Friday OT #2 - Strange Fruit

[Angie]

I didn’t get to a Friday OT last week because I was on a girls’ trip to Omaha. We got there around lunchtime and our only rule for the weekend was that we wouldn’t eat at chains. We yelped best lunches in Omaha, and it pointed us to a place called Orsi’s Italian Pizza and Bakery - so we headed there.

We arrive, and first notice there are just pews around the front of the storefront, no tables. Sort of a butcher shop, cheese in a case, Italian goods in bulk on the other wall. We looked at the menu, and it was everything from 8” pizzas to “60 pieces of garlic toast uncooked for $30.”

I ordered last, and wanted to embrace all adventures. Cream cheese was a pizza topping, so I asked the cordially-curt attendant what would pair with it. “I don’t know. Bacon, chicken.” I ordered cream cheese and bacon, and he asked “can I have a short name to call?” Sure.

Another fellow came up and asked us if we wanted a table. Sure! He went over and got out a white folding table and sat us at an open pew next to the bread crumbs for sale, and one-gallon cans of olive oil. We asked him if there was possibly a bathroom - he directed us directly through the kitchen.

We ended up receiving the wrong pizzas, but they were fantastic. It was a worthwhile adventure, and there was more to it that didn’t relay to paper well - but it was one of the stranger dining experiences I have had here in the US. Not anything truly bizarre or outlandish, just everything slightly off-center.

Where are your strange hidden gem restaurants? Can you describe them?

 

[JP4CY]

Cooky's Cafe in Golden City MO (Southwest corner of MO).
It's 10 minutes off the interstate in a small town.

Check out the pies:

 

[Angie]

Cooky's Cafe in Golden City MO (Southwest corner of MO).
It's 10 minutes off the interstate in a small town.

Check out the pies:
View attachment 104563

Holy crap, that is a lot of pies!!

Why are pie buffets not a thing?

 

[cyfanatic13]

Group of guys went to Backbone this summer for a weekend camping/golf trip. The first night it was raining pretty heavily, so we went into a nearby small town to a restaurant that I cannot remember the name for the life of me. Even with us six in there (age ranges of 21-29), the average age of the customers in there had to have been in the upper 70's and it was absolutely packed. Got a ton of stares the entire time we were there like we didn't belong. It was their opening night of a new beer tent so I'm guessing the place was busier than normal.

Asked for recommendations from the waitress for appetizers and she said we had to have the homemade cowboy bites, and I swear on my life they are the best appetizer I've ever had. I think it was a cheeseball with corn, bacon, and jalapeno in it. The pizza was very good too but I want to go back someday just for the cowboy bites.

To top it all off, the place only accepted cash but then had an ATM inside of it. After realizing it was a $10 fee to use the ATM, I got enough cash to pay for the group and then they all venmo'ed me like you're supposed to do in 2022.

That was probably the strangest/best restaurant I've ever been to. Another very hidden small town gem (but not that strange) is Three Day Saloon in Owasa, IA. Mainly a wing place and only open Thursday-Saturday. Easily the best wings I've ever had.

 

[JM4CY]

The place I would offer here was shut down about a year ago due to multiple failed health inspections. It may not have been clean but it was the best pizza I've ever had in my life.

 

[4cy16]

Holy crap, that is a lot of pies!!

Why are pie buffets not a thing?

Diabetes.

 

[Mr Janny]

Nearly 20 years ago, I was in New Jersey for work. The client I was there to meet said he wanted to take me out to dinner. He picked me up at my hotel that evening and asked what I wanted to eat. I did my best @Angie impression and said "I don't care." He asked me if I'd had sushi before. Nope. I was a rural Iowa boy in my early twenties.
"Ok then, I know a place."
He drove at breakneck speed down the turnpike, pulling off to stop at a liquor store.
"The restaurant lost its liquor license, so it's BYOB" he said, as if that were an everyday occurrence. He bought a 12 pack of Yuenling Black and Tan, a bottle of Jameson and some saki, and then we were off again, doing 90 mph on the turnpike.

The sushi restaurant was an absolute dive. Like if a strip mall had a strip mall. We walked in and the client seated himself at the counter, pulled out a Yuenling, and started talking to the chef. I sat down next to him, in time to hear him say "This guy has never had sushi before, so give us the works."

What followed was a massive sampling of what the restaurant had to offer. Half of the time, the chef didn't even tell us what was in the stuff he put in front of us. Most of it was amazing, but some was unsettling, if not downright scary to me. But for every piece that wasn't my cup of tea, there were 5 that were fantastic. And there was always a sip of Yuenling/whiskey/saki ready to wash away the taste, if needed.

No idea what the place was called. I'm not sure that it even had a name on the outside, and I never saw a menu, but it was a very good experience.

 

[Joe4Cy]

I visited my youngest brother in North Hollywood in August.

Saturday night, we make plans with a friend of his to see a Groundlings improv show.

She gets reservations for us beforehand to grab some drinks and apps.

The place was a speakeasy! We walked past the door three or four times before just knocking. No signs, no indication that the door led to ...well anything.

We finally knocked and a sliding window opened. "Yes?" "We have reservations for (forgotten name of place.)"

The bouncer opens the door and we immediately step into a set of stairs lit by candles on each step leading up.

At the top of the stairs, we're greeted by the maitre d'! Small room here, bathrooms over there, around this corner is the main bar. Casual seating, like sofas and comfy chairs around coffee tables.

The music was way too loud but the atmosphere, drinks, and servers in character made up for that!

 

[oldman]

There's a place in Masonville (near Manchester, IA) that has a Friday nite fish fry. Word of warning -- they don't do credit cards.

 

[Entropy]

Spouse and I were headed back from a trip through Colorado and stayed the night in Omaha.
When we got up in the morning, we didn't want to eat in the hotel, and it was a nice morning, so we found a local place within walking distance and ended up at the Kitchen Table.
There was already a line out the door, so I was pretty sure it would be a solid experience. It absolutely was.
Coffee was great and the food was excellent.
What set this place apart was they had a live DJ spinning records on a Sunday morning to enhance the experience. I love this and was significantly better than your standard playlist playing over the speakers.

 

[StevieISU23]

Somehow, I feel like Lumpy's Bar should be added to this list.........

 

[somecyguy]

I'm flying into Reno and driving to Sacramento, stopping around Donner Lake to pick up a friend. This is in the winter and those unfamiliar with the area, I-80 through this part of California is littered with mountains, ski resorts and snow. This was over 20 years ago, so places open were sparse particularly that time of year.

I pick up my friend and he tells me about this restaurant someone recommended further up the highway. We stop and there are two cars in the lot. Can't even remember the name of the place. We walk inside and see two people, the chef and a waitress. We get to chatting about what to eat and the chef says, if we're willing, he'll put together a multi-course meal as he's got ingredients that must be used soon. We give him the go-ahead and he proceeds to stuff us (and the waitress) with some of the most exotic and unique dishes I've ever had. We ate and chatted with them for close to 3 hours. No other customers showed up.

Most of it's a blur because we were drinking as well, but the first course was a goat soup with a Guinness and milk broth. It was delicious. One of the most unexpected and entertaining meals I've ever had.

 

[coolerifyoudid]

We were in the North End in Boston about 16 years ago. We hadn't been there before and were looking for good Italian and were directed there. It was getting late, and most of the restaurants either had a line or were done seating for the night.

We went to Mike's Pastry so we'd at least have something to eat. While in line, I asked the guy in front of me (looked like a local) if there was anywhere he'd recommend. He gave us directions to a place several blocks away.

While walking over there, we walked past some guys sitting outside that gave off serious mob vibes. Suits, chains, rings, body guards and everyone else made a wide path as they were walking by them.

We walked another half block to the restaurant with wasn't much more than a doorway into a brick building with a nondescript sign outside. There were 3 empty tables in the whole place and it smelled AMAZING. A husband and wife owned the place and both of them greeted us like family the minute we walked in. We were seated at a table near the kitchen and they took turns talking to us while the other would cook and bring us food or wine.

They made food for themselves, saying it was the first time they'd gotten a chance to eat, and then sat with us at the table. We ate and drank and talked with this couple for several hours. We finished eating, walked back by the cast of the Sopranos and took the train back to our hotel.

I swore I'd never forget the name or location of the place, but despite many efforts to figure it out, neither me or my wife can remember the name of it.

It remains the best Italian food I've had in my life.

 

[jsb]

mine was in Scotland. We stopped in a small touristy town. We stopped at what looked like a sandwich/pizza place for lunch. The owner seemed surprised we wanted to order food. He didn’t have change for us and generally seemed surprised to have customers. Pretty sure we were in some sort of drug front.

 

[carvers4math]

When we lived in DC area, friends wanted to go to one of the many Ethiopian places in Adams Morgan. They were all pretty crowded on the main drag on a Friday night, imagine that?

Husband suggested we walk a block or two away and we found a smaller place that looked a little dumpy, still had a crowd, but we could get a table. In trying to decide what we wanted on the injera, husband asked the waiter what would be spiciest. Waiter suggested something a few rungs down from that and husband was the only one who could eat it.

Neighboring tables were then asking him to go eat some of theirs. Pretty soon the whole place was trying to defeat my husband’s spice tolerance. Owner brought out more bread with various clumps of stew. What was billed as the hottest made him sweat a little.

They comped our food as he seemed to have great entertainment value. He asked me to drive home as he was not feeling so well. Spent a long evening near the toilet. I wanted to rat him out every time he bragged about it, but resisted the urge.

 

[matclone]

I found this small Thai restaurant in Denver. The proprietor (Arthur) would take time to talk to us, then cook the food which was always delicious. I always started with Tom-Yum-Gai (soup). Ironically, there was another Thai restaurant (a chain) around the corner on Colorado Blvd.

Erawan Thai Cafe

Erawan Thai Cafe - Denver's oldest Thai restaurant

www.erawanthaicafe.com

 

[VeloClone]

The original Battles BBQ belongs here.

 

[Lineup]

I didn’t get to a Friday OT last week because I was on a girls’ trip to Omaha. We got there around lunchtime and our only rule for the weekend was that we wouldn’t eat at chains. We yelped best lunches in Omaha, and it pointed us to a place called Orsi’s Italian Pizza and Bakery - so we headed there.

We arrive, and first notice there are just pews around the front of the storefront, no tables. Sort of a butcher shop, cheese in a case, Italian goods in bulk on the other wall. We looked at the menu, and it was everything from 8” pizzas to “60 pieces of garlic toast uncooked for $30.”

I ordered last, and wanted to embrace all adventures. Cream cheese was a pizza topping, so I asked the cordially-curt attendant what would pair with it. “I don’t know. Bacon, chicken.” I ordered cream cheese and bacon, and he asked “can I have a short name to call?” Sure.

Another fellow came up and asked us if we wanted a table. Sure! He went over and got out a white folding table and sat us at an open pew next to the bread crumbs for sale, and one-gallon cans of olive oil. We asked him if there was possibly a bathroom - he directed us directly through the kitchen.

We ended up receiving the wrong pizzas, but they were fantastic. It was a worthwhile adventure, and there was more to it that didn’t relay to paper well - but it was one of the stranger dining experiences I have had here in the US. Not anything truly bizarre or outlandish, just everything slightly off-center.

Where are your strange hidden gem restaurants? Can you describe them?

They make the best bread in the country

 

[Angie]

They make the best bread in the country

We got a loaf and ate it for dinner with oil/vinegar, and goat cheese!

 

[PineClone]

Group of guys went to Backbone this summer for a weekend camping/golf trip. The first night it was raining pretty heavily, so we went into a nearby small town to a restaurant that I cannot remember the name for the life of me. Even with us six in there (age ranges of 21-29), the average age of the customers in there had to have been in the upper 70's and it was absolutely packed. Got a ton of stares the entire time we were there like we didn't belong. It was their opening night of a new beer tent so I'm guessing the place was busier than normal.

Asked for recommendations from the waitress for appetizers and she said we had to have the homemade cowboy bites, and I swear on my life they are the best appetizer I've ever had. I think it was a cheeseball with corn, bacon, and jalapeno in it. The pizza was very good too but I want to go back someday just for the cowboy bites.

To top it all off, the place only accepted cash but then had an ATM inside of it. After realizing it was a $10 fee to use the ATM, I got enough cash to pay for the group and then they all venmo'ed me like you're supposed to do in 2022.

That was probably the strangest/best restaurant I've ever been to. Another very hidden small town gem (but not that strange) is Three Day Saloon in Owasa, IA. Mainly a wing place and only open Thursday-Saturday. Easily the best wings I've ever had.

I just googled "cowboy bites" and came up with these "corn poppers".

Cowboy bites