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Bean town

Hello!

Seems like it’s been awhile…

Some of you are new to me and I guess that makes me new to you too…in a sneaky sort of way. After posting practically everyday with my P-dub project it has felt strange to have a break from sending off my craziness into cyber space. We had Spring Break here in West Michigan the past week so I was off on an adventure with my posse’.

I LOVE to travel, my kids LOVE to travel, and so does Kenny. We would travel more if we could, but such is life….we take what we can get. And we are happy with it!

We decided to be freakish and head due East unlike the rest of the state that heads due South. It was BEAN town or bust for us! No worries this will not be another rant regarding my families flatus fixation.

I would definitely recommend Boston as a family vacation we had a blast and did not break the bank…not completely….there are six of us…..and we do all have healthy appetites…but it was okay we were able to buy groceries when we returned home.

Our first stop was Niagara Falls. It was right on our way. We just made a quick pit stop, walked the walkway around the falls and got the heck out of Dodge! That town is a commercial nightmare…Hard Rock Cafe, Hershey Candy Store, Wax Museum, Spinning Observation Tower, Guinness Book of World Record Museum. There is probably more but I found myself closing my eyes!

Someone must have taken the “pot-O-gold” at the end of the rainbow, to pay for their kids souvenirs.

HOKEY PETE! Talk about a tourist trap! I tried my darnest to distract the kids as we drove into town, so they would not be begging to go look at all that garbage. Actually, by the grace of God we ended up…..taking the route that leads you around the outside of the town. And right directly along the river to the falls. So unless you know that stuff is there and you are looking up the side streets away from the falls…this route is the best because you don’t notice the over commercialized town of Niagara Falls. On the way out of town somebody spotted the Hershey Store…Oh POO! We could not find free parking, so we had to keep going, BUMMER! My poor deprived children.

Besides…

We had more important things to do, like finding the originators of the Buffalo Hot Wings! The Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY stakes the claim to being the inventor or the Hot Wing as we know it. My youngest son is a hot wing eating freak! This kid has eaten his weight in hot wings three times over. So it was extremely important that we seek out this “Institution of Hot Wings”.

It too, has become commercial and is only a shell of it’s former chicken wing originating self. Not that I knew it in the early days…I am just imagining that when Grandma Teressa came up with the recipe….they were not selling t-shirts and chicken wing hats in the lobby of the bar. Luke went home with a buffalo hot wing key chain!

You do not want to go to this restaurant with out wet wipes! Or really any restaurant for that matter when you have kiddos along.

We ordered the “your eyes are bigger than you stomach” sized platter of wings. Half mild, half medium…medium was not hot enough for us spice lovers.

I have to say these were pretty darn good Buffalo Chicken Wings, my mouth is watering oh my garshk I just dropped a glob of drool on my computer. How embarrassing.

Here’s the kid we call “hot sauce”. Nothing is too hot for this boy. He covers everything with Cholulah Sauce.

Obviously we had NO troubles packin’ in the wings!

The next day we started out our day with one of our FAVORITE things to do on vacation. Seek out Diners Drivin’s & Dives restaurants. Please tell me you have seen the show on FoodNetwork….it’s a family favorite around here. (that and The Middle) We have visited over a dozen triple D’s in our Road Trip travels. This trip we found three..you can find them all on this site.
The Lake Effect Diner in Buffalo, NY….BACK FLIPPING CRAZY GOOD BREAKFAST! Fresh squeezed O.J….they smoke their own bacon…come on people that’s “uber” awesome! (that’s my kids new favorite word…everything is uber)

Mr. Bartleys Burgers in Cambridge, Mass. was the funniest, wackiest, quirky, place ever. Even if you are a herbivore you need to seek out this carnivorous dive. I felt like I was in a Seinfeld episode. Gramps sits out on the sidewalk on a stool taking orders, you line up, and you better darn well know what you want by the time you reach the foot of Gramps stool, otherwise…you are grumped at by Gramps and growled at too! We saw it happen to a poor couple, I think they were French it was heart wrenching, we placed our order and got to pass them in line…oh the agony!

That is my burger, the Viagra, sorry I was in a hurry and I saw bacon and blue cheese and I quick took the plunge, before Gramps put me in time out with the Frenchies!

GERACI’S Cleveland, OH

The spaghetti and meatballs were such a hit, I couldn’t even get a picture of them, she sucked them down so fast! And the Pizza Pie….they make their own pepperoni’s. UBER!

OH! MAMA MIA! That is all I am gonna say PEOPLE! I wish I could have scooped this place up and brought it home with me. We said we would eat at this place once a week if we could….that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but sounds like a good idea! We don’t often partake of dessert when we dine out with the chitlins…but being that it was our last hurrah! of the trip we ordered the Dough Balls….

as you can see they were a HIT!

We did more than eat on our roadtrip…really…we did. We walked the Freedom Trail, saw Quincy Market, Fanueil Hall, Bunker Hill, took the Duck Boat tours, saw Fenway Park(not a game..just the ballpark), we rode the T-line Bostons subway, we say the U.S.S. Constitution War Ship. We took in Cape Cod, Newport, Rhode Island, Mystic, Ct…and here is where I stop to tell YA! ICE CREAM! YOU scream WE ALL scream for ICE CREAM!

We originally stopped in Mystic to check out the town that the movie Mystic Pizza was filmed in. Remember Julia Roberts….big hair, lots of smooching…anyway. We found the pizza spot..not hungry enough yet for pizza so we decided to have an ice cream cone at the Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream Parlor…little did we know we had just arrived in ice cream heaven…they have been making this stuff from scratch with all sorts of yummy ingredients for over 200 years!

This was my SCOOP! Ginger and Spice….can you hear me singing?
“Heaven, i’m in heaven (wavering on the N)
And my heart beats sooooo that I can hardly speeeeeeak (wavering again on the E)
And I seem to find the happiness I seek (deeep and guteral)
When we’re out together eating ice creeeamm…..”

Ice cream LOVE music! It was fantastical, creamy, with bits of crystalized ginger all through it!

I had two disappointments at this juncture…

1. I didn’t order two scoops the second being the Coffee Coconut Madness. Still having nightmares about this mistake.

2. My family ordered chocolate shakes, soft serve ice cream, AND my husband did have the homemade ice cream, but he ordered vanilla and chocolate! COME ON! What is wrong with this picture?!

We had a blast in New England! We love this country. We are blessed to have the chances to explore it!

If you want every gory detail of this trip of ours…please feel free to take a click on the button over there on the right with the picture of our family…not sure if I will be done posting over there or not by the time this goes out…but no matter.

I would love to hear about your favorite places to travel and eat. Sharing these things is thereputic…you never want to keep “good eats” and travel advice to yourself it can mess with your head.

LuvYa,

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11 Comments

  1. I hope you got a chance to stop over in Providence for a bit!!! The RI School of Design Museum is wicked awesome, especially for the kids, and Thayer Street, Blackstone Blvd, Wickenden Street, and the ENTIRE East Side are wonderful, the State House has one of the largest unsupported dome in the world and the tour is great. Waterfire on a Saturday night in the summer are a must. You can catch a Paw Sox game and maybe get lucky and see a Boston player recovering from an injury play (it's in Pawtucket, right next door to Providence), the Roger Williams Zoo and Park, the Looff Carousel in East Providence which is a National Historic Landmark (again right next door to Providence) are a great way to spend an afternoon with or without the kids. Don't forget a stop to at an Olneyville System and get a hot wiener all the way and a coffee cabinet or a Del's frozen lemonade!!! Federal Hill is an institution and should not be missed by anyone calling themselves a "foodie" or Italian American for that matter. Caserta's has the best Pizza in the state and Venda Ravioli brings the old world charm to you and no stop to the "Hill" would be complete without a pastry from Scialo's Bros., a bakery ironically run by two sisters.
    To say that I love my Capitol City of Providence is an understatement. There is just so much more to Rhode Island than Newport and the beaches. So the next time you are on your way out East, please be sure to stop off in Providence for a day or two, I promise you, you won't be disappointed.

  2. Oh man – DDD is the best!! My husband and I went on an anniversary trip to Eureka Springs, Arkansas and stopped in Baxter Springs, Kansas on the way. It's just a little cafe featured on DDD. It was seriously the best food I've ever tasted. End of story. We try to plan every trip with stops at DDD places! We're trying to plan a trip to Texas, but I fear that we'll spend all of our time eating.

    Side note: I can't wait to go to New England. We fell in love with Vermont. And Ben and Jerry's, but mostly Vermont.

  3. Loved this post. I used to do a lot of traveling as a kid, with my mom, but since being a parent these days is just tough enough to put food on our own table we hardly ever leave our own town. I dream of a day when my husband and I will get to do some traveling. Maybe by then we will have some grandkids and all of our families can travel together.

  4. Looks like you guys had a good time. Last month I surprised my husband with a weekend getaway to San Diego for his birthday and we ate at 4 Triple D places. None of them disappointed and we even saw a group of Hells Angels at our first stop. We look forward to trying more places in the future.

  5. It is fun to see someone enjoying Buffalo (since for me it is just the dreaded in-law visit place). If you ever go again – after I call you crazy – I can tell you a few other places to eat. You have to try Beef on Weck!

  6. What a fun trip idea! My bff and I are heading north for a massive road tour of New England this summer. I'll have to share this post with her!

  7. Sheila, next time you go, let me know Scott can get you into the Sam Adams Brewery if you would like! Very cool place. Not so good with 4 kids, but very fun. Looks like you had great food! I love Newport! I have a friend who lives in Boston but has a summer place in Newport and that is where they got married (had their reception at the Rosecliff Mansion. Love it out there! I am so hungry now!!!!!

  8. I have been going to Boston and Cape Cod MA since I was a very little girl with my family, joined by many other families with children it was always a blast. I haven't been in about 8 years but our family will be making the trek this summer for a glorious 3 weeks! SO Stoked!!!
    Thank you for sharing your trip with us! It looks like you had a wonderful time šŸ™‚

  9. Sounds amazing!! Boston is on my "Bucket List" so I can visit the Samuel Adams Brewery šŸ™‚
    BTW–The Canadian side of Niagara Falls is more nature, less commercial. My brother's family went last summer and had a BALL!