Johnnie's Grill

While on a storm chasing trip last weekend, I was searching through the restaurant listings in El Reno, OK and checking out the reviews on Yelp. El Reno is not a large town, although very quaint in nature. We decided on Johnnie's Grill because of all the rave reviews it received on Yelp. The only bad ones were about not going during the rush hour because service was lacking. It was about 2:30 in the afternoon when we stopped by and there were only 4-5 other tables of guests in the place. Just having burgers the night before, we decided on the famous coneys. The Hubby ordered his with chili and cheese and I ordered mine plain, along with a large side of tater tots to share. This was after we were assured they were all beef hot dogs (we don't eat any pork for health reasons - that stuff is ridiculously bad for us!). A short time passed when one of the cooks brought our food by - Greg's was smothered so we couldn't see the hit dog, but since my were plain, we got to see the actual meat and we were so glad we did. The hot dogs were PINK. I was shocked and astounded. I asked why they were pink and he said it's a color that the distributors inject into the hot dogs.

Why do hot dogs need to be colorful?

I told him I could not eat them and neither could the Hubby since we have food coloring dietary restrictions for our health. Neither of us are allergic to food coloring, but there is honestly no need for it in our food. People say we eat with our eyes, which I agreed, but food can be just as colorful naturally. Pink hot dogs that were supposed to be all beef? Ummmm, no.

Service was cordial, but no smiles or helpful suggestions. I'm sure questions and requests like ours (no pork or food coloring) don't happen very often. Management should really train their staff to be more open to the needs of the guests and respectful. The whole thing felt off some how - couldn't really put my finger on it. To add to the feeling I had, they did not accept debit or credit cards, cash and check only. I know some Mom and Pop places are like that due to the fees credit card companies charge, but I also know the less ethical ones do it so they don't have to claim all their sales. I'm not saying I know the facts, just stating my opinion. Something didn't feel right to me, and we were glad to leave that place and find another restaurant to share our business with. Zero stars for food and service for Johnnie's Grill. Disappointing to say the least.

Boston's - pizza and beer

Not sure if I have written about this place before and considering I am catching up on some past experiences, I realized I still have a love for pizza. Maybe it's not just a teenage or young twenty-something passion. Cold pizza isn't quite as appealing as it was before - maybe that's the only sign that I'm growing up. For my milestone birthday (not saying which milestone), my sweet Hubby took me to Boston's for my free flatbread. Checking with the server about just how spicy the Spicy Chicken Pesto flatbread was, I decided to go for it. Besides, it would go great with my Sam Adams seasonal beer that had already been ordered. While the menu boasted of a crispy crust, I like that it wasn't too crispy. Toppings were chicken, basil pesto, poblano peppers, diced tomatoes, feta and mozzarella cheese. Divine...

The Hubby ordered wings and usually they are fantastic, but the last two times we ordered them, they were on the fattier side. He ordered the garlic wings and I had one - good flavor - intense garlic. Let's just say, not too many kisses happened until I gave him a peppermint - lol. 

Gusto Pizza Company

We took a weekend trip to see the children in Iowa (my Spring Break, but not theirs - they don't get the normal week long Spring Break (!?!?)) and Greg found a fantastic gourmet pizza place for us to eat dinner one night. Gusto Pizza Company. Great atmosphere and layout of the dining room and kitchen. Be prepared to wait a bit for the pie, it's worth it though! The children, well teenagers really, just wanted pepperoni... at a gourmet pizza place. The lady behind the counter was like...really? 

Really. 

So they shared a whole pepperoni pizza. Exciting, but they loved it. 

Greg and I shared the Mona Lisa - his pick. I was kind of skeptical, until I tried a bite. After that, he was lucky he got a piece! Crust, rosemary olive oil, garlic, cremini mushrooms, roma tomatoes, kalamata olives, romano, and fresh ricotta. WOW. I savored every bite of it. Couldn't even order a beverage because I didn't want to change the taste I had in my mouth from the pizza. 

Something (besides the children) to look forward to driving to Iowa for. Highly recommend. 

Storm chasing dinner - Portobello Grille

We started our storm chasing weekend in Elk City. Figured it was a pretty central location for Saturday's forecast. Searching through Yelp, there were only 2 highly recommended places to eat since I'm shying away from fastfood places. After checking into the hotel and getting their recommendation, we headed across the street to the Portobello Grille. The Hubby and I both ordered burgers - mushroom and swiss for him, and cheese and avocado for me. No lie, they looked and tasted like I made and grilled them at home. For the $10 each, it was so worth it! For my side i chose the homemade tomato basil soup and after the burger I shouldn't have been surprised. One word - deliciousness. I look forward to storm chasing in Elk City again!

The Machine Shed, Des Moines

On a brief trip visiting the kids, we decided on a popular restaurant in Clive called The Machine Shed. It's a  Cracker Barrel meets Iowa type place with a gift shop in the front, lots of tractors outside, funny signs on the walls, large tables (like the size of barn door!!), very rustic, and to top it all off we drank out of mason jars.

Note: sharing is good - the portions are extra large!

Our server was Cassidy and Sarah (my daughter would give her a grade of A because she was attentive, friendly, gave us suggestions on her favorite meals). I concur on every point. Great positive attitude and took very good care of us.

(I was so hire her!)

The four of us shared a chose two appetizer and two main course meals and we could barely finish it! The Beer Cheese Fondue comes with soft and thick pretzel sticks and it was my favorite. It was enjoyed thoroughly by the whole family. The other appetizer was potato skins with shredded beef and BBQ sauce. Sarah said it has everything on it she would ever want. (lol) Jason (my son) said his favorite part of the meal was the sweet potato with cinnamon butter that came on the side of the fried chicken.

In asking my husband what his favorite part of the meal, he answered "the water pitcher on the table was cool"; laughing he said the flavor of the gravy in the pot roast was also his favorite. Followed by the pretzel stick and then he wished he saved room for a piece of the 11" apple pie in the case as we left.

It did have a very diverse menu, expensive steaks, large burgers, flavorful fish, and home-style favorites. My son says now he wants to go back and have dessert. Ah...kids. :)

The Keeter Center, Branson, MO

 We had a wonderful week in Branson, thanks partly to our great friends who gifted, yes gifted, us their timeshare for the week. It was nice to be able to cook breakfast every morning and a few of the nights we were in town. It helped keep costs down and provided a more family atmosphere that we were looking for since it was a family Christmas after all. On Wednesday morning at 9am, we took the kids back to their Dad’s house in LeGrand, IA and then turned around and came back to Branson, MO for two more nights. We arrived back in Branson at 3:30am on Thursday. Wow…

After trying to recover a bit Thursday night, The Hubby surprised me with a dinner date to The Keeter Center. While others may just see a huge log cabin, amazing interior and incredible food, I found the place tremendously astounding. The Keeter Center is on the property of the College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, MO. The students at the college all work on campus in some sort of fashion in order to graduate debt-free. Their workstations include the restaurant as servers and cooks, the mill, where they grind their own flour and sell bread mixes, the fruitcake and jelly kitchen, the dairy, milking cows, and many other places. There are 44 majors in the college and are internationally accredited.

Service was impeccable from Reagan, and the food was beyond spectacular. 

I ordered the special, Chicken Cordon Bleu and the sauce was literally mouthwatering. Grilled carrots fresh from the garden along with asparagus that couldn’t have been cooked any better. The Hubby ordered the Chicken Duet with mashed potatoes and the same veggies. The meat practically fell off the bone. The Hubby actually had room for dessert!! White Chocolate Bread Pudding with an apple cider sauce... oh my goodness... During the meal, another student came in and graced us with her wonderful piano playing abilities. What a great night! He sure does know how to touch my heart in the hospitality field. What a dear!

I can’t wait until we go back to Branson for many reasons, but one specifically being to take the tour of the campus and eat in the restaurant again. They also have a 15 room bed and breakfast I just might have to try out as well.

The Keeter Center gets a huge 5 stars in my book!!

Des Moines Outback

While passing through Des Moines, IA we decided to stop at a favorite of ours, Outback. We have eaten at this particular location once before, so figured it was a good choice.

The wait wasn't long although misquoted horribly; service was okay; and the food/presentation left something to be desired. The Hubby and I split most meals because we just don't eat the size portions that are served in the restaurants today. We usually order an appetizer and one meal to split. Every other time we split a meal at Outback, it comes on two plates. This time, I guess either the server didn't ring it in properly or the expo cook didn't bother. Either way, we had to ask for another plate for both courses.

My favorite thing at Outback is their wedge salad. Not this visit. Presentation and taste left a lot to be desired. Never mind the fact that I asked for no onions and they didn't bother to adhere to that request. Overall it was an okay visit. I'm sure we will try them again, for as many times as we travel up that way.