After spending the night in St. Clair, Missouri along Interstate 44, the modern version of Route 66, we enjoyed a nice continental breakfast which was our plan for the whole trip to help save money for the bigger meals we were set to hit the open road once again. While traveling down a portion of the original 66, we were quickly side tracked and found our way to a popular destination called Meramec Caverns. This is a must stop if you are in the area. We didn’t have the time to tour the actual caverns, but we did take a nice relaxing boat tour of the river which was much needed. Ashley had no success in talking me into trying out the zip line they had set up that went out over the river.
Back on the road, our goal for the day was to make it to Joplin, MO to eat dinner. Much of the town had recently been destroyed by a tornado and having survived the April Fury in our home state of Alabama, we felt obliged to stop and spend some money to help them out. As we neared Joplin we were on the lookout for places to eat and any signs of where the tornado had come through, then all of a sudden there was a debris path on each side of the interstate and it quickly brought back memories of the path I had seen in Cullman, Al. Shortly after this, we kept seeing signs for a truck stop with a restaurant called the Iron Skillet and we decided this would be our stop for dinner.
Most all road trips have at least one meal stop at a truck stop and this would be ours. The Iron Skillet was a big restaurant to be at a truck stop, but this held promise that the food might be really good due to it being a popular stop. They offered menu items or an all you can eat buffet. Upon walking in I noticed they had Rib-eye steak as the special and being a steak buff, I had decided I would give that a try. Ashley perused the buffet and decided there were some tasty looking items there and decided she would give it a try. The service was very friendly which is usually expected at a truck stop diner and once again I was able to order sweet tea.
I ordered a medium well Rib-eye with baked potato and salad as my side and when it arrived I was relieved to know it was cooked correctly. I am very picky with my steaks and there are actually only a few places beyond myself that can cook it to my taste. Iron Skillet would not be added to that list. The steak was a bit too dry which is something that happens sometimes when cooked to medium well, but when I am unsure of how a place cooks their steaks, safe is better. I also had forgotten the cardinal rule about eating at a restaurant. If they have something on a special board then it is generally something they are trying to get rid of and may not be of the best quality.
Ashley came back from the buffet with her plate showing a nice arrangement of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and turnip greens. Being from the south I am sure she has eaten her fair share of fried chicken, but she said this was some of the best she had ever eaten. Ashley was very satisfied with her meal and had actually gone back for seconds. At this point there was a very funny confusing mix up where Ashley thought what she had gotten was one food and was something totally different and for the life of us we can’t remember what the food was.
So after having mixed reviews on our dinner, we were ready to get back on the road. I talked with some of the staff about the tornado damage and found out it was more in the middle of town. I happily made a small donation in their jar to help those affected and told them we knew how they felt and were happy to see a community come together just like ours had.
Back on the road, our goal for the day was to make it to Joplin, MO to eat dinner. Much of the town had recently been destroyed by a tornado and having survived the April Fury in our home state of Alabama, we felt obliged to stop and spend some money to help them out. As we neared Joplin we were on the lookout for places to eat and any signs of where the tornado had come through, then all of a sudden there was a debris path on each side of the interstate and it quickly brought back memories of the path I had seen in Cullman, Al. Shortly after this, we kept seeing signs for a truck stop with a restaurant called the Iron Skillet and we decided this would be our stop for dinner.
Most all road trips have at least one meal stop at a truck stop and this would be ours. The Iron Skillet was a big restaurant to be at a truck stop, but this held promise that the food might be really good due to it being a popular stop. They offered menu items or an all you can eat buffet. Upon walking in I noticed they had Rib-eye steak as the special and being a steak buff, I had decided I would give that a try. Ashley perused the buffet and decided there were some tasty looking items there and decided she would give it a try. The service was very friendly which is usually expected at a truck stop diner and once again I was able to order sweet tea.
I ordered a medium well Rib-eye with baked potato and salad as my side and when it arrived I was relieved to know it was cooked correctly. I am very picky with my steaks and there are actually only a few places beyond myself that can cook it to my taste. Iron Skillet would not be added to that list. The steak was a bit too dry which is something that happens sometimes when cooked to medium well, but when I am unsure of how a place cooks their steaks, safe is better. I also had forgotten the cardinal rule about eating at a restaurant. If they have something on a special board then it is generally something they are trying to get rid of and may not be of the best quality.
Ashley came back from the buffet with her plate showing a nice arrangement of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and turnip greens. Being from the south I am sure she has eaten her fair share of fried chicken, but she said this was some of the best she had ever eaten. Ashley was very satisfied with her meal and had actually gone back for seconds. At this point there was a very funny confusing mix up where Ashley thought what she had gotten was one food and was something totally different and for the life of us we can’t remember what the food was.
So after having mixed reviews on our dinner, we were ready to get back on the road. I talked with some of the staff about the tornado damage and found out it was more in the middle of town. I happily made a small donation in their jar to help those affected and told them we knew how they felt and were happy to see a community come together just like ours had.
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