My first Chuckwagon Sandwich

The Stites family has the best vacations. Sometimes we plan things ahead of time, but usually we head off with a vague notion of what we want to do and the only certain thing is our hotel reservation. We headed off to Boone for Mother's Day weekend and it was one of those trips that combined a little planning and a lot of stumbling upon cool stuff.

We planned to go to Grandfather Mountain, and we wanted to go gem mining (we ended up at Gem Mountain). We also wanted to do a quick tour of Appalachian State University. But we didn't have specific plans for where or when. We headed out on a Friday morning and it didn't take long before we were singing and laughing in the car. Well, two of us were singing and we were all laughing. John does not sing. At all. 

We made a quick pit stop near Aberdeen at a really gross convenience store/gas station that had surprisingly good-looking fried catfish at 10:30 a.m. I passed on that and stuck with just a pack of gum. We ate dinner that night at Black Cat Burrito, a truly stupendous eatery in Boone, which reminds us lots of one of favorite Wilmington places -- Flaming Amy's Burrito Barn. We took a quick drive through campus (it was raining, so no walking tour) and checked in at the hotel. It's a cute place right off the highway called Smoketree Lodge. The decor is stuck in the 80s and no one working there is over about 23, but it's clean and the staff is friendly and sweet. We love it. 

Saturday morning the incredibly smart Jeffrey (of Pooh Sticks fame) pointed out that we were actually very close to Tennessee. Since the boy had never been to Tennessee, we decided to take a quick trip across the border. And why not look for a geocache while we were there, right? We were actually the first to find a new cache in Roan Mountain State Park. This park is beautiful. There are dense woods with a thick tree canopy, a stream that runs miles through the park (lined with cuteness that morning since there was a kids' trout fishing tourney going on), cabins for rent, a steep ride up to the old Miller Farmstead with a gorgeous mountain view and much more. 

After our park visit, we headed back into NC and looked for a place to grab some lunch. Now, keep in mind we were pretty much out in the middle of nowhere. This is Appalachia country -- not doing so well economically and fairly off the beaten path. We were almost ready to give up and stop at a Hardee's when we decided to take the Business route of the highway in Spruce Pine. As soon as we made the turnoff and rounded a curve we saw a place called "50s Diner." It was a pretty nondescript restaurant, just brick with big glass windows. It could have been a Burger King in its former life. The menu has all the diner favorites -- burgers, chili cheese fries and milkshakes. 

And chuckwagon sandwiches. I had never heard of them, but Jeffrey said that the eastern Tennessee/western North Carolina area is known for these sandwiches.
If you don't know about them, basically it is a breaded burger patty deep fried and put on a bun. Of course we all had to order one. Jeffrey and I got ours with lettuce and tomato. The patty was much moister and more tender than I expected, and the tomato clearly came from a local farmer because it was the reddest, juiciest tomato I have had in a while. It was delicious. It was one of those sandwiches that makes your arteries cringe, but it was delicious. 

The moral of the story is this: don't be afraid to try new things at new places. When you travel, leave the chain restaurants behind and look for the local mom and pop places. Sure you might not know what you're getting into, but you never know what gems you can find.