Chapter 6: Let’s Skip To The Good Stuff
I’m going to hit the fast-forward button here and move through the next two days of the trip quickly, because they were mostly long drives without much of note.
WehadbreakfastandgotinthevananddrovealongwaythroughOregonandfollowedtheColumbiaRiverforawhileandthenwentintoWashingtonwhichwasreallyboringandnothinghappeneduntildinnerand—
Ok, hang on. Maybe not that fast. Still, I’ll just breeze through a couple of days of driving and pause on some items of note.
We started the next day with Delish Donuts again, because if it ain’t broke, I ain’t fixin’ it. Then, because I was eager to procrastinate the long drive ahead, I took Julie to one of those
froo-froo coffee places where they mix a teaspoon of coffee with a gallon of whipped cream and charge you 8 bucks for it. She loved it, of course.
We drove north on highway 97, making our first stop at the Peter Skene Ogden State Park. This is a small rest stop with a nice view of the Crooked River Bridges and canyon.
Seems like a good spot for a family outing.
We eventually reached I-84 and followed the Columbia River east for a while, which made for a scenic drive. But eventually we turned north and crossed into eastern Washington.
There’s nothing in eastern Washington.
I hadn’t slept well the night before, and that fact combined with the utterly boring drive conspired to make me a little drowsy. I actually asked Julie to drive the last hour while I took a nap in the passenger seat.
It took most of the day, but eventually we reached Spokane, Washington in the late afternoon. We stayed at the downtown Holiday Inn Express, which was located in one of the more unique chain hotel buildings I’ve ever seen.
Drew thought it was cool to be staying in “a castle”.
We needed a place to go for dinner, of course, and in the course of my trip research, I’d uncovered two different possibilities. The first was the
Steam Plant, a brewpub located in an old factory building downtown. It looked like a neat atmosphere, and we generally have good luck with brewpubs in our travels. However, we’d just eaten at one the day before, and as hard as it might be to believe, the factory was only the second-most interesting place for a meal in Spokane.
The family voted instead for
Frank’s Diner. This is a downtown eatery built primarily around a 1906 railroad car that was converted into a dining car in 1931. The chance to eat in a train car was just too good to pass up—plus, I think the kids really wanted breakfast for dinner again.
We were there a little early, just before 5:00 p.m. if my memory serves correctly. PB&J doesn’t satisfy us for too long, so it has a side effect of helping us be ready for Rope Drop at the dinner hour. I don’t mind because we beat the crowds that way.
The interior of the train car was…I don’t know what to say other than it was really cool.
We ordered heaping helpings of breakfast food, because of that “not broke, don’t fix it” rule I mentioned earlier. We usually try to order a variety of dishes as a family so we can try as many items as possible, so we had plates of eggs, bacon, waffles, French toast, and pancakes. Everything was terrific.
Julie grew up with her mom’s fried green tomatoes as a treat, so she typically orders them whenever she has the opportunity. But they inevitably disappoint her, because they’re not like mom’s. These were no different—too much batter, she said. I try to nod in sympathy, but it’s hard for me because I’ve never found extra batter to be a problem in my deep-fried foods. But you know how it is when mom’s recipes are involved. Nothing will ever be as good.
About the time we were finishing up our meals, the waitress, with impeccable timing, delivered a dessert order to another table behind us. She knew exactly what she was doing—a true professional. As she passed our tables, she slowed a bit so we could admire the bowl she was carrying and said, “This is the peach cobbler.”
Julie took one look at me and knew I had already fallen hook, line and sinker. When the waitress walked past again, I said, “That was a dirty trick.”
She just smiled and put on an innocent look. “Oh, would you like to order dessert?”
We ordered one for the family. This might have been the best decision we made on the entire vacation.
That. Was. Amazing. Easily the best peach cobbler I’ve ever had in a restaurant, and maybe the best I’ve had, period. It didn’t last nearly long enough, and I was halfway to ordering a second giant bowl just for myself before Julie knocked me to the floor and restrained me there while hollering for the waitress to bring the check, and quick!
It goes without saying, but Imma say it anyway: Frank’s Diner, Spokane, Washington earns a Drooling Homer Award for Excellence in Unpretentious Dining.
Continued Next Post
and too cute how quickly his expression changed one he had sunglasses.
