Redeemed Riders Overnight Chick Ride

2016 Photo by Donna Stephens
Info meeting at Cracker Barrel

I know I haven't posted in awhile because my life has gotten crazy busy!
Good news is.............I got to ride my motorcycle this week. One ride was to Sullivan, MO for dinner and an informational meeting of all the gals going on the overnight "Redeemed Riders Chick Ride."

That's right, I am going on an overnighter with the girls!
Dinner at Cracker Barrel was a prequel for some Redeemed Rider sister time.  About fifteen of us converged at the restaurant to talk about our destination and routes to Mountain View, Arkansas.

Are you getting a vision of "Wild Hogs - The Chick Version?" 
Well, not everyone is riding a motorcycle. Riding a bike isn't a requirement to go on our ride. Cars containing some of my sisters will be following the bikes. And we hope that being chased by a biker gang isn't going to be part of our story. lol...lol  

Anyway, I indulged my love of southern food at Cracker Barrel.
Fried okra is one of my favorite side dishes. My momma has raised okra in her garden every year of my life. Bet you didn't know that the Missouri Ozarks includes some southern cooking did you? Anyway, I was perfectly happy with my fried okra, fried chicken livers, cheese grits, and hot buttered biscuits. My mouth is happy just remembering what I ate. lol...lol

Now where was I, oh the meeting.
 There are going to be two groups heading for Arkansas, an experienced rider group and a not so experienced rider group. I am riding with the first group and looking forward to an all-day, scenic ride with a lunch stop in Ava, MO. THEN, I get to eat Mexican food in Mountain View for supper. Oh yeah!

As usual, we talked ALOT. 
In fact, the sun had just about disappeared to the west when I rode out of the Cracker Barrel parking lot on my Harley and started my evening ride home.

2014 Chick Ride - Coming home from the CMA Women's Conference in Springfield, MO

2013 Chick Ride to Women of Faith Conference in Kansas City, MO

Blogger and biker Sallee Bonham riding down the highway in 2011

Chick ride to Hardy, Arkansas in 2008? 

1. 
   

Get Your Food Kicks at Route 66's Rock Cafe

Stroud, Oklahoma is home to the Rock Cafe; a Route 66 internationally known food stop. Bill and I rode into the parking lot of the Rock Cafe already knowing the eatery's reputation for serving good food. We were pleased to discover that their reputation is well deserved.

My choice was easy because our waitress recommended my favorite burger, the mushroom and swiss. As the waitress placed our order on the table, riffs of grilled beef, hot potato, and dill flowed through my nose and caused my tastebuds to jump up and down in excitement. We both could not wait to eat this food!  The burger was juicy and full of flavor. The mushrooms, onions,dill pickle and swiss sang to my tastebuds and created a sweet harmony of taste perfection.

Bill ordered the Rock Cafe version of chicken bites with brown gravy. He enthusiastically endorses eating them this way, but this item can also be served with white gravy or ranch dressing. It was excellent!

Dessert was also another tastebud treat! The apple bites were square bits of tender dough enclosing an apple filling that never saw the inside of a can. They were very good. Bill had the peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream and he loved every bite as well. I know we keep saying it was good, but it was really, really a treat to eat.

The only downside to our visit was the bill. My hubby took care of that, but he told me later that the $23 or $24 he thought it would cost(23.75 before tax), turned into $28 and change at the register. Hmmm-----Stroud must have  a really high tax rate and  the teenage servers at the diner must be getting a 15% tip on the bill. We don't mind paying a gratuity for good service, which it was, but we like to know about it upfront.

Cruisin' to Clanton's Cafe, Vinita, OK - updated 6/24/2013

Taking a motorcycle trip with Bill is always  fun, but add a great eatery to the journey, and the adventure factor doubles for me. After four windy hours of riding west, Bill and I were happy to see the Vinita, Oklahoma exit sign that announced our exit was half a mile from us.
As we rumbled into Vinita, I excitedly scanned the left hand buildings for a Clanton's sign.  Then I saw the object of my search, a one story building, rising from a veritable sea of vehicles. Now this wasn't a weekend. It was Thursday and the surrounding parking lot was jam packed.  We cruised around the building, seeking a space large enough to park our two bikes and the trailer I was towing.  We both spotted the bare strip of parking  lot  about the same time, so we parked in tandem and dismounted .
Now my husband is a city fellow and he didn't know about calf fries. I actually told him about Clanton's being famous for this item as we walked into the building, shame on me.  Brimming with excitement,  me not Bill, we had a brief wait for a table and used that time to soak in the atmosphere inside the building.
The Guy Fieri sign  was a reminder that he and the Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives crew had featured Clanton's  Cafe on the Old Route 66 shows. Framed local news articles, poker playing dog pictures, and hunting trophies adorned the walls. Waitresses swiftly took orders, smiled, and returned bearing platters of homemade french fries smothered in gravy, steaks, and a veritable feast of home cookin'.
A smiling, friendly waitress seated us and I acted like a complete tourist. Yes, I told her I was a fan of Triple D and Guy. THEN I told her my goal of eating at as many featured spots as I could. See, I told you, totally a tourist.
Bill ordered chicken fried steak, I ordered an open face roast beef, and both were accompanied by the handcut fries. The waitress told me she could bring us a sample of calf fries, so I said YES. You can see them in the picture.
The food was wonderful.  Bill praised the chicken fried steak as the best he has ever eaten. The roast actually was chunks of roast beef in a gravy that was silky smooth delishishness. Sorry, it was so good that just thinking about it made me feel like I was talking with my mouthful. Seriously, it is that good. Plus, we both ate all we could eat for $16.60. 

Oh yeah, the calf fries. The sauce they were served with is to die for. I know, I know it's a cliche, but it's true! It was like seafood cocktail meets salsa. Yum. The fries were dipped in a crisp light batter and fried to perfection. My tastebuds were happy with the batter and sauce. The calf part is very mild so there is no reason to not try a calf fry. Unless, you just can't get over what part of the calf you would be eating.
Look up Clanton's Cafe on Google Maps or Facebook and plan a road trip to Vinita, Oklahoma soon!

We enjoyed Clanton's Cafe enough the first time, that we visited a second time on June 20, 2013. This time I ordered the chicken fried steak with white gravy and Bill ordered the open faced pork loin sandwich. We shared a slice of homemade coconut cream pie that was a perfect meld of flaky crust, fluffy meringue, and coconut filling. I don't like overly sweet pie, so I cautiously tasted a small bit of filling first. It was a perfect balance between too much sugar versus not enough sugar.

Chicken Fried Steak at Clanton's
added 6/24/2013 Photo by Sallee Bonham
 

Pork Loin Open Face Sandwich

added 6/24/2013 Photo by Sallee Bonham

 

 

Coconut Cream Pie

added 6/24/2013 Photo by Sallee Bonham