We never stop anymore on road trips. On we go, and frankly we are not often tempted to pull off the road by the options. ‘Twas not always so. In the 1950s, when it seems we would often travel with grandparents, they would have favored places to stop. I remember clearly a restaurant in Sharon, Connecticut, right by the roadside, that had rickety tables out on the lawn and terrific French fries. We would clamor as we crossed the mountain and got close.
Perhaps it was McDonald’s that stuck the deepest dagger in the roadside restaurant. Often, McDonald’s would have a steep ladder up to their fancy signage so they could update how many burgers had been sold to date. And you could take it all to go.
I have an idea. Let there be four restaurants, in each compass direction from Seattle, about an hour and a half into the trip. Let them be called, If They Had a Good Salad I Would Stop. They would serve more than salad, of course, but their focus would be particularly on health, particularly on detail. They would be of today.Â
They would have a true coffee shop, with espresso machine and some sense. (I once jumped off a train in Italy as it stopped for ten minutes in a very quiet little town and station. There I had a perfect cappuccino, at a little counter, in a cup and saucer, and jumped back on.)
The sandwiches would be grilled, the bread some combination of pita, focaccia, ciabatta, and naan. The only fried food would be the fries, the only meats would be sliced. A swirl of the brilliance of falafel, bahn mi, tacos, and such — very fast and fresh and simple. I can take you to ten places in Seattle that would be prototypes of the offers, mixed together a bit.
The salads would be good, a combination of knowing a good vinaigrette and getting good greens. And able to add the slightest variations of a goat cheese or marinated vegetable.
Each restaurant would have a relation to its place as source for greens and vegetables and fruit. The four directions from Seattle put each place in a particularly wonderful area for growing food.
There would be beans, and rice and always, a bean soup, through the seasons. When asparagus was here, it would be an option. When mushrooms were here, they could be added. All the local fruits would make it into the joint, on ice creams or yogurt or solo.
If they had a good salad, I would stop. You would know the season, when you were there. And there would be maps and details of where to go, what to see, where to shop. Geologic maps of where you are. The video screen would show time, weather, traffic, and any current events.
There would be cooking classes and cookbook signings. Both would help to keep local kids coming to learn and hopefully to sign on and work. It would be a task of some speed and care but that is a well-learned part of street food culture, in places that do brilliant street food. This would be the road food version, here you go. To be actually modern.
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Driving over Highway 20 before the road is closed this winter? Stop at Concrete to eat…gluten free, great sandwiches/soup/salads, plus grab a loaf of bread. 5 B’s Bakery. Plus check their stocked freezer for baked goods and pastas.
Pretty good idea! A couple of comments though. An hour and a half west of Seattle would put you in Olympic National Park, I think. A bean soup throughout the year? Well, I guess you’d have plenty of gas on your road trip. “The video screen would show time, weather, traffic, and any current events.” Also known as a cell phone. Road trips just aren’t the same as they were with our grandparents, or even our parents, but you can always stay off the Interstates and roll on to new adventures.