Possible Houston Road Trip

MichaelB

MichaelB

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We've been invited to a July wedding in Houston and thought it might be a good opportunity to get away and take a road trip, starting point Chicago. We're still thinking about it, some scheduling issues are still unresolved, but for me the more compelling reason would be the road trip itself. Any suggestions on routes with things to see or do along the way, or things "not to miss" while in Texas?

Though helpful, we have seen and experienced all those attributes REW has advised (scorpions, rattlesnakes, etc) so don't need any help there. :)
 
If you happen to travel down I-45 be sure to stop in at Woody's, in Centerville, TX. Try the sliced brisket sandwich. Be sure you're really hungry, though!

When you're there (Centerville), you'll be about 75 miles from me in Lufkin. Of course, there are other routes you might take to Houston....

Have a safe & enjoyable trip! :)
 
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The Roadside America site has mapping applications for guiding you to cool attractions suitable for creating confusing snapshots for your Facebook page. Houston-area highlights include the Museum Of Funeral History and the exhibit memorializing David the Bubble Boy.

Map - Houston, TX

One of my stops on a Chicago-to-Houston road trip would be this classic car dealership across the Illinois state line from St. Louis. They stock 100+ running cars and trucks ranging from model T's to muscle cars. It would be fun to stop by and take some test drives.

Country Classic Cars L.L.C. - Antique and Collectable Cars and Trucks - Home

Picking up on martyb's idea, here are two Google maps showing all of the Texas barbecue joints recommended by Texas Monthly.

Texas's Best BBQ - Google Maps
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msi...45117&spn=7.041485,14.963379&z=6&source=embed
 
REWahoo said:
A July wedding in Houston? Bring lots of antiperspirant... :)
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+1 That was my first thought, as well, having lived in College Station for a dozen years.

I don't have any ideas. When I was working, I had to fly from New Orleans to Houston every other month to meet with the oil company folks and frankly, well, it was all work for me and not my idea of fun. I am sure there must be things to see there, but I can't think of any right now.
 
Texas BBQ is something I hadn't thought of and is a good idea. Mexican food is also a must do, there must be some excellent options in Texas as well. I wouldn't mind at all making this a gastronomical tour :)
 
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MichaelB said:
Mexican food is also a must do, there must be some excellent options in Texas as well.
Click to expand...

We've got an app for that, too, although many of the food critic's choices for Mexican food are on the high-falutin' side of the border. Give me a Tex-Mex combination plate and a nice margarita on the rocks and I'm happy.

Let
 
The fastest Interstate route should take you thru Memphis to compare their BBQ to Texas BBQ..
The route also goes by Sikeston, MO home of Lambert's which is famous for throwing dinner rolls at you. I cannot say that I have been that impressed by their food otherwise, except they give a lot of it. Not bad, just not great.
 
MichaelB said:
I wouldn't mind at all making this a gastronomical tour :)
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If you are gastronomically adventuresome you might want to drop by Doc's Hot Links and give them a try. Not exactly BBQ, but in the same family.

Looking at the route Google Maps recommends for a trip from Chicago to Houston, it would be only a minor detour.
 
urn2bfree said:
The fastest Interstate route should take you thru Memphis to compare their BBQ to Texas BBQ..
The route also goes by Sikeston, MO home of Lambert's which is famous for throwing dinner rolls at you. I cannot say that I have been that impressed by their food otherwise, except they give a lot of it. Not bad, just not great.
Click to expand...

I thought about mentioning Lambert's in Sikeston yesterday. I'd consider this a place to check out if for no other reason the sheer amount of food they dole out. To me it was pretty good, not the best but pretty good. I've stopped in there a time or two. The biggest problem with Lambert's is that depending on what time you get there, there could be a couple hundred people waiting to get inside and then you still have to stand in the long line to finally get a table. They're very popular. Still, if I were passing through Sikeston, I'd have to pull off the highway & take a look to see how busy they are, and if not too bad, and if I'm REALLY hungry, I'd go inside. It's unreal the amount of food they "force" you to eat in that place! :angel: The worst part is that even after you have your meal that you ordered, they keep coming by your table with all kinds of freebies of other food, like blackeyed peas, rolls, potatoes...etc. etc. I'd weigh 500 lbs if I lived near that place.:LOL:

The chicken is good and so is the meatloaf.
 
Well if you are into gambling, you could go through Louisiana or Oklahoma and stop at a Casino. Also, recommend staying off Houston's expressways during rush hours:LOL:

Our weather guy said last night that the humidity streaming from the gulf is about to go way up, so I definitely agree with anti-perspirant comments.
 
Since I was an obnoxious yute, adventuresome gastronomy has always beckoned. Should this trip come about I would not be traveling alone, other travelers have more delicate constitutions and consensus is a mandate. DW's brother lives in Memphis so the idea of a BBQ taste off looks good and doable.
 
MichaelB said:
Since I was an obnoxious yute, adventuresome gastronomy has always beckoned. Should this trip come about I would not be traveling alone, other travelers have more delicate constitutions and consensus is a mandate. DW's brother lives in Memphis so the idea of a BBQ taste off looks good and doable.
Click to expand...

I expect a write up on this experiment:)
 
Don't forget that great Texas restaurant chain, Whataburger.:)

Just remember that the Whataburger comes with mustard. If you want mayonnaise you will have to tell them.
 
Since retiring we've never been at home in Houston in July. We'll be in France otherwise we'd have been happy to throw an alligator on the barbie and have a few brews in the ice box for you :)
 
In Saint Louis. the area known as 'the hill' [in the old days it was Dago Hill] has excellent style of Italian-American food known as 'St. Louis Style Italian'. Particulars include, a specific dinner salad St. Louis Specialties - Great Plains - Chowhound , toasted ravioli TOASTED RAVIOLI, THE SECRET OF ST. LOUIS - NYTimes.com and a pizza St. Louis-style pizza - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . Also unique to the STL area is the meat ravioli (supposedly from combining Germans with Italian food) St. Louis Hill Meat Ravioli | Spectacularly Delicious

There also is a St. Louis Style BBQ St. Louis-style barbecue - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia , but while good, Memphis is better. In STL, go with the Italian food.

At the very end of this article is a section titled "Restaurants That Set the Table for St. Louis Italian and the Five Men Who Made Them Succeed" that are really classic St. Louis places. The Best Italian Restaurants in St. Louis - St. Louis Magazine - August 2012 - St. Louis, Missouri
 
One more suggestion:

Your route will likely take you through Jefferson, TX a former steamboat port up the Big Cypress River from New Orleans. If so, I highly recommend Kitt's Kornbread Sandwich and Pie Bar located downtown.

The cornbread sandwiches are absolutely delicious. Really. :)

If you have the chance, be sure to take a peek at nearby Caddo Lake:
 

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DFW_M5 said:
Well if you are into gambling, you could go through Louisiana or Oklahoma and stop at a Casino. Also, recommend staying off Houston's expressways during rush hours:LOL:

Our weather guy said last night that the humidity streaming from the gulf is about to go way up, so I definitely agree with anti-perspirant comments.
Click to expand...
No gambling, and the expressway waring is appreciated.

REWahoo said:
One more gastronomical opportunity [-]along[/-] near the suggested Google Maps route: David Beard's Catfish Village

I recommend the all-you-can-eat boneless fillets... :)
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Ate my share and then some of Ohio river catfish, so I'll leave the rest for the catfish gourmets.

JakeBrake said:
Don't forget that great Texas restaurant chain, Whataburger.:)

Just remember that the Whataburger comes with mustard. If you want mayonnaise you will have to tell them.
Click to expand...

timo2 said:
+1 on the whataburger

A good site for road trip advice is the Road Trip forum on Trip Advisor
Road Trips Forum - TripAdvisor
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I like Trip Advisor and didn't know of the road trips forum. Great tip. We'll keep whataburger in mind, although DW doesn't eat much cow.

timo2 said:
In Saint Louis. the area known as 'the hill' [in the old days it was Dago Hill] has excellent style of Italian-American food known as 'St. Louis Style Italian'. Particulars include, a specific dinner salad St. Louis Specialties - Great Plains - Chowhound , toasted ravioli TOASTED RAVIOLI, THE SECRET OF ST. LOUIS - NYTimes.com and a pizza St. Louis-style pizza - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . Also unique to the STL area is the meat ravioli (supposedly from combining Germans with Italian food) St. Louis Hill Meat Ravioli | Spectacularly Delicious

There also is a St. Louis Style BBQ St. Louis-style barbecue - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia , but while good, Memphis is better. In STL, go with the Italian food.

At the very end of this article is a section titled "Restaurants That Set the Table for St. Louis Italian and the Five Men Who Made Them Succeed" that are really classic St. Louis places. The Best Italian Restaurants in St. Louis - St. Louis Magazine - August 2012 - St. Louis, Missouri
Click to expand...
Another good idea, as I've never been in St Louis.

Alan said:
Since retiring we've never been at home in Houston in July. We'll be in France otherwise we'd have been happy to throw an alligator on the barbie and have a few brews in the ice box for you :)
Click to expand...
Wait a minute. I've seen all those warnings about Texas, and they never included gators (for example, here ). I've eaten it, never on the grill, but am very open minded when it comes to food, especially when beer is involved.
 
MichaelB said:
Wait a minute. I've seen all those warnings about Texas, and they never included gators (for example, here ). I've eaten it, never on the grill, but am very open minded when it comes to food, especially when beer is involved.
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The Texas Gulf coast definitely has its share of gators :)


A few months after we arrived I read a news item about a guy who arrived home from work and opened his garage door from within his car to find a large alligator inside. Scary thing was that he hadn't noticed it when he had left that morning.
 
REWahoo said:
One more suggestion:

Your route will likely take you through Jefferson, TX a former steamboat port up the Big Cypress River from New Orleans. If so, I highly recommend Kitt's Kornbread Sandwich and Pie Bar located downtown.

The cornbread sandwiches are absolutely delicious. Really. :)

If you have the chance, be sure to take a peek at nearby Caddo Lake:
Click to expand...

+1 on Caddo Lake. You can go to Uncertain, TX (if you can find it!) and take a paddlewheel type boat sightseeing tour of the lake. There are several local businesses that do the tours. I've spent hundreds of hours fishing on Caddo, & it's a natural beauty. I've also fished & boated miles up the Big Cypress Bayou/River, which is the main tributary feeding Caddo Lake.
 
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