Luigi's

My favorite stop between Bend and Santa Rosa is Luigi's. It's located at 75 Belle Mill Road in Red Bluff, California.

It's a casual local place. Order at the counter and the food is brought to your table.

Fried Mushrooms with Ranch Dressing--$6.10. Side of Honey Mustard--$0.65. I loved these.

If you order a dinner, you get a small salad. It's big enough for 2.

You also get 2 slices of garlic bread.

Veal Dinner--$9.99, served with Linguine with Meat Sauce. The veal is tender and although it's fried, it's not greasy. The meat sauce is so good.

Pasta with Sauce--$6.85. I chose Linguine with Meat Sauce and Meatballs.

I also got a Pasta Bucket to go--Linguine with Meat Sauce--$11.95. It was enough to serve 4 people.

2019 07 07

Zydeco

Zydeco is located at 919 Bond Street in downtown Bend, Oregon.

House Smoked Trout Dip--$10. This is my favorite appetizer. The dip is so good and it's a generous portion--enough to serve 4.

Zydeco Farm Salad--$9. Mixed greens & romaine, champagne vinaigrette, hazelnuts, dates, goat cheese and cornbread croutons. The croutons were a nice change.

BBQ Shrimp over Southern Grit Cake--$15. This is listed under appetizers but it's a generous portion and enough for an entree.

The special fish of the night was Swordfish--$26. This was a little dry.

Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc-Viognier blend--$28 for a bottle.

The best thing about eating out in Portland? No tax!

2019 07 06

Comfort Inn & Suites, Bend

There were slim pickings in Bend, Oregon at the last minute. I did manage to get a room at the Comfort Inn & Suites but it was $144 for 1 night. It was a little steep for a 2-star property. It's located at 62065 SE 27th St.

The lounge was nice.

The room was large and comfortable.

There was a microwave and a refrigerator.

The toiletries in the bathroom.

Free breakfast is included and again the biscuits and gravy were good.

2019 07 06

Los Hernandez

Just south of Yakima, Los Hernandez sells homemade tamales and is located at 3706 Main St in Union Gap. It received a James Beard America Classics award in 2018.

Their tamales are made fresh daily. You can also purchase raw tamales or frozen tamales to heat at home.

It's a small place with a few tables. Order at the counter and they will bring your order to you.

They're known for asparagus tamales with pepper jack cheese. It's only available May-July. Each tamale is $2.19, $13.14 for 6 and $26.28 for a dozen.

Lunch special with 2 tamales, rice & beans--$6.99. It includes a small salsa (usually $0.53).

I also had a pork tamale. They have chicken tamales as well. Each tamale is $1.84, $11.04 for 6 and $19.16 for a dozen. 

The tamales are delicious. Moist masa and flavorful filling. I liked the asparagus better than the pork.

2019 07 06

U Pick Cherries at Barrett Orchards

We wanted to pick some cherries and found Barrett Orchards, located at 1209 Pecks Canyon Rd. in Yakima. Picking ends at 3 pm although the store stays open longer hours. The orchard has other fruit. The ripening schedule is:

Cherries--June-July
Apricots--June-July
Peaches--Aug-Sep
Nectarines--Aug-Sep
Pears--Aug-Oct
Apples--Sep-Nov

Just not sure if you can pick the other fruit.

We were there in early July and the Rainiers were already gone. We were told to come by June 20 if we wanted Rainiers.

The staff liked Selah cherries--They said the cherries were a cross between Bing and Rainier. I'm not sure I found them.

The cherries are easy to pick. They're clustered and you don't need any ladders to get to them.

Winegar's ice cream is sold onsite. It's made locally in Ellensburg. I got a cone of Jacob's Caramel Brownie--chocolate ice cream with brownies and caramel swirl. One scoop was $2.75 and a waffle cone was $0.50. It was good and so inexpensive.

2019 07 06

Salish Lodge & Spa

Thirty minutes outside of Seattle is the Salish Lodge & Spa. It's located next to Snoqualmie Falls.

If you're not a guest of the inn, park at the free lot then cross the road using the covered bridge.

The interior of the lodge with a cozy fireplace.

We had wanted to visit Snoquomish Falls but it was closed with a Search & Rescue Mission.

2019 07 06

Silver Cloud Hotel

I used Hotwire to find a hotel at the last minute and ended up with Silver Cloud Hotel. It's located at 14632 SE Eastgate Way.

The room was large and the bed was comfortable. There was a refrigerator and microwave in the room.

2019 07 05

Seattle Fish Guys

Back in Seattle, I picked up dinner from Seattle Fish Guys. They're located at 411 23rd Avenue S.

They make a nice poke.

Two types of poke, a side salad and rice for $13.99. Options for the poke include Shoyu Tuna, Salmon and Tako (octopus). Scallop poke is $2 more. The side salads include mac salad, seaweed salad, squid salad and kim chee.

2019 07 05

Olympia State Capitol

Back in Washington, I had a few hours to kill and stopped at the State Capitol in Olympia. I had no idea there was so much to see.

There is a memorial to the Vietnam War that is reminiscent of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington DC. 

The Korean War Veterans Memorial

World War II Memorial.

The campus is situated on a knoll overlooking Capitol Lake.

Winged Victory Monument commemorating WWI leads to the capitol building.

The brick and sandstone dome of the capitol building rises 287 feet and is the largest masonry dome in North America. You can take a free tour that lasts roughly an hour.

There are 6 bronze doors at the front of the building. Each depicts an image of the early industry and scenic beauty of Washington State.

The ceiling of the interior dome rises 175 feet from the floor of the rotunda. The 5-ton chandelier contains over 200 bulbs and was the largest created by Tiffany Studios in New York.

The Reception Room is used for formal state ceremonies, receptions and meetings.

Washington was admitted as the 42nd state to the union. There was no official flag created before Idaho & Wyoming were admitted 8 months later.

You can also see the Senate and House of Representatives chambers. Washington's legislators are citizen legislators, meaning their responsibilities at the Capitol are part-time. Legislative sessions last 105 days in odd years and 60 days in even years.

2019 07 05

Nong's Khao Man Gai

I made a trip to Portland to have lunch at Nong's Khao.

I visited the location at 417 SW 13th Avenue--they open at 10 am.

Regular order of Chicken & Rice--$11. Poached Mary's chicken with rice simmered in chicken stock and Thai herbs, served with sauce of fermented soybean, fresh ginger, fresh garlic, Thai chiles, vinegar, house made syrup and soy sauce. Garnished with cucumbers and cilantro and bowl of house made chicken broth. The chicken is tender but it's the sauce that makes the dish so good. You can purchase the sauce in a bottle.

2019 07 05

Madrona Bar & Grill

After the whale watching trip, I had an early dinner at the Madrona Bar & Grill, located at the Roche Harbor Resort. They have a nice deck so you can sit outside and watch the activity in the harbor.

Small Caesar Salad with Anchovy-Parsley Oil--$8.95. Hearts of romaine, Kalamata olive, tomato & parmesan with house croutons. The flavors were nice but there was too much dressing.

Roche Harbor's "Tilted Kettle" Clam Chowder--$8.95. Cream, clams, bacon, butter, red potato, sweet clam nectar, celery, onion, dill, basil, thyme and parsley. The chowder was good but it was a small bowl.

Tieton Cider--$6. Nice and crisp.

2019 07 03