Smokey Pokey - Review #10

Welcome back everybody to a long needed, and hopefully awaited addition of the Oklahoma Breakfast Beat!  I apologize for the lack of new breakfast material over the last month, it has been quite the whirlwind and I'm honestly not sure what happened to November.

To get us back on track, BJ and I were joined by Mike this morning and headed to the Smokey Pokey at the intersection of Highway 51 and I-35.  For lack of a better term, it isn't anymore than a pit stop along the side of the road that claims to have the largest Beer Barn in the state, and is basically a gas station with a restaurant attached.  If this place didn't exist, the area would be nothing more than THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!  I had heard a while back that the Smokey served breakfast, but it had taken a while for us to make it out that way to try it, and after trying it I'm quite sad it took us so long to get out there.

Sorry for the quality of the pic, I thought it came out better.

Known more for it's BBQ, none of us had particularly high expectations when we walked in at 8am this morning (yes, late for us!). The first thing that stood out was the prices, which for the supposed amount of food described on the menu was dirt cheap.  Only $5 for 2 eggs, sausage, hash browns, and toast.

Yes, BJ ate all this!

We all agreed that the hashbrowns were by far the best part of the meal, and probably the best ones we've had on our breakfast tour. The were crispy, but not overdone and had a great seasoning.  The sausage was very good with just enough spice and flavor.  I don't usually like ham very much, but I tried a piece of Mike's and it was excellent, at least as ham goes. BJ felt that his pancakes were average at best, though they looked promising at the beginning!  And as usual eggs are eggs, and toast is toast.

This was my amazing breakfast!

 And overall.......

Food: 4.5 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $ (out of 5)
Overall: 4.5 of 5 cups of coffee

Amazingly, and very surprisingly this may have been the best place we've been to yet when you factor in the cost.  The amount of quality food for the $$$ was pretty amazing and the hash browns were definitely far above almost everywhere else we've been. If I have time, I plan on blogging about some of the breakfasts I had during my recent trip to Seattle that included a smoked salmon eggs benedict.........very yummy!  If not, next week we'll continue our journey to find the best breakfast in Oklahoma!

Until next time keep on eating breakfast, and remember never to judge a book by it's cover!

The outside of the restaurant, on the left hand side in the picture below

The gas station/restaurant in all it's glory! Looking north in this picture, I-35 is just to the left.

California Special Edition #2 - Jim Denny's Diner - Review #11

It is time for the second and probably last California special edition of the Oklahoma Breakfast Beat.  This morning David and I ventured to to Jim Denny's Diner (JD's) in downtown Sacramento, about 2 blocks from the state Capitol. Located at 816 12 St. and the corner of Terminal Way, JD's has been around since 1934 and only has counter seating for about 12 people and narrow walkway three waitresses squeeze past each other as they serve and cook the food right in front of you.

The reason we decided to go to JD's was due to an episode of Man vs Food where they focused on the giant pancake they make, otherwise known as the Hubcap with Spokes.  The Hubcap with Spokes is composed of a giant pancake that hangs 3-4 inches over the edge of the plate, and on top of which is an egg in the center with six radiating pieces of bacon and sausage.  It turns out that on this morning they had already made a half dozen or so of these giant pancakes.  One of the best parts is that they cook this monstrosity of a pancake on a giant griddle right in front of you.

The making of the Hubcap!

The pancake itself is about an inch thick and surprisingly moist considering it's size.  The sausage links are tasty and the bacon was excellent, though they could have been a bit crispier. The easiest way to eat this giant is to tear it off piece by piece and dip it in a bowl of syrup.  David got the full stack which is a slightly smaller version of the the Hupcap, but with the same excellent taste!.  To top it off, the coffee was quite good, and filled regularly

Before!  Note the paper they put on the counter to accommodate the size.

After! Approximately 1/4 eaten.

 And overall.......

Food: 4.5 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $$$ (out of 5)
Overall: 4 of 5 cups of coffee

Overall, this was definitely a worthwhile trip.  There was no realistic possibility that I would actually finish all of this, and I left with two full boxes of leftover pancake! It is definitely big enough to feed a good sized family. In the end, the purpose of this trip was the experience.  It seems quite amazing to get such a giant pancake in such a small diner. The service was very good, the coffee was refilled quickly and the food speaks for itself.   Considering the size of the pancake and ability to make multiple meals out of it, the $13 cost is more than appropriate.

Next week I'll be back in Oklahoma having breakfast at a new place with BJ!

Counter and kitchen, look at the giant bucket of potatoes!

The diner and David holding the two boxes of leftovers

Next time we'll come for lunch and the super burger!

The surroundings!

California Special Edition #1 - Wren's Cafe - Review #10

I'm here in California for two weeks and this is the first of what I hope are several special California editions of the Oklahoma Breakfast Beat.  This edition is also somewhat special in that it marks our 10th review!  It's only been two months or so, but it's been a lot of fun and I appreciate all the positive feedback.  Breakfast recommendations are always welcome so please send them my way!

My trip out here was somewhat adventurous with large thunderstorms in Oklahoma resulting in my flight getting delayed and getting stuck in Denver for the night.  It actually worked out great though as I surprisingly got to meet up with an old friend who gave me a recommendation for a breakfast place in Guthrie, and I was booked on a flight first thing the next morning to Sacramento instead of SFO.  My best friend David picked me up in Sacramento and we began the drive down to my parents in Castro Valley.  Dave has been a big supporter of the blog and had already told me he wanted to be part of it while I'm out here......so of course we decided to get breakfast on our way down. On the west side of Vacaville, right along the freeway is a place called Wren's Cafe.  If you are like me and have driven 80 between the bay and Sacramento a thousand times you've definitely seen it, and yet probably never stopped to try it out. It always has a packed parking lot and so Dave thought that we should try it out.

It turns out that Wren's has been around since 1985 and is family owned.  They serve breakfast and lunch and typically have a long wait. We showed up and were second in line and had to wait about 15 minutes.  It's a small place with about 15 tables and a small counter space.  The majority of the waitresses are slightly younger looking versions of Betty White with painted on eyebrows that give the place kind of a homey feeling.

In order to properly rate it, I pretty much stuck with their version of my typical breakfast.  I had eggs overeasy, 2 sausage links, their home fried potatoes and toast, but I also had a craving for bacon and got two strips of that as well and boy am I glad I did.  The bacon was just about perfect, flavorful and crispy.  I usually prefer sausage patties over links, but these were quite exceptional as well.  I always worry about home fried potatoes because they have a tendency to be dry and bland, but these were the exact opposite and a good change of pace from the normal hash browns.

Love the bacon and sausage.  Toast is on a separate plate.

Dave decided to get a bacon, sausage, ham and chedder omelette with a biscuit and gravy.  And wow was this omelette huge, I hadn't seen an omelette that big in years! He described it as fresh, crispy and very tasty, and gave it a solid 4 out of 5. 

Dave's omelette and biscuit's 'n gravy.

Now as I mentioned in the last blog, I have to talk about coffee.   Coffee is really the backbone of a proper breakfast in my opinion.  It is the first thing served to you and is refilled throughout your meal.  The beauty is that for a restaurant it is a really easy thing to provide and keep your customers happy.  I don't have many demands about my coffee except that it taste decent (doesn't have to be great, though that's a plus) and that my cup is never empty. I should never have to ask for a refill!  The majority of places we've been have accomplished this feat fairly easily, sure the cup might get low, but rarely is it ever empty. However, this was the one weakness at Wren's as on at least two occasions my cup was completely empty and was that way for several minutes each time.  I know they were busy, but they are also small and really there are no excuses for an empty coffee cup.  It was really the only downfall in this place. 

And overall.......

Food: 4.5 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $$$ (out of 5)
Overall: 4 of 5 cups of coffee

Without a doubt the food was fantastic, and some of the best I've had at a breakfast place.  The prices were definitely significantly higher compared to Oklahoma, and if I were to compare it on face value this would have deserved the highest marks for cost; however, for California I think the prices were relatively average so I'm trying to base it on the location rather than a direct comparison. The only downfall for this place was the delivery of what was otherwise very good coffee, and a moderate wait to get seated. Despite those two issues, I would highly recommend Wren's for anyone traveling the 80 corridor!

Dave and the ambiance.

Later this week Dave and I will be heading to downtown Sacramento for some giant pancakes.  Stay tuned for that update, the pancakes really are amazing! They don't call them the Hubcap for nothing! Until next time keep on eating breakfast! 

That's highway 80 right outside the front door.  Exit Merchant St/Alamo Dr. if you're heading west.

 

Grammy's Grill - Review #9

Well it's time again for another breakfast review from this past Saturday morning's outing.  This week BJ had recommended we try the Stonewolf casino out at the intersection of the Cimarron turnpike and highway 18 between Pawnee and Glencoe.   He had eaten at their $5 breakfast buffet numerous times before and figured it was worth us trying out.  Well we got out to to the casino at about 7:30 and it turns out that they no longer serve breakfast.

We were at a bit of a loss of what to do.  The choices were a relatively new place in Pawnee that BJ had tried on the way to his farm, but he wasn't very impressed by, but that we hadn't written about or to a known and trusted entity, the previously highly rated Morrison Cafe.  For the sake of keeping the blog fresh, we decided to head to Pawnee. 

Pawnee is a a town a lot like Perry that at one time was a bustling little country town with a vibrant town square, car dealerships and a local rodeo.  Now, like so many other small towns it is slowly dying with empty storefronts far outnumbering those that are occupied. A sad remembrance of former Main St. America.  I had been to Pawnee several times before, all to eat at an amazing and long-lived steakhouse called Click's, definitely a place to try!

The side of the restuarant.

A new place had recently opened up in town called Grammy's in an old building where they hadn't even bothered to take down the sign of the previous establishment.  Yes, we have now gone to Granny's and Grammy's in back to back weeks.  It was a somewhat unusual place that was a cross between a fast food restaurant and a sit-down restaurant.  As you walk in there is a counter where you order your meal like you would at any McDonald's or Dairy Queen.  They give you your coffee and water at the counter and then you go find a seat up in the dining room where they thing bring you your food and refill your coffee. It was just a different way of running a restaurant.

The sign from the last restaurant.

Overall the service was decent and the coffee was good, but most importantly it was plentiful and refreshed regularly! This is an important feature that will be highlighted more in the next blog (California Special Edition #1).  BJ got his regular pancakes and eggs, and much to his surprise they were quite good with all the requisite fluffiness required! Overall, BJ gave his a strong 4 out of 5.

BJ's pancake and eggs.

I got my usual eggs overeasy, hashbrowns, wheat toast and sausage.  The sausage was quite good, with a good taste and met the appropriate spiciness levels.  As always the eggs were good.  It's really hard to screw up eggs, and in my opinion if you can't cook eggs you shouldn't be in the breakfast business.  Today though, the hashbrowns were the disappointment.  They weren't horrible by any means, but they were a little to heavy on the grease and lacked the necessary crispiness as a result.  Overall, I would give mine a 3.5 out of 5. 

My sausage hashbrowns, eggs and toast. Note the lack of crispiness in the hashbrowns.

 And overall.......

Food: 3.5 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $$ (out of 5)
Overall: 3.5 of 5 cups of coffee

Surprisingly, based on BJ's previous experience, this was good, slightly above average breakfast.  On a price level it was excellent, only $13 or so for the two of us.  The pancakes were above average and on my end the sausage was definitely the highlight. Although its a slightly unusual atmosphere dominated by Lonestars on the wall, lots of exceptionally large fellow diners it would  be worth going to again.  Pancakes and sausage definitely maybe the way to go here. 

The greater Pawnee downtown!

I will be in California for two weeks and I plan on doing some special editions from out west, the first of which will be Wren's Cafe in Vacaville that David and I went to after he picked me up at the airport.  Stay tuned!

Granny's Kitchen - Review #8

In order to stay up-to-date, I'm going to get the review on this morning's breakfast done right away, as I ideally should every week.

Well this was the first breakfast for us following BJ's retirement on Tuesday.  And surprise, surprise this was also the first time I think I have ever beaten him to the restaurant!  Dang lazy retired people!

Today we stayed local and ventured to Granny's Kitchen, a relatively new place on the south end of Main St. that we had been to once before, prior to starting this blog. It's located in the building of the old Sushi House and has a nice, relatively plain decor, is clean and has muted TV's on the wall with news on.  Our waitress this morning was even a previous Mom's waitress and she gave BJ a hug when he showed up.

Granny doesn't look very happy!

 On this morning, BJ returned to his usual breakfast of pancakes and eggs. The pancakes he felt were average at best, and even somewhat burned.  Definitely far from the recent quality at Shortcakes and Morrison Cafe.

They lack fluffiness!

 I got the Cowboy breakfast which included the same pancakes and an unusual concoction of fried potatoes mixed with sausage, peppers, and cheese covered by your choice of eggs.....which were over easy for me of course!  As you can see in the picture below, It really looks quite delicious and smells really good too. What the picture doesn't tell you though is that for the most part it is really a mish-mash of pretty bland food.  I used ketchup (which I almost never use at breakfast) to try and moisten up the potatoes, but it just didn't help much.  This really needed some hot sauce, salt, pepper and well.....anything with some flavor and a little zing. 

 And overall.......

Food: 3 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $$$$ (out of 5)
Overall: 2 of 5 cups of coffee


Overall, this meal didn't stack up to our recent success at much smaller, emptier, cheaper places. Considering this was our second time going to Granny's I had hopes that it would have improved, but while it definitely has potential it doesn't give you the bang for your buck other than in pure quantity.  Compared to most of the places we've been recently it was substantially more expensive at $10/person rather than $7 or so per person.

Next week we'll be back out trying another new, as of yet to be decided diner.  After that there will likely be some special editions from California where I'll be heading for the last two weeks of October!  Until next time, keep on eating breakfast!

Lucille's, The Biker Buffet and BJ's Retirement Breakfast - Review #7

Well I must apologize to everyone for taking an extra week to get this review posted, it has been far to long since our last post.  I'm not really sure what happened, but nonetheless I didn't get it done until this morning.

Last week was a pretty cool week when it comes to our little blog.  First of all it was in celebration of BJ's retirement which officially started 3 days later on October.  In memory of that special occasion we took a longer drive than we had yet to do and head west out to the tiny town of Mulhall about 20 miles west of Stillwater to try out the Biker Buffet at self-declared world famous Lucille's.  We also didn't leave until about 8:30 which for those unindoctrinated readers is usually about the time we are finishing breakfast.  We did this for a reason though as it allowed us to have our largest group yet go with us for this celebratory breakfast. Yes, most of the attendees think we are borderline nuts for going at our usual 7am time when it is more appropriate to be fast asleep in bed.

 Now there is a bit of a story to Lucille's that makes it so famous.  The first and maybe least important is that it is located in the town of Mulhall which is pretty much been wiped off the map a couple of times by some serious tornados (an F4), leaving it full of temporary homes and trailers.  Lucille's is named after the daughter of the founder of Mulhall and who was deemed the first "Cowgirl" as a member of the Congress of the Rough Riders and Ropers in the early 1900's and who died in a car accident in 1940.  Lucille's the restaurant has also had some tragic events the culmination of which was in 2009 when there original building, an old bank building, was gutted by a fire.  Not to be kept down though Lucille's reopened in a new, larger building across the street in 2011 which was the location of our breakfast last week. 

The original Lucille's across the street from the new building.

 So joining BJ and I for last week's breakfast was his wife and parasitologist extraordinaire Eileen, my resident mates Mee Ja and Nick, and our friend Brendan, a 4th year vet student.

From left to right: BJ, Brendan, Nick, me, Mee Ja, Eileen.

 Well enough of the sentimental crap, our blog wouldn't be complete without our breakfast review.  This was relatively easy to figure out since we all got the same thing, the Biker Buffet an all you can eat filling of sausage, bacon, eggs, french toast, biscuits and gravy, seasoned fried potatoes and lots of coffee (of course)!

All of the food was quite good, but the consensus was that the potatoes and french toast were definitely the highlights.   The French Toast in particular was quite amazing, served fresh and fluffy with a solid helping of powdered sugar.  Though the $9.99/per person was higher than we normally go for it was definitely worth it for the amount of food you got and for this celebration!

The goods!

And overall.......

Food: 4.5 of 5 pancakes (with a 5 of 5 for the French Toast on it's own)
Cost: $$$$ (out of 5)
Overall: 4 of 5 cups of coffee
Breakfast compatriots: 5 of 5
 
Overall, this was probably our most fun week out with a great group of friends and lots of quality food so on that alone it should get a 5 out 5.  However, when comparing it to the rest of our reviews it is going to be brought down slightly by the  higher than usual price, and while the food was definitely of high quality we all agreed that it rated about a 4 out of 5, with a special first place 5 out of 5 specifically for the French Toast!  The beauty of the buffet though is the flexibility to stock up on your favorite dish which can't help but raise the grade.

Happy retirement BJ!! To many stress-less breakfasts in the years ahead!

Looking south down the main drag outside Lucille's.

Looking northeast down the main drag outside Lucille's.

Shortcakes Diner - Review #6

Wow, I can't believe we have been writing this blog for 6 weeks already........time really does fly!  This week's review is coming a couple of days early because BJ is leaving for an 8 day vacation in Montana and Wyoming on Saturday morning (yes, I am very jealous!). So rather than drive a ways as we have been prone to the past few weeks we decided to try out one of Stillwater's local and long-lived haunts, Shortcakes Diner located on Main St.  To me Shortcakes represents the quintessential truck-stop diner, open 24-7 and serving quality greasy food.  I think the best comparision is probably to a an old Waffle House that I once went to in Auburn, Alabama.  To the local college students it is best thought of as the post-bar, drunkin', greasy spoon. In fact, the first time I went to shortcakes was about 2am one night with a couple of friends and one of the guys in the booth behind us was passed out and literally had to be carried out by his friends.  Definitely a classic Stillwater moment that I'll never forget!

As a slightly added plus, one of the waitresses from Mom's now works at Shortcakes.  According to her the rumor is that they are trying to get Mom's up and running!  Maybe I won't have to do a retrospective review after all, long live Mom's!

It definitely goes by the classic, don't judge a book by its cover scenario as the breakfast food at least is really quite good. For several weeks I had listened to BJ rave about their pancakes, and when we talk about his pancake ratings this is what all others were being compared too.  With that said it was a must have experience for our little blog. This morning we were lucky enough to have a special guest, our friend and my resident mate, Mee Ja.  She won't meet us for our 7am Saturday morning jaunts, but during the week its entirely doable.

Well on to the important part, the food!  As mentioned above, BJ loves the pancakes here so of course he got his usual pancakes and eggs.  And I think for the first time yet at least for an individual meal we have a rating of a 5 out of 5!

Now aren't those fluffy looking pancakes? Perfection!

On this morning, which I'm planning on making my one meal of the day, I had my usual hashbrowns and eggs overeasy, and for this special occasion I got the full country breakfast and got French Toast as well. Like BJ's pancakes the french toast was fantastic with plenty of butter and powdered sugar.  If I haven't said it before I'm not a user of syrup...........yes I know I'm weird.  The hashbrowns were really good and are always slightly amusing as they are cooked to a specific size within a metal ring that holds them all together.  The eggs were good, it really is tough to screw up eggs.  The only downfall was the sausage which was average, but nothing to right home about and lacking any real spice.

Mee-Ja got the same order as me, with whole wheat toast instead of French Toast, and gave her's a rating of 4 out of 5, which is pretty much inline with what I felt it was worth. To her the best part was the ambiance and good company (isn't that sweet of her!!).

And overall.......

Food: 4.5 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $$ (out of 5)
Overall: 4 of 5 cups of coffee

Overall I don't know if it quite matches the Morrison Cafe for me, but BJ's love of their pancakes definitely raises the food up a notch.  I definitely feel like the way to go at Shortcakes is with the carbs and getting the French Toast or pancakes.  The sausage and hasbrowns are a tad bit greasy, but that's not unexpected.

We may not be having a review next week as BJ is going to be out of town through the following Saturday, but we hope to have a big gathering the week after that to celebrate his retirement!  Until next time, keep on eating breakfast!

The Morrison Cafe - Review #5

Well another Saturday morning has arrived and once again BJ and I were on the road to another breakfast venue. And what a fantastic morning it has been!  I cold front really did come in and it was in the high 50's as I left to go meet BJ at the lab and is only 61 right now.  Compared to the 105 it was just two days ago its down right chilly.

This morning took us to the small town of Morrison about 12 miles north of Stillwater on highway 64 about halfway between Perry and Pawnee.  It's so small that if you blink you may miss it.   We ventured to the Morrison Cafe which BJ and I have visited once before, approximately two months ago, prior to starting this  blog.  It's a tiny little place on the south side of the road with a sign out front that says "All you can eat catfish."  This of course prompted the discussion that I definitely need to try catfish before I move out of Oklahoma.  Morrison is a small railroad town where the freight trains seem to regularly stop, and as we experienced a train worker actually hopped off and ran in for a to-go meal.

When we walked in there was a group of 4 guys who soon left, leaving us as the only patrons which in many cases wouldn't necessarily be a good sign.  However, in this case it was quite the opposite.  The place probably holds about 20 people max (in tables) and has a counter you can sit at as well.  I don't recommend the counter though as it was loose and according to the waitress almost fell off when they pushed on it yesterday.  The rest of the place has a simple, clean decor with a good view out the large front windows.

Our coffee was quickly served and it was refilled multiple times.  This morning I had the country breakfast which included the usual sausage, eggs overeasy, hashbrowns and for an added adventure a short stack of pancakes. The hasbrowns today were different than usual in that they were definitely homemade, chopped in to larger pieces and cooked with onions, a great change from the usual hashbrowns.  The sausage was tasty, though I suspect was from out of a pre-made package, and the pancakes were light, fluffy and served with plenty of real butter and syrup.  BJ ordered his usual pancakes and eggs which he felt were much above par compared to what he's had the previous few weeks.

The food was fresh and delicious and the atmosphere was top notch for our little Saturday morning conversations about the going-ons of life.  The price was definitely good for the amount of food you got and the service and coffee were above average, especially compared to last weeks adventure (misadventure??).  This maybe the closest place we've found to Mom's yet! It definitely made for a delightful way to start the weekend.

And overall...................

Food: 4 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $$ (out of 5)
Overall: 4.5 of 5 cups of coffee

This coming week we'll probably be blogging at bit early as we'll probably go to Shortcakes diner sometime during the middle of the week since BJ will be out of town on vacation next weekend.  And sorry for the lack of pictures, for some reason it just slipped the mind this week.  Until next time keep on eating breakfast!

Homestead Family Restaurant - Review #4

Time for the second review of the weekend.  Yesterday's breakfast adventures took us to the oil town of Cushing.  Cushing lacks the old town charm of Perry and never makes you wonder how nice it once might have been.  It is essentially a giant strip mall developed in a time before there were strip malls.  It essentially has two restaurants, the first of which we tried yesterday morning, the Homestead Family Restaurant. 

When we got to the restaurant the parking lot was full, always a good omen, even in a town with only two restaurants.  As we parked a large, middle-aged man, on a bicycle wearing a t-shirt that looked like he hadn't taken it off in a couple of years road up to the back of the restaurant, and BJ commented that he had probably gotten a DUI a couple weeks earlier and couldn't drive to get breakfast anymore.  Nevertheless, he sat down in a chair outside the back of the restaurant with one of the cooks or waitress.  I guess he's a regular.

The Homstead has been around since 1953 and was founded by one of the founding family's in the area.  It is clean and has a good decor with pictures of the original family on the walls, and the menu tells the story of how the restaurant got started.

The service definitely left something to be desired.  Our waitress was more concerned with talking on the phone than  with serving us.  The coffee was good and was refilled regularly by the other waitresses.  Both BJ and I ordered our usual.  I had the sausage, hasbrowns, toast and eggs, and BJ had his pancakes and eggs.  The eggs were fine, and the hashbrowns weren't bad, but the sausage definitely left quite a bit to be desired.  Both by the relatively bland taste and the shape (as you can see in the picture) these appeared to be be frozen patties just heated up on the grill.  The originality was definitely lacking.  BJ said his pancakes were good, but definitely not the best he's had recently. 

And overall...............

Food: 3.5 of 5 pancakes
Cost: $$$ (out of 5)
Overall: 3 of 5 cups of coffee

The food itself was decent and the ambiance good.  However, the service was average at the very best and it was a bit more expensive for less quality than we've gotten the past couple of weeks.  Next week the journey will continue somewhere, location still to be determined.  Until next time keep on eating breakfast!

 The town of Cushing on the drive out!