin Lobster is hard to beat!
I'm sort of a fan of the Regional stuff, sort of a reflection of the local culture in a way too. I was Duluth, MN in mid Feb, and had to get my 'Caribou-Coffee-On'! Some of the regional Gas Stations are cool too, at least to me, very big and spacious when driving. Down in the FL Panhandle (Pensacola, Panama City etc), I've seen Tom Thumb in many places. Another in the Northeast is Cumberland Farms, pretty popular in New England, as well as Quick Check in the Hudson Valley NY (Poughkeepsie area)...just fun for a literal quick bite...I have all the Apps downloaded when I return too....