Have you ever made a roadtrip just for a restaurant?

What a burger is ok but nothing to travel more than five miles for.

Back in the day before I moved traveling 100-130 miles for a restaurant was not uncommon
 
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Drove about an hour from Seaside Florida to Destin to eat at McGuires Irish Pub. (I know that is not spelled right)
 
fortfan said:
Drove about an hour from Seaside Florida to Destin to eat at McGuires Irish Pub. (I know that is not spelled right)
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I didn’t like it when I went a few years back. Our resort was right around the corner. Try stinkys fish camp next time you go. It’s worth the trip down 98.
 
I have made numerous road trips for restaurants, some longer than others.

We made the 90 minute drive to Chez Francois in Vermilion at least once a year. Dad loved classic French cooking and this was the best in Ohio, yes better than the Maisonette: https://chezfrancois.com/

I have also gone out of the way to grab the best fried chicken I have ever had, Uncle Nick's Greek Fried Chicken at the Buena Vista Café in Warren: https://www.buenavista-cafe.com/

Out of state we have driven out of the way while heading to the beach to get some crab cakes at G&M in Linthicum Heights, MD: https://gandmcrabcakes.com/
 
Can I ask how far do you have to travel to have it become a road trip to a restaurant? Almost all places we eat are at least 20 to 30 miles away so do we make a road trip each time we eat out?
 
19AL63 said:
Can I ask how far do you have to travel to have it become a road trip to a restaurant? Almost all places we eat are at least 20 to 30 miles away so do we make a road trip each time we eat out.
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Asked the same question, but I will answer.

How about.....100 miles? Who has traveled 100 + miles just for a restaurant?
 
hubman said:
Found a York Steak house in Columbus while dropping a kid off at the local university, have been planning to get back ever since. That was upscale fine dining for me and my brother when we were kids.

I have been known to venture out of my way if I am anywhere near DC (such as on my way to Ocean City) to make it to Ben's Chili Bowl.

I hear there may be one last Red Barn in WV near the Ohio border, I might need to make a trip to.
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York Steak House is nostalgic for me. My wife and I have eaten there a few times when we have been in Columbus. We did drive up to Toledo, just to go to Tony Packo's. You are right about Ben's Chili Bowl. I will stop there every time I am in DC. The half smokes are amazing. I was there last spring and the owner sat down with my son and I for a half hour and talked about her business, her family and her rivalry with Camp Washington Chili in Cincinnati.

Does flying to New Orleans count if we went there to eat at half a dozen places? Mmmmm beignets at Cafe du Monde.
 
Will travel for:
Der Dutchman's
Skyline Chili
Tackle Box in Fremont
Auriello's Pizza in Chicago or vicinity.
Myles Pizza in Bowling Green
Porky's Pizza in Port Clinton/Oak Harbor (for piggy knuckles or piggy bones)
The Princess Cafe (small town in NE Illinois - Beecher, IL) - expensive but worth it
 
Every once in a while when I was in my early 20s we would smoke one too many and have to drive 40 min just to stick our gum on the wall and eat a half dozen Miadrights.
 
Crusaders said:
Every time I go to NYC I go to a place with the best chicken vermicelli I’ve ever had by a long shot
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I try to convince myself ours is as good and that it's just the big city atmosphere makes it better. But I think the competition in a place like NYC is so intense, it's got to be better. You remember the name of the place?

Keep telling myself I'm going to get to Buddy's Pizza for what has become Detroit Style. Had the imitations (which I'll take over Chicago some of which seems to be competing for thicker than thou) but keep putting it off. I also want to try the Coney's though I think growing up on peppery chili, that soupy stuff won't cut it.
 
eastisbest said:
I try to convince myself ours is as good and that it's just the big city atmosphere makes it better. But I think the competition in a place like NYC is so intense, it's got to be better. You remember the name of the place?

Keep telling myself I'm going to get to Buddy's Pizza for what has become Detroit Style. Had the imitations (which I'll take over Chicago some of which seems to be competing for thicker than thou) but keep putting it off. I also want to try the Coney's though I think growing up on peppery chili, that soupy stuff won't cut it.
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Pasteur
 
clarkgriswold said:
Those Ponderosa wings were they best.
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THAT is the reason we went to Ponderosa. Usually just ordered the cheapest sirloin steak just to get the salad bar. If I remember right, there were times when ordering the salad bar by itself was more expensive than getting it included with a steak. Usually went up and got 10 wings and then was almost too full to eat the steak.
 
Purplemojo said:
Coney's? Camp Washington Chili is the place to go.

Camp Washington Chili | Over 75 years of chili goodness!

campwashingtonchili.com campwashingtonchili.com
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I was talking about Lafayette and American in Detroit. Already tried and didn't much see the special in the Cinci stuff. Some of it good. Some of it sweet and didn't like. Can't recall which was which. Been a long time. Probably because of the style I grew up on. Same can be said for those come up here and try ours.
 
Purplemojo said:
York Steak House is nostalgic for me. My wife and I have eaten there a few times when we have been in Columbus. We did drive up to Toledo, just to go to Tony Packo's. You are right about Ben's Chili Bowl. I will stop there every time I am in DC. The half smokes are amazing. I was there last spring and the owner sat down with my son and I for a half hour and talked about her business, her family and her rivalry with Camp Washington Chili in Cincinnati.

Does flying to New Orleans count if we went there to eat at half a dozen places? Mmmmm beignets at Cafe du Monde.
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I stumbled across a new Tony Packo's out near UT a couple of years ago that was more along the lines of a Chipotle (go through the line and pick stuff out behind the glass). It was pretty good. A while back some Toledo folks on here told me that Tony Packo's had fallen off somewhat but my food that day was decent.
 
clarkgriswold said:
I stumbled across a new Tony Packo's out near UT a couple of years ago that was more along the lines of a Chipotle (go through the line and pick stuff out behind the glass). It was pretty good. A while back some Toledo folks on here told me that Tony Packo's had fallen off somewhat but my food that day was decent.
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some of that might be because after death of daddy, the kids got into it and the one no one likes (except the judge) won. I did have an out of town friend, vegitarian and into martini's said both were some of the best he had, the veggie chily and the martini. Almost all agree liking the pickles and peppers.
 
Termite2 said:
St. Elmo's in Indy
Shaker Village outside Lexington Ky
Roney's in Milford
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Since I have to been to St. Elmo's and Pleasant Hill Shaker Village I may have to learn where Milford is so that I can go to Roney's and complete the trifecta.
 
chs1971 said:
Since I have to been to St. Elmo's and Pleasant Hill Shaker Village I may have to learn where Milford is so that I can go to Roney's and complete the trifecta.
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Doesnt St. Elmos have like another place, by a diff name, just north of Indy? had leftovers from there...and the leftovers were better than almost everything I had eaten before.
 
Once got convinced to road trip to the Steel Trolley Diner in Lisbon. Food was very good. I heard they were shut down for awhile by the health inspector. Also heard they're permanently closed now.
 
Purplemojo said:
York Steak House is nostalgic for me. My wife and I have eaten there a few times when we have been in Columbus. We did drive up to Toledo, just to go to Tony Packo's. You are right about Ben's Chili Bowl. I will stop there every time I am in DC. The half smokes are amazing. I was there last spring and the owner sat down with my son and I for a half hour and talked about her business, her family and her rivalry with Camp Washington Chili in Cincinnati.

Does flying to New Orleans count if we went there to eat at half a dozen places? Mmmmm beignets at Cafe du Monde.
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If Mrs. Ali (owner of Ben's) says Camp Washington Chili is a rival, I'll have to give it a try. Me and the misses also made the stop at Tony Packo's on the way back from dropping a kid off at a local university in Ann Arbor (got the idea from M.A.S.H/Klinger) minor detour on the way back to NE Ohio. Before finding that York Steakhouse, I hadn't been since they closed the one at Rolling Acres (probably 30 plus years).
 
A local in Toldeo took me to the original Tony Paco's, it was alright but I thought I had the same food at Kerby's in Detroit.

As for Cincinnati style Chili/Coney's I will go out of my way to hit certain locations. Best for me still is the Skyline location in Ludlow, the ones out in the burb's don't cut it. Need to get to a west side local place some time to give it a try.
 
I've always wanted to get to Bubba Gump Shrimp in Chicago, but have yet to make it. I ate at the one in New York City and loved it!
 
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