2025 Road Trip Restaurant Meals (for now)

 It may look like all I did was eat my way across the country, but these meals, as well as those in the previous posts, were enjoyed over a period of 5 months.  

Once I was back in Sequim, I went to the 7 Cedars Casino and then to the 7 Brothers Restaurant there.  They've had consistently good food when I've eaten there.   And a lot of it is fun as well.    I love a good Chicken Fried steak, but am also in like with Chicken Fried Chicken as well, and really don't like a lot of sauce glopped over it, so I asked for the sauce to be served on the side here.  The veggies were perfectly cooked. As for the chicken, well, I ate it all, along with the mashed taters.    It was my only meal of the day.  And I also won on the slot machines, so my dinner was paid for, 😜.   And if you're a member of the casino,  you also get a slight discount on your meals.  Always a nice benefit. 

There is a little restaurant in Sequim called the Oak Table Cafe.   I decided to go there for Breakfast the next morning.    My realtor introduced me to this little gem last year.   And as usual, there was a line up, but I was ok with waiting, cause I knew there was deliciousness inside.   The bacon was some of the best I think I've ever eaten.  Thick, perfectly cooked, and well, the whole meal was amazing.  

We're not finished with Sequim either.   Or with bacon and eggs.   I tried out the Black Bear Diner the next day and have to say their bacon and eggs were good as well.  And as you can see, I was a hungry person, and started eating before I took the picture.    Bacon and Eggs are such a simple meal, and yet, I think one of the hardest meals to make, and this is speaking as someone who's cooked for people.    I know I'm picky on how my eggs are cooked, and have offered many an egg to the kitchen goddess when I've overcooked or broken the yolk or just didn't like the way the egg was looking at me in the pan.  

I was staying in an Airbnb and didn't feel like cooking much while I was there, so I ate out for many of my meals.  

I did go back to the Dynasty Restaurant for one meal. I really like their Sweet and Sour Pork, and the rice is good as well.  

Have I mentioned the Halfway House restaurant in Brinnon, Washington, yet?  I've only eaten there a couple of times, but I will make the effort to stop in there for a meal when I'm either on my way to Sequim or leaving there.  The Monte Cristo has got to be almost an inch thick, and so good.  I've only ever been able to eat half of it.  And it's cooked all the way through.   

Don't forget the desserts either.  I didn't.  I got a Coconut Cream pie to go, and thoroughly enjoyed it later on.    I would have licked the container, but couldn't get my mouth in there to do so.  It was worth every single calorie.  

And as I was enjoying each mouthful, I kept thinking of a friend who would have loved it as well.  Sorry, Lynn, I ate it all.  

As I said, much of the time, as I was driving across the country, I had fast food.  One night, though, I stopped in Sidney, NE, at a Days Inn, I think it was.  A friend texted me and told me about a Mexican restaurant called Three Margaritas, which was pretty much next door.    I was tired and not hungry, but wanted a drink.  So I headed over there, and ummm, if I'm ever in Sidney, NE I'll be going back to that restaurant.   I ordered their Guacamole Salad and a Margarita and had a lovely end to a long day of driving.  

The margarita was in a very heavy glass, too heavy to pick up, and tasted amazing.   

I stopped in Mansfield, MO, cause I wanted to see the Laura Ingalls Wilder house museum,  and decided to fuel up at the Wingos Cafe.  The clubhouse was huge, and I ended up taking the other half with me and eating it later on.  

The museum was everything you'd want a Laura Ingalls Wilder museum to be, and I'll be writing about it over on my other blog, Sea Palm Treasures.    I've written about my other adventures and posted them there.  

I had to do it, saw that there was a Shoney's restaurant on my way home, and decided to stop for a meal.  We used to go to a Shoney's in Kingsland, Georgia, and so this was a nostalgic stop for me.    I think it was in Clanton, AL.   The offerings were the same on the buffet as I remembered, but the dessert bar was where I got excited.    They offered canned pears with mayo and cheddar cheese sprinkles.   It was a dish I was introduced to after moving to Florida.  I had never liked canned pears, still don't, but there was something about how this was done that appealed to me.   And it's also fun to introduce people to this southern delicacy.  😜  I mean, who puts mayo, grated cheddar cheese, and a maraschino cherry on top of a canned pear and offers it to people?  I would never have dreamed that that particular combo would taste, not only good, but really good.  

And now I'm home and back to cooking for myself.   Mostly.  I did go to the Legion for Burger Night

and then out to breakfast at a local restaurant the next day.    I got the Yoghurt Parfait 

and a bread pudding with a caramelized whiskey sauce.  

and that's it for my 2025 Road Trip.   

All recipes and their respective images are either original or adapted and credited, and are all the sole property of Sid's Sea Palm Cooking, © 2011-2026, with all rights reserved thereof. 

Restaurant Meals, 2025 Road Trip, Part Two

 When I'm traveling, doing my road trips, I like to try local restaurants, not chains, but local restaurants, although, I've also been known to stop at chains.  

Here are just a few of the places I've stopped at.  

I stopped in at the Moon Palace in Sequim.   Can't say I really loved the almond chicken, cause the sauce was a bit much, but the rest of the plate was good.   

Not super excited by this, but it was edible.   

I had breakfast at the Sunshine Cafe in downtown Sequim.   I'd ordered the sausage and eggs, but when the owner asked me how I liked my meal, I had to confess I didn't care for the sausage. She then brought me some of the best-tasting bacon I've ever eaten.   And the little pot of deliciousness there was some homemade tasting Marionberry preserves.  The sourdough toast was also pretty awesome.  I took a big bite before I took the picture.

And then we come to Vancouver Island.   My sisters told me about the Roast Beef Special every Sunday at the Mount Brenton Golf Course.   Look at the size of that Yorkshire Pudding.  

It was so good, I asked to go back the following week.  

And it was just as good.    The scenery was amazing as well.   We sat outside and looked over the golf course.  

Next on my wish list was Just Jakes, for their Greek Caesar with Shrimp.   I wasn't too impressed with the shrimp this trip; it was pretty pale and lackluster.   But the salad was just as good as I remembered it. 

It may seem like an odd combo, but if you're a fan of either salad, try combining them sometime.  You'll be glad you did. 

I also found out that a former favorite restaurant was back and serving food, so I got takeout from them one night.    The Dragon Juan Cafe was back. In its former iteration, it was not only a Chinese Restaurant but also a disco, back in the day.  And I was a semi-frequent customer of both the restaurant and the disco.  And yes, I know that dates me.  The Dragon also featured local bands, and I also have to admit to sitting in awe and watching the drummer on some of my favorites.  I had a mad crush on one young man, and now cannot recall his name, but if their band was playing, I was there.    And enough of the maundering around.  I ordered the combo and it ended up feeding me for three meals.   It was a more than generous portion.   

I also hit a few other favorite restaurants.    The CVI was one of them.  CVI stands for Cowichan Valley Inn.   

One night for dinner with one of my sisters, we ended up at the CVI and shared the Nacho platter.  Gotta say, I had more than enough to eat.   It was a very generous platter.   

I also hit a few other favorite restaurants.   Back when I was a teen, there was a restaurant called Romeo's in town; they used to have a disco there, along with the restaurant.  Well, times change, the restaurant and disco got shut down, and then it was opened up again, and as it turned out, it was a great place for me to meet my sisters for a meal, and we did meet there several times for a meal, that is.   

The last time there I tried their fish taco's and they were good. 

I was good, and just ate the fish, but the tacos, while tasty, were also a trifle messy to eat.  

I do like a good fish taco, and tried the ones at the Cook and Butcher in Cowichan Bay as well.  We were there for my sister's birthday, and umm, I ended up wearing most of a caesar drink, due to a glass implosion, no fault of the server, but the glass decided it was done being a glass just as she put it down on the table.  

I did get a picture of another one, that did not implode.   Look at this, it's a meal in itself.  

 I didn't order the drink, my nephew did, but the fish tacos I ordered were pretty darn good.  

And since I was on Vancouver Island, and it's a bit of a seafood heaven, I also enjoyed some fresh-caught crabs, courtesy of a nephew.   Heck, I even made the family my 😜 award-winning crabcakes one night, with some fresh caught Dungeness crab.  

Would you believe I almost got too much of a good thing with all that crab? Well, I did, but I am hoping my nephew is just as generous when I get up there next year.  Cause I will take advantage of him and his generosity. 

And staying with the fishy side, I also stopped in at a favorite local'ish pub in Crofton and had their cod bites a couple of times.  While enjoying the view over the bay.   This is at the Osborne Bay Pub in Crofton, B.C. 

I also tried a few more dishes off their menu, cause I wanted to make sure their food was good enough to brag on.  

They have daily specials and some incredible soups.  

I tried Montreal Smoked Meat for the first time there, and ummm, if it's all like this, I'm a big fan. 

This was such a generous-sized bowl of soup, I ended up taking some of it back to my place and reheated it the next day.  

I also tried the wings another time along with the soup of the day, and again, it was more than I could eat and I took the rest home to reheat.  I can't remember what this soup was called other than delicious. 

I tried the wings cause my sister had ordered them one time and they looked good, and I love wings. 

I did eat at a local White Spot in Campbell River, it's a local'ish chain, and has consistently decent food. 

One of my last meals with my sisters this trip was at the iconic Doghouse restaurant.    I'd not had any curry this trip, and when one of my sisters mentioned she'd not been here for a while for their curry, I jumped on the idea of getting their chicken curry.    This was a half order.  I hate to think what a full order would be, cause I ended up not even eating half of this.   This is also one of those semi-iconic dishes.  It consists of breaded deep-fried chicken cubes covered in very mild curry gravy, over your choice of rice, coleslaw, fries, or any combo thereof.   I like it with half rice and half coleslaw, but you do you.   As I've said, the serving is very generous and more than I can eat.  

And that does it for this trip down my culinary memory bank.  I'll share more meals at a later date.  Mainly cause I headed back to Sequim, Washington and then drove back across the country, and have to admit that many of my meals were the fast food variety, but I did eat at a few places that were good enough to blog boast about.   BTW, none of the restaurants mentioned here know who I am, and any reviews are purely my own.  

All recipes and their respective images are either original or adapted and credited, and are all the sole property of Sid's Sea Palm Cooking, © 2011-2026, with all rights reserved thereof. 

Restaurant Meals on my Road Trips, part one.

 I usually post about the food I make and enjoy eating, but I'm in a situation right now where I'm not cooking, well, not much, that is.  
I am however eating many of my meals in restaurants, well, I've actually been eating in restaurants a lot. 

Along the way, I've been 'one of those' people who takes pictures of my food. Mainly because when it's presented to me in an appealing, visual way, I want to honor the artist who plated the food.  

Anyone can slop food onto a plate, but much of the time, actually, most of the time, whoever prepares the plate in the kitchen takes pride in how that meal is presented.   I know I did when I cooked in a restaurant.  I wanted the food to not only taste good, but be of visual interest as well.  

Without further ado, well, not much of it, and where I can remember which restaurant I was in at the time, here are some of my meals from the past month.  

Clam Strips - Warmhouse Restaurant - Neah Bay - WA

Sweet n' Sour Pork - Fried Rice -Dynasty Restaurant - Sequim WA

This is my usual 'test' dish when I try a new Chinese Restaurant - if they prepare it well, I'll go back and I'm going to be returning here and trying more of their menu, cause this was hands down delicious. 

I'd ordered a french dip with salad here, and the salad came out just like this.  So pretty, I had to not only admire it, and take a picture of it, but also complimented the artist.  Salad at the "In Place", Forks, WA  It was so appealing, and made me happy to eat it. 

Pork Fried Rice at Seven Brothers, 7 Cedars Casino   

Beautifully cooked pork belly. Look at the presentation.  Adelicious meal, and one I'll go back for. 

Blackened Cajun Salmon at Applebee's, Sequim WA

On the way to Sequim, I was hungry and stopped at the Halfway House in Brinnon, WA.   I saw that they had a Monte Cristo on the menu and I didn't bother looking any further.  It had to have been at least an inch thick, perfectly cooked, and so good, I think I kinda overate.  I even got a slice of their coconut pie to go, and scarfed that down later on.  Didn't get a picture of that one, but I am so tempted to go back there and have a meal again.  Totally worth the stop. 

And last but certainly not least, I also stopped at a Mexican Restaurant, called SOL de Mexico, in Reedsport, OR and ordered the Chile Relleno Combo     So good and it hit the spot.   I admit it, I kinda pigged out a bit, but it was totally worth it.  Lots and lots of cheese in both the Enchilada and the Relleno.    

And there you have it.  A few of the dishes I've considered good enough to take pictures of, and blog about.  

I do admit to ordering a few, 'test dishes', in restaurants, Chile Relleno's is my test dish for Mexican Restaurants, and I get excited when I find one that measures up to my taste.    As did this offering.  Chile Relleno's is one dish I do know how to make and make well.  

I'll continue to be one of 'those' people who takes pictures of their food, but only when the dish warrants it.   

All recipes and their respective images are either original or adapted and credited, and are all the sole property of Sid's Sea Palm Cooking, © 2011-2026, with all rights reserved thereof.