My Culinary Odyssey: Coal Run, Part 1

    Although there are those who don't agree with this statement, Coal Run and Pikeville are different towns.  Some would wish otherwise.  For this series, I am separating the two.  I will admit that I would eat out at Coal Run a little less than half the time when we used to go shopping in the area.  Even after I opened my store, we would still occasionally get take out on the way back into town.  We have not been using that option too frequently lately, but it is still technically possible.  Click the link here to see the legend for how I am doing this series.  Now, on with the restaurants. 

• Long John Silvers, DI/TO:  I never did like this LJS as much as the main Pikeville location.  Not really.  I seemed to hate how the doors were reversed from the other ones I went to (main entrance on the left instead of the right like many of the others I went to, and exit on the right).  Maybe it was how crowded it was the first few times we went there.  I can't remember exactly why we tried it here instead of the main one, but we did.  However, when the main restaurant was being remodeled and upgraded to have an A & W as well, this was the only option. My mom preferred going here due to the fact that you didn't have to make a left hand turn into traffic.  I hated it because of the high slope to the exit ramp was hard to stop and start on. It was here that I noticed how the grilled seafood menu expanded (but not chicken?) and the ill-advised experiment with onion rings.  They do not go with either seafood or chicken.  The lobby was always fairly empty the last few times I went, although there was still some waiting going on.  The last time I went was a big downer though.  There had been a delivery truck wreck on Abner, fifteen minutes from home.  It would be a long wait.  We decided to detour, go back to the store to pick up some coupons, and get dinner at the Coal Run LJS.  The place was dark when we got there, with a large sign in the window stating that they were closed.  I later found out that the manager left for another job, and the staff ultimately went too.  (For the ending of this story, check out the post on Martin for the details.) The place was never reopened.  A biscuit place went in for a while, but it closed.  It is currently a local pizza parlor.
• McDonald's, TO:  This is probably the oldest McD's in the Pikeville area.  I never even tried to go here until the 2010s.  Somehow, we had gotten coupons and decided to go here to try out a special limited edition burger.  (Why not one of the two closer ones to the store? No idea.) Anyway, it was very empty when we got there around noon.  We used the coupon, and then went onto the store with the food.  I think we stopped there one more time, at least, after the fun zone got removed.  It made a larger parking area, but a longer walk to the door.  While it was affected by the recent flooding, it reopened a week or so later.
• Arby's, DI/TO:  After many attempts, I finally learned to like Arby's. (You'll see some of the earlier tries in later posts.)  It was mostly the grilled chicken sandwiches that got me.  Yeah, I ate chicken at a beef place.  I was really into grilled chicken sandwiches in the 90s and 2000s.  Once, in the early years of my store, I actually picked up two sandwiches in a misguided attempt at "bulking up." I could barely eat them both.  My metabolism isn't cut out for such things.  Anyway, it closed one day soon after.  I'm not sure if it was due to the general rundown of the company, or if someone wanted the land.  The hospital would buy the lot, ultimately tearing down the building and putting up a temporary one in its place.  Currently, the spot is an empty lot for sale.
• Wendy's, TO:  Again, we stopped somewhere only because we had a coupon, and this location a  bigger parking lot to maneuver in.  I think I got a chicken sandwich, again. We only went this one time, as it was still not easy to drive out of even with the traffic light. 
• Pizza Hut, DI:  This was the first Hut I ever ate in.  It was my sophomore year in high school.  The band had played at a game at Betsy Layne, and it was decided that we would drive miles out of the way to eat out afterwards.  We went here and took up almost the entire restaurant.  Well, some of the senior guys went on down to McDonald's and ate on the bus. (In hindsight, this might not have been a good idea.  My mom was a chaperone at the time.  Allowing three seventeen year old boys to walk along a highway at night for about a mile round trip was more dangerous than I think should have been allowed.)  While I didn't eat too much of it, this did mark the point where my picky eating began to waiver.  After that, Pizza Hut would start showing up in my rotation of places to eat.  Just not for long, not after the Pikeville location opened.  It was just so much brighter.  This location would close in the 2010s or so, to be replaces by a Pizza Hut Express at Weddington Plaza.  Giovanni's would take over the spot for a while, before combing it with the Pikeville location and moving it downtown.  The spot is currently a Mexican restaurant.
• Sir Barton's Pizza, maybe?, DI:  This spot was based out of Lexington, but I can't remember its name. It was in Crossroads Plaza, next to Readmore Bookstore.  It was the early 90s, as I remember hearing a UK game vs Shaq's LSU there.  The place may have had ties to another Lexington pizza place.  This was the first time I ever encountered calzones.  It was an unusual encounter. (I would soon make my own at home, using refrigerated crust as it was thick enough to support the weight.  I would switch it out with regular pizza.  I just rounded out the crust before the pre-bake, added the toppings to one side, flipped the other crust over, and cut slits in the top to allow for steam to escape. Haven't made one in some time.  Not sure why.) While the first time was good, the second left a lot to be desired.  We never went back.  The place closed in a few years.  The spot is now a jewelry store/repair shop.
• Windmill Restaurant, DI:  We went here a few time in the 70s, maybe really early 80s.  We were entertaining relatives who really wanted to eat here. I didn't.  Picky eater and all.  The second time we went here, my mom took me out to the car and we just stayed there while everyone else ate.  I could have tried to eat, if we just stayed.  The place closed, sometime in the 90s or later or so, I think.  There were plans for it to reopen, but it is so out of the way from where we normally go, that I don't know its current state.  Hence, the red color.

     That is all for this post.  Tune in Saturday for a bonus post to finish off Coal Run.

My Culinary Odyssey: Pikeville, Part 4

    It is time for me to finish up with the Pikeville portion of my culinary odyssey.  I'll be covering the 'north' part of town in this bonus post. What do I mean by 'north' Pikeville? I'm talking about the northernmost part of town that is still south of Coal Run.  In recent years, Pikeville has annexed land north of Coal Run, although the two municipalities are still separate.  Therefore, I'm just covering those portions still south of that, and not those that may have been closer to Coal Run at one time. (Coal Run will get its own section starting next time.) Here's a link to the explanation of how I am organizing this series.  Let's begin.

• Burger King, Lee Avenue, TO,⭐️:  After the original BK at Coal Run closed, there was a drought for a few years before this location opened up beside the new Pikeville branch of the Pike County Library.  While I have gotten a few other things, such as the various chicken sandwiches, y go to has always been the Whopper.  Standard order:  no cheese, no pickles, sometimes extra tomatoes, I add some extra mayo and ketchup (of course) to taste.  My side is always onion rings, with some going on the burger (fries for chicken). Oh, medium Dr Pepper. This has been my standard for years. Since I've usually gotten lunch on my way back to Pikeville, I've never had the time to actually dine in at this newer location. However, since they remodeled a year or so ago, I'm not sure I want to eat in anymore.  The color scheme has gone to neutral grays and browns.  The booths have been mostly been replaced with high tables and stools.  It is no longer that inviting to me.  The fact the my mom caused a cashier to have a fit didn't help.  At least she has an in with the manager, as well as the former manager who now looks over the BKs in the entire region.
• Arby's, TO:  I was supposed to first eat at this Arby's soon after it opened.  I was going with my mother for an oil change, but she decided to just go on her own instead.  She brought me back a chicken sandwich, but I have a sneaking suspicion that it may have been turkey instead.  I always felt that way back then.  Anyway, once I opened my store, I had more options to eat here.  Sometimes, I would get my ice from here.  Otherwise, I barely have eaten here; maybe just once or twice.  For some reason, it is just so hard to find a way to get here, especially since it would just be for chicken.  Really wish I could stop here more often.
• [McDonald's, TO, ⭐️:  I honestly can't remember ever ordering food from here.  I know this has been an ice pick up, but nothing else. (I have an affectation of preference for drinking my pop with ice from a cup rather than directly from a can, to keep it cold and to dilute it somewhat.  So, I order just a few cups from various locations when I need it.)]
• [Steak N' Shake, TO:  After seeing the coupons in the newspaper for so long, I was wanting to eat here.  I finally, almost, got my chance one morning.  I had driven my mom to a funeral in Prestonsburg.  I stayed at the library just hanging out until she came back.  I was a little hungry and queasy at the same time.  It was a little too early for a full lunch, so she got me a banana milk shake, with a coupon as a late-morning snack.  I really liked it.  We tried to plan eating for real there, but the schedule never worked out.  We tried again after she stopped for coffee there one morning.  However, that's about the time the coupons stopped.  Soon after, the chain started closing stores, including this one. I deeply regret never eating here.  A Starbucks has since taken over the space.  Strangely enough, they haven't closed the kiosk in the Food City across Cassidy Boulevard.  I know it is sort of a cliche that there is a Starbucks on every city street corner.  Well, technically that is true in Pikeville.]
• Krystal's, TO:  This is the last of the restaurants that opened up about the same time as Booknotes. We were a little weary of this slider chain, but we tried it once just the same.  It was okay, but we only tried it once.  The place didn't last long.  The spot was either converted into a branch bank or razed to become part of a used car lot.  I'm not sure exactly which, as there was a second building there.  Walmart used to carry frozen sliders from here for years after they closed, but I don't remember seeing them recently.  I also had a lone straw from here in my emergency stores, but it was finally used in recent years.
• Jimmy John's, DEL (technically):  Okay, this is weird.  When Jimmy John's first opened, they sent people around with free samples to help spread the word.  While I didn't take one, as I don't like cold cut subs, my mom did.  (She loves free stuff.) Anyway, that technically is delivery.  Jimmy John's may have done this more than once, although I might be confusing it with another sub shop, as many have opened and closed in the area.
• Texas Roadhouse, TO:  This wouldn't normally be a place I would eat, but a cousin gave us a $50 gift card for Christmas one year, and my mom loves free stuff. (See above.) Anyhow, we searched online the see exactly what we could get for that amount, because we weren't going to use it more than that one time.  Well, fifty dollars was a lot of food. I could barely eat my burger and some of the sides.  My mom ever less, but she doesn't mind leftovers as much as I do.  In particular, she felt the fries were too salty.  So, she ultimately washed them in water and reheated them when she ate them later. (And that's not even the worst thing she has done.  See a later post.) I thought they were okay, but I barely had enough to drink to get through it all. I don't know why that cousin gave us this, as she should know this wasn't our type of thing.  Maybe it was a regift. Anyway, Texas Roadhouse was the only restaurant in this section to have been directly affected by the recent flooding.  It was closed for a time, but I am not sure it has reopened yet.  That's why it is in red instead of blue or black.  I think it should be blue though.

    That's it for Pikeville.  Come back Wednesday for the regular post as I start in on Coal Run.

My Culinary Odyssey: Pikeville, Part 3

    It's time to start the third part of my trip through Pikeville.  This time, I will be covering the part of Pikeville that covers the central business district, what I'll be calling 'east central," as I will be going fairly far east of the main downtown. Click here for the link to see how I am organizing these posts.  Onto the food stops.

• [Pizza place next to Subway, ?:  Many restaurants opened about the same time my store, Booknotes, did. This pizza place was one of them.  It opened the same time as Subway.  I think they went around to various businesses to advertise their opening.  I know we thought about going there, but I can't remember if we actually did.  I think it had "Roma" as part of its name, but I can't be sure.  The pizza place didn't stay around too long, and Subway expanded into their section of the building. Subway has recently remodeled that area again.  Note:  pretty sure I've never eaten at this Subway.]
• Lunch counter at Hobbs department store, DI:  In the mid-80s, or so, my mom started to get very tired about my picky eating and stopping at LJS so much.  As a compromise, we would sometimes stop here for a bite.  More so for me than her.  After shopping for toys upstairs, we went to the lunch counter, and I had a grilled cheese sandwich, maybe with some fries. I would put some of the ketchup on my sandwich for a flavor boost. We didn't do this too many times, before the store closed off the counter as part of their slow decline to going out of business.  By the 90s, Hobbs was gone, and a bank took up the entire corner space.  That bank has since closed this branch, and it is rumored that the hospital is looking to buy the space. ( While Hobbs is gone, its warehouse on Route 122 in Robinson Creek is still standing, with its logo still visible.) [I still eat ketchup occasionally with grilled cheese, but it is rare as I usually have it for breakfast some days.  And I make them with hot dog buns. Also, I prefer toasted cheese sandwiches, sometimes with mozzarella and spaghetti sauce instead of American slices. I know.  Really weird, but least fat from added butter.]
• Hardee's, TO, ⭐️:  Strangely enough, I never really ate here until the 2000s.  Sure, my mom stoped here for coffee a few times, and I think we went through the drive-thru to get me some fries once before driving on to someplace else, but that was it.  It was never part of the rotation of restaurants that we went through.  I didn't really eat here until after my store opened, and they developed the 'Angus Thickburger.' I tried and kind of liked it, so Hardee's entered the rotation.  I usually had a signature  burger, although I would also have the chicken strips.  They were always just a little overcooked compared to other places. There were also the occasional limited offers, but I always felt the food was just not quite to my tastes.  Then, the Thickburger left.  In fact, most of the few things I really liked were taken off the menu. I'm not sure was happening.  During my most recent visit last year, they were out of all fountain drinks and were giving out cans of Coke and Sprite instead.  The ice machine part of the fountain still worked. I also heard them say that they were out of the special patties for some of their signature burgers. Over the past few years, they have also been out of condiments (but not the Duke mayonnaise which I don't like), cup carriers, half-and-half, and even napkins. I don't know what is going on here, but I bet my mom will still try and get her coffee and my ice here when she can.
• Chirico's Ristorante, previous/current locations, TO/DEL:  This was another restaurant that opened up about the same time as Booknotes.  They too went around promoting their opening, but we definitely ate here.  I tried a calzone from here, and it had possibly the best pizza crust I ever had.  Honest.  It was a little pricey to have often, but I tried to have it as much as I could.  I even had one delivered to the store when a plan to get Stromboli at Hoebert's in P-burg had to be cancelled when there was an accident on the road near them.   Chirico's had to move from its original location at the Pinson hotel when the building was torn down to make way for Pikeville's third county courthouse (!) , (and second in thirty years) to the historic McCoy House (!?).  I would usually order a calzone on Halloween, enabling me to hand out candy without worrying about too much cooking.  Unfortunately, I had to stop going there when prices started to go up.  I haven't eaten there in over a decade.  While I didn't order a wide variety of things there, I still would like to go back.
• Dorsey's Diary Bar, TO, previous owner:  Dorsey's was one of the places we tried eating at during the early period of my store.  I got a burger, maybe onion rings, and a drink. Within the hour, I was sick in the bathroom, the only time I can ever remember having problems so soon after eating out. While that alone might not prevent me from going back, I do have some more sour grapes to mention.  About eight/nine years ago, I had book signing event with bestselling author Adrianna Trigiani for her second time back.  We contacted various media outlets about the event, including WYMT-Hazard. Although smaller than the original event, we still had a good turnout.  We didn't have much media coverage though.  That night, I was watching Hazard news, when it ran an item about how the community had come out to repaint Dorsey's and fix up a few things.  We were just down the road a half mile and they couldn't show up for our event?! Sure, maybe the thing at Dorsey's was over with before our event at two, but they still could have stayed around.  It is a just as business oriented.  They show up at Hazard's book store for the smallest excuse, but not for us that day.  As I said, sour grapes.  Regardless, I am not planning at eating here again.
• [Double Kwik, TO:  I have gotten ice here a few times.  Nothing fresh made.  Just some packaged things a few times.  I also used to get the Saturday Lexington newspaper here when it was still published.]
• Mona's Catering, TO:  I haven't actually ate here, although I have sampled a few desserts my mom has gotten when she has gone here.  Not really my style.

    This ends another section of Pikeville.  Tune in Saturday for another bonus post as I finish up this section with "north" Pikeville.  You'll also find out when I put it in quotes.

My Culinary Odyssey: Pikeville, Part 2

    It is another bonus post this Saturday as I go through the next part of Pikeville.  I'm calling this section "west central" just to help differentiate it. There are a lot of places to go through, so I best start. Click here for a link to how I am organizing this series. 

• Giovanni's, previous location, TO/DEL?:  When Giovanni's finally opened a location in downtown Pikeville, they came around to various businesses to promote the fact.  So, we ordered one, and the experience was much better than the first time in P-Burg. We wound up ordering a few more times, using the discounts they were handing out, mostly.  We may have even had one delivered to the store once. However, we stopped ordering for some reason, possibly the pandemic, but I can't be sure. They have since combined the restaurants at Coal Run and Pikeville and moved to a new location closer to the central business district.
• Wendy's, previous location, TO:  We tried a burger from here as one of the first places to eat at after I opened the store.  I didn't think too much of it at the time, as I wasn't the one who actually went inside.  The location was also hard to pull into and out of, so it never became a regular spot in the rotation of eating locations.  As mentioned above, Wendy's has move to a new location.  A Slim Chickens has opened up in its place. We were going to try it last year, after they sent out special coupons to local businesses, including a single coupon for a free sandwich. Unfortunately, we could never agree on an order or find the time to eat there, so done of the coupons were used.
• Jerry's, DI:  This was a great place to eat.  When I was a kid, they would give out these play mats and a small box of crayons. Sometimes, they were so soft at times that you could mold them with your hands. I took a break from eating there for a lot of my picky eating phase, but I would return there starting in my teens. We didn't eat there that often, but I always found it to be dark and slightly gloomy. I still liked it. Because there wasn't much of a take out service at the time, I stopped going there when my store opened. In the back of my mind, I had the faint idea that if any of my old friends came around, this was where we eat out.  That wasn't to be.  After some politicking involving the city, the university, and the hospital, Jerry's was basically forced to close. Some of her friends took my mom to eat there during its last days, but I wasn't able to go and didn't want anything from take out. El Azul Grande, the Mexican restaurant mentioned last time, took over the spot for a while before getting the penthouse restaurant of the Landmark Inn. The old Jerry's building was torn down to make way for extra parking for a nursing school, possibly more than they needed.  The only sign left is literally the base of its old sign, although a new placard for the school covers up the marquee. [While some old friends have come to the store, none were able to stay more than a few minutes.]
• Kentucky Fried Chicken, previous location, DI:  I barely remember eating here as a kid.  We didn't go here that often, as it was a little cramped and the restrooms were only accessible from an alley outside.  They would later build a new location at the old site of the A & P store.
• Papa John's, previous location, TO (but it was supposed to be DI):  Papa John's would take over KFC's spot in the early 90s. We were going to dine it, until my mom realized about the outdoor access restrooms.  We wound up with take out instead.  I wasn't too thrilled about the pizza, but I think I may have liked some of the extra sauces they gave out. Papa John's would later move to Walter's Plaza, and we still haven't eaten there since that first time. The building has since been torn down, for similar reasons as above, only nothing new has yet to be put up.
• [Speedway, TO:  I don't remember if we ever went here when it was a Super America, or even if it ever was a Super America. However, I do believe I haven't gotten ice here a few times.  I really like having iced drinks at the store, so I make sure I have some here at all times.]
• Kentucky Fried Chicken/KFC, current location, DI/TO, ⭐️:  As I mentioned it the P-Burg entry, I really got into KFC's Zinger chicken sandwiches and potato wedges in the 90s. So, KFC became a fairly common spot to eat in my rotation.  In fact, I even closed my store for a few minutes to go out and get myself one on my first birthday after opening my store. The problem was that I was expecting a book order that day, and it had a book I was really looking forward to.  It was Hidden Passions, a novel based on the soap opera, Passions. (If you don't remember, it was about a witch, Tabitha, who was getting her revenge on a town by ruining many of the people's lives.  She created her own living doll assistant, Timmy, to help her out. She ultimately redeemed herself and helped save the town, but things got really weird at times.) Unfortunately, UPS was running late that day, and I needed much sooner than later.  Yes, they arrived while I was out, and I had to wait until the following Monday to receive the order. I stopped going as often, once my sandwich got discontinued. I would switch over to chicken strips, but they weren't as good.  The last time I went, about three years ago, the lobby was basically closed due to not enough help. The chicken strips had been replaced by processed chicken 'strips,' the wedges with regular fries, and the sweet-and-sour sauce discontinued. I didn't like it enough to go back since.  I might change my mind if the wedges come back.  They are being tested in some locations right now.
• McDonald's, TO: This is an unusual case.  McDonald's was another spot we tried after opening the store. My mom actually took the order back when she realized she had ordered the wrong thing. I haven't had food there since.  However, my mom has gotten a few things there:  coffee, my ice, various drinks such as frappes, cookies, occasional other pastries. But no Krispy Kreme doughnuts as of yet. 
• Little Caesar's, TO:  I'm pretty sure we ordered a pizza here at one time.  Again, too focused on pepperoni to warrant going back, although my mom loves it the many times it was served at meeting she goes to.  We may have gotten a pizza from Domino's as well, but I can't remember anything about it.

    With that, I finish this bonus post.  Come back Wednesday for my regular update.  See you then.

My Culinary Odyssey: Pikeville, Part 1

    For much of my early life, I was going to Pikeville at least twice a month. While I didn't eat out every time, I did eat out most of the time, either in town or out in Coal Run (They will be given a separate highlight after Pikeville). Even now, that I own a store in Pikeville, I still eat out once or twice a month. As such, there have been a lot of places to cover. As such, I better start covering all of them, starting at the south end of town. Click here for the explanation of how I'm doing this.

• Long John Silver's, DI/TO, ⭐️ ⭐️, (later also A + W Restaurant):  I've got to say, I've probably eaten here more than anywhere else. I've been coming here since I was a little boy. I remember when it was still on the highway, before US 23 became a four lane. I was such a picky eater, I would eat nowhere else for most of my childhood. It wasn't until I was a teenager that I would usually eat at multiple places. I have been eating here since they had 'peg-leg' chicken drumsticks. This calculates to at least 120 times.  Probably close to 150 or higher. I remember the holiday promotion they ran back in the early 80s, where you could buy mugs.  We would get them every year, frequently giving some away as presents.  While the original ones long since broke, I still use mugs/steins as my primary glassware.  Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks.  I even have one the holds at least a quart. Sure, they are mostly for water, but I still use them. [Yes, A + W has mugs too, but I have yet felt the great need to purchase one.] Even when I started eating out at other places, I would still eat here a few times a year. I had to go to the Coal Run location a few times when this one was closed for remodeling. (More on that one in a later post.) An A + W Restaurant was added about the same time as I opened my store.  I had a chicken sandwich, and maybe a burger from there, but LJS remains the go to. I just haven't had the time to actually dine in the redesigned seating area anymore. I basically order the same thing every time, although I recently started to alter it slightly. Instead of ordering just for myself, I frequently split a fish and chicken platter. She gets the fish, slaw, a hushpuppy, and some fries.  I get the three pieces of chicken (although it has been four slightly smaller pieces the last two times), the other hushpuppy, most of the fries, and crumbs.  Plus a medium drink, mostly Dr Pepper. When I was a kid, I would get extra crumbs and save most of them as a 'dessert.' While I don't order extra anymore, I still save what I do get until the end. I have had fish, but usually it was when they had the breaded 'Southern/Country-style.' I would eat it with a mix of tartar sauce, ketchup, and sweet-and-sour that just didn't pair well with the batter-dipped.  As the only LJS left standing in the area, I admit that I am a little worried for it. It still seems busy many nights, but I can't help think what would happen if the last local one closed. 
• Dairy Queen, TO:  The main time I remember eating here was back in the mid-90s. I took my mom to the hospital for a follow up visit after she had a procedure the previous day. We went fairly early, so I didn't get to eat. We stopped here to get her coffee and me some fries before some shopping and heading home. While eating in the car, some of the ketchup landed on my shirt. Some men in the next car over saw it and commented.  Very embarrassing. [Not the first time it happened either. See a later post.] I may have eaten here more recently, but I don't remember it. Definitely no Blizzards though.
• Gatti's, TO:  We went here once in the 90s, on the Friday after Thanksgiving.  Mom got some steak sandwiches, Stromboli type, for herself and my grandmother, while I just got a pizza. Nothing remarkable about the pizza, but they didn't like the sandwiches. Gatti's has since moved to Cassidy Boulevard and became Gattiland. A Mexican restaurant has since moved in.
• Pizza Hut, DI/TO:  I was overjoyed when this place moved into downtown, as it was easier to get to than the one out at Coal Run (see later post, again). It was bigger than the Prestonsburg one, yet  brighter than the one at Coal Run. I would usually get a personal pan pizza with mushrooms, the only topping I really like, along with an order of cheesy breadsticks to share. Maybe split a mushroom pizza. I would take the extra pieces home to eat the next day. [Pizzas and breadsticks being just about the lone leftovers that I could eat reheated.] I even started creating my own breadsticks using refrigerated breadstick dough. I would just spread them out in a pan and cover them with mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, maybe some appropriate herbs. Bake and then serve with heated spaghetti and/or pizza sauce. I could never get them as brown as conventional ovens couldn't get as hot, but they were still good.  I stopped making them after I could no longer find the breadstick dough, although I probably could use pizza dough, if so inclined. The last time I went there was about fifteen years ago. We ordered a pizza for take out after Booknotes' first book signing with Adrianna Trigiani. It was so late after it ended, that take out was the best idea.  Since then, the place has been remodeled slightly, and the menu has been changed.  I am not sure what they even have anymore, after some temporary changes came and went. It is just so hard to plan a time to stop in.
• Dairy Cheer, DI/TO, ⭐️ : When I ate here in the 90s, it always was empty and felt like it would close at any time. Since then, it has always been crowded, almost too busy to get in to place an order. I've had both chicken sandwiches and burgers here.  Just a little over three years ago, close enough to warrant the star, my mom wanted a Smasharoo burger, so we stopped here. We got two burgers, two sides, and one drink in a styrofoam cup that I detest for about $28.00 after taxes. I could get about the same amount of food for under twenty, after discounts, at other places. I didn't even care that much about the food.  We haven't been there since. [Fun fact:  An episode of Good Mythical Morning with Rhett and Link last year featured highlights in the history of the hamburger. They declared the best innovation was the creation of the 'smashburger' in the 1940s.  Their research had the earliest evidence at Dairy Cheer, although some commenters thought otherwise. Cool call-out at least.]
• Wendy's, current location, TO, ⭐️: After a impromptu stop at a Wendy's last fall on the way to Lexington (yep, see a much later post for details), my mom became obsessed with their oat bars. She began stopping here so much, that we decided to have lunch here a few times already this year.  I've had a burger and a chicken sandwich, both with fries. (I prefer onion rings, but that's for another post.) On the plus side, they have fountain that allows for a variety of drinks with extra flavors, allowing me to get cherry-vanilla Dr Pepper once again, even if it doesn't taste exactly the same as the original. However, the fountain was out of both Dr Pepper and flavorings the last time we ate there. I don't drink Coke. I don't like citrus-flavored drinks with lunch.  I'm not getting just water after paying for a full drink. I didn't have time to check with the counter.  So, I just got Barq's root beer.  It was the most bitter thing I ever drank.  I normally like root beer (in order of preference over the years:  Fanta, A & W, Mug, many others I've never tasted, Barq's), but I could barley drink this brand. I should have just settled for the water.

    That has been a lot for this week.  Tune in Saturday for a bonus post, as I start covering the west-central part of  Pikeville. 

My Culinary Odyssey: Prestonsburg Part 3

    Today, I finish up Prestonsburg with my final stretch of places. If I have missed anything, I will come back to them in a later post.  If you need a recap of how this post is organized, click here for the link to the first part of this series.  Now, let's get through this last section.

• Dairy Queen, current location, DI:  When Dairy Queen moved, they got a much larger location.  The dining area lobby was divided into multiple sections, and the parking lot had many more spaces than the few surrounding the sides of their first place. I've only been to this location once, as the final stop on my short-lived tradition of going to Prestonsburg on the Saturday of Hillbilly Days in Pikeville, back in 2019.  We decided to stop here because I was interested in a special promotion they were having. The place was so busy that they had to bring the order out to the table.  Unfortunately, they got the wrong dish, as they brought out a regular chicken strip basket instead of the chicken and waffles that I ordered. They brought out the missing portions quickly. I still didn't care too much for the mix of savory and sweet, but it was a nice change of pace. At least I was able to get cherry-vanilla flavored Dr Pepper, even if it didn't taste as good as the original one. (I finished the overcast day by checking out some car dealerships, although I wouldn't wind up buying one until that fall.)
• Pizza Hut, previous location, TO/DI:  The first reactions I had to this Pizza Hut was with take out, I think.  (My mom may have brought home some cheesy breadsticks before this.) Since I would be in late working as an election official one year, she brought home a pizza.  However, she asked for it not to be completely baked.  The mess ended up looking horrible one it was finished.  I almost didn't want to eat it.  (My mom thought I would have had a problem eating a reheated pizza. However, it is just about the one type of food I can stand as a leftover.  More on that in a later post.) I would later get to dine in later one. I felt that the restaurant was kind of tight-spaced, but the overall presentation was good. The restaurant would later close at their original location, and open a Pizza Hut Express as part of the new Food City center. I believe that Giovanni's may have moved here. However, I so rarely go this far north on Route 321, so I can't be sure.  The same can be said for the rest of the locations mentioned in this post.
• Arby's, DI:  This was the 2018 stop in my short-lived tradition. I had had a fairly good experience at other Arby's (which I will go over in later posts), so I really wanted to try this new location, near where Pizza Hut was once. I had the chicken sandwich.  I don't like the typical breaded sandwiches so much, but it was descent. Strangely enough, the place was fairly empty at the time. I may have ate lunch a little early compared to my usual times. I would spend the rest of the afternoon shopping in Paintsville. It was the only one of the three trips with good weather. (There is also a second McDonalds in the same area as well.  I haven't been there, but there is a small chance my mom stopped there once.)
• Subway, DEL/DI:  Wait, did I just use "delivery" for the first time? Way back in the mid-90s, when I had my only job for a total of four weeks (I won't mention the details, but it was a totally wrong fit for me.), one of my co-workers suggested getting subs delivered, during my first week. She talked me into getting a meatball sub, but I didn't really like it, probably because it may have had pork in it. Years later, Subway would be one of the monthly stops with my mom. (I don't think I ever told her about the first time before that moment though.) I again had the meatball sub, and I felt about the same way about it, although I had some sort of chips and a drink this time around. It would cause me to create my own version of a meatball sub, though. I used my standard meatball recipe, which I gave an abbreviated version in a blogcast post from two years ago which you can find here. I made the balls slightly larger, as I didn't want too many on the bread.  I usually used just jarred spaghetti sauce, to cut back on time, but I'm sure I used my full sauce recipe at least once. I split a refrigerated French bread loaf into smaller portions before baking to use a rolls. I split the rolls in half and stuffed them with the meatballs and sauce, slapping some mozzarella and maybe a dash of Parm on top. I stopped making them after a while, as making large meatballs was time-consuming, compared to the slightly quicker smaller ones for spaghetti and meatballs.
• Dairy Cheer, DI/maybe TO?:  I don't really remember much about my earliest trips to this Dairy Cheer, but I don know that I had to go there on a couple of occasions. Even the few times I went as an adult aren't that memorable. I believe I had my first ever cheese curds from here in the 90s. I kind of liked them, but my mom didn't like them as well.  I probably had mine with some ketchup at one point of another. (That will be a recurring theme after a bit.)
• Jerry's, DI:  This was probably my favorite of all the Jerry's restaurants that I went to.  It was so much brighter than the others. The stuffed fish was a little off-putting, but it wasn't that bad. I remember having to get a booster seat whenever I went there as a kid.  I would usually get the plain burger from the kids' menu, but I would usually add a club-style cracker from my mom's salad to it. If she didn't have a salad, she would ask for one from the back. It didn't add much flavor, but I loved the added crunch. When I went back to it as an adult, I usually ordered the grilled chicken sandwich. (I was really into chicken sandwiches in the late 90s/early 00s.) I noted that Jerry's had the same fries as Long John Silver's (see next entry). I am not sure if I knew at the time that they were part of the same company. I had already opened my store in Pikeville when I heard the news that Jerry's had closed, well after the fact. Never got a chance to go there again. I heard that an Italian restaurant went in, but I'm not sure what is there now.
• Long John Silver's, DI/TO:  I always considered this to be my "home" LJS, even though it wasn't the one I went to the most often after a few years and others opened.  I pretty much stopped dining in here as a kid, after I got caught seen by a classmate one time and got ribbed for it a little at school. I pretty much just remember here for the take-out, either mom bringing in after work or as a pick after a long day of shopping out of town. It was take out from here where I actually had a bone in a chicken plank that almost turned me off from eating here ever again, but I did get over it. When I finally went back here to dine in the 90s, I couldn't believe how small it was, and not just because I was about a foot taller since I had actually dined in. (I usually just let my mom go in to get the order while I stayed out in the car for most of the time before then.) I had forgotten how it was the only LJS I had been to regularly that only had one seating section in the lobby. All the others had at least two. It felt so weird. It was from here that I tried the chicken wrap with rice. An unusual combination soon discontinued from here before I decided if I wanted to try it again. It was also from here where I may have accidentally been given the then new popcorn shrimp instead of the chicken. I had a slight allergic reaction, but I ate most of them anyway. (For some reason, I was eating in my car and didn't have time to correct the mistake.) After my sore opened, I had to stop going here. The LJS at Martin was easier to stop at on the way home from shopping trips, and the Pikeville one was closer. It still shocked me when I heard that this LJS was closing/closed, about the same time as Jerry's. Really hated that. I think something else moved in, maybe another seafood place, but I have no idea if it is still there.

    And on these sad notes, I'll finish off the trip through Prestonsburg.  Come back next Wednesday for my regular post as I start my odyssey through Pikeville. It will start in a similar way to how this one ended.

My Culinary Odyssey: Prestonsburg, Part 2

    It is a special Saturday edition of my blogcast as I continue my trip thought Prestonsburg.  This time around, I will be starting at the south/east end of town and start working my way north and west. Click here to see the introduction where I explain the organization of the post.

• Hoebert's Pizzeria, previous and current location, TO, ⭐️:  While I may have had a pizza from here, and maybe one side dish, the majority of my orders have been large steak Stromboli sandwiches, and I must say, they are only just okay.  I'm sorry.  I know how popular they are, but I usually just find them about average.  Part of it is due to the meat.  It is just not my favorite cut.  Once, when they may have changed suppliers for a time, even my mom thought the meat wasn't as good as it usually is.  Another thing that could be affecting my judgement is how they have messed up my orders in the past.  They either forget the mushrooms, or they add pickles and/or peppers when I ask for them to be left off. My mom still asks to eat there a few times a year (including later on this month, probably), but at least I usually don't have to stop when it's dark anymore. Navigating that parking lot with all the customers and the gas pumps is not easy. I have created my own clone recipe for this though, but I haven't made it in a few years. I start by frying a different cut of steak, along with some onions and mushrooms to get them brown. While this is going on, I toast the rolls. (I find this easier than toasting the entire sandwich all at once, but it does impact the flavor.) I assemble the sandwich by first spreading mayonnaise on the top roll and adding tomato and garlic lettuce. (According to the advice given to my mom, it should be made by soaking lettuce leaves in water Italian dressing with extra garlic powder in it.  There might be better ways to impart the flavor though.) Next, I put the grilled onions and mushrooms on the bottom roll, with the steak slices on top.  I then cover the steak with heated spaghetti/pizza sauce (to make up for not baking the entire sandwich), and I cover it with mozzarella cheese, with just a sprinkle of parmesan. I put the two roll halves together, and then eat. I've also made hamburgers the same way, with buns and patties as substitutions. I have even done a restaurant hack version, but that is for a later post.
• Giovanni's, DI:   During the late 90s, when I was unemployed and didn't really get out of the house much, I would drive my mother to work about once a month and spend the day just hanging out in town, usually at the library in the mornings and shopping in the afternoon.  We would eat lunch together at various places.  One was Giovanni's when it moved to a spot near where the GM car dealership was.  We split a pizza that day with my choice of beef, onion, and mushroom toppings. I was surprised when the pizza was brought out cut into squares, tavern style I guess.  Never had it this way before.  Personally, I like the crust side, something that is not found with squares. [I've had Giovanni's since then, at another location, and no squares.] That was the only time we ate there. Giovanni's would later move north, but that's for another entry.
• Unknown lunch counter downtown, DI:  Once, when I was very young, I had to wait with my mom to pick up something, possibly shoes from a cobbler shop.  They were located on the bottom floor of a building, possibly below street level.  There was a lunch counter there where we waited.  I think I had some pop.  Only time there.  Don't ask me where the building was or if it is still there.  Can't be sure, but I doubt there is still a lunch counter. [While there are other restaurants downtown, most notably Billy Ray's, I don't remember ever going into any of them, or even trying any of their food if it was brought home. I could be wrong though, but it isn't too likely.]
• Dairy Queen, original location, DI/TO:  I know I stopped in here a few times to eat when I was very young, more so for the treats than meals, but I might be wrong.  I remember stopping at the Piggly Wiggly across the street more than at DQ, but that's beside the point.  The main reason is that I asked for an ice cream cake for my birthday one year. My mom picked it up, but she had to pay a deposit on the freezer bag to bring it home so it wouldn't melt.  I barely ate at it.  Picky eater at the time, really bad. Maybe it was the yellow cake more so than the strawberry ice cream.  Who knows. Anyway, DQ would move to a larger location years later, with more parking.  Other restaurants would come in, including Giovanni's for a time, before moving even further north on Lake Drive.  Currently, it is a Japanese restaurant. 
• Kentucky Fried Chicken/KFC, former/current location, DI/TO:  I'm pretty sure I ate here at the original location a few times as a kid, but those times weren't too memorable. However, they tore down the original building and remodeled it, slightly higher up out of the flood plain.  I hadn't eaten there in some time when my mom brought in a sample of their potato wedges.  I was out of college at the time. Even cold and old, I found them intriguing. I would later try them fresh on a trip to P-burg, along with one of their 'Zinger' chicken sandwiches.  I was hooked with both.  Normally, I would eat grilled or roasted chicken sandwiches, but this combination with two/three fried chicken strips just satisfied me.  The wedges were also a surprise, as I normally hated fries with skin on them. KFC became a regular stop to eat at after that for many years. The last time I ate at this KFC was in 2017. We were starting a tradition of going out of town on the Saturday of Hillbilly Days in Pikeville, when the store was closed. The first rainy year, we ate here.  The 'Zinger' had long be supplanted by the plain chicken breast-and-pickle sandwich now found everywhere, but they still had the wedges.  For a time. Haven't eaten here since, but more one other KFC locations in a later post.
• Super America, later Speedway, TO:  The Super America was right next door to where my mom worked, so she would frequently stop in there for the occasional food item.  Once, in the mid-80s, she picked up a new doughnut shape, an unfilled long john. I found it an interesting diversion from the usual rings. I wanted to try them again, but that is the topic for another post. I would still stop in for a fountain drink on occasion, but usually not for ready-made food items.  Just packaged fare.  This continued when it became Speedway.  However, I haven't stopped in here for a few years, as I haven't a real need lately.
• [Hardee's, TO, ⭐️: For some reason or another, I have never eaten here.  I have mostly just stopped here for my mom to pick up coffee.  And a cinnamon roll with extra icing, when she wants to treat herself. She thinks they both taste a little better here than at the one in Pikeville. I can't stand either.] 

    I'll stop here for today.  Join me for my regular post on Wednesday as I complete my tour of Prestonsburg.

My Culinary Odyssey: Prestonsburg, Part 1

    When I was very young, I seemed to go to Prestonsburg quite frequently. When my mom got a job there, though, the trips were not as common, as she didn't want to go back there is often when she didn't need to. Trips there became even less frequent after I opened my store, Booknotes, in Pikeville.  Still, I manage to eat out in P-burg every now and then.  Today's post is the first for the town, covering the western outskirts of the city along US 23. Check the introduction for this series here for the explanation of how the post is organized.  Let's go!

• McDonald's, original Prestonsburg location, DI:  There is a very strong chance that this was the first ever McDonald's I ever ate at, and that was when I was in high school.  Probably my junior year, less possibly sophomore year. I was in band,  and we stopped here after playing at a tournament game.  My mom was a chaperone.  I just had fries.  (Admittedly, this stop could have been at another McDonald's in the Pikeville area, but it seems unlikely, and my memory suggests sitting in an orientation that most resembles the Prestonsburg locale.) I would stop there again my senior year.  Twice in the same day on a field trip to Morehead.  I stayed in the bus that morning, but I got out that evening when the others had an impromptu dance session. Yes, I did dance.  I would later stop there with my mom on occasion before some shopping trips.  Once, for a birthday trip in 98, I was in the car that morning watching lightning flash across the sky.  I didn't tell her about the storms until we got into Magoffin county after seeing hail covering the road in two separate stretches. I convinced her to continue on to Lexington. The rain held off the rest of the day, and it turned out to be one of the better birthday trips I had.  The restaurant would have some remodeling over the years, but I haven't been in there since.  We haven't stopped there for my mom for quite some time though.
• Little Caesar's, TO:  Back in the early 90s, I was on a kick for trying new foods.  I would go out of my way to try a new food, new recipe, or a new restaurant, at least once per week for a month.  Sometimes, I would manage to do so for each day for an entire week. One of these places was here. My mom picked up a pizza for dinner.  That's basically all I can recall about it.  I don't think I really liked it. (Years later, I would also try the Papa John's, but I barely can recall it either.  I could have sworn I also had Domino's here, but there doesn't seem to be one in Prestonsburg.)
• Reno's Roadhouse, TO/DI:  My mom would frequently have business lunches here, back in the day.  In the late 80s, she may have brought home some petals from their version of a "Blooming Onion," however, hours old fried food doesn't always taste that good. I would end up going here for the strangest of reasons.  I had won a scholarship, and there was a dinner at Reno's for the winners. It was a few days after I graduated high school. Beforehand, we stopped at Walmart where I bought my first ever CD for my new player that I got for graduation. (Paula Abdul remixes. I know.) I didn't like the ambiance of the place.  I don't remember eating anything. I had to go back the following year to see the honors given out to a new group of winners.  This was a few weeks after the end of my first year of college.  Don't remember ordering anything then either. I don't remember exactly when, but Reno's would close.  Ultimately, the building became a pawn shop.  What it was between those two points, check the next entry for a possibility.
• Fazzoli's, TO: When Fazzoli's opened in Prestonsburg, it felt like a kind of big deal. Soon after it opened, mom bought some take out for dinner. At least one of the things was pasta, which could not be reheated adequately. I ended up not liking it that much.  There may have been a pizza as well, but I don't remember much about it either.  I always thought we should have tried the place again, but it never happened before it closed.  Now, I strongly think it took over Reno's old place, but that feels too big for the restaurant.  On the other hand, there is no other building in that area where it could have been, unless it was completely torn down. Honestly, I can't even remember when it was in operation.
• Rax, probably DI:  I barely remember this place. In fact, my mom thought it may have been Arby's instead, but we are fairly sure it was Rax. I remember stopping there once when I was a kid and being the one to open the door, but that was all.  Not sure what I ate there, if anything, since this would have been in the middle of my picky eater stage. I do remember that it wasn't there long.  The place was closed and torn down as part of the expansion of US 23. I believe in was close to where the star pattern is now, between the various ramps.  There would have been just enough room for a restaurant there, maybe, but not enough for parking as well. It was right across the highway from Glenview Plaza. (While there have been various place to eat there, I don't think I tired any of them.)

    I'll stop here for today's post.  Tune in Saturday for a special bonus post as I continue through town, starting at the south/eastern end of Prestonsburg and work my way north.  See you then.