Solly's Grille was our choice to begin our day in Milwaukee, and Nocarolina Bob was waiting for us when we arrived. JRPfeff's family Bobbi, Rachel, and Martin soon followed, as our group took over a significant section of the wraparound counter inside. Solly's famous Butterburger (we ordered ours with cheese and fried onions) was as delectable as touted, and the incredibly fresh banana malt almost stole the show. Bobbi regaled us with tales of the 45 pies she baked for their annual party last month, and overcome with her “sweet talk,” we then drove down the street to Kopp's for the frozen custard of the day: cherry amaretto cheesecake. Impossibly soft and velvety, this custard had chunks of cheesecake and crust mixed in with lots of cherries. Bob convinced us that we couldn't leave Milwaukee without trying Leon's frozen custard for comparison, and their thick and creamy chocolate custard (and vintage neon) was quite satisfying.

We could've easily spent the entire day touring Milwaukee's famed food sites but still recuperating from our Chicago smorgasbord, we decided to push westward to Iowa. Along the way, we made a detour into downtown Madison to visit the statehouse as well as Lane's Bakery. Racine it is not, but we have trouble believing that any kringle could be as sinfully sweet and lip-smackingly good as the pecan variety that we chose. The chocolate donut and Mountain cookie (infused with trail mix) were also top-shelf pastries. We then bid the interstate farewell and took secondary highways to the great Mississippi River. Shortly before crossing the border into Iowa, we happened upon Rural Route 1 Popcorn in Livingston and quickly regretted buying only a small tub of their jalapeno cheese popcorn. St. Olaf Tap in St. Olaf, Iowa boasts the world's largest tenderloin, and that is no false claim: the 16 oz. breaded pork tenderloin sandwich is monstrously large with enough meat for four oversized sandwiches. Their homemade onion rings and fried corn nuggets were also wonderful, and the 1919 Brand Root Beer flowed freely on tap. We dragged ourselves back to Pikes Peak State Park in McGregor and plotted tomorrow's drive across Iowa.

What’s a huckleberry?  Is there another fruit that is so embedded in American culture, yet as little understood, as the huckleberry?  We’ve all heard of Twain’s Finn, and Hanna-Barbera’s Hound, but other than the lucky few who live where wild huckleberries thrive, few of us have ever even seen a huckleberry.  Is it the same thing as a blueberry?  No, it’s not, and aficionados will insist the two are completely different, but the truth is, they are similar in appearance and taste.  Huckleberries only grow wild, however, and each berry contains ten larger seeds (larger than the tiny seeds of blueberries, that is).  They are also more intense in flavor than the common blueberry.

This is surely a fruit worth celebrating, and there are a few huckleberry festivals around the country.  One happening right now, and continuing through Saturday, is the 42nd Annual Huckleberry Festival in Jay, Oklahoma.  Local pie bakers will be submitting their huckleberry creations Saturday morning, with the judging to take place at 9 am at Arvest Bank.  The pies will then be auctioned off at 10:30 am at Court House Square, where at the same time, free ice cream with huckleberry sauce will be available!  Huckleberry lemonade will be served from 10 am until noon.

Other food related activities include a pancake breakfast Saturday at 7 am, snow cones at the pie judging at 9 am, the famous Masonic Lodge Hog Fry at 11:30 am, and sliced watermelon at noon.  Eating contests will include the Long Cheese Coney Eating Contest at noon and the Jell-O Eating Contest at 12:15 pm, both at Mom’s Country Kitchen, and a Root Beer Chug-A-Lug Contest at 3 pm at Sonic.  There will be fireworks Friday and Saturday nights, a carnival tonight and Friday night, and gospel music Saturday night.  Also planned: a Huckleberry Run, arts and crafts, a baseball card show, horse shoe pitching, a parade at 10 am Saturday, mechanical bull riding, a tricycle race, and a water balloon relay.  For more information see the festival schedule.

Give Roadfooders real maple syrup and a good cup of coffee at breakfast and they’ll be happy, according to the latest Roadfood.com poll that asked the following question: What Impresses You Most at a Breakfast Place?

We’re pretty fussy about coffee, and generally resign ourselves to looking for a good cup at a coffee shop AFTER breakfast.  It’s a rare treat when we find that good cup WITH breakfast.  Although we’re also annoying when it comes to maple syrup – we only keep the real thing around, which for years we used to order from the late Governor Thomson’s Mt. Cube Farm in New Hampshire, and today we get from Polly’s Pancake Parlor – surprisingly enough we can live with the fake stuff when we’re traveling.  Though we have toyed with the idea of traveling with little bottles of New Hampshire’s finest…

Recalling the majesty of North Carolina’s Kill Devil Hills and New Mexico’s White Sands, the towering dune called Mt. Baldy at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore helped to burn off post-breakfast calories before meeting Nocarolina Bob in Chicago. Since this would be Amy’s first time to eat an Italian Beef sandwich, Bob’s choice was a no-brainer: Al’s #1 on Taylor Street in Little Italy. The tender beef, taut sausage, spicy giardiniera, and run-down-your-chin juices combined for a taste sensation like no other. Across the street was Mario’s Italian Lemonade, where we cooled and cleansed our palates with pineapple-coconut Italian ice. We vow to return to sample their curious snack of salted lupini beans. Next stop was Mr. Beef on Orleans to compare their beef & sausage combo. Though we all thought that Al’s was the clear winner, the Mr. Beef version was no slouch with its different but titillating giardiniera. Our final stop was Bob’s favorite ice cream shop, Cunis Candies on 162^nd Street in South Holland. A scoop of the New York Cherry ice cream with homemade hot fudge wowed us, and we thank Bob for his time and gracious hospitality in showing us around the city.

“Tell everyone I’m back,” says ChiTownDiner Gregg. A last-minute phone call found us sharing Gregg’s first dining-out experience after four months of cancer treatment. We met at the Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder Company on N. Clark for their unique pizza pot pies and Italian salami grinders. A full pound of ingredients are baked in a ceramic dish similar to flowerpot bread, then flipped over and served as a very literal pizza pie. Gregg and his lovely bride Patti then whisked us away to Yuki Hana up the street for an insider’s look at extraordinary sushi. Gregg’s longtime friendship with the chef afforded us tender dumplings, colorful combination rolls, red bean mochi, and a tossed squid salad that has no equal. Our final stop was Bobtail Ice Cream on N. Broadway. A petite scoop of their homemade Signature Sunset—that’s merlot (!) with dark chocolate chips—capped an unbelievable tour of Windy City specialties. We were honored to accompany Gregg & Patti on this memorable night out and look forward to our next chapter with the Milwaukee gang!

Shots from Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore:

Day 4 in pictures:

After an absolutely beautiful night of camping at Salt Fork State Park, we drove into Cambridge, Ohio seeking food to break our fast. What we found at Kennedy's Bakery was a gold mine of pastries, including a super-moist red raspberry white chocolate chip muffin, cinnamon-filled kolacky, uber-sweet cinnamon sticks, krunch-koted donuts, and a lip-smacking butterscotch danish. Hopped up on sugar, we motored through Columbus, Ohio (stopping briefly to visit the state house) to Columbus, Indiana, where CajunKing was kind enough to meet us at Zaharako's for lunch. This century-old soda fountain had been closed for nearly four years, only recently re-opening at the beginning of June. The restoration of the restaurant was breathtaking, transforming the dark-with-age walls and ceilings into a radiantly elegant interior. Due to a slight ordering mishap (be sure to properly enunciate!) we ended up with cheeseburgers in addition to our cheese-brr-grrs, but all proved tasty...particularly when accompanied by fountain-flavored cokes (we tried the cinnamon and red raspberry varieties)! A scoop of ice cream later, we were back in the car and rolling up I-65 on our way to Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. We set up camp there, and ventured out to Valparaiso to catch a double feature at the 49er Drive-in Theater. The 49er provided a perfect piece of Americana—truck beds packed with families and popcorn, fireflies buzzing around pre-show games of catch, and the Star Spangled Banner preceding the coming attractions. Since drive-in theaters rely heavily on concession sales to stay afloat, we always try to patronize the snack bar and tonight constructed a make-shift dinner out of a bucket of popcorn, chili cheese nachos, and sausage pizza (they even served Italian Beef, though we didn't try it on this visit!). After the final credits rolled, we headed back to the lakeshore to sneak in a few hours of sleep before heading to Chicago to spend the day to sample some Windy City specialties!

Whether you get them in an impossibly sloppy sandwich, or as a topping for bean-heavy chili, the crusty, smoky burnt ends from Woodyard Bar-B-Que (on the Kansas side of Kansas City) will satisfy that craving for meat and fat and smoke that nutritionists are forever warning us about.  Hear Jane and Michael Stern talk about the Woodyard on this past weekend’s episode of Lynne Rossetto Kasper’s The Splendid Table.  While it’s too late to catch the show on your old-fashioned radio, you can listen anytime on your newfangled computer.  Check out the Roadfood.com review of Woodyard Bar-B-Que while you’re at it, too.

Knowing that we were going to feast in Pittsburgh, we chose to indulge in the scenery along the Pennsylvania Turnpike instead of stopping to ruin our appetites. Sadly we got our wires crossed in planning to meet Buffetbuster in Pittsburgh's Strip District for dinner (he was out in Kansas City sharing a Stroud’s chicken dinner with The Travelin' Man on Sunday afternoon). However, Cliff was kind enough to talk us through his planned eating itinerary over the phone. Our first stop was Primanti Bros., where we shared a homemade hot sausage and cheese sandwich heaped with Primanti's famous fries and coleslaw. Even though the restaurant was incredibly busy, our waitress was able to find the time to drop off an extra “dish” to share the sandwich (read: a second sheet of wax paper). From Primanti’s, we quickly rounded the corner and made it inside the Robert Wholey Co. fish market mere minutes before they closed up shop. We ordered the final sandwich of the day, and watched as the counterperson placed a foot’s worth of fried cod within the cushion of a Mancini roll. Our only regret was that we missed the condiments in our rush to leave the closed store—an ample dousing of malt vinegar would have been the perfect complement to the golden-brown filet! Our last stop before leaving the Steel City was Klavon's, an old-time ice cream parlor on the edge of the Strip District. Although Klavon's doesn't make their own ice cream, they do serve up a local Pittsburgh favorite—Reinhold's. We ordered a fountain-made vanilla Coke and a dish of the Whitehouse ice cream (vanilla ice cream laden with maraschino cherries). Both more than satisfied our sweet teeth, and the ambiance made for the finest ice cream experience in town. Our dinner stop was at Orr’s Drive-In in Dyersville, Ohio, where the foot-long chili dog was prime, and our wickedly peanut-buttery milkshake refused to be photographed clearly. Our first night of camping at Salt Fork State Park couldn’t have been nicer, too. Tomorrow we head to southern Indiana to eat with CajunKing at the newly re-opened Zaharako’s in picturesque Columbus!

From start to finish, Day 1 afforded an incredible tour of the Roadfood highlights of three states. We began our day by breaking donuts with Michael Stern at Dottie's Diner in Woodbury, Connecticut. Even though we've had Dottie's cinnamon donuts several times, we are nonetheless taken aback by their superior quality each time we take that first bite. Energized by sugar and caffeine, we proceeded to take on the congested mess that is I-95 through NYC and NJ. Several hours and stiff legs later, we met Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle in Bordentown at Mastoris Diner for the only-in-New Jersey pork roll and egg sandwich. Described by Chris as a “mix between bologna and luncheon meat,” its crispy crust together with a fried egg and slice of cheese more than satisfied our fully-developed post-breakfast hunger. After noting that there were a few bites of room left in our stomachs, the four of us headed over to Steve's Prince of Steaks for a genuine Philly Cheesesteak “wiz wit” (Cheez Whiz with onions). Upon Bruce's recommendation, we also added homemade roasted hot peppers to the mix, which elevated this simple sandwich to the next level. We washed the sandwich down with a chocolate soda, pinky swore Bruce that we would not leave Philly without stopping at Tony Luke's, and then met up with our friends Chris and Sarah for dinner. Although we were tempted by several sandwiches on the menu, we knew that we faced being voted off the Roadfood Island if we didn't try the Pork Rabe Italian...and thank goodness we did. The flavors of roasted pork, garlicky broccoli rabe, and sharp provolone melded together beautifully and when heaped on crusty locally-made bread, made for one of the greatest sandwich experiences of our collective life. Delighted by our day of good food and even better companionship, we drifted off to sleep with visions of Primanti Bros. dancing in our heads...

Although this summer will undoubtedly be filled with a myriad of regional summer staples (e.g., Wisconsin frozen custard, Washington state berries, Alberta beef burgers, etc.), it just wouldn’t be summer for us without New England fried clams and lobster rolls. Lucky for us that Stephen Rushmore included two of the Northeast’s most lauded Roadfood stops on our recent recap of the 2008 New England Ice Cream Tour. It turns out that 3 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon is the optimal time to visit the picturesque village of Wiscasset, Maine and Red’s Eats — no lines, no waiting, and 10 minutes later we were enjoying lobster rolls on Red’s back porch overlooking the bay. The heaped hunks of lobster meat are enough to satisfy any seafood craving; however, it would’ve seemed a shame to pass by Massachusetts’ North Shore without stopping at the Clam Box of Ipswich. The three-way combo plate of whole-belly clams, two-bite scallops, and jumbo shrimp made the sides of onion rings and coleslaw seem superfluous. Even at the very end of the business day, the Clam Box served up the freshest seafood in the area. Stay tuned as we begin our cross-country travels and take on the New Jersey pork roll, the Philly cheesesteak…and the I-95 corridor!

Decades ago when Jane and I found Pepe’s Pizzeria Napoletana you could precede your pie with a plate of clams on the half shell. The littlenecks dropped off the menu, leaving only pizza. Fine; we love a place that does one and only one thing perfectly. The other day, visiting the estimable Pepe's of Fairfield, we were stunned to find a placard on the table advertising a new appetizer: salad. Curiosity piqued, we had to check it out. Not bad: a variety of lettuces including plenty of frisee, tomatoes, a few olives (which are not available as a pizza topping) all sopped in sweet balsamic vinaigrette and dusted with cheese. Salad is not going to replace pizza as our favorite dish at Pepe’s, but it’s nice to know it’s there.