Its a reasonable question and basically it has a simple answer - Pandemic & quarantine. Let me tell you, I was an essential employee until recently and much of that was working nights shifts. It was a real pain in the butt because everything closed early either due to mandated measures or lack of employees. We were all bringing our lunch and snacks and missing last night drive through.
I was looking forward to when we could go back to 24 hour grocery shopping and 1am McDonalds. Yeah. I don't have either of those yet. 

The other issue has been that many places have closed due to adverse economic impact or a serious lack of employees. (don't tempt me I refuse to climb onto my salt box on that one).  

The last issue that where I currently live... there is a lot of wide open spaces out here in Berks and Schuylkill Counties; eating establishments aren't as just down the block like they are in more densly populated areas.  Also  its mostly fast food and certainly not much in the way of ethnic food....yes there is Chinese & Italian, but I'm really missing Moroccan food and Japanese Hibachi.  Choices, as Tatiana would say, afterall, I did decide to move up here.

There are great wings here, especially at the Westy and some BBQ places and of course lots of pizza, but the nearest Primo's is too far away!

That's all for now folks  - it is my plan to pay better attention to my blogs here so if there is anything you would like to know - just ask!

A couple of Saturdays ago, some friends of ours came to visit our 1890's tiny house for a visit. They brought some great goodies and took us to lunch. We all picked the 1787 Brewing Company which just recently opened in Hamburg, PA. Only open from Friday to Sunday, they have a lunch menu that changes every week (and is posted on their instagram - @1787brewingcompany) and a full regular menu. They have a full line of interesting beers (can't tell you anything about them as I don't drink beer) but they don't brew soda yet - although I did beg the waitress a bit to put in a good word for rootbeer!

The service was first rate - we didn't have to wait long for anything and the staff checked in regularly to see how things were going and to see if we needed anything.  Even the owner stop by to shake hands and check in!  Nice touch.

Now the food - shoe string fries need to be crispy - these were mushy - needed another few minutes in the fryer. That is the only negative I have to say about the food!  Gav had a garden burger with all the trimmings and potatoe salad which he enjoyed; J had a crab cake sandwhich which didn't come with all the trimmings but they added them at her request without batting an eyelash; T had the American burger which he said was delicious; and I had the turkey club - it was made with that good Thanksgiving turkey right off the bird, easy on the mayo - perfect!! Every plate looked beautiful and everyone said their food was delicious. Hardy plates because no one ordered dessert and they had some fancy ones on the menu. 

There area few tables outside under an awning and you can eat at the bar or in the bar area, but the quietest place to eat is in the dining area toward the back where you can look down into the cellar and  see the brewing tanks.  It is a very clean restaurant, very friendly staff and really good food. No too expensive either!

I'm looking forward to my parents trying it out - hopefully Gav and I will be able to take them soon!

Yes - it was off to Beverly, Mass again last week for work and a good thing it was last week, too since the week prior we had more then 2 feet of snow in PA and this week they have almost 2 feet of snow in Massachusetts!  Good planning that!

So - what interesting eateries got the nod this time?  Have a look!

It isn't new, but once again Texas Roadhouse outdid themselves. Always a good meal choice in Danvers!

Later in the week - Carrabba's!

I haven't eaten at a Carrabba's in years mainly because there isn't one near me (and certainly not in my new location) but I knew their food was good, so we gave it a whirl.  It was excellent!   They have a fancy name for the fried mozzarella balls, but they were spectacular!  The portion sizes were good and a special mention goes out to the Pomegranate Margarita!

On the way home we stopped once again the Miss Worcester Diner in Worcester, Mass. Always a good meal here!  This time, the lady who runs the place had loaves of fresh cinnamon raisin bread for sale!  Best $8 I've spent in a very long time! SO. GOOD!!!! (finished the last two slices this morning!).

Ladies - we've all experienced it - a long drive and a desperate need to find a bathroom - but you walk in and if you aren't overcome by the smell then you are grossed out by the mess - in, on and around the toilet.  Often times, it doesn't stop there - you go to wash your hands and there isn't any soap, the water doesn't get warm and it either drips out of the faucet or comes out with such force that it drenches your clothes!  Then there are no paper towels and if there is one of those dryers - the air never gets warm.  So you head back to your car in worse shape then you got out of it - and the only happy part of your body is your bladder. 

I'm shuddering just thinking about it.

Now - of course not every place is this bad but honestly - it is only the really bad places that stick in our minds!  But I'm about to replace one of those bad memories with a good one!

I was heading home from a work trip and had just crossed the Scudder Falls bridge from New Jersey into Pennsylvania on I95.  I had to use the bathroom but I knew that as soon as I crossed that bridge on the southbound side, there was a rest stop.  I had been there before and I knew it was pretty ok.  But this time was a real treat!

I walked (more like hurried) in and immediately noticed the floor - as you can see from the photo - it was CLEAN - and SHINY (if it wasn't tile I think I could have saw my reflection int i!). It was the cleanest public bathroom floor I had ever seen! 

The stalls were just as nice - everything was super clean and it didn't have that weird smell that is so prevalent in public rest rooms.

​I came out of the stall and the sinks! They were clean! And dry! And they worked properly! Even the mirrors were sparkling! And the hot air hand dryers were nice and toasty, too!

Now I know it might sound weird to some of you - all this clean bathroom talk, but a clean bathroom really makes a difference when you can't use your own at home.  

So when I was finished, I went looking for a staff person and actually found one - a very nice lady who was surprised at the compliments on her clean ladies room because - "those rest rooms are a mess - I'm about to go in there to clean". I was like - are you for real? THIS is DIRTY?  I was shocked (and I told her that); it was impressive.  I didn't catch her name - but should her bosses ever see this - I hope they do something special for her because that day - in a little no-where corner of Pennsylvania, she made a lot of ladies feel good about using a public rest room. 

As I said before - it isn't a fancy rest stop - bathrooms, a couple of vending machines and some picnic tables to eat outside and some ground to walk a dog or two.  I travel this road pretty frequently and I always see trucks there, so it isn't empty and scary.
​
So if you are ever on this stretch of highway and need the facilities....you know where to go!

I'm ashamed to say the summer got away with me - between work and family, things have been moving and shaking! You can see the family stuff blogged over on the 'Musings of Max' page but this blog is going to be about some of the wonderful places where I have enjoyed meals this summer.  If you get a chance, please visit their websites or enjoy them in person!

Breakfast at Blue Colony Diner in Newtown, CT.

Lara was super happy that she could order a salad with her breakfast (she loves her salad).  I loved their coffee and brought some home for my honey!

We had a good dinner at Joe's American Grill which is onsite at the Northshore Mall in Peabody, MA. 

The dessert was very rich and delicious and Lara had coffee with espresso! (I had the tea).

We enjoyed delicious Thai food at Sawasdee in Danvers, MA

We stayed at the Double Tree in Danvers, MA and had some lovely  meals in the hotel restaurant - Tradewinds.  Breakfast was exceptionally good (think: waffle bar!!!).

This past Saturday, my honey and I decided to have diner (really, it was a buffet) at the restaurant in the Dutchway Supermarket in Myerstown, PA.  

Brackett's Oceanview Restaurant
Our last day in Massachusetts, we headed over to Rockport and had lunch at the lovely Brackett's Oceanview Restaurant, 25 Main Street, Rockport. They seated us in a window and we had a lovely view of the ocean.  The food was delicious - I went for the burger and my co-worker had a salad with shrimp. It was a lovely lunch.

Rockport (and it's tiny section called Bear Skin Neck) is a sweet little town with lots of shops, restaurants and such, but be warned - parking is very limited and the streets are narrow but you won't regret the visit.

Main Street Diner
On our way home, we finally figured out what is the halfway point between our hotel and my co-worker's home - it is Plainville Connecticut where she found us this lovely diner for breakfast.  There is so much to say - I don't know where to start!  The Main Street Diner,  40 West Main Street Plainville, CT, has to be the cleanest diner I have ever had the pleasure to visit. I think we could have eaten off the bathroom floor, except it is a small bathroom!  Not a speck of dust anywhere in the place!  The service was terrific - she was fast and fun to chat with while we had our breakfast (not that she ignored her other customers - because she did not.  I can tell they get a LOT of regulars there which is always a good sign!). 


But the food - I ordered a short stack of pancakes and you can see what I got - I think there was two pancakes but I couldn't tell from the volume of strawberries and whipped cream on top!  It was heaven on a plate!  My co-worker loves egg white omelets with lots of veggies and they did not disappoint her!  She really enjoy her breakfast, too!  The coffee was delicious as well!

It was the perfect place to stop on our journey.  It wasn't too far off the highway and it is a lovely small town - street parking was definitely the way to go (and we did!). Once again - many thanks to my coworker for the outside photo!

Just over a week ago, my co-worker and I made another work trek to Massachusetts.  As we did the last time, I picked her up with coffee already purchased from Dunkin Donuts (let's face it - nothing beats DD coffee at 5:00am) and we hit the road before dawn. 

What was different about this trip what that we stopped for breakfast coming and going and thanks to Lara's skill at finding diners, we ate at some wonderful places - here, let me tell you all about it!

3 Brother's Diner
Sunday breakfast was had at 3 Brother's Diner,  242 White Street, Danbury, Connecticut. Delicious!  The service was great and so was the food.  What I appreciated most was that we didn't need to take too much time off the road to have a good breakfast.  There is plenty of parking in the rear and some incredibly sinful looking cakes & pies in the refrigerated case by the counter, so stop in to give them a try.

Grubhub
And now a word about GRUBHUB: efficient!  I started using Grubhub on my last visit to Chicago and loved how easy it is to order, pay and get delivery where ever you are - home, office or hotel so when we returned home, we started using them local.  On the last trip to Massachusetts, Lara and I started using them not just for lunch delivery to the office, but dinner delivery to the hotel.  Great system, convenient and for the most part, we love the restaurants we have tried.  Here is a photo of a chef salad I got for lunch - HUGE and delicious - about a hoagie's worth of meat on the salad and a huge fresh pita bread.  It is nice to have a way of finding good food when you are a stranger in a strange town.

Petrillo's - Peabody, MA
Petrillo's became a tradition on the first trip I made to Massachusetts back in 2013.  Wonderful Italian cuisine - excellent waitstaff and they even serve grappa! 

When you travel for work, the days are usually hectic and everything seems to happen 5 times faster then normal so it is important to have a good dinner at the end of the day.  Petrillo's is the perfect place for that good dinner.

This trip isn't over yet!  Stay tuned for more Meals on Wheels!!

My dad has talked about this diner.  My mom has talked about this diner.  Tales of huge plates full of food - delicious food plus plenty of parking (even for tractor trailers)..... well after such glowing reviews, I had to check it out for myself.

So my partner and I decided to head on over to Lancaster to have dinner.  Yes, it was 50 miles away but we didn't have any pressing plans except a need to get out of the house for awhile, so why not?  

We enjoyed the drive - my honey hadn't been over toward Lancaster in about 20+ years so it sparked lots of conversation as to how things had changed....or not.  As we neared the diner, the sun was setting and the sky was a blaze of brilliant salmons, purples, corals and gold.  It was beautiful!  I was hoping he would take some photos, but he was too busy admiring the sky to capture it.   At first I wasn't sure we had found the place because although we saw the diner sign, there wasn't anything that said 'Jennie's'....so we checked Google maps and had a laugh at the 'you have arrived'.  So we parked and headed inside.

Warning - this place is cash only - but if you don't come prepared, they have an ATM machine out by the restrooms. (Luckily M caught the 'cash only ' sign as we went in so we could hit the ATM first).

The first thing I noticed were the servicemen - all around the top of the diner there are framed photographs of military folks - some of them are locals and some are relatives or friends of regulars.  It was wonderful! The display just added something special to the atmosphere.  The next thing I noticed were the truckers - relaxing and have a good hot meal.  M and I had a good time listening to their conversations flow around us while we ate.

The service was attentive and quick.  M started with a salad and I had a cup of the hamburger macaroni soup - both were tasty.  Then came the huge plates.  I kid you not.  M had the roast beef with gravy over stuffing with sweet potato fries and cole slaw.  I had the turkey & gravy over stuffing with regular fries.  After the photograph, we tackled the plates.  Everything was delicious.  If I had to guess I would say there was enough meat on each plate to make at least 3 good sized sandwiches.  M finished his whole plate but I ended up bringing about a third of mine home with me (unfortunately most of my turkey is missing from the photo).

There wasn't any room for dessert but the cakes & pies we saw on the counter looked really good!  I can't say it enough - truckers know the best places to eat! 

So was it worth the 100 mile round trip - oh heck yes!  I would make the drive again but I think this time, we would add some stops, just to make it interesting. 

Jennie's Diner is located at:  2575 Lincoln Highway East, Ronks, PA (which is between Paradise & Lancaster on Route 30.  If you are heading toward Lancaster it is on the right.  Just look for the cute diner surrounded by a huge parking lot - you can't miss it!  

Ok - so you know how I always say that the truckers always know the best places to eat?  Well, my co-worker (who also took the photos for this post) and I decided to forgo our early 'princess' breakfast before leaving the hotel and instead stop for a meal once we got on the road.  So I did what I always so and texted my Da and asked him for a recommendation. He has driven through Massachusetts often enough so I thought he would know best.  However, he passed this one off to he felt could better advise us - namely, My Uncle Ron (who just so happens to live in Worcester).  So I gave him a call and he pointed us in the direction of the Miss Worcester Diner.  He said it was a favorite of his & my Aunt Linda's, that it had good food and he eluded to the potential for 'interesting dishes'.  

He wasn't wrong. 

The Miss Worcester Diner is was pretty easy to find, not too far off the Mass Pike and as for interesting dishes - well - my mere words wouldn't do it justice. 

And really, what's not to like about a diner with THIS on the menu!

I'd like to visit them again and try a meal that isn't breakfast - I can only imagine how good it is!!  Oh - bring cash with you - this is a cash-only establishment, but if you forget - no worries, they have an ATM inside.

So next time you are in central Massachusetts and looking for a good meal, look for the Miss Worcester Diner - you won't be disappointed!  

All photos (except the one below) by:  Lara Del Bosco