Today we drove from Jonesboro, Arkansas to Springfield, Missouri. It was a leg of the road trip I was looking forward to because we were going to go through the Bull Shoals area where my grandparents lived in the 70's & 80's.
We went there for summer vacation every year while I was living at home, and the last time I was there was about 30 years ago. I kept telling Jo about things I wanted to see, and wondered how many would still be around.
I followed the route we had taken so many times, and they haven't changed it a bit. Easily found where we camped and fished on the White river.
I caught a lot of trout here! I also DIDN'T catch a lot of trout here!
Their mobile home is still there, 43 years after they bought it. It's been re-sided and added on to.
I told Jo the Bull Shoals dam was much bigger than Hoover dam. It's 1/2 mile across. This is the back.
Back in the day, you could drive right up to the dam from below, but apparently you can't do that anymore. Not sure how you go on the "dam" tour nowadays.
I was sorry to see the Dam Cafe was no longer in town. Always loved going by that when I was a kid!
After a winding-road drive, we were in another state.
When we left Jonesboro (where we had a fabulous, unique dinner), we didn't find anything special for breakfast, so we just grabbed some coffees and hit the road. Lunch was just some snack mix while driving, so we knew we'd be ready for some dinner in Springfield. Jo hit up Yelp again and found a BBQ place with great reviews. We got to the hotel at 3:00, checked in, and took off for City Butcher & BBQ. Their website says they only cook a certain amount every day, and when they run out, they close for the day. Well, we got there at 3:45 pm and saw the sign on the door..."BBQ SOLD OUT TODAY". At 3:45 on Saturday!
We debated about just going to Hooters for some wings (we love Hooters wings, and we no longer have a Hooters back home), but we were stoked for BBQ again. So we found another place that had good reviews and was near the hotel.
We got a platter with ribs, pulled pork, brisket, beans, Cole slaw, potato salad, and a roll.
Ribs were sweet & very well cooked...really caramelized. Pulled pork was pretty standard, made better with a little of the #3 sauce, which was pretty good.
When it comes to brisket, I find most of them pretty average. I've had some great BBQ at places that do awesome ribs, pork, chicken, turkey, etc., but I'm almost always disappointed in the brisket. This one was very good brisket. Almost as good as mine!
Beans were standard, slaw was good, and the potato salad was different, and I like that! They made it their own. Large potato chunks, green onion, a little pickle relish, mayo, and sour cream! It was like potato salad made with chip dip, and it was good!
We are glad to have some shorter days as we get ready to go home. It's nice to put up our feet and relax.
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