Prime 1000 Steakhouse
St. Louis

While staying at the Magnolia Hotel we’d asked at the concierge desk for a recommendation for dinner. We were told that if we walked up and down nearby Washington Avenue we would find every type of restaurant you could possibly wish for. We did not find that to be the case. We ended up at Prime 1000 after walking quite far and circling back to it after having put it as a “maybe” when we originally passed it.

It turned out to be a wonderful stop in. We had some very amazing steaks with great sides. I only remembered to take pictures of the salads because we were enjoying the meal and each other’s company so much. But I highly recommend stopping in if you are ever in St. Louis. You will not regret it.

The Brewhouse
St. Louis

After visiting the Gateway Arch we stopped into the Brewhouse Historical Sports Bar at the Hyatt for lunch. At the recommendation of Sriram’s eye doctor we ordered up some St. Louis Toasted Ravioli – a local specialty. It was quite tasty, but I didn’t find it any more or less interesting than any other toasted ravioli I’d ever had. We also ordered the chili which came with delicious cornbread. It was a good stop, but the most noteworthy thing about our lunch at the Brewhouse is that it was where Sriram lost his favorite hat. A total bummer, and when we called to see if anyone had turned it in, no one had. Farewell great hat. I hope whoever wears you now loves you just as much.

54th Street
St. Louis

In need of a snack before hitting the road we stopped into the 54th Street Grill. We ordered the fried pickles. These were tasty enough (deep fried anything usually equals tasty), but I can never rave about spears. I’ll never understand why anyone makes fried pickle spears when chips are so superior. Pickle-fryers of the world take note.

Kauffman Stadium Hot Dog Stand
Kansas City

On our walkabout around the stadium we checked out the various concession stands to determine what we’d grab before heading back to our seats and the specialty hotdog stand definitely won out. I got the Royal Bacon Blue Dog, because I can pretty much never resist anything with blue cheese and bacon (the dog came with red onions, too), while Sriram got the All Star BBQ Dog (topped with pulled pork, cole slaw, pickles and BBQ sauce). They were both delicious (if not a little messy to eat). Definitely a big step up from the traditional ballpark frank.

Arthur Bryant BBQ
Kansas City

Our trip to Arthur Bryant’s was quite comical. Throughout the day, as we had driven around the Kansas City area, a wall claiming “World Famous” BBQ loomed over us. We had joked about it more than once. If we asked the Queen of England about this BBQ joint, would she have heard? How about the Pope? The fifth Beatle? Our guess was no. So when we left Kauffman Stadium in search of some Kansas City BBQ we couldn’t help but laugh when (with the help of our GPS) we landed under that giant sign heralding that World Famous BBQ. To its credit, it turned out to be pretty famous, at least among politicos and celebrities. Photos lined the walls of President Obama’s visits, as well as John McCain and Sarah Palin’s stop on the campaign trail. Even President Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter dined there. You can add the likes of Steven Spielberg and Jack Nicholson to the list.

We got in line (it’s cafeteria style) and ordered a basic pulled pork plate. The food was so good that we found ourselves wishing that we hadn’t already eaten (though really no regrets about those hotdogs), as we only had room for a snack. There were three sauces available, but nothing beat the Original.

It may not look like much, but believe me, if you ever find yourself nearby, Arthur Bryant’s is 100% worth the trip!

****************************************************************************************
From August 12 – October 15, 2014 my husband and I traveled the northern United States in my Honda Civic. Cross Country Civic was started (and will eventually be completed) to document our cross country adventure. All comments and questions welcome.